Around the Premier League Tracks 2005

[Merlin]

Monday, 27 June

Three Premier League matches were raced tonight. It was another off-race night for Newcastle as they met Rye House . Down in Devon Exeter were up against the Isle of Wight while at Smallmead Reading took on Sheffield.



Premier League: Newcastle 45, Rye House 45 Rye House won the bonus point on aggregate by 99-86


Newcastle went into this match at full strength but Rye House were without Daniel King and Steve Boxall. They used R/R for King and again promoted Barry Burchatt from their junior team to fill the vacant reserve spot.

With no heat details available the following is a report from the Newcastle Press Release about the match:

“It was a mixture of emotions for the Newcastle team with Christian Henry having his best night ever in Newcastle colours and Phil Morris having his most disappointing, whilst Rye House were happy with their team performance away from home, riding with skill and determination.

The match opened up with a 5-1 against Newcastle with Skipper Phil Morris struggling at the back with Stuart Robson taking the heat win. Rye House's Tommy Allen took the heat 2 win with Christian Henry finishing 2nd and Jamie Robertson 3rd to take the result to 4-8. In heat 3 Richard Juul fell on the first lap bend 3 with his left leg trailing round the bend and then collapsing in a heap, he was fit enough to go back to the pits after being excluded. The heat result was 3-3 making it 7-11. James Grieves won heat 4 with Jamie battling passed Tommy Allen who later fell and then was battling hard for 2nd place but couldn’t get past in enough time before the chequered flag fell to end the race.

The 4-2 result of heat 5 saw the scores equalised to 15 all with Edward Kennett suffering with spark plug problems. In heat 6 Phil Morris was excluded for going under Barry Burchatt hard, who fell heavily into and along the fence having to take a trip in the ambulance with his neck in a brace. Amazingly Burchatt was back in action 3 races later with a very brave ride....The heat ended with Rye House taking the 5-1.

Heat 7 saw Christian Henry take the heat win after a superb gate over James Grieves and Brent Werner who was on his own taking the score to 21 all. Heat 8 saw another exclusion in the form of Tommy Allen who was deemed as having impeded Jamie Robertson who fell but the race continued with Edward Kennett taking the heat win and Tomicek and Robertson getting 2nd and 3rd place. Heat 10 saw a Newcastle 4-2 turned into a Rye House 5-1 after Phil Morris was in 2nd place but his engine blew and that was his race over.
Heat 14 saw Brent Werner come out to take the R/R ride taking the win with Josef Franc and Christian Henry filling the minor places, taking the score to 42 all resulting in a last heat decider for the second week running.

That final Heat 15 saw Josef Franc, James Grieves, Chris Neath and Stuart Robson take their places. Jamaes Grieves made a fast start, with Neath and Robson following after Franc was slowly away, looking as though he was lacking power. Although he managed to wind it on by bend 2 by that time there was no catching them.
"Well, another cracking meeting!" Said George English afterwards,"Although I have to say, it will always be very hard to beat the strongest team in the League when your skipper and number 1 fails top score a point, which is exceedingly disappointing! Christian Henry had an excellent confidence boost with 4 solid and determined rides, and I would have replaced Morris with Henry in Heat 13 had he not have had to go from the inside grid where his confidence is lacking at times, otherwise Henry would have got that ride without any doubt."

(Newcastle Press Release issued on 28 June amended for textual purposes)


Scorers: For Newcastle – James Grieves 13+2 (5) (paid maximum), Josef Franc 10 (5), Christian Henry 9+1 (4), Jaimie Robertson 5+2 (5), Lubos Tomicek 5 (4), Richard Juul 3+2 (4), Phil Morris 0 (4).

For Rye House – Chris Neath 11+1 (5), Tommy Allen 10+2 (7), Stuart Robson 9+1 (5), Brent Werner 9 (5), Edward Kennett 5+1 (4), Barry Burchatt 1+1 (3).


Premier League: Exeter 50, Isle of Wight 45


Exeter were at full strength for this match against the Isle of Wight but the Islanders had former Falcon, Nick Simmons, at reserve in place of Jason Doyle. In the Premier Trophy match between these two sides at the County Ground last April the Falcons won by 14 points. It was a lot closer this time though.

The visitors took the lead in the first heat with a 2-4 from Craig Boyce and Glenn Phillips but, after a shared reserves race, Exeter took the lead with a 5-1 from Ray Morton and Toni Svab and this maximum marked the prelude to a match which swung one way then the other. Another 5-1 to the home side from Lee Smethills again and Seemond Stephens took Exeter to a six point lead at 15-9 after heat 4.

The Isle of Wight hit back with a 2-4 in heat 5, from Boyce and Phillips again, after Ray Morton had fallen to cut the lead to four points but Exeter hit back with a 5-1 from Mark Lemon and Pavel Ondrasik. Not to be outdone the Islanders scored their own 1-5 in heat 7 from Marsh and Ostergaard to cut the home side’s lead to 4 points but a 4-2 in heat 8 from Smethills and Ondrasik increased it to 6 points at 27-21.

Exeter finally put some daylight between themselves and their visitors with a 5-1 in heat 9 from Morton and Svab and Mark Lemon consolidated it by winning heat 10 for a 3-3. The inevitable TR was taken by Craig Boyce in heat 11 which he won for a 3-6 to cut the deficit to 7 points. Heat 12 was shared and heat 13 went to the Falcons by 4-2 to increase the home side’s lead to nine points – just what the Islanders needed for another throw of the TR dice - their last throw. It was Ulrich Ostergaard who took it but Toni Svab wrapped up the match by heading Ostergaard home for a 4-4. The Islanders took a last heat 1-5 from Boyce and Ostergaard to shave four points off the winning margin which may yet have a bearing on the destiny of the bonus point.

Scorers: For Exeter – Lee Smethills 12 (5), Mark Lemon 11 (4), Toni Svab 10+2 (5), Ray Morton 9 (5), Seemond Stephens 5+2 (4), Pavel Ondrasik 3+1 (4), Ben Barker 0 (3).

For Isle of Wight – Craig Boyce 17 (5) including a 6 point TR, Ulrich Ostergaard 11+2 (5) including a 4 point TR, Krister Marsh 6+1 (4), Nick Simmons 4+2 (4), Steen Jensen 4 (5), Glenn Phillips 2 (3), Tomas Suchanek 1 (4).


Premier League: Reading 56, Sheffield 37 Sheffield won the bonus point on aggregate by 97- 91


Reading continued to use R/R for Steve Masters but otherwise were at full strength while Sheffield had Emil Kramer as a guest for Sean Wilson and used R/R for Richard hall. Although they lost the bonus point to the Tigers, Reading at last had a comfortable home win after their recent struggles round their own track.

Sheffield’s guest, Emil Kramer, won the opening heat but Reading took the reserves race 4-2 then added a 5-1 from Richard Wolff and Zdenek Simota. Matej Zagar won heat 4 to share the heat which made the heat 4 score 15-9.

Heats 5 and 6 were shared but Sheffield fell further behind in heat 7 when Matej zagar won the race with Chris Johnson third for a 4-2. In heat 8 Appleton and Tressarieu took a 5-1 to make the heat 8 score 30-18.

