Stars working hard to strengthen team

King’s Lynn operations manager Dale Allitt insists work is continuing to bring the Stars back to a full septet – and he says positive progress is being made.Despite an encouraging run of results over recent weeks, Lynn have been reduced to just five of their regular riders with Nicolai Klindt out with neck injuries, and Tobiasz Musielak electing not to return to the UK after his own time out with collarbone and ankle trouble.With recent signing Jan Kvech having made a terrific impact, the Stars have managed to negate those problems and establish a position where a play-off push over the next two months is not out of the question.However, their options to cover for Musielak are now significantly limited as they were only granted a 28-day ‘grace period’ by the authorities for a rider who is deemed to be withholding his services.Until they sign a new rider, any guest replacement used on a match-by-match basis can only be ranked at a maximum of 75 per cent of Musielak’s average, which is a major drop.Stars were due to race for the first time under those circumstances at Sheffield last night (Thursday), and there is a pressing need for a solution if at all possible by the time they host Ipswich next Thursday.Allitt said: “It’s a very difficult situation, and we’re not the only club to have been struggling to find a rider at No.1, they just aren’t out there. “Securing guests is tricky as well, especially when there are evenings with six of the seven Premiership teams in action, and we all end up chasing the same riders. “We have largely come through that period, and Rohan Tungate did a fabulous job for us at Birmingham, but with the guests now limited at 75 per cent, it makes it even tougher.“But we aren’t giving up on the season, far from it. We showed that by bringing in Jan, who everyone loves already, and that was after we brought Nicolai back earlier in the season when we lost Vadim (Tarasenko).“We are some way down the road with bringing in a new rider, it’s not a straightforward process, but I can assure everyone we are working on it and we hope to have more news soon.” Meanwhile, former King’s Lynn rider Michael Palm Toft has secured a team place elsewhere in the Premiership with Birmingham.The Dane started the current season with the Stars but lost his place when he was on the sidelines with injury as the club moved to sign Jan Kvech. Palm Toft is now fit again and made his comeback a fortnight ago with Scunthorpe but the Stars’ issues are elsewhere in the team compared to the area in which he would slot in.The Brummies required a replacement for captain Steve Worrall who is signed off for 28 days with illness, and Palm Toft is set to make his debut when they face Sheffield at Perry Barr on Monday.