Speedway: Reading Racers hope to complete unbeaten season at Plymouth Demons

Racers’ most improved rider this season, 18-year-old Stephen Whitehouse, will lead the team.

He deputises for original team captain Luke Harris, who has missed the last matches of the season, but had already established himself as the top rider in the league, dropping just one point in five matches at the start of the campaign.

Racers were a victim of their own success earlier in the season as both Kyle Roberts, 18, and William O’Keefe at just 16, secured National League team places for a period, meaning they have rarely been able to track their preferred line up.

While Roberts got injured riding for Birmingham and has missed most of the season, O’Keefe has been one of the most frequent riders to wear the famous winged wheel race jacket in 2017. He admitted the tight Eastbourne track was not his favourite, but has proved his potential on several occasions including a seven-point haul at Somerset in August.

While Nick Laurence has only made two appearances, he has proved to be an excellent team man, and being the oldest member at 26 has tried to pass his experience on to the younger riders while also being among the top scorers on both occasions.

Racers have been indebted to many other riders throughout the season as they have drafted in other budding stars to cover unavailable squad members.

These riders have almost all been teenagers, as the Reading management have tried to adhere to the ethos of this league, and give young riders the experience they need to develop their careers.

As the close season begins, the Reading management team will start to look at formulating a team which can defend their title.

And while team managers Mat Stevens and Gene Carter look for the right riders under the watchful eye of promoters Emma Pike and Andy Griffin, their fundraiser Lorraine McClellan will be arranging a series of events to help pay for their next title tilt.