In heat 9 Andre Compton took a TR and beat Wolff and Simota for a 3-6 to reduce the deficit to nine points at 33-24. Reading were not about to surrender however and struck with three consecutive 5-1s. The 5-1 in heat 11 was particularly unfortunate for Sheffield because the unbeaten Emil Kramer was on a TR and was excluded for tape touching. The score after heat 12 was 48-27, a 21 point lead for Reading, who needed to win by 26 points to take the bonus point. A 1-5 from Kramer and Compton in heat 13 ahead of Matej Zagar all but ended their hopes but they hit back with a 5-1 of their own in heat 14 from Wolff and Tressarieu (Tressarieu’s fifth bonus point of the meeting!) to restore their 21 point lead which put them two points ahead needing a 5-1 to force a run-off for the bonus point. There was no happy ending for the Racers as Emil Kramer chalked up his fourth heat win from five races beating Matej Zagar again. Andre Compton took third for a Sheffield 2-4 and the bonus point headed its way back up to Sheffield.

Scorers: For Reading – Mathieu Tressarieu 12+5 (7), Richard Wolff 12+1 (6), Matej Zagar 12 (5), Andrew Appleton 11 (5), Zdenek Simota 7+3 (5), Chris Johnson 2 (3).

For Sheffield – Andre Compton 13+1 (5) including a 6 point TR, Emil Kramer 12 (5), Kyle Legault 7 (7), Ben Wilson 4+2 (6), Ricky Ashworth 1 (4), Paul Cooper 0 (4).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 29 June

It was back to the KO Cup tonight but only two of the three scheduled matches took place. At Hull the Vikings were due to meet Glasgow in an attempt to pull back a 22 point deficit but the match was rained off early in the morning. Hull would be relieved since their injury list was piling up. At King’s Lynn the Stars faced Newcastle with 17 points to pull back from the first leg while at Berwick the Bandits had a rare Wednesday night meeting against fellow Saturday-nighters Stokewith a much simpler task. The Bandits already had a 6 point lead from the first leg match at Stoke.



Premier League KO Cup (first round, second leg): King’s Lynn 58, Newcastle 32 King’s Lynn go through to the second round on aggregate by 94-85.


King’s Lynn paraded their new look side for the first time at home in their quest to pull back the 17 points from the first leg at Newcastle. The Stars had Jan Jaros back in the line up and Matthew Wethers made his home debut. Newcastle were at full strength for the match.

A maximum 5-1 start for King’s Lynn looked like they might have an easy passage through to the next round but Christian Henry won the reserves race for a Newcastle 2-4 then wins for Josef franc and Oliver Allen resulted in shared heats for a heat 4 score of 13-11.

In heat 5 the Stars pulled two more points back with a 4-2 from Kevin Doolan and Matthew Wethers then a 5-1 in heat 6 from Tomas Topinka who saw off James Grieves saw the Stars only 9 points behind on aggregate. Oliver Allen won heat 7 and, with Troy Batchelor just holding off Josef Franc for third place, King’s Lynn got closer to their target with a 4-2. In heat 8 Lubos Tomicek steadied Newcastle by passing, firstly, Ashley Jones, then Jan Jaros for a shared heat to take the score to 29-19. But a 5-1 to the home side in heat 9 from Kevin Doolan and Matthew Wethers, who got the better of James Grieves in an excellent race, took the interval score to 34-20 and aggregate score to 70-73. It was clear that Newcastle would have to up their game if they were to stand any chance of winning through.

They started with a shared heat in heat 10 won by Josef Franc but the roof caved in for the Diamonds in heats 11, 12 and 13 all of which resulted in 5-1s to the Stars. Allen and Batchelor did the business in heat in heat 11 heading home Lubos Tomicek after Christian Henry, who had been warned by the referee for moving at the start, touched the tapes and was excluded. In heat 12 Troy Batchelor, out again, and Matthew Wethers added another maximum from Henry and Juul then in heat 13 it was Oliver Allen and Tomas Topinka who beat James Grieves and Phil Morris, the latter taking his third pointless ride. These three heats took the score to 52-26 and King’s Lynn led by 88-79 on aggregate. With the match won the last two heats were shared with wins for Josef Franc and Tomas Topinka.

King’s Lynn announced that Matthew Wethers, who had been on a ‘trial’ period, had been signed for the rest of the season after his two excellent displays against Workington away and tonight.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Tomas Topinka 12+2 (5), Oliver Allen 12 (4) (full maximum), Kevin Doolan 10 (4), Troy Batchelor 9+2 (6), Ashley Jones 7+3 (4), Matthew Wethers 6+3 (4), Jan Jaros 2 (3).

For Newcastle – Josef Franc 10+1 (5), Lubos Tomicek 9 (5), James Grieves 5 (4), Christian Henry 4 (4), Richard Juul 2 (4), Jaimie Robertson 2+1 (5), Phil Morris 0 (3).



Premier League KO Cup (first round, second leg): Berwick 56, Stoke 34 Berwick go through to the second round on aggregate by 104-76.


There was never much doubt that Berwick would sail through to the next round after their six point win at Stoke in the first leg. The Bandits who are in fine form at the moment were at full strength while Stoke had Theo Pijper as a guest for Jan Staechmann. They also used R/R for Peter Carr and had Luke Priest at number 7 with Jack Hargreaves out injured.

It didn’t take long for Berwick to put this tie well and truly beyond Stoke. Indeed they had their ticket for the next round by the end of heat 11 when they led on aggregate by 89-67. The opening heat, won by Adrian Rymel, was shared but Berwick’s strong reserve pair of Scott Smith and Carl Wilkinson made their presence felt with a 5-1 in heat 2. In heat 3 Alan Mogridge touched the tapes and had to go from 15 metres back. Pietraszko and Madsen took a 4-2 as did Makovsky and Wilkinson in heat 4 and Pietraszko and Madsen again in heat 5 as Berwick sauntered into a ten point lead at 20-10.

Theo Pijper became Stoke’s first race winner beating Adrian Rymel in heat 6 and Alan Mogridge became the second in heat 7 beating Scott Smith. With no support from their team mates both heats were shared. In heat 8 Chris Schramm and Carl Wilkinson added another 4-2 to take the heat 8 score to 30-18. Theo Pijper won again in heat 9 ending Adam Pietrasko’s maximum hopes. This time with Barrie Evans beating Tom P Madsen there was support and Stoke took their one and only heat advantage of the night by 2-4.

Berwick upped a gear after that and took two 5-1s and two 4-2s over the next four heats which raced the score onto 50-28. Robbie Kessler had been due to take the R/R ride in heat 13 but withdrew feeling unwell. Heat 14 was shared as Adam Pietraszko retired as was the last heat won by Michal Makovsky with Adrian Rymel relegated to last place by Theo Pijper and Alan Mogridge.

Scorers: For Berwick – Michal Makovsky 13+1 (5), Scott Smith 10+1 (4), Adrian Rymel 10+1 (5), Adam Pietraszko 8 (4), Carl Wilkinson 7+1 (4), Chris Schramm 5+1 (4), Tom P Madsen 3 (4)

For Stoke – Theo Pijper 11 (6), Alan Mogridge 8+1 (6), Paul Clews 5+1 (5), Robbie Kessler 5 (4), Barrie Evans 4 (6), Luke Priest 1+1 (3)

[Merlin]

Thursday, 30 June

There was the usual Premier League action tonight at Sheffield where this week’s visitors were the Isle of Wight .



