Maximum man Steve Worrall proud of Wolves’ cup fight

The Parrys International Wolves maintained their 100 per cent home record with a 52-38 win over the Tigers on Monday. But they were narrowly beaten on aggregate 92-88 as the reigning top-flight cup holders squeezed through.

A stunning effort from the Wolfpack pushed Sheffield until the 29th race of the semi-final to seal their passage though – and Worrall says there are plenty of positives they can take into the rest of the season with their attentions now returning to the league.

“It was a big points deficit to claw back and it’s our own fault because we let it slip towards the end at Sheffield,” Worrall said. “If we’d have been able to cling on to what we had there, we’d have been able to go into heat 15 doing battle to get into that final or more than likely, we’d have already been there.

“It just wasn’t meant to be but hats off to Sheffield, over the two legs they were the better team.

“We can’t be ashamed of what we did in our home leg though; they’re tipped to be one of the favourites and to almost claw it back against a team like that in the way we did was brilliant.

“So we can’t be upset with our performance, as a team it was brilliant.”

Worrall produced one of the individual displays of the season as he finally raced his way to a five-ride paid maximum. The Merseysider had already ended his programmed rides unbeaten by an opponent on three occasions at Monmore Green this year.

But for the first time, he held his nerve in heat 15 to total 14+1 as he again demonstrated his continued growth around his home circuit.

“I usually work my way through the heats and it tends to be a big gap from my last heat, heat 10 or 11, to heat 15,” Worrall explained. “You can kind of take your eye off the ball so to speak and I always fall a bit short in heat 15.

“But I looked at it a different way, I made sure that we were well prepared and ready, we made a few little changes from my last heat knowing that the track was going to change a little bit and I just tried to keep myself ready.

“Your adrenaline can start to fade off a little bit, your body cools down but I kept myself fired up and we finally got that monkey off my back.”

The Parrys International Wolves are back at Monmore Green next Monday (June 26, 7.30) when they take on King’s Lynn in the Sports Insure Premiership.