Dougie Lampkin started well in t he latest round of the Indoor Trials World Championship in Milan - but ended the night in fifth place.

Dougie (above) cleared the first section which all the other competitors failed, but after section four his luck faltered and he did not qualify for the three man finale.

"I'm not making excuses but luck is not on our side at the moment.

"Having watched nearly everyone 'five' the first section, I was really chuffed when I pulled off a clean, but ultimately I paid the price as I left the hazard with a rear puncture. I had to switch to my standard spare bike and against the odds I managed to clean the next two sections, before I switched back to my original bike."

"The distraction of swapping and changing took it's toll as I totally misjudged jumping the gap on the tyre section and ended up in a heap, and that was pretty much the story for the rest of the lap.

"I was that far off line in the final waterfall that I nearly ended up in the next city. We later found that the rear wheel was out of line as a result of one of the earlier crashes, which would explain why I could do nothing right during the later sections."

Despite the doom and gloom in 'Team Lampkin' the Silsden rider is still in a third place overall and the continued development of his new bike is expected to bear fruits in time for the outdoor championship.

The series moves to Portugal for the next round in Lisbon this weekend.

n Robin Luscombe and Les Ashby cross the Irish Sea this weekend aiming to win the second round of the Sidecar Trials Championship at Castletown, on the Isle of Man.