Premier League: Sheffield 50, Isle of Wight 45


For Sheffield this week’s guest for the injured Sean Wilson was Robbie Kessler. The Tigers again used R/R for the injured Richard Hall at number 4. The Isle of Wight were at full strength. It was in the corresponding KO Cup fixture a month ago that Sean Wilson dislocated his shoulder as the Islanders kept the score tight until late on even though they were denied the use of TRs or a TS. For the second time in a month Sheffield found themselves with a real fight on their hands against the Islanders.

Again the Isle of Wight kept the score close in the early stages. The first three heats were all shared and it wasn’t until heat 4 that Sheffield hit the front. In that heat, Andre Compton beat Steen Jensen with Tomas Suchanek, rather ominously for the Islanders, being passed by Kyle Legault for a Sheffield 4-2 which made the heat 4 score 13-11.

The Isle of Wight levelled again with a 2-4 in a rerun heat 5 when Craig Boyce outpaced Ricky Ashworth after Ben Wilson had fallen and been excluded. Sheffield replied with a 5-1 in heat 6 from Robbie Kessler and Paul Cooper ahead of the weak looking Isle of Wight third pairing of Doyle and Suchanek. Ulrich Ostergaard won heat 7 from Andre Compton and Ben Wilson to share the points then the visitors hit back with another 2-4 in heat 8 when Steen Jensen beat Paul Cooper with Glenn Phillips third. This meant that the score after heat 8 was 25-23 and a tight match looked in prospect.

Sheffield scored a 5-1 in heat 9 again against the weak Suchanek/Doyle pairing to give the Tigers some breathing space with a six point lead before the interval. After the interval in heat 10, the impressive Ulrich Ostergaard scored his second successive race win ahead of Robbie Kessler and Paul Cooper who had his work cut out to keep Krister Marsh at the back for a shared heat. In heat 11 Andre Compton beat Craig Boyce to end Boyce’s maximum hopes. With Ben Wilson taking the third place point from Glenn Phillips, Sheffield took a 4-2 to stretch their lead to eight points. In heat 12 Steen Jensen replaced Krister Marsh but fell and was excluded. In the rerun Ricky Ashworth won the heat and Kyle Legault passed Jason Doyle for a 5-1 which put the Islanders 12 behind at 42-30 with just three heats to go.

It came as no surprise when Craig Boyce was nominated for a TR in heat 13 and he won it too for the full six points. However, Compton and Kessler filled the minor places so the Isle of Wight took a 3-6 to cut the gap conveniently to nine points at 45-36, just the correct maths to allow Ulrich Ostergaard to take a second TR in heat 14.

What a shock was in store for Sheffield in this highly eventful penultimate heat. Ben Wilson, who was winning the heat, collided with Ulrich Ostergaard on the fourth bend. Wilson was excluded and the race was awarded. Since Ricky Ashworth had suffered an engine failure this meant that the Islanders won the heat 0-8 and had closed the gap to one point at 45-44 with one heat to go. All’s well that ends well as far as Sheffield were concerned. Craig Boyce had an engine failure on the first lap of heat 15 as Andre Compton and Ricky Ashworth took a 5-1 ahead of Ulrich Ostergaard for a five point win. However, the Isle of Wight will again fancy their chances of winning the bonus point when the teams meet again on the Island.

Scorers: For Sheffield – Ricky Ashworth 13+1 (6), Andre Compton 13 (5), Robbie Kessler 8+1 (4), Ben Wilson 7+2 (6), Paul Cooper 6+2 (5), Kyle Legault 3+1 (4).

For the Isle of Wight – Ulrich Ostergaard 15 (5) including a 6 point TR, Craig Boyce 14 (5) including a 6 point TR, Steen Hensen 8+2 (5), Jason Doyle 4 (4), Glenn Phillips 2 (4), Krister Marsh 1+1 (3), Tomas Suchanek 1 (4).

[Merlin]

Friday, 1 July

With the match at Somerset , where Hull were due to face the Rebels, postponed as a result of a waterlogged track the only Premier League action tonight was at Edinburgh where Sheffield were the visitors.


Premier League: Edinburgh 45, Sheffield 43


It was a weakened Edinburgh side which faced Sheffield at Armadale in this Premier League match. The Monarchs were without Ross Brady and had to use R/R for him at number 2. They were also without David McAllan who was unwell and had Blair Scott at number 7 instead. Sheffield had George Stancl as a guest for Sean Wilson at number 1 and used R/R for Richard hall at number 4.

Sheffield must be kicking themselves for blowing their chance of a rare win at Armadale. They had a guest for Sean Wilson who scored a five ride maximum and met a Monarchs side which turned in its worst performance of the season albeit with a weakened team. If ever Ross Brady’s value to the Edinburgh team was in doubt, tonight’s performance from the starts showed how vulnerable they are without his gating ability. George Stancl will rarely score such an untroubled maximum and Sheffield will surely reflect that they provided no fewer than 10 of the 15 race winners yet still lost.

It was George Stancl who sailed off into the distance for the first of his five wins in the opening heat which was shared before Sheffield took the lead in heat two thanks to another fast start, this time from Kyle Legault. With Paul Cooper fending off the attentions of Blair Scott for third place the Tigers took a 2-4. Their lead was short lived though. In heat 3 Daniel Nermark and Cameron Woodward soon found their way past the fast-starting Ricky Ashworth for a 5-1 to put the Monarchs ahead by two points. Another fast start by Andre Compton was good enough for another shared heat as Blair Scott this time beat Paul Cooper for third place. The score after four heats was 13-11.

George Stancl took his second win in heat 5 for a shared heat after being briefly headed by Cameron Woodward and Andre Compton did likewise in heat 6 also for a shared heat, both wins coming from fast starts which left the home men for dead. At this stage Sheffield had provided the race winner of five of the first six heats. In heat 7 Kyle Legault fell on the third bend and was excluded. In the rerun Rusty Harrison ended the Sheffield run by powering round Ricky Ashworth on the first two bends and with Blair Scott also driving round Ashworth a home 5-1 looked a certainty. However Scott shed a chain on the fourth bend just before entering the last lap and Ashworth had a reprieve picking up two gift points for a 3-2. In heat 8 Edinburgh finally put some distance between themselves and their visitors with a 5-1 from Daniel Nermark and William Lawson after Ben Wilson did a full circle on the second bend under pressure from Lawson. The score after eight heats was 27-20.

In heat 9 Daniel Nermark, attempting to round Andre Compton on the first bend, straightened and shot across the bend dumping Cameron Woodward into the fence. Although Woodward remounted he had no chance of catching Kyle Legault and the race win for Compton gave Sheffield a 2-4 which cut Edinburgh’s lead to 5 points. It was back to seven though after heat 10. Another dreadful start from the Edinburgh pair of Pijper and Woodward left Sheffield, not for the first time, sitting on a 1-5 coming off the opening bends. However Pijper hunted down Ricky Ashworth and Woodward passed Wilson for a home 4-2. George Stancl had no problem with a tapes to flag victory in heat 11 for a shared heat then Sheffield pulled two points back again in heat 12 when Ricky Ashworth beat Cameron Woodward who had managed to pass Kyle Legault as Sheffield again sat on a 1-5 from the tapes. The 4-2 cut the lead to 5 points again and Edinburgh could sense trouble with Stancl and Compton, both with 9 points from three races, due out in heat 13 and, almost certainly, heat 15.

