Around the Premier League Tracks - 2007

[Merlin]

Thursday, 27 September

There were two meetings scheduled for tonight. However the Tyne Tees Trophy match between Redcar and Newcastle was postponed because of the weather leaving the Sunday Sport Trophy, second leg tie, between Sheffield and Stoke as the survivor.


Sunday Sport Trophy (second leg): Sheffield 49, Stoke 41 The scores were tied on aggregate 90-90 but Sheffield won the trophy when Andre Compton beat Lee Complin in a race-off.


Sheffield were still without James Birkinshaw and had Ben Hopwood at number 6 in his place. Stoke were missing Ben Barker, Glenn Cunningham and Rusty Harrison so had Mark Burrows at number 2 in place of Barker, Jason Bunyan at number 3 in place of Cunningham and used Rider Replacement for Harrison at number 4.

There were different rules for this match. No Tactical Rides were allowed and the old Tactical Substitute rules applied, i.e. a Tactical Substitute was allowed when a team was six points or more behind with the TS rider starting from scratch and not scoring double points. TS rides were not allowed in heats 8, 14 and 15. Stoke had an eight point lead using the same rules from the first leg at Loomer Road.

What a start there was to this match. When was the last time Sheffield lost 1-5s in both the opening two races? That’s what happened tonight yet two races later the match was all square again on a wet track which caused the riders some problems!

Lee Complin and Mark Burrows were quick off the mark in the opening heat leaving Ricky Ashworth to struggle with his bike and Ben Wilson to pick up third place. This maximum was followed by another from Barrie Evans and Jaimie Smith as James Cockle pulled up at the back. Ben Hopwood fell on the last bend but pushed home for the point. The Tigers trailed by eight points but quickly turned things round. Andre Compton and Paul Cooper scored a 5-1 ahead of Jason Bunyan in heat 3 and in the next race Claus Vissing fell while in third place and was excluded. In the rerun Joel Parsons and James Cockle again led to score the equalising 5-1 taking the score to 12-12.

Andre Compton and Paul Cooper were fast away in heat 5 but Lee Complin passed Cooper to fill second place. The 4-2 put Sheffield in the lead by two points and they scored another 4-2 in heat 6 for a four point lead. Claus Vissing made the best start but was passed by Ben Wilson on the back straight. Ricky Ashworth took up the chase but Vissing rode well to keep him at bay. Back came the Potters with another 1-5, their third of the meeting, when Jason Bunyan and Claus Vissing both passed Joel Parsons who had made the gate to level the scores again. Sheffield were back in front again after heat 8. Ben Wilson won the race while Mark Burrows passed James Cockle for second place as the Tigers scored a 4-2 to take the score to 25-23 with Stoke still six points ahead on aggregate.

Sheffield pulled away with a 5-1 in heat 9 when Compton and Cooper again produced the goods by relegating Claus Vissing to third place and a 4-2 from Ricky Ashworth and Ben Wilson who was passed by Jason Bunyan stretched the home side’s lead to eight points and levelled the aggregate scores. Stoke gave an old style Tactical Substitute ride in heat 11 to Jason Bunyan replacing Mark Burrows and partnering Lee Complin. This turned out a good move as Bunyan won the race and was followed home by his partner, Lee Complin, for another Stoke 1-5 which cut Sheffield’s lead to just four points. James Cockle fell on the opening bend of heat 12 and was excluded leaving Andre Compton to beat Jason Bunyan and Barrie Evans for a shared race taking the score to 38-34. This meant that Stoke still led by four points on aggregate.

It was all square on aggregate after heat 13. Andre Compton and Joel Parsons scored a 5-1 ahead of Claus Vissing after Lee Complin had made a terrific effort trying to get past but ran out of room, hit the fence and fell. The Tigers were now eight points to the good but had to face Lee Complin taking the R/R ride in heat 14. Complin duly won the race from Paul Cooper and was supported by Barrie Evans in third place for a 2-4 which cut the Tigers’ lead on the night to six points and put Stoke back in front by two points on aggregate with one heat to go. Lee Complin’s bike seized prior to the last race and he rode Buzz Burrows machine instead only to finish well at the back. Andre Compton won the race but Jason Bunyan took second ahead of Paul Cooper for a 4-2 which gave Sheffield an eight point victory on the night but tied the aggregate scores. This meant that the destination of the Trophy had to be decided by a race-off between Andre Compton and Lee Complin. Unfortunately there wasn’t a race as Complin’s bike packed up just after the tapes rose leaving Compton to coast round to win the trophy for Sheffield.

Scorers: For Sheffield – Andre Compton 15 (5)(full maximum), Paul Cooper 8+2 (5), Ben Wilson 8 (4), Joel Parsons 7+1 (4), Ricky Ashworth 7 (4), James Cockle 3+1 (4), Ben Hopwood 1 (4).

For Stoke – Jason Bunyan 13 (6), Lee Complin 10+1 (6), Claus Vissing 6+1 (5), Barrie Evans 5+1 (6), Mark Burrows 4+1 (3), Jaimie Smith 3+1 (4).

[Merlin]

Friday, 28 September

There were two meetings due to be raced tonight. One was a Premier League Knockout Cup, first leg, semi-final tie, at Somerset between the Rebels and Newport while the other was an International Challenge match at Edinburgh between the Monarchs and Finland. Unfortunately the match at Somerset was rained off leaving the match at Edinburgh as the survivor.



International Challenge at Edinburgh: Edinburgh 49, Finland 43 .


