2004 and the Prowlers didn’t enter the Conference League leaving Benji to find a new club. He ended up at Buxton but his average dropped by nearly a point as he struggled to get to grips with the tricky Buxton Raceway. However, he was quickly snapped up by the Scorpions as their first ever signing. Starting as a second-string he quickly became the third heat-leader and the second half of the season saw him three maximums at home whilst notching impressive double figure scores at Armadale, Rye House, Stoke and three times at King’s Lynn. He also represented the club in the Conference League Pairs with Wayne Carter at Wimbledon with the pair finishing a highly creditable fourth.
His form with the Scorpions and as a guest in the Premier League had been such that in 2006 he had a full-time berth with Sheffield in the higher league. After an impressive start, which included a maximum, Benji’s form suffered in the Premier League but if anything it was the opposite in the Conference League. He had a purple patch mid-season which saw him unbeaten by an opponent after a first race last at Mildenhall before scoring a match-winning 18+2 at Buxton, a track where he had 2+1 on each of his previous two Scorpions visits.
Outstanding contributions followed at Rye House, Weymouth and Plymouth (Trophy Final 1st leg) before rounding out the season with a couple of maximums around the Scunthorpe Raceway, including the last meeting of the season, the second leg of the Conference Trophy Final against Plymouth. In 2007 Benji is also set to ride for the Berwick Bandits in the Premier League.