Theo Pijper put a spoke in Sheffield’s works by taking second place in heat 13 after losing out in a challenge on George Stancl but Andre Compton passed a lacklustre Rusty Harrison for a 2-4 which cut the gap to three points at 40-37. Heat 14 was always going to be crucial for both sides. Yet again Sheffield were in a 1-5 position from the tapes but Daniel Nermark passed both Sheffield riders for a fine race win. Disappointingly for Edinburgh William Lawson could make no impression at the back so Edinburgh faced the last race three points to the good at 40-37.

As in heat 13, Theo Pijper made a decent start to challenge George Stancl but Stancl sooned pulled away for the win. At the back Daniel Nermark and Andre Compton clashed and Nermark’s cut-out became dislodged ending his challenge. However Compton, too, soon became a non-finisher when his bike packed up towards the end of the second lap although it was highly unlikely he would have been able to make up the lost ground on Theo Pijper for the 1-5 Sheffield needed for the win.

Scorers: For Edinburgh – Daniel Nermark 13 (6), Theo Pijper 11 (5), William Lawson 7+4 (6), Rusty Harrison 7 (4), Cameron Woodward 6+2 (5), Blair Scott 1+1 (4).

For Sheffield – George Stancl 15 (5) (full maximum), Andre Compton 10 (5), Ricky Ashworth 10 (5), Kyle Legault 6+1 (6), Paul Cooper 2 (4), Ben Wilson 0 (5).

[Merlin]

Saturday, 2July

There was action at four Premier League tracks tonight. The match at Workington where the Comets faced Exeter was the first leg of the semi-final of the Premier Trophy in which Rye House await the winners of this tie in the final. In the Premier League three matches were raced. For all the teams racing tonight the July averages kicked in so there were a number of changes to the teams’ line-ups. The Premier League matches were at Berwick where the Bandits were at home to Glasgow ; at Stoke where the Potters met Newport; and at Rye House where the Rockets took on Reading .



Premier Trophy (semi-final, first leg): Workington 60, Exeter 31


It was a revamped Workington team which took on Exeter in this semi-final match. Curiously Workington had lost a few weeks ago at Exeter in a league match by 29 points so this 29 point win suggests that the second leg at Exeter on Monday could be a cliff-hanger. Workington moved Carl Stonehewer to number 5 and used R/R for Kauko Nieminen at number 1. James Wright moved into the body of the team at number 3 and Kevin Little, out with a broken collarbone, was due to move to reserve. The Comets had Craig Branney as a guest for him at number 7 and gave the number 6 spot this week to Lee Derbyshire. Exeter used R/R for Seemond Stephens, out with an injured knee, at number 3.

Workington had an unfortunate start when Shaun Tacey fell in heat one but Carl Stonehewer won the race for a shared heat. They were behind though after heat 2 when Pavel Ondrasik won the reserves race from Craig Branney with Ben Barker third for a 2-4. The Comets levelled in heat three through James Wright and Scott Robson after Ray Morton had fallen then Carl Stonehewer won again in heat 4 for a shared heat and the score after heat 4 was 12-12 with Exeter providing stiff resistance.

In heat 5 Wright and Robson took a 5-1 ahead of Mark Lemon to put Workington in front. Two shared heats followed before Tacey and Branney doubled the Comets lead with another 5-1 to make the score after heat 8 28-20. Then Exeter’s resistance collapsed. They lost each of the next three heats by the 5-1 margin as both James Wright and Carl Stonehewer continued their unbeaten run. In heat 10 Ray Morton had taken a TR but finished behind Shaun Tacey and Scott Robson for a 5-2. Then in heat 11 Mark Lemon took a TR but blew it when he retired from the race. The score at the interval, after heat 11, was 43-24, a 19 point lead for the home side.

After the interval Workington kept the pressure up with a 4-2 in heat 12 from Wright and Derbyshire after Ray Morton had an engine failure. Another home 5-1 materialised in heat 13 from Stonehewer and Tacey ahead of Lemon but heat 14, won by Craig Branney, was shared. In heat 15 James Wright completed his full six ride maximum and Carl Stonehewer his paid six ride maximum as the home side finished with another 5-1 from Barker and Ondrasik, the Exeter reserves, after Mark Lemon had been excluded under the two minute rule.

Scorers: For Workington – James Wright 18 (6) (paid maximum), Carl Stonehewer 17+1 (6) (paid maximum), Craig Branney 9+2 (5), Shaun Tacey 8+1 (5), Scott Robson 7+3 (5), Lee Derbyshire 1 (3).

For Exeter – Pavel Ondrasik 9 (6), Lee Smethills 5+1 (5), Ray Morton 5+1 (5), Toni Svab 4+2 (5), Ben Barker 4+1 (5), Mark Lemon 4 (4).



Premier League: Berwick 54, Glasgow 40 Berwick won the bonus point on aggregate by 102-86.


This match was over before it had begun. Berwick were left to face a five man Glasgow side, two of whom were inexperienced reserves. The Tigers were rocked when new young Danish sensation, Leon Madsen, returned home to Denmark without having turned a wheel for the Glasgow side. Glasgow had proposed to re-introduce Trent Leverington into the side since they were also without Stefan Ekberg (riding in the Swedish National Championships) but the referee refused permission under the rules. As a result, the Tigers had no rider at number 2 and used R/R at number 3. Another new signing, Adam Roynon, made his debut at number 6 but with only five riders there was no way Glasgow could beat a full strength Berwick side for whom Scott Smith moved into the team at number 4 with Adam Pietraszko filling the number 6 spot. Nevertheless Glasgow ran the Bandits a lot closer than might have been expected.

Heat 1 was one of three heats where the Tigers were only able to track one rider. Adrian Rymel beat George Stancl for an opening 4-2 to Berwick. All eyes were focussed on the young Glasgow pair at reserve in heat 2 but with Adam Pietraszko suffering an engine failure with the Bandits on a 5-1 they shared the heat. Out came Stancl again in heat 3 as a R/R and he won the heat for another share of the points. Shane Parker won heat 4 also for a 3-3 and the score after heat 4 was 13-11.

George Stancl made his third appearance in heat 5 but was beaten by Scott Smith for a Berwick 4-2 in another three rider race. Shane Parker was back out in heat 5 and won it for a shared heat. However the Tigers could not keep fielding Parker and Stancl forever. In heat 7 Berwick took a 5-1 through Makovsky and Pietraszko ahead of former-Bandit Kristensen and followed it in heat 8 with a 4-2 from a Chris Schramm victory from James Cockle in a rerun heat 8. George Stancl was in the first running of this heat as a Tactical Substitute from 15 metres back but when Schramm crashed into the fence after Stancl had passed him the referee excluded the Glasgow man from the rerun. The heat 8 score was 29-19.

In heat 9 it was Shane Parker’s turn to take a TR which he duly won. At the back Adam Roynon held off Tom P Madsen for the third place point so Glasgow scored a 2-7 to claw back five points off the lead at 31-26, still very much in the hunt. The fight back was effectively ended in heat 10 when Kristensen took his partner, James Cockle, wide causing him to fall with the Glasgow pair leading from the start. In the rerun Kristensen could only follow Rymel and Schramm home for a 5-1 which saw the Bandits pull out a nine point lead at 36-27.

