Barry Bishop impressed by progress of Wightlink Wizards after their win over Weymouth

The Isle of Wight side picked up a 21-15 triumph against the Dorset outfit at the Smallbrook Stadium, writes Rob Dyer.

On the same night, the Wightlink Warriors delivered an impressive performance to beat the Kent Kings

The Wizards were solid, if not spectacular, with local boy Morgan Williams suffering machine problems that effectively ruled him out the evening’s racing.

Fortunately, the rules in the Development League allow other team-mates to cover these situations so Ben Ilsley and Chris Watts stepped in to ensure the Wizards were not short-handed.

And they delivered the goods to give the home side a success.

Bishop has been impressed with the development of his youngsters – and captain Ilsley in particular.

The co-promoter said: ‘It’s great to see these lads improving almost every week and the chance to give them competitive races will only speed up their progress.

‘I’ve got to say that Ben Ilsley as captain is doing a super job for the Wizards both on and off the bike.

‘I felt so sorry for Morgan, he’s super keen but bike problems wrecked his night.

‘I’m sure he’ll be OK next time. It’s not often we’ve been able to celebrate both Warriors and Wizards winning together and wow isn’t it a great feeling?’

The Wizards face Milton Keynes Knights at the Smallbrook Stadium on Thursday.