Well Peter
Sometimes the truth works better than fiction.
Just look at the Swedish S 5A which managed to shoot down a He 111 off the Swedish West Coast in 1940 (OK OK with a little help from AA-fire and loads of luck, but still...). Talk about speed difference.....
Anyway in 1943 no enemy fighters could reach Sierra Leone, so I don't believe the Fulmar boys were too worried.
Cheers
Stig