Stancl won heat 11 for another shared heat in a three rider race then Claus Kristensen took a TR in heat 12. It only brought one extra point as Kristensen finished third to Pietraszko and Smith for a Berwick 5-2. Glasgow had some belated success with a 2-4 from Parker and Stancl in heat 13 with Makovsky separating the two Glasgow riders. Heat 14 produced another 5-1 to Berwick from Pietraszko and Smith over Roynon and Kristensen then Shane Parker won heat 15 for a personal triumph of a five ride 18 point maximum, TR and all! Stancl finished last so the heat was shared but a 40 point total was quite an achievement for Glasgow with such limited resources.

Scorers: For Berwick – Michal Makovsky 10+1 (5), Adrian Rymel 10 (5), Adam Pietraszko 9+2 (5), Scott Smith 9+1 (4), Chris Schramm 7+2 (4), Carl Wilkinson 7+2 (4), Tom P Madsen 2+1 (3).

For Glasgow – Shane Parker 18 (5) (full maximum) including a 6 point TR, George Stancl 11 (7), Claus Kristensen 4 (5) including a 2 point TR, James Cockle 4 (5), Adam Roynon 3+1 (6).



Premier League: Stoke 55, Newport 38 Stoke won the bonus point on aggregate by 103-84


Having won in Wales earlier in the season, Stoke were hoping to complete the double tonight over Newport . The Potters this week had Glenn Cunningham as a guest replacement for Jan Staechmann and used R/R at number 1 for Peter Carr. Luke Priest continued at number 7 for Jack Hargreaves. Newport had James Grieves as a guest for Craig Watson and used R/R at number 2. Tony Atkin moved into the team a number 3 while new signing Lee Dicken made his debut at number 6.

Newport made a match of it over the opening heats. Mads Korneliussen won the first heat for a 3-3 and Barrie Evans won the reserves race for a similar result. Stoke took the lead with a 5-1 in heat 3 from Mogridge and Clews over Korneliussen but Newport got two points back with a 2-4 from James Grieves and Karlis Ezergailis after Glenn Cunningham had pulled out with engine trouble. The score after heat 4 was 13-11.

Mogridge won heats 5 and 6 and was supported by his partners, Clews and Kessler, as Stoke scored two 5-1s to stretch the lead to 23-13. The next two heats were shared so the heat 8 score was 29-19. Alan Mogridge continued on his winning ways in heat 9. With Clews finishing behind James Grieves, Stoke took a 4-2 and followed it with a 5-1 from Cunningham and Kessler in heat 10 to stretch the lead to 16 points at 38-22. In heat 11 Newport finally gave a TR to Mads Korneliussen but he could only finish second to Glenn Cunningham for a 4-4. In heat 12 Tony Atkin was next to try a TR but it would have been better if it had been given to Lee Dicken who won the heat from Paul Clews. However Tony Atkin did finish third so Newport scored a 2-5. Mads Korneliussen won heat 13 but with Grieves at the back the heat was shared. Stoke then scored a 5-1 in heat 14 as Mogridge had his fifth win of the night. He followed it with his sixth win in heat 15, which was shared, for a full 18 point toll.


Scorers: For Stoke – Alan Mogridge 18 (6) (full maximum), Robbie Kessler 12+4 (6), Glenn Cunningham 11 (5), Paul Clews 8+3 (5), Barrie Evans 6+1 (4), Luke Priest 2 (4).

For Newport – Mads Korneliussen 13 (5) including a 4 point TR, Tony Atkin 7+2 (6) including a 2 point TR, James Grieves 6 (4), Lee Dicken 5+2 (7), Neil Collins 4 (4), Karlis Ezergailis 3 (4).




Premier League: Rye House 57, Reading 36


[Report to follow]


Scorers: For Rye House – Tommy Allen 13+2 (7), Chris Neath 12+1 (5), Brent Werner 12+1 (5), Edward Kennett 10+2 (5), Stuart Robson 8+1 (4), Steve Boxall 2+1 (4).

For Reading – Mathieu Tressarieu 12+1 (6) including a 6 point TR, Zdenek Simota 7 (6), Andrew Appleton 6+2 (5) including a 2 point TR, Richard Wolff 6 (6), Paul Thorp 4+1 (4), Chris Johnson 1+1 (3).

(Report by Candyman)

[Merlin]

Sunday, 3 July

The three Sunday tracks all hosted Premier League action today. At Newport the Wasps were attempting to complete the double over Workington while Newcastle met King’s Lynn . Up at Glasgow the Tigers were at home to the Isle of Wight .



Premier League: Newport 48, Workington 42 Newport won the bonus point on aggregate by 97-85.


Newport created one of the shock results last May when they won at Workington . Today they had the opportunity to complete the double and take the bonus point by beating the Comets again. This week’s guest for Craig Watson was Stuart Robson while Newport continue to use R/R for Michael Coles at number 2. Workington used R/R for the injured Kauko Nieminen at number 1 and had two guest reserves. Pavel Ondrasik was at number 7 for the injured Kevin Little while the ‘revolving’ number 6 reserve position was this time filled by Rye House youngster Barry Burchatt.

After sharing the opening heat it was Workington who struck first with a 2-4 in heat 2 thanks to a Pavel Ondrasik win. James Wright became the third Workington race winner in heat 3 but Scott Robson had an engine failure so the heat was shared. It was all square after heat 4 which was delayed by a swarm of Wasps attacking the Workington side (some promoters will try anything for a win!). Stuart Robson beat Carl Stonehewer with Lee Dicken third for a 4-2 which made the heat 4 score 12-12.

Newport took the lead for the first time in heat 5 with a 5-1 from Neil Collins and Tony Atkin and, although Carl Stonehewer won heat 6, a shared heat kept them four points in front. Workington levelled the match with a 1-5 in heat 7 when James Wright and Scott Robson kept Stuart Robson back in third place and Shaun Tacey became the sixth Workington race winner in heat 8 which was shared. The score after heat 9 was 24-24 with all to race for.

Newport were back in front in heat 9 when Neil Collins beat Carl Stonehewer with Tony Atkin third for a 4-2 and a two point lead. Mads Korneliussen kept that lead by winning heat 10 but the Wasps doubled their lead with another 4-2 in heat 11 when Stuart won the battle of the Robson brothers with Lee Dicken third. Heat 12 was won by James Wright but there was no support for him so the four point gap remained. The score was now 35-31.

Finally Newport put some distance between themselves and the Comets with a big 5-1 in heat 13 thanks to Mads Korneliussen and Stuart Robson over Carl Stonehewer to make the score 43-35 with two heats to go. Lee Dicken produced the necessary two points to guarantee a Newport win in heat 14 which was won by Scott Robson after Neil Collins had suffered an engine failure. Carl Stonehewer won heat 15 but with James Wright finishing last the result was 3-3 and a 6 point win for Newport.

Scorers: For Newport – Mads Korneliussen 11+1 (5), Stuart Robson 11+1 (5), Tony Atkin 8+2 (5), Lee Dicken 8+2 (7), Neil Collins 8 (4), Karlis Ezergailis 2+2 (4).