Edinburgh were without Kai Laukkanen and Kalle Katajisto who had changed sides for the night. They were also missing Andrew Tully and Daniele Tessari through injury. Instead they were due to have Lee Complin at number 3 in place of Laukkanen and Sean Stoddart at number 4 in place of Tully but Complin pulled out early in the day suffering from the aftermath of his crash at Sheffield last night in heat 13 so Rider Replacement was used instead at number 3. The two reserve berths were filled by Gary Beaton and James McBain. Finland had Kauko Nieminen and Kai Laukkanen at numbers 1 and 3 to spearhead the side. Jari Makinen rode at number 5 with Tero Aarnio and Joni Keskinen filling the second string spots at numbers 2 and 4. The reserve berths were filled by Kalle Katajisto and Petteri Koivunen.

The score may suggest that this was a fairly close match but, in reality, nothing could be further from the truth as the home side shed points all over the place against what was effectively a two man Finnish team. The Finns were handicapped by a heat 4 crash by Jari Makinen which caused him to withdraw from the meeting with a suspected broken wrist.

George Stancl powered to the front ahead of Kauko Nieminen for an opening heat win. Behind him Derek Sneddon led Kauko Nieminen until the Finn charged inside him on the first bend of the third lap and ran the Edinburgh captain to the second bend fence. As a result Sneddon was pushed to the back but on the last lap Tero Aarnio’s machine played up and Sneddon got through for the third place point and a 4-2. A fast gating Gary Beaton held off the challenge of Kalle Katajisto to share the reserves race then George Stancl appeared again as R/R in heat 3 to drive round Kai Laukkanen on the opening bends to shoot to the front. Laukkanen then suffered an engine failure on the last lap, second bend, allowing Sean Stoddart through for a home 5-1. Heat 4 was a pantomime! Firstly James McBain was excluded for breaking the tapes and went from 15 metres back. In the rerun Jari Makinen, chasing Matthew Wethers, charged too fast into the first bend on lap two and never looked like getting round. He didn’t, crashed into the fence and suffered what was thought to be a broken wrist. In the second rerun, Matthew Wethers, miles in front, pulled a locker on the second bend on the third lap and drove onto the centre green before returning to the track. He was excluded so Petteri Koivunen just held on to his 15 metre lead which McBain’s tape breaking had given him to win the race for a 2-3 taking the score to 14-9.

Kauko Nieminen won heat 5 by a mile to share the race but Stancl and Sneddon added a 5-1 in heat 6 from Katajisto to put the Monarchs nine points ahead. Kai Laukkanen beat Matthew Wethers to share heat 7 then Derek Sneddon headed home Tero Aarnio who put up a good challenge with James McBain third for a 4-2 in heat 8 which took the score to 29-18.

Kauko Nieminen took a Tactical Substitute ride from 15 metres replacing the injured Makinen in heat 9 but could make no inroads on Derek Sneddon and Sean Stoddart who added another 5-1 increasing Edinburgh’s lead to 15 points. In heat 10 another flawless ride from George Stancl saw him power to the front off the first two bends to lead home Kai Laukkanen with Derek Sneddon third. The 4-2 increased the gap to 17 points and it stayed that way when Kauko Nieminen won heat 11 from Wethers and Beaton for a shared race but it was all downhill for the Monarchs after that. In heat 12 Kai Laukkanen took a Tactical Ride. In the first running of the race Sean Stoddart (R/R) fell on the first bend of the second lap while lying second causing the race to be stopped and rerun without him. In the rerun Laukkanen scored an easy win and was supported in second place by Kalle Katajisto giving the Finns a big 1-8 and cutting the gap to 10 points with the score now 42-32.

Another magnificent start from George Stancl saw him get the better of Kauko Nieminen in heat 13 but he got out of shape on the third bend under pressure from Nieminen and slid off. Nieminen went on to win from Matthew Wethers leaving Petteri Koivunen to pick up third place for a 2-4 which brought the Finns two points nearer at 44-36. Sean Stoddart won heat 14 from Kalle Katajisto and Joni Keskinen while Gary Beaton fell off while at the back. This resulted in a 3-3 then in the last race Matthew Wethers got the better of Kauko Nieminen coming off the second bend only to find Kai Laukkanen shooting past both of them on the outside to win the race. With Derek Sneddon stuck at the back Finland finished with a 2-4 for a respectable six point defeat.

Scorers: For Edinburgh – George Stancl 12 (5), Derek Sneddon 10+1 (6), Sean Stoddart 9+2 (5), Matthew Wethers 8 (5), Gary Beaton 6+3 (5), James McBain 4 (4).

For Finland – Kai Laukkanen 14 (5)(with 6 point TR), Kauko Nieminen 13 (6), Kalle Katajisto 7+1 (5), Petteri Koivunen 5+1 (5), Joni Keskinen 2+1 (4), Tero Aarnio 2 (4), Jari Makinen 0 (2).

[Merlin]

Saturday, 29 September

There were two meetings held tonight. At Workington the Cumberland Classic took place while at Rye House there was a benefit meeting for Stuart Robson entitled “Robbo’s Champions Chase”.


The Cumberland Classic at: Workington

Winner: Simon Stead (Belle Vue)
Second: Ulrich Ostergaard (Workington)
Third: Kauko Nieminen (Workington)

An interesting line-up had been assembled for this meeting which took the form of a 16 rider, 20 heat individual with each rider programmed to have five rides facing each opponent once. The winner would be decided on total points scored.

In addition to the six Comets’ riders there were a number of Elite League riders in the field with other Premier League heat leaders and some young Continental youngsters with little experience of British tracks.

Simon Stead, Kevin Doolan, Josef Franc and Kai Laukkanen were the early race winners but after each rider had had two races it was Simon Stead and Kevin Doolan who were the clear leaders with six points each. Ulrich Ostergaard, Josef Franc and Kai Laukkanen were their closest challengers with 5 points each.

