Improving Ricky Kling has set his heart on completing the season at Eastbourne – despite all the early season talk he could be on his way out The young Swede insists he paid no attention to speculation he could make way for Russian champion Denis Gizatullin in the Eagles’ line-up.

And he reckons successive double-figure pay days after emerging from the shadows of fellow reserve Simon Gustafsson have done his cause a power of good.

Kling is now senior reserve, making him a key man as Eagles go to Coventry tonight (8.00) and host Peterborough tomorrow (7.30).

It was not that long ago that the 21-year-old Lakeside asset seemed a probable early-season departure as he struggled for form while Gustafsson rode like a heat leader.

Then Gustafsson suffered a broken collarbone in Sweden.

Kling has stepped up in style, with scores of paid-11 and paid-12 in recent home meetings with Swindon and Wolverhampton.

Gizatullin could still secure his work permit in the next two weeks but the chances of him replacing Kling are receding.

Not that Kling will admit to ever letting that prospect trouble him.

He said: “I don’t hear much about it because I never read newspapers.

“I read the results on the internet but that’s about it. I don’t care about the talk about who’s coming and going.

“I feel like I’m getting there so I would be disappointed to leave. I really want to stay but we will see.

“The only thing I can do is ride my best, try to get as many points as possible and focus on the next meeting.”

Gustafsson’s absence has had tangible benefits to Kling. He is first in line to get extra rides and is the man who gets the easier race if team manager Trevor Geer opts to make a reserve switch.

Take last Saturday’s defeat to Wolverhampton.

Chris Schramm only got three rides and, when a mid-meeting switch came, found himself losing the chance to take on reserve Ty Proctor in heat eight and instead going up against Polish champion Adam Skornicki in heat seven.

Not so long ago it was Kling giving way. But he would still love to see Gustafsson back.

He said: “Normally I had three rides because Simon was flying.

“We’re really good friends and it was nice for me to see him scoring well but, hopefully, not in my rides.

“Now it’s a couple of extra heats for me and more responsibility.

“If it had come earlier I would have really struggled with all those rides.

“But I was on the way up at the time he was injured and I was more ready to handle it. With him in the team we look really good.

“Schrammy is doing a job but Simon was almost going like a heat leader.”

So where do Gizatullin and his handy four-point average fit in now, if at all?

Eagles promoter Bob Dugard is keen to give him at least a trial spell and that could yet dovetail with David Norris’s absence with an arm injury.

Kling is not helped by the fact he rides for the same Polish second-tier club as Gizatullin, making it easy to compare their scores.

Dugard keeps an eye on Polish results and watches as many meetings as he can via the Polsat network.

A couple of Sundays ago Gizatullin scored 12 points from five rides to help Rybnik beat Grudziadz 58-34 while Kling managed just 3 (2).

All this while a certain Elite League promoter was watching carefully from the comfort of an armchair in Hove.

“We desperately want to have a look at Denis,” Dugard admitted.

“Ricky had a last and a win but Denis looked the best rider on show by a mile.”

Kling’s improvement at Arlington, though, has also caught Dugard’s eye and the rider himself admits there is no secret to his success.

“I didn’t do anything different,” he said. “I trusted my bikes and my set-ups because I had good meetings here last year. I really enjoy this place, this club, but it just didn’t work on the track.

“I can understand that the fans were disappointed at the start of the season. If they were disappointed with me, I can tell them it’s nothing compared to how I felt.

Eagles: Watt, Norris r/r, Bridger, Woodward, Dryml, Kling, Schramm.

Peterborough: Bjerre, Bager, Korneliusson, Zabik, Iversen, Vissing, Hansen.