For Workington – Carl Stonehewer 14 (6), James Wright 10+1 (6), Scott Robson 9+1 (5), Shaun Tacey 4 (5), Pavel Ondrasik 4 (5), Barry Burchatt 1 (3).



Premier League: Newcastle 58, King’s Lynn 38


After a draw and a one point win in their last two home matches Newcastle had a much easier time of it tonight against King’s Lynn . The teams were at full strength with Josef Franc moving to number one in the Newcastle team as a result of the new averages while for King’s Lynn, Matthew Wethers moved to reserve with Jan Jaros now berthed in the main body of the team.

King’s Lynn could hardly have started worse! They lost the opening three heats by 5-1 then lost Matthew Wethers in heat 4 when he fell and had to go to hospital with shoulder and neck injuries. At least they took two points from this heat thanks to Oliver Allen who finished second to James Grieves. The score after heat 4 was 19-5.

The Stars then got to grips with the match. Tomas Topinka took a TR in heat 5 and won it for a 3-6 to reduce the Newcastle lead to 11 points. Wins for Oliver Allen and James Grieves both for shared heats kept it that way but Newcastle scored a 4-2 in heat 8 from Jaimie Robertson and Lubos Tomicek split by Troy Batchelor to take the score to 32-19.

In heat 9 Oliver Allen took a TR and he, too, won that from Phil Morris and Richard Juul for another 3-6 to pull the Diamonds’ lead back to 10 points at 35-25. Heats 10 and 11 were shared with wins for Lubos Tomicek then James Grieves. Christian Henry fell and was injured in heat 11. In heat 12 Newcastle effectively sealed a win with a 5-1 from Richard Juul and the on-fire Jaimie Robertson ahead of Jan Jaros. The score was now 46-32.

King’s Lynn’s last act of defiance came in heat 13 won by Tomas Topinka from Josef Franc with Oliver Allen taking third place by keeping the previously unbeaten James Grieves at the back. Unfortunately for the Stars, Newcastle exacted dreadful revenge for this act of impudence by winning all three of the remaining heats by 5-1 to stretch the winning margin to 20 points.

Scorers: For Newcastle – Phil Morris 13 (5), Jaimie Robertson 12+4 (6), James Grieves 9 (4), Lubos Tomicek 9 (4), Richard Juul 7+3 (4), Josef Franc 5+2 (4), Christian Henry 3 (3).

For King’s Lynn – Oliver Allen 12 (4) including a 6 point TR, Tomas Topinka 11 (5) including a 6 point TR, Kevin Doolan 6+1 (5), Jan Jaros 4+1 (4), Troy Batchelor 3 (6), Ashley Jones 2+1 (4), Matthew Wethers 0 (2).



Premier League: Glasgow 46, Isle of Wight 44


After an eventful week which saw them win the Pairs Championship then sign and lose Leon Madsen Glasgow returned home from a traumatic night at Berwick where they could only field five riders to take on the Isle of Wight . Glasgow without Madsen had to use Conference League guest, Sean Stoddart, at number two and had Adam Roynon making his home debut at number 6. The Isle of Wight were at full strength.

With three young, inexperienced riders in the side, Glasgow were expected to struggle but they triumphed in the face of their adversity. Craig Boyce won the opening heat but the points were shared as Steen Jensen pulled out with engine trouble. The islanders took the lead in heat 2 when the highly impressive Jason Doyle beat an equally impressive Adam Roynon in heat 2 with Glenn Phillips third for a 2-4. Then Glasgow struck two timely blows with an Ekberg/Kristensen 5-1 in heat 3 and a Parker/Cockle 5-1 in heat 4 to give Glasgow a six point lead with a score of 15-9.

The next four heats were all shared with wins from Boyce, Stancl, Parker and Phillips so that Glasgow were still six points ahead after 8 heats at 27-21. Then the match took an unexpected turn when Stefan Ekberg fell in heat 9 and Jason Doyle and Tomas Suchanek relegated Claus Kristensen to third place for a 1-5 which closed the gap to two points at 31-29. George Stancl won heat 10 to keep it that way but Glasgow doubled their lead with a 4-2 when Shane Parker beat Craig Boyce in heat 11 with Adam Roynon beating the unimpressive Steen Jensen. Most fans were wondering why, after such a dismal display, Steen Jensen wasn’t replaced by Jason Doyle in this heat but Glasgow weren’t complaining as the score moved on to 35-31.

It was back to a two point gap after heat 12 when Jason Doyle showed the islanders team manager the error of his ways by winning the heat from Stefan Ekberg. With Krister Marsh finishing third the Isle of Wight scored a 2-4. Craig Boyce split the Parker/Stancl pairing in heat 13 to limit Glasgow’s success to a 4-2 which put the Tigers four up again. To the astonishment of many fans again Jason Doyle was not given an extra ride in heat 14 when they desperately needed an advantage. Although Ulrich Ostergaard did his bit Adam Roynon and Claus Kristensen took the minor places in a very tight finish for the shared heat which kept Glasgow four points ahead going into the last race. Craig Boyce got a flyer from the tapes in heat 15 to win the race from Shane Parker while George Stancl pulled out with a puncture for a 2-4 to the Islanders who were one point short of the total they needed for a draw.

This was a great result for Glasgow given their problems but the Isle of Wight might just be asking a few questions of their team manager about his decision not to utilise Jason Doyle to greater advantage.

Scorers: For Glasgow – Shane Parker 14 (5), George Stancl 8+1 (5), Stefan Ekberg 7 (4), Claus Kristensen 5+3 (4), Adam Roynon 5 (4), Sean Stoddart 4 (4), James Cockle 3+2 (4).

For the Isle of Wight – Craig Boyce 13 (5), Jason Doyle 10+1 (4), Ulrich Ostergaard 8+1 (5), Glenn Phillips 5 (4), Tomas Suchanek 4+1 (4), Krister Marsh 4+1 (4), Steen Jensen 0 (4).

[Merlin]

Monday, 4 July

The two Monday tracks were in action tonight. At Exeter the Falcons were at home to Newcastle while at Reading the Racers met Workington , both matches in the Premier League with bonus points at stake.



Premier League: Exeter 60, Newcastle 35 Exeter won the bonus point on aggregate by 100-89.


Exeter were at full strength for this match looking to pull back a 14 point deficit from the match at Brough Park for the bonus point. Newcastle were without Christian Henry who was injured last night and had Karlis Ezergailis at number 6 as a guest reserve replacement.

What a brilliant start Exeter made to this match as they chalked up four 5-1s and two 4-2s over the opening six heats to lead 28-8 before Newcastle stopped the rot. They were even 6 points ahead on aggregate for the bonus point at that stage. Only Newcastle’s guest, Karlis Ezergailis, in heat 2 and James Grieves in heat 4 managed second places during that spell.

Finally, in heat 7, Phil Morris and Richard Juul relegated Ben Barker to last place to take the three points behind Tony Svab for a shared heat. However Exeter resumed normal business over the next three heats with two more 5-1s and a 4-2 to lead 45-15 before the sun came out for Newcastle! In heat 11 Josef Franc, who had yet to beat an Exeter rider, took a TR and won the heat from Toni Svab. With Karlis Ezergailis taking third place the Diamonds racked up a 2-7 to take the score to 47-22.