After heat 12 when all riders had taken three rides Simon Stead remained unbeaten with 9 points after beating Kevin Doolan in heat 9. Doolan was now in joint second place with 8 points along with Ulrich Ostergaard while Kauko Nieminen and Kai Laukkanen were one further point back with 7 points. In heat 12 David Howe fell and retired from the meeting with a dislocated collarbone.

Following the third stanza of four races had been completed by heat 16 Simon Stead was still unbeaten after winning from Tomas Topinka in heat 14. The leader from the chasing pack was, home man, Ulrich Ostergaard one point adrift. Kauko Nieminen won again to move onto the 10 point mark along with Kevin Doolan whom he beat in heat 16.

In the final four races Kauko Nieminen (in heat 18) and Ulrich Ostergaard (in heat 19) kept up the pressure by winning for the fourth time each leaving Simon Stead needing to win heat 20 to win the meeting outright. This he did by heading home Kai Laukkanen and James Wright for a full house.

Scorers:– Simon Stead 15, Ulrich Ostergaard 14. Kauko Nieminen 13, Kevin Doolan 10, Kai Laukkanen 10, James Wright 9, Tomas Topinka 9, Charles Wright 8, Josef Franc 8, David Howe 4 (3), Tero Aarnio 4, Peter Juul 4, Chris Kerr 4, Josh Auty 4, John Branney 3, Craig Branney 1 (4).



Benefit Meeting at: Rye House – Robbo’s Champions Chase.

Winner: Chris Harris (Coventry)
Second: Steve Johnson (Coventry)
Third: Adam Roynon (Rye House)

This benefit meeting was held for Stuart Robson who rode for Rye House after many seasons with Coventry. Robson was involved in a terrible crash at Mildenhall on 29 April this year which resulted in him suffering a broken pelvis and two cracked vertebrae. His popularity was evident when he was able to put together a first class field of 32 riders from the three leagues to take part in this match.

There is little information at this stage other than the final result. It seems that the field was weeded down on an elimination basis until a final four riders were reached. Although it has still to be confirmed the process might have been along the lines of the first eight heats involving all the riders resulting in the last two in each heat being eliminated cutting the field to 16 riders. The next four heats would similarly have cut the field to eight riders. The next two races would then produce the four riders for the final. This would take the number of heats to 15. The fourth rider in the final was Daniel Nermark. Tai Woffinden broke the Rye House track record again but it was Chris Harris who won the event by going through the meeting unbeaten.

[Merlin]

Sunday, 30 September



Tonight saw the staging of one of the most prestigious meetings of the year in the Premier League when the Premier League Riders’ Championship was held at Swindon .


Premier League Riders’ Championship: at Swindon.

Winner: James Wright (Workington)

Second: Jason Lyons (Birmingham)

Third: Jacek Rempala (Berwick)

The field had seen a number of riders unable to take their place before the meeting and the day of the meeting saw two further withdrawals in Gary Havelock with a broken wrist and Jason King who was stuck in traffic on the M4. Chris Kerr replaced Havelock for Redcar and, meeting reserve, Chris Schramm, took King’s rides. The format for the meeting was a 16 rider, 20 heat full individual followed by a semi final in which the riders finishing 3rd – 6th raced for first and second places to join the meeting’s top two point scorers in the grand final.

In the opening four races James Wright, Jason Lyons, Kai Laukkanen and Chris Schramm won their heats to lead the field and after all the riders had had two rides James Wright and Jason Lyons remained unbeaten on 6 points while Chris Holder and Kai Laukkanen had 5 with Tomas Topinka, Daniel Nermark and Michal Rajkowski all on 4.

The third stanza saw Jacek Rempala beat Jason Lyons in a two man rerun of heat 9 after Complin and Kerr had been excluded. Tai Woffinden beat Tomas Topinka in heat 10 while Chris Holder won heat 11. Daniel Nermark beat James Wright in heat 12 but that was the only time that Wright was beaten all evening. Kai Laukkanen’s chances were badly hit in this race when he suffered an engine failure while lying second. This meant that after three races for all the riders Chris Holder, James Wright and Jason Lyons all jointly led the field with 8 points while Tomas Topinka had 6 and Tai Woffinden, Kai Laukkanen and Chris Schramm 5.

The fourth stanza produced a win for Daniel Nermark in heat 13 but in heat 14 Tai Woffinden’s hopes were dashed when he finished third to Chris Kerr and Andre Compton. Tomas Topinka beat Kai Laukkanen in heat 15 with Chris Holder finishing third and, in heat 16, James Wright beat Jason Lyons so the outright leader was now James Wright on 11 with Jason Lyons and Daniel Nermark on 10 and Chris Holder and Tomas Topinka on 9 as the main challengers for the six qualifying places.

In the last set of races Jacek Rempala won heat 17 to come charging through the field to make the semi-final as did Daniel Nermark by winning heat 18. Jason Lyons beat Chris Holder in heat 19 to earn a seeding directly to the final with Holder making the semi. In heat 20 James Wright continued to lead the field by beating Chris Kerr who relegated Tomas Topinka to third place. This meant that James Wright went straight to the final while Topinka qualified for the semi-final.

In the semi-final Daniel Nermark powered round the first two bends to win the race but dark horse, Jacek Rempala, finished ahead of Topinka and Holder. Nermark and Rempala therefore joined Wright and Lyons for the Grand Final. This race was won from the gate by James Wright who beat Jason Lyons. Behind this pair Daniel Nermark lost his rostrum place when he locked up on the fourth bend which allowed Jacek Rempala through for third place.

Scorers from the qualifying heats: James Wright 14, Jason Lyons 13, Daniel Nermark 13, Chris Holder 11, Tomas Topinka 10, Jacek Rempala 9, Kai Laukkanen 7, Tai Woffinden 7, Josef Franc 7, Chris Kerr 6, Chris Schramm 6, Lee Complin 5, Andre Compton 4, Michal Rajkowski 4, Emil Kramer 2, Trent Leverington 1.

