SHEFFIELD went down to a 53-40 defeat at Newcastle in their latest Premier League clash on Sunday night.
Skipper Simon Stead carded a brilliant 17 score but manager Joe Screen is concerned about a lack of support for the GB star.
Said Screen: “It was a disappointing performance again to be honest – a few riders were having issues and it was the same old story.
“We are a one man show at the moment with Steady and then we just have to see what comes with it which is hugely frustrating."
Stead accounted for four of their five race winners, although he did receive some support.
Aussie racer Ty Proctor added a hard-fought 6+1 point haul – although he could not make the most of his sides’ first tactical ride in heat nine.
Former Diamond Andre Compton ended on a high with a race win after previously experiencing an evening to forget as he and Leigh Lanham conceded three 5-1s.
Reserve Simon Nielsen improved as the meeting went on, joining forces with Stead for a big 8-1 which gave them a brief glimmer of hope in the closing stages.
Taylor Poole had also battled hard for his points before pulling out of his final ride after being forced to take avoiding action when team-mate Josh Bates fell in front of him in heat eight.
Meanwhile, youngster Bates struggled to make an impact having dusted himself down from his heavy fall despite a typically determined performance, and overall the Window Centre Tigers were outclassed by their strong opponents.
They will be looking to add their first away points of the season when they travel to Peterborough on Wednesday before hosting Berwick in the Knockout Cup 24 hours later.
NEWCASTLE 53: Aaron Summers 13+1, Ludvig Lindgren 11, Danny King 10, Lewis Rose 8+3, Chris Mills 6+2, Simon Lambert 5+1, Lewis Kerr r/r.
SHEFFIELD 40: Simon Stead 17, Ty Proctor 6+1, Andre Compton 6, Simon Nielsen 5+2, Taylor Poole 3+1, Leigh Lanham 2, Josh Bates 1.