After that excitement it was business as usual again with a 5-1 for the Falcons in heat 12. The Diamonds had a reprieve in heat 13 when Mark Lemon had engine failure so the heat, won by Toni Svab, was shared. Phil Morris then took a TR in heat 14. Although the race was won by Ray Morton, Morris finished second and, with Ben Barker suffering an engine failure at the gate, Jaimie Robertson took the third place for a 3-5. In the last heat Newcastle scored their third heat advantage of the match with a 2-4 thanks to a James Grieves win from Toni Svab and a third place from Josef Franc from Seemond Stephens. Newcastle had scored 20 of their 35 point total over the last five heats.


Scorers: For Exeter – Toni Svab 13 (5), Seemond Stephens 12 (5), Lee Smethills 10+2 (4) (paid maximum), Ray Morton 8+2 (4), Pavel Ondrasik 8+2 (4), Mark Lemon 8+1 (4), Ben Barker 1 (4).

For Newcastle – James Grieves 10 (5), Josef Franc 9+1 (5) including a 6 point TR, Phil Morris 7 (4) including a 4 point TR, Richard Juul 3+1 (4), Karlis Ezergailis 3 (5), Lubos Tomicek 2 (3), Jaimie Robertson 1+1 (4).



Premier League: Reading 49, Workington 44 Workington won the bonus point on aggregate by 100-87.


Apart from again using Rider Replacement for Steve Masters at number 2, Reading were at full strength. Workington used Rider Replacement for Kauko Nieminen, retained Barry Burchatt at number 6 and had Chris Mills as a guest replacement for Kevin Little at number 7.

On a wet track this was a close run affair in the early stages. Reading got off to a bad start yet again when they lost the opening heat to a Stonehewer/Tacey 1-5. They squared matters with a 5-1 in the reserves race from Richard Wolff and Chris Johnson then heats three and four were shared with Workington providing the winners of both. James Wright beat Zdenek Simota in heat 3 and Carl Stonehewer beat Matej Zagar in heat 4. The score after the opening four heats was 12-12.

Workington were back in front again with a 2-4 from Shaun Tacey and Scott Robson in heat 5 but again Reading levelled the match one heat later with a 4-2 from Richard Wolff who beat Carl Stonehewer and Andrew Appleton. Matej Zagar won heat 7 for a share of the points but Reading took the lead for the first time with a 5-1 from Appleton and Wolff from Chris Mills and Shaun Tacey in heat 8 as the rain became very heavy. The score was now 26-22.

In heat 9, Carl Stonehewer won from Mathieu Tressarieu for a shared heat then in heat 10 Scott Robson did likewise as the score went to 32-28. In heat 11 the Racers struck a crucial blow when Matej Zagar won the heat with Richard Wolff fighting his way into second from last place to take a 5-1 win ahead of Shaun Tacey and James Wright which doubled Reading’s lead to eight points at 37-29. When Reading added another 5-1 in heat 12 from the unbeaten Richard Wolff and Zdenek Simota from James Wright to give the Racers a 12 point lead at 42-30 it looked all over for Workington. Even the bonus point was looking a possibility for Reading as they trailed by 6 points on aggregate with three heats to go.

However, Carl Stonehewer took a TR in heat 13 and, along with Shaun Tacey, scored the big 1-8 over Andrew Appleton and Matej Zagar to reduce the gap to only five points and put a different complection on things. Richard Wolff came to the rescue by winning heat 14 and remaining unbeaten for the 3-3 which made the match points safe for the home side. In the last heat Matej Zagar won from Shaun Tacey and Carl Stonehewer so the Comets went home with the bonus point. They also wrecked Richard Wolff’s attempt to score a seven ride paid maximum by relegating him to last place.

Scorers: For Reading – Richard Wolff 16+2 (7), Matej Zagar 11 (5), Zdenek Simota 8+3 (5), Andrew Appleton 8 (5), Chris Johnson 3+2 (3), Mathieu Tressarieu 3+1 (5).

For Workington – Carl Stonehewer 18+1 (6) including a 6 point TR, Shaun Tacey 10+2 (6), Scott Robson 6+2 (5), James Wright 6 (5), Chris Mills 4 (6), Barry Burchatt 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 6 July

The matches at Hull , where Glasgow were due to face the Vikings in the second leg of their first round Premier League KO Cup tie and at King’s Lynn where Rye House were due on Premier League business, were postponed as a result of the weather. So the only Premier League action tonight was at Somerset where the Rebels raced a rare Wednesday night meeting against fellow Friday-nighters Edinburgh .


Premier League: Somerset 60, Edinburgh 32


Somerset were at full strength for this match while Edinburgh had new signing Kristian Lund at number 2 as a replacement for the injured Ross Brady and Chris Mills as a guest reserve replacement for David McAllan.

As they did last year, Somerset handed Edinburgh a crushing 28 point defeat. They provided 14 of the 15 race winners and the only heat advantage Edinburgh could muster was a 3-5 in heat 7 when Cameron Woodward, on a TR finished second with Daniel Nermark third.

Edinburgh got off to a bad start losing an opening heat 5-1 to Zetterstrom and Smith after Kristian Lund was harshly excluded for tape touching. Another home 5-1 in heat 2 for the Rebels’ reserves was followed by a shared heat in heat 3 won by Ritchie Hawkins then a 4-2 from Cunningham and King, with Edinburgh’s guest reserve, Chris Mills, taking second place. This took the score after heat 4 to 17-7.

Theo Pijper took a TR in heat 5 but Edinburgh’s chances of getting back into the match disappeared when he finished last as the Rebels took a 4-2 from the heat. Heat 6, won by Zetterstrom, also resulted in a 4-2 before Edinburgh had their sole heat success in heat 7 with a 3-5. They followed this by providing their sole race winner in heat 8 when Kristian Lund headed home Smith and King for a shared heat. This took the score to 31-19.

Instead of inspiring the Monarchs to better things they fell away badly over the remaining heats losing two 5-1s and four 4-2s before finally managing a shared heat in heat 15 in which Magnus Zetterstrom completed his full five ride maximum while Ritchie Hawkins, also looking for a paid maximum, finished last behind Kristian Lund and Daniel Nermark. It was also a good night’s work for Glenn Cunningham who was also unbeaten from his four rides.

Scorers: For Somerset – Magnus Zetterstrom 15 (5) (full maximum), Glenn Cunningham 11+1 (4) (paid maximum), Ritchie Hawkins 11+1 (5), Paul Fry 7 (4), Jamie Smith 6+1 (4), Jason King 6+1 (4), Lee Smart 4+1 (4).

For Edinburgh – Kristian Lund 9 (6), Cameron Woodward 8 (4) including a 4 point TR, Daniel Nermark 7+3 (5), Rusty Harrison 3 (4), Theo Pijper 2 (4), Chris Mills 3 (5), William Lawson 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Thursday, 7 July

Tonight’s match at Owlerton was between Sheffield and Edinburgh .

Premier League: Sheffield 57, Edinburgh 36 Sheffield won the bonus point on aggregate by 100-81.


Sheffield again used George Stancl as their guest for Sean Wilson at number 1 and R/R for Richard Hall at number 4. Edinburgh had Chris Mills at number 7.

This was a match of two halves. In the first eight heats Edinburgh were blown away and found themselves 34-17 down with both TRs used. Then they got to grips with the track and gave Sheffield a match of it over the last seven heats.