[Merlin]

Tuesday, 2 October

There were two matches raced tonight. On the Isle of Wight the Islanders raced Rye House in the semi-final, first leg of the Premier League play offs while at Mildenhall the Fen Tigers took on Birmingham in the first leg of their Young Shield tie.


Premier League Play Offs, semi-final, first leg: Isle of Wight 46, Rye House 44


Both the Isle of Wight and Rye House tracked full strength sides for this match.

The Isle of Wight were looking to take a double figure lead to Rye House for the second leg of this quarter final tie but they never got more than four points ahead over the opening 13 races. Six up with one heat to go a maximum for the home side would have given them a ten point lead but it was the Rockets who scored the 1-5 to leave the Islanders’ hopes hanging by a thread.

Stefan Ekberg got the visitors off to a winning start after a fine race with Chris Holder. With Cory Gathercole pulling up on the third lap, Chris Neath finished third for a 2-4 to the Rockets but it was all square one heat later. The home side looked like taking a 5-1 with Chris Johnson and Andrew Bargh leading but Adam Roynon rescued two points for the visitors by passing Bargh on the second lap for a 4-2. Jason Bunyan went from third to first in heat 3 while Tommy Allen’s second place ahead of Glen Phillips and Tai Woffinden resulted in another 4-2 to put the Islanders into a two point lead. They doubled it to four points with a third consecutive 4-2 in heat 4 when Krzysztof Stojanowski rounded Steve Boxall on the second bend to head off for the win while Chris Johnson relegated Adam Roynon to the back. This took the score to 14-10.

Ekberg and Bunyan both made fast starts to heat 5 but it was Ekberg who edged ahead to win the race while Glen Phillips kept Chris Neath to the back for a shared race. Cory Gathercole fell in heat 6 on the first bend leaving Chris Holder to win the race from Boxall and Bowen for another shared heat then in heat 7 it was Andrew Bargh’s turn to fall on the first bend while Krzysztof Stojanowski passed Tommy Allen on the second lap to win the race for another 3-3. In heat 8 the Rockets pulled two points back when Chris Neath won from Chris Johnson. Adam Roynon passed Cory Gathercole on the fourth bend for third and the 2-4 made the score 25-23.

Another home man fell in heat 9. This time Glen Phillips shed a chain on the second lap and fell. Unfortunately Jason Bunyan crashed into him and Phillips had to have treatment on the centre green. He was excluded from the rerun in which Bunyan had to change bikes. Bunyan roared from the gate though but was caught and passed by Steve Boxall on the second lap while Bowen picked up the gift third place point. The 4-2 levelled the scores again and it stayed that way after heat 10 when Chris Holder won from Tommy Allen by a mile. Tai Woffinden passed a disappointing Cory Gathercole on the second lap for a 3-3. There was no change in heat 11 either when Stojanowski finally lowered Ekberg’s colours. Chris Neath finished third ahead of Andrew Bargh so this race was shared too but the Isle of Wight went two points up again after heat 12. Jason Bunyan made a fast start and was never challenged by Tai Woffinden in second. Chris Johnson held off the strong challenge of Adam Roynon for third place for a 4-2 which took the score to 37-35.

Chris Holder and Krzysztof Stojanowski finally produced the meeting’s first 5-1 in heat 13 leaving Stefan Ekberg and Steve Boxall in their wake so finally the Islanders had opened up some daylight and were now leading by six points. Glen Phillips won heat 14 to keep the lead intact going into the last heat but it all went wrong for the Islanders in what may well prove to be the definitive race of the tie. Stefan Ekberg and Steve Boxall reversed their result of heat 13 to head home Chris Holder and Krzysztof Stojanowski for a 1-5 which cut the Islanders’ advantage for the second leg to two points.

Scorers: For the Isle of Wight – Chris Holder 12 (5), Krzysztof Stojanowski 11+1 (5), Jason Bunyan 10 (4), Chris Johnson 7 (5), Glen Phillips 5+1 (4), Andrew Bargh 1 (3), Cory Gathercole 0 (4).

For Rye House – Stefan Ekberg 12 (5), Steve Boxall 9+1 (5), Tommy Allen 8 (4), Chris Neath 5+1 (4), Tai Woffinden 4+2 (4), Adam Roynon 4+1 (5), Luke Bowen 2+1 (3).



Young Shield, quarter-final, first leg: Mildenhall 43, Birmingham 47 .


Mildenhall were without Kyle Legault, Tom P Madsen and Mark Baseby. They had Ricky Ashworth as a guest for Legault at number 1 and used Rider Replacement at number 3 for Madsen. Matthew Wright was at number 6. Birmingham were without Henning Bager, Ben Powell and Henrik Moller. They used Rider Replacement at number 4 for Bager, had Paul Clews as a guest at number 6 for Powell and Craig Branney as a guest for Moller at number 4.

Birmingham had just too much scoring power for the Fen Tigers whose chances of further progress in the Young Shield look to be left in tatters. The Fen Tigers led by eight points after heat 6 but lost by 21-33 over the last nine heats.

Mildenhall started with a 4-2 heat advantage when Jason King won from Phil Morris with Ricky Ashworth third but Birmingham scored a 1-5 in the reserves race to turn their two point arrears into a two point lead. Paul Clews and Lee Smart took the five points from Tomas Suchanek. Jason Lyons scored the first of his five race wins in heat 3 but Paul Fry and Jason King finished behind him for a shared race. Mildenhall then hit back with a 5-1 in heat 4 turning their two point deficit into a two point lead. Tomas Suchanek won the race with Shaun Tacey in second place against the two Brummies’ reserves. This took the score to 13-11.

