LAKESIDE went down by 14 points at Monmore Green where Wolverhampton gained a 52-38 victory - but a wretched night for the Hammers top two proved the defining factor.

A hailstorm 90 minutes prior to the start made track conditions difficult and brought contrasting performances from the visiting septet.

Andreas Jonsson suffered machine problems in his opening two rides before gaining a paid four points from his remaining two outings.

But the night proved a total nightmare for Krys Kasprzak. The Polish rider failed to complete in each of his first three rides before managing his only point of the night in a shared heat 12.

Joonas Kylmakorpi's impressive return to form continued with three wins among his 12 points tally, while Leigh Lanham showed admirable consistency with second places in each of his four rides.

Kylmakorpi won the opening race before the Wolves provided the first rider home in each of the next four races to lead 18-12.

However, a shock 5-1 by Adam Shields and reserve Ricky Kling, who overhauled home star Peter Karlsson, left the visitors trailing by just two points.

Lanham split the home pairing in the next before the excellent Kylmakorpi gated to lead the way home in heat eight.

Then successive heat advantages left Wolverhampton 34-26 in front, although the Hammers then halved the deficit when Kylmakorpi shot clear with Jonsson finally finding his touch to complete a maximum.

A shared heat 13 with Kling and Kasprzak filling the minor places behind Billy Hamill left the visitors just four points adrift, but the Wolves increased the pressure with Peter Karlsson and Lindgren comfortably warding off Jonsson and Shields.

Although Kanham divided Magnus Karlsson and Kenneth Hansen in the penultimate heat, the 4-2 was sufficient to guarantee the home side the two Elite League points.

Even then Kylmakorpi and Shields conceded a maximum in the final race of the evening.

Scorers: Wolverhampton - Peter Karlsson 11+1, rider replacement for David Howe, Billy Hamill 14+1, Magnus Karlsson 8, Fredrik Lindgren 11+1,William Lawson 3+1, Kenneth Hansen 5.

Lakeside - Andreas Jonsson 3+1, Joonas Kylmakorpi 12, Krzysztof Kasprzak 1+1, Leigh Lanham 8, Adam Shields 7,Ricky Kling 5+2, Lubos Tomicek 2.

Lakeside are in action this evening at the Arena-Essex Raceway where they entertain high-flyers Swindon in an Elite League fixture that commences at 7.45 pm.

The Robins gained a 63-29 success when the team met at Blunsdon earlier in the season.

Although the bonus point for aggregate win is probably out of reach against a side that includes former Hammers favourite and Grand Prix rider Leigh Adams, the home outfit will be anxious for their new-look team to gain the victory and accompanying two league points.