Two 5-1s in the opening two heats put Sheffield in the comfort zone and even gave them a six point lead on aggregate for the bonus point. Edinburgh shared heat 3 won by Ricky Ashworth but with Cameron Woodward and Daniel Nermark filling the minor places. A 4-2 in heat 4 from Compton and Legault took the score to 17-7.

After another 4-2 for Sheffield in heat 5, Edinburgh decided it was time to use a TR. Rusty Harrison took the TR in heat 6 but was beaten by Wilson and Stancl from the tapes and the Monarchs lost the heat 5-2. In heat 7 they played their second TR card giving the ride to Cameron Woodward. Although Andre Compton passed him for the win, Woodward finished second with his partner, Daniel Nermark, third for a 3-5 and the only Edinburgh heat advantage of the match. Their joy was shortlived as Ben Wilson and Kyle Legault banged in another 5-1 for a heat 8 score of 34-17.

Two more 4-2s to Sheffield in competitive races were followed by a more robust Edinburgh challenge over the last five heats all of which were drawn. In heat 13 Theo Pijper produced Edinburgh’s only race win of the match ruining Andre Compton’s maximum hopes in the process and leaving Ricky Ashworth, who won heats 12 and 14, to end up the only unbeaten Sheffield rider.

Scorers: For Sheffield – Ricky Ashworth 15 (5) (full maximum), Andre Compton 14 (5), Ben Wilson 12 (5), Kyle Legault 7+1 (6), George Stancl 6+3 (4), Paul Cooper 3+1 (5).

For Edinburgh – Theo Pijper 10 (5), Daniel Nermatk 7+3 (5), Cameron Woodward 7+1 (4) including a 4 point TR, Rusty Harrison 6 (4) including a 4 point TR, Chris Mills 4+2 (5), William Lawson 2 (4), Kristian Lund 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Friday, 8 July

Of the two matches involving Premier League teams tonight the match at Edinburgh where Rye House were the visitors was for Premier League points. The other match at Exeter where the Falcons raced Workington was the second leg of the semi final of the Premier Trophy match.


Premier League: Edinburgh 40, Rye House 52.


It was the third match in three nights for Edinburgh who were returning home from heavy defeats at Somerset and Sheffield. The Monarchs had David McAllan back at number 7 while Kristian Lund made his home debut as the temporary replacement for Ross Brady. Rye House , with Daniel King back in the side, were at full strength.

Edinburgh were no match for a Rye House side which carried too much firepower throughout the team, the basis of which was the lightning starts they seemed able to produce at will. The Monarchs were restricted to four race winners and never looked likely to take anything from this match although they fought their way back to within two points of the Rockets only to be the subject of an appalling refereeing blunder in heat 12.

Rye House won the opening two heats 2-4 with wins from Stuart Robson and Steve Boxall before Daniel Nermark won heat 3 for the home side for a shared heat. Rusty Harrison did likewise in heat 4 and the score was then 10-14.

The Rockets produced the race winner of the next four heats but Edinburgh hung on by claiming the minor places until heat 8 when Tommy Allen came up with a third place point in support of Edward Kennett’s race win for a Rockets’ 2-4 to increase their lead to six points at 21-27. During that spell, heat 5 saw a fine ride by Cameron Woodward to force his way past Stuart Robson in support of Daniel Nermark but Robson in his desperation to repass Woodward slid off on the last lap.

Cameron Woodward featured in another thrilling race in heat 9 leading Chris Neath from the gate as Daniel Nermark, in an effort to join him, almost ran into Neath and pulled a locker which effectively put him out of the race. On the last lap Neath, who had hounded Woodward all race, finally burst through on the last bend for an excellent race win and another 2-4 to the Rockets which increased their lead to 8 points.

In heat 10 it looked as though Werner and King might be off for a 1-5 to the visitors but Daniel King, under pressure from McAllan and Pijper fell on the fourth bend. In the rerun, Theo Pijper and David McAllan breathed some life into the Edinburgh corpse by bursting to the front to head home Brent Werner for a 5-1 to cut the Rye House lead to four points. Inspired by that, Edinburgh followed it with a 4-2 with Rusty Harrison, after being passed by Stuart Robson on the second bend, roaring around the outside of Robson on the first two bends of the second lap. With William Lawson comfortably beating Edward Kennett the difference between the teams was only two points. In heat 12, however, Cameron Woodward and Steve Boxall collided coming off the start line and Boxall’s footrest lifted Woddward’s back wheel in the air leaving the Edinburgh man stranded. The referee saw nothing wrong with this and the Rockets pair made light work of David McAllan for a 1-5 which restored a six point lead for them at 33-39.

The match effectively ended with another 1-5 for the Rockets in heat 13. Theo Pijper led all the way until the back straight of the last lap when his bike gave up the ghost letting the Rye pair through for another maximum heat win. Daniel Nermark took a TR in heat 14 but could only follow home Daniel King who made a lightning start for a 5-3 to Edinburgh then Robson and Neath raced off with a last heat 1-5 against a demoralised Monarchs side to end with a 12 point win.

Scorers: For Edinburgh – Rusty Harrison 10 (5), Daniel Nermark 9 (4) including a 4 point TR, William Lawson 7+2 (5), Theo Pijper 7 (4), Cameron Woodward 3+1 (4), David McAllan 3+1 (4), Kristian Lund 1+1 (3)

For Rye House – Chris Neath 13+1 (5), Stuart Robson 10+1 (5), Brent Werner 8+1 (4), Edward Kennett 7 (4), Steve Boxall 6+1 (4), Daniel King 5(4), Tommy Allen 3+1 (4).



Premier Trophy (semi final second leg): Exeter 56, Workington 40 Workington won through to the final on aggregate by 100-87


Exeter had the legendary mountain to climb with a 29 point deficit to pull back from the first leg at Workington . The Falcons were at full strength while Workington used R/R for Kauko Nieminen at number 1 and had Jason King at number 6 for Kevin Little and Jaimie Courney at number 7.

With Shaun Tacey and Carl Stonehewer scoring 32 points between them, Workington had enough firepower to leave Exeter with no chance of pulling back the lead. Four 4-2s and a 5-1 kept Exeter on target over the first five heats which saw them move into a 21-9 lead but a shared heat 6, won by Carl Stonehewer, and a 3-6 for Workington in heat 7 thanks to a 6 point TR by Shaun Tacey put the brakes on the Exeter charge as the score moved to 27-18.

Nothing daunted Exeter hit back with two 5-1s and a 4-2 to reach a score of 41-22, still 10 points behind on aggregate with five heats remaining. Heats 11 and 12 were shared then Stonehewer and Wright produced the coup de grace by taking a 2-7 in heat 13 with Stonehewer on a TR and there was no way back for the Falcons with Workington progressing to the next round.

Scorers: For Exeter – Seemond Stephens 13+1, Pavel Ondrasik 10+1 (5), Mark Lemon 9+1 (5), Lee Smethills 9 (4), Ray Morton 8+2 (4), Toni Svab 4+1 (4), Ben Barker 3+1 (3).

For Workington – Shaun Tacey 18 (6) including a 6 point TR, Carl Stonehewer 14 (5) including a 6 point TR, Jason King 3+1 (6), James Wright 3 (6), Scott Robson 2 (4), Jaimie Courtney 0.