STEVE Worrall (pictured) is unexpectedly on his way back to Newcastle after the Diamonds were forced into eve-of-season team changes.
The late switch in personnel was forced upon Newcastle after Nike Lunna informed the club that he would be standing down from the team because of ongoing injury problems. Victor Palovaara then became an innocent victim after the Diamonds elected to re-sign the available Worrall, which necessitates a further team change in order for Newcastle to remain within the points limit. Co-promoter Martin Phillips said: "This (Nike Lunna) was obviously a massive blow to us, but we thank Nike for his honesty and we wish him well for the future."¨ "Obviously it has left a big hole in our team and when we looked at replacements we decided that to cover properly we would unfortunately have to re-adjust our thinking."¨ "To that end, I had to tell Victor Palovaara that he has become a victim of circumstances and that we could not use him in the upcoming season. It was not a decision we took lightly, but we felt it was necessary for the good of the club."¨ "However, by doing that we have managed to bring back to Brough Park the man who on three successive occasions was voted Diamond of the Year, Steve Worrall, and we are sure that his return to Brough will delight all of our supporters in our 90th Anniversary season."¨ "Obviously that still leaves us one rider short for our 2019 squad, and we are currently scouring the scene to bring in the right person to complete our septet."