Rockets' team manager John Sampford

RYE House Rockets marked their return to their home circuit after a five-week absence with a thrilling draw against Scunthorpe Scorpions.

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While Linus Sundstrom (five) and Chris Neath (four) led the way with nine race wins between them, and Robbie Kessler and Kyle Hughes added further victories, the Rockets were left to rue their inability to capitalise on those successes, managing just three heat advantages in the form of a 5-1 and three 4-2s.

The maximum came in the opening race, as Stefan Ekberg drove past both David Howe and Viktor Bergstrom on the last bend to join partner Linus Sundstrom at the front.

Ekberg featured again two races later, being excluded by the referee for bringing down the visitors’ Carl Wilkinson in a decision that had the home supporters up in arms.

While a second win for Sundstrom in heat five helped nudge the score to 18-12, that was as good as it got for the Rockets, who were finally hauled back to level pegging when the visitors bagged a 5-1 of their own following Chris Neath’s controversial exclusion for bringing down Bergstrom in heat 11.

Rockets’ Team boss Sampford was in little doubt that the two incidents proved the turning point.

“The exclusions to Stefan and Chris were critical and quite frankly I feel we were robbed plain and simple I don’t want to go into it any further but that’s what I feel.”

Scunthorpe then briefly took the lead with a 4-2 in heat 12 as Kessler shed a chain at the start line, before Rye levelled with their own 4-2 in the next race.

Neath won that heat, with Sundstrom finishing as the middle man in an intriguing battle for second against Magnus Karlsson and David Howe.

Kyle Hughes’ never-say-die attitude ultimately saw him past Carl Wilkinson for victory on the last bend of heat 14 to keep Rye level and set up a last race decider.

Sundstrom duly won the finale from the gate, but Neath was unable to find a way past either Karlsson or Tero Aarnio as the Rockets had to settle for a single match point.

Rye have five Premier League fixtures to decide their final League position, with a top four finish winning entry to the promotion/relegation play-offs and a 5th-to-12th spot gaining a place in the Young Shield.

The three home matches are against Stoke (Bank Holiday Monday), Newport (September 11) and Glasgow (September 18).

On the road, they are at Stoke this Saturday (August 28) and, after an earlier rain-off, will now travel to Newport on Sunday, September 12.