The Fen Tigers doubled their lead with a 4-2 in heat 5 as Ricky Ashworth won from Phil Morris with Paul Fry third then doubled their four point lead to eight points with another 5-1 in heat 6. Jason King and Ricky Ashworth did the damage for the home side with Clews and Branney bringing up the rear. However the Brummies pulled two points back in heat 7 when Jason Lyons won again from Shaun Tacey with Craig Branney third then repeated the feat in heat 8 with a win from Phil Morris from Suchanek with Lee Smart taking third place from Jason King. This took the score to 26-22.

Mildenhall were now struggling and Lee Smart kept the pressure up by winning heat 9. Paul Fry and Tomas Suchanek finished behind him for a shared race but the Brummies took a 1-5 in heat 10 which levelled the scores. Jason Lyons and Craig Branney undid the Fen Tigers by scoring a maximum at the expense of Ricky Ashworth and Jason King. Shaun Tacey won heat 11 but Hauzinger and Morris shared the points behind him. Birmingham then roared into a four point lead by scoring another 1-5 in heat 12. This time Jason Lyons was supported by Lee Smart ahead of Shaun Tacey and Tomas Suchanek to take the score to 34-38.

Ricky Ashworth won heat 13 for the home side but Shaun Tacey finished at the back as Hauzinger and Morris filled the minor places. This resulted in a 3-3 and the same score resulted from heat 14. Paul Fry won the race but again the Brummies’ pair of Branney and Smart took second and third to share the points. In the last heat Jason Lyons completed his full 15 point maximum from Ricky Ashworth and Paul Fry to leave the Fen Tigers with the proverbial mountain to climb in the second leg tomorrow night.

Scorers: For Mildenhall – Ricky Ashworth 12+1 (6), Paul Fry 9+2 (5), Shaun Tacey 8+1 (5), Jason King 7+1 (5), Tomas Suchanek 7+1 (6), Matthew Wright 0 (3).

For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 15 (5)(full maximum), Lee Smart 10+2 (6), Phil Morris 9+2 (6), Craig Branney 5+1 (5), Manuel Hauzinger 4 (4), Paul Clews 4 (4).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 3 October

There were two meetings tonight. At Birmingham the Brummies raced Mildenhall in their return quarter final Young Shield match while at King’s Lynn the Stars raced against Leicester in a challenge match.


Young Shield, quarter final, second leg: Birmingham 44, Mildenhall 46 Birmingham won through to the semi-final on aggregate by 91-89.


Birmingham were without Henning Bager, Henrik Moller and Ben Powell so had Chris Kerr as a guest for Bager, used Rider Replacement for Moller and had Paul Clews at reserve for Powell. Mildenhall were without Kyle Legault, Tom P Madsen and Mark Baseby. To cope with these absences they had Lee Complin guesting for Legault at number 1, used Rider Replacement at number 3 and had Scott James as reserve at number 6.

Well I guess you can never take things for granted when it comes to speedway. Who would have given anything for Mildenhall’s chances after shedding an eight point lead and going down by four points at home to the Brummies last night. This match was expected to be an easy mission for Birmingham but clearly Mildenhall hadn’t read the script.

There is currently only limited information about this meeting but by all accounts this was a terrific match with the Fen Tigers deserving to win. Their trouble was they didn’t win by enough. The scores were tied on aggregate after heat 13 with Mildenhall leading by 37-41. Chris Kerr, guesting for the Brummies, won heat 14 to take the score to 40-44 leaving Birmingham needing a 3-3 to tie on aggregate or a heat advantage to win through. In the last race Jason Lyons won from Lee Complin while Chris Kerr took the crucial third place point for a 4-2 to the home side which saw them scrape through by the narrowest of margins.

Hero for the home side was Chris Kerr with 11 points from his six rides which produced some spirited racing. Jason Lyons was as dependable as ever with a paid maximum and Phil Morris scored well although the Brummies’ lesser lights failed to shine. For Mildenhall Lee Complin was a good guest and the other four regulars produced solid performances with Shaun Tacey perhaps the pick of the bunch.

Scorers: For Birmingham – Lyons 14+1 (5)(paid maximum), Chris Kerr 11 (6), Phil Morris 9+1 (5), Lee Smart 4+1 (5), Manuel Hauzinger 4 (4), Paul Clews 2 (4).

For Mildenhall – Lee Complin 12+1, Paul Fry 10+1, Tomas Suchanek 9+2, Shaun Tacey 7+2, Jason King 7+1, Scott James 1.



Challenge Match: King’s Lynn 46, Leicester 44 .


King’s Lynn were at full strength. Leicester put together a strong side for this challenge match. They tracked Kevin Doolan and Lewis Bridger as their top pairing, Chris Holder and Chris Schramm at three and four with Sergei Darkin at number five and James Holder and Simon Lambert at reserve.

It was a nostalgic night for the supporters of Leicester as the famous race jackets made their reappearance at a speedway track for the first time in many years. The team they tracked suggested that the Stars had perhaps bitten off more than they could chew but that didn’t turn out to be the case. The match went to a last heat decider with the scores level after both teams had enjoyed periods when they led during the match.

The strength of the Leicester side was confirmed when they scored a 1-5 in the opening race. It’s not often King’s Lynn concede a maximum in heat 1 but they did on this occasion when former King’s Lynn Star Kevin Doolan and Lewis Bridger headed home Tomas Topinka and Paul Lee. However the Stars hit back in heat 2 with a 5-1 from Adam Allott and Benji Compton to level the scores again before the Lions regained the lead in heat 3. Daniel Nermark made the gate but Chris Holder had passed him before the end of the first lap while Chris Schramm took third place from Trevor Harding. Sergei Darkin made a fabulous start to heat 4 but Chris Mills passed him on the opening two bends to win the race. Simon Lambert finished third so the heat was shared and the score stood at 11-13.

Leicester went further in front with a 2-4 in heat 5 when Kevin Doolan beat Daniel Nermark while Lewis Bridger finished third. The Lions were now four points ahead but their lead was wiped out by a 5-1 from Topinka and Lee in heat 6 as Darkin finished third. It stayed all square after heat 7 when Chris Holder won the race for the visitors while Adam Allott and Chris Mills filled the minor places. Lewis Bridger beat Paul Lee in heat 8 but Benji Compton won the battle of the reserves behind them so the race was shared and the score stood at 24-24.

King’s Lynn took the lead for the first time in heat 9 when Daniel Nermark and Trevor Harding beat Sergei Darkin for a 5-1 giving the Stars a four point lead. Tomas Topinka made the gate in heat 10 and held off Chris Holder for the four laps to win the race but Chris Schramm took third place from Paul Lee so the points were shared. Back came the Lions with a 2-4 in heat 11 as Lewis Bridger just pipped Chris Mills on the line with Kevin Doolan finishing third. There were just two points in it now and that stayed the same after Chris Holder had won heat 12 from Daniel Nermark and Benji Compton for a shared race taking the score to 37-35.

Tomas Topinka won heat 13 from Sergei Darkin and Kevin Doolan to share the points and keep the Stars two points in front but it was all square after heat 14 when the Lions took a 2-4 after Chris Schramm had won from Trevor Harding with Simon Lambert beating Adam Allott for third place. In the last race Chris Holder led from the tapes but Daniel Nermark passed him to win the race. The vital third place went to Tomas Topinka who headed home Kevin Doolan for the 4-2 which gave the Stars a two point win.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Daniel Nermark 12 (5), Tomas Topinka 11 (5), Chris Mills 6+1 (4), Adam Allott 5 (4), Benji Compton 4+3 (3), Trevor Harding 4+1 (4), Paul Lee 4 (4).

For Leicester – Chris Holder 13 (5), Lewis Bridger 9+1 (4), Kevin Doolan 8+1 (5), Sergei Darkin 6 (4), Chris Schramm 5+1 (4), Simon Lambert 3+1 (4), James Holder 0 (4).

[Merlin]

Thursday, 4 October

There were two matches raced tonight. At Sheffield the Tigers faced King’s Lynn in the first leg of their semi final Premier League Play Off tie while at Redcar the Bears took on Glasgow in the first leg of their quarter final tie in the Young Shield.


Premier League Play Offs, semi final, first leg: Sheffield 62, King’s Lynn 31


Sheffield , missing James Birkinshaw, had Jordan Frampton at reserve while King’s Lynn were at full strength.

Sheffield made a positively dream start with 5-1s in the first three races. In heat 1 Ben Wilson led Tomas Topinka from the tapes but when Topinka made contact with the fence down the back straight Ricky Ashworth got past to join his partner up front. James Cockle and Jordan Frampton added another maximum in the reserves race before Andre Compton and Paul Cooper took advantage of a fall by Daniel Nermark on the second lap while leading heat 3. Chris Mills stopped the rot for King’s Lynn by winning heat 4 from Joel Parsons. Adam Allott beat James Cockle for third place so the Stars scored a 2-4 taking the score to 17-7.

Sheffield scored another 5-1 in heat 5, their fourth of the match so far. Andre Compton won from the gate while Paul Cooper passed Tomas Topinka to join him up front as Paul Lee pulled out with an engine failure while at the back. The Tigers now led by 14 points and it got even worse for King’s Lynn in heat 6 when Ben Wilson and Ricky Ashworth continued the 5-1 onslaught with another ahead of Chris Mills to stretch the lead to 18 points. Daniel Nermark took a Tactical Ride in heat 7 and won the race but Joel Parsons and Jordan Frampton minimised the damage by heading home Trevor Harding for a 3-6 cutting the gap to 15 points. It was an oasis in the desert for the Stars however as they proceeded to concede a 5-1 in heat 8 to Ben Wilson and James Cockle taking the score to 35-16.

Sheffield recorded their sixth 5-1 in heat 9 thanks to Andre Compton and Paul Cooper who led Chris Mills home. At this stage, with the Tigers leading by 23 points, King’s Lynn were maybe regretting choosing them as their semi-final opponents! The Tigers added a 4-2 in heat 10 when Ricky Ashworth beat Daniel Nermark and Ben Wilson picked up third place. There was some relief for the beleaguered Stars in heat 11 when Tomas Topinka finally burst into life by winning the race from Joel Parsons. Paul Lee took third from Jordan Frampton so the visitors took a 2-4 from the race. This was cancelled by a 4-2 to Sheffield in heat 12 won by Andre Compton from Nermark and Cockle from the gate taking the score to 50-25.

Heat 13 produced a great race between Ashworth and Topinka with the riders passing and re-passing several times. Ashworth prevailed while Joel Parsons took third place from Mills for a 4-2 increasing the lead to 27 points. Trevor Harding then produced a race win in heat 14 when he won from Cooper and Frampton as Allott suffered an engine failure on the first bend. In the last heat Sheffield added the icing to their cake by taking their eighth 5-1. Tomas Topinka made the gate but was soon passed by both Ricky Ashworth and Andre Compton for the maximum with Daniel Nermark stuck at the back.

Scorers: For Sheffield – Andre Compton 14+1 (5)(paid maximum), Ricky Ashworth 13+2 (5)(paid maximum), Ben Wilson 10 (4), Paul Cooper 8+3 (4), Joel Parsons 7 (4), James Cockle 6+1 (4), Jordan Frampton 4+3 (4).

For King’s Lynn – Daniel Nermark 10 (5)(with 6 point TR), Tomas Topinka 8 (5), Chris Mills 5 (4), Trevor Harding 4 (4), Paul Lee 2 (4), Adam Allott 2 (5), Benji Compton 0 (3).



Young Shield, quarter final, first leg: Redcar 49, Glasgow 41 .


Redcar were without Mathieu Tressarieu so used Rider Replacement at number 2. Glasgow without Shane Parker for the rest of the season turned to Jason Lyons to guest in his place.

The first two heats were shared. Gary Havelock won the opener but Craig Watson and David McAllan finished behind him then Lee Dicken won heat 2 from Giffard and Hargreaves to keep the scores tied. Redcar drew first blood by taking a two point lead in heat 3. James Grieves won the race from Jason Lyons while Josh Auty made an inside pass on Robert Ksiezak on the third bend after which Ksiezak fell but remounted. The 4-2 was followed by another shared race won comfortably by Chris Kerr from Leverington and Dicken as Jack Hargreaves’ bike packed up on the first bend. The score was now 13-11.

Glasgow were back on level terms after heat 5. Craig Watson outgated James Grieves while David McAllan led Josh Auty. Although the home riders challenged hard the positions remained unchanged giving the Tigers a 2-4. Redcar hit back with a 5-1 in heat 6, however, as Josh Auty made the gate and won comfortably with Gary Havelock following him home ahead of Trent Leverington. In heat 7 Robert Ksiezak fell again but this time Chris Kerr was excluded from the rerun leaving Daniel Giffard to face Lyons and Ksiezak on his own. The two Tigers made the gate for a 1-5 which levelled the scores at 21-21. Glasgow then took the lead in heat 8 when David McAllan held on to win from Chris Kerr who fought back well after a poor gate to lose out on the line. Lee Dicken finished third for a 2-4 which took the score to 23-25.

Redcar changed their two point deficit to a two point lead with a 5-1 in heat 9. Trent Leverington gated but was passed by James Grieves on the first lap. Josh Auty then took up the challenge and also passed Leverington on the line for the maximum to the Bears. Jason Lyons won heat 10 from Havelock and Grieves (R/R) for a shared race but the Bears increased their lead to six points with a 5-1 in heat 11. Daniel Giffard made the gate and team rode with Chris Kerr to relegate Watson and McAllan to the back. Heat 12 was awarded to Jason Lyons in a tight finish with James Grieves after the Tigers’ guest had passed Grieves on the second lap. Giffard took third place so the race was shared with the score now at 39-33.

Craig Watson won heat 13 from the gate while Havelock and Kerr shared the points behind him but the Bears took a 4-2 from heat 14 to go eight points ahead. Josh Auty came from the back to pass the fast starting Ksiezak while Daniel Giffard picked up another valuable point by beating Lee Dicken for a 4-2. A lot depended on the last race which would decide what size of lead the Bears would take to Glasgow for the second leg. It could have been anything from four to twelve points but it stayed at eight when James Grieves won from Lyons and Watson for a 3-3.

Scorers: For Redcar – James Grieves 14+1 (6), Gary Havelock 9+1 (5), Josh Auty 9+1 (5), Chris Kerr 8+2 (5), Daniel Giffard 8+1 (6), Jack Hargreaves 1+1 (3).

For Glasgow – Jason Lyons 13 (5), Craig Watson 10+1 (5), David McAllan 5+1 (4), Lee Dicken 5+1 (5), Robert Ksiezak 4+1 (4), Trent Leverington 4 (4), Michael Coles 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Friday, 5 October

Unusually for a Friday, three matches were raced tonight. At King’s Lynn the Stars met Birmingham in the second leg of the Premier League Trophy Final while at Somerset the Rebels took on Stoke in the first leg of their quarter final Young Shield tie. The other match was at Edinburgh where the Monarchs raced against Glasgow in the first leg of the Scottish Cup.


Premier Trophy Final, second leg: King’s Lynn 58, Birmingham 35 King’s Lynn won the Trophy on aggregate by 109-74.


King’s Lynn were at full strength but Birmingham were missing three riders – Henning Bager, Henrik Moller and Ben Powell. They had Shaun Tacey as a guest for Bager at number 5 and used Rider Replacement for Moller at number 4 with Scott James at reserve in place of Powell at number 6.

With their team in disarray with injuries and already twelve points down from the first leg, Birmingham were looking at mission impossible to win the trophy. It didn’t help when Manuel Hauzinger retired from the opening heat then withdrew from the meeting with rib injuries.

Starting with two 5-1s and a 4-2 the Stars stormed into a 22 point aggregate lead after which it was just a question of how many. Birmingham took a 2-4 from heat 4 with a Shaun Tacey win but two more 5-1s for the Stars increased their lead to 16 points on the night. In heat 7 Jason Lyons took a TR and scored all six points by beating Paul Lee. Shaun Tacey’s third place gave the Brummies a 2-7 which was followed by a shared heat and a score of 31-20.

Only Jason Lyons was able to stem the tide. Following a Nermark/Harding 5-1 in heat 9, Lyons won heat 10 to inflict the only defeat of the match on Tomas Topinka. Allott and Mills added another 5-1 then, in heat 12, Lyons finished second to Nermark for a home 4-2 which took the score to 48-27.

Tomas Topinka and Chris Mills added a 4-2 when Tacey split them in heat 13 but the last two heats were shared with wins for Trevor Harding and Jason Lyons for a 23 point win to King’s Lynn on the night and a final aggregate success by 35 points to win the Trophy.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Trevor Harding 11+3 (5), Tomas Topinka 11 (4), Paul Lee 10+3 (5), Daniel Nermark 10 (4), Chris Mills 7+1 (4), Adam Allott 6 (4), Benji Compton 3+1 (4).

For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 16 (5)(with 6 point TR), Shaun Tacey 7 (6), Phil Morris 6+1 (5), Lee Smart 5+1 (7), Scott James 1 (6), Manuel Hauzinger 0 (1).




Young Shield, quarter final, first leg: Somerset 58, Stoke 34


Somerset had Jason Doyle replacing Magnus Zetterstrom while Stoke used Rider Replacement for Rusty Harrison.

Since the two Stoke reserves managed only the one point from the heat 2 5-1 and since the Potters were using R/R for Rusty Harrison they had effectively only four scoring riders to contest this first leg tie. As a result they suffered a 24 point loss which will take some pulling back in the second leg tomorrow night.

Jason Doyle, making his debut for the Rebels, got the home side off to a 5-1 start which turned out to be the first of three consecutive maximums. They followed this with two 4-2s before Stoke managed to stem the tide in heat 7. Glenn Cunningham took a TR and finished second to his partner, Claus Vissing, who couldn’t afford to slow to let him pass because of the pressure being applied by Ritchie Hawkins. This gave the visitors a 1-7 cutting the gap from 18 points to 12. Another Rebels 4-2 in heat 8 stretched the lead to 14 points again with the score now 32-18.

Claus Vissing won heat 9 for the Potters then they added a 1-5 from Cunningham and Complin in heat 10 after Jason Doyle had fallen. There were now only ten points between the teams but the Rebels rebuilt their lead over the last five heats with two 5-1s and three 4-2s to add another 14 points to their advantage. Unfortunately Glenn Cunningham fell heavily on the last lap of heat 15 trying to avoid Claus Vissing who had come to grief in front of him. Cunningham was taken to hospital with a suspected broken leg.

Scorers: For Somerset – Emil Kramer 13+1 (5), Jason Doyle 12 (5), Daniel Warwick 9+1 (4), Stephan Katt 8+1 (4), Simon Walker 6+2 (4), Ritchie Hawkins 6 (4), Jordan Frampton 4+1 (4).

For Stoke – Glenn Cunningham 10 (5)(with 4 point TR), Claus Vissing 10 (7), Ben Barker 8 (5), Lee Complin 5+1 (5), Barrie Evans 1 (5), Jaimie Smith 0 (3).



Scottish Cup, first leg: Edinburgh 56, Glasgow 37


Edinburgh were without the injured Andrew Tully and both their reserves. They used Rider Replacement for Tully and had Daniel Giffard and Paul Clews filling the reserve berths. Glasgow had James Grieves replacing Shane Parker.

Both sides benefited from having an excellent guest in their side. Paul Clews gave Edinburgh some real punch at reserve while James Grieves dropped only two points from his five rides. However the rest of the Glasgow team couldn’t muster a race win between them and turned in one of their poorest displays of the season. The score might have been even more emphatic for Edinburgh if Paul Clews had not run out of room trying to pass Watson for the lead in heat 5 and had an engine failure while on a 5-1 with Derek Sneddon in heat 8.

Edinburgh took a two point lead from the reserves race before moving into a six point lead in heat 5 with a 5-1 from Matthew Wethers and super-reserve Clews. Another 5-1 in heat 6 from George Stancl and Derek Sneddon put the Monarchs ten points in front just in time for James Grieves to take a Tactical Ride in heat 7. A fast start took him clear of Matthew Wethers while Robert Ksiezak took third place for a Glasgow 2-7 which cut the lead to five points. A shared heat 8 took the score to 28-23 after heat 8.

In heat 10 George Stancl and James Grieves thrilled the crowd with a sensational race. Grieves saw off Stancl from the gate but Stancl chased him hard and executed a fantastic pass on the home straight on the outside where there seemed no room to win the race. Sneddon’s third place gave the Monarchs a 4-2 which they followed with a 5-1 in heat 11 courtesy of Matthew Wethers and Paul Clews. Another Grieves win in heat 12 resulted in a 3-3 and 43-32 score.

Two more 5-1s in heats 13 and 14 rocketed the Monarchs into a 19 point lead and James Grieves won heat 15 to stop George Stancl’s maximum and keep it that way leaving the Tigers with a lot to do in the second leg on Sunday.

Scorers: For Edinburgh – George Stancl 14 (5), Paul Clews 12+2 (7), Kai Laukkanen 12+1 (5), Matthew Wethers 9+2 (4), Derek Sneddon 8+2 (4), Daniel Giffard 1 (5).

For Glasgow – James Grieves 16 (5)(with 6 point TR), Lee Dicken 6 (4), David McAllan 5+2 (5), Craig Watson 4+1 (4), Trent Leverington 3 (4), Robert Ksiezak 2+1 (4), Michael Coles 1+1 (4).

[Merlin]

Saturday, 6 September

Three meetings took place tonight. At Rye House the Rockets met the Isle of Wight in the second leg of the semi-final of the Premier League Play Offs while at Stoke the Potters took on Somerset in the second leg of their quarter final tie for the Young Shield. The other match was at Workington where the Comets raced against Newcastle in the first leg of their quarter final Young Shield tie.


Premier League Play Offs, semi-final, second leg: Rye House 61, Isle of Wight 29 Rye House qualified for the final on aggregate by 105-75.


Both Rye House and the Isle of Wight were at full strength for this match.

Rye House cruised into the final of the Premier League Play Offs to meet either King’s Lynn or Sheffield with a massive 30 point aggregate win. It was not really surprising given the hammering the Islanders received last time they rode at Hoddesdon and the tiny lead they carried forward from the first leg.

The visitors gave the Rockets a surprise by taking a 2-4 from the opening heat won by Chris Holder from Chris Neath but it was all downhill for them after that. The Rockets hit them with five consecutive 5-1s to lead by 27-9 leaving the Islanders stranded. The final straw