The Dane has endured a tough time during his fifth spell as a Panthers rider but believes his fortunes are about to improve.

Bager was drafted in during April when his steady home form and good knowledge of away tracks was seen as a valuable asset in the chase for a milestone Elite League title in the club’s 40th season of racing.

But the 28 year-old has been suffering from a virus, a factor in a run of disappointing performances that have seen him drop to the bottom of the order under new green sheet averages for July.

Bager begins his stint at number six tonight when Panthers host Eastbourne (7.30pm start) in the first of four key meetings in the space of five days.

Trips to Coventry and Eastbourne follow on the next two nights before Ipswich - complete with a new-look line-up inclduing Scott Nicholls and Troy Batchelor - roll into Alwalton on Monday.

Bager said: “It is not easy trying to ride with a virus in the body as I have been doing, but I am not going to use that as an excuse for some disappointing meetings.

“There is no benefit office for speedway riders. If you want to earn, you have to ride through the injuries and the illnesses that you pick up. I had to fight on despite not feeling too well and do the best that I could.

“I feel I am getting through the virus now and my performance against Wolverhampton last Thursday was my best for a while in England.

“I scored paid six and I think I would have at least been second in heat 14 had I not been excluded when I didn’t feel I did anything wrong.

“Now I am concentrating on pushing on and scoring well in every meeting.”

Bager, who swaps places with Kenneth Hansen in the Panthers line-up from tonight, is intent on helping the city club buck a run of three successive defeats.

They dropped out of the Elite League play-off pictures in that time, but have an ideal opportunity to set out on the road to recovery tonight. Visitors Eastbourne arrive at Alwalton on the back of their own unwanted hat-trick of losses.

Bager added: “Any team that puts enough of the hard work in will always be rewarded and that is what we are all trying to do.

“No-one is ever happy when meetings are being lost, but the riders are all doing their best and it is hard to knock them when that’s the case.

“All teams are going to have a dip in form during a long season and we have to hope that ours is now behind us. We have an important run coming up and all need to be in the groove.

“We had three or four people not doing the business in the last couple of away meetings at Swindon and Lakeside - myself included. When that happens you don’t have a chance of winning and it is something we can’t let happen again.

Panthers are without Ales Dryml tonight. The Czech racer is already on his way to Latvia for a World Championship Qualifying semi-final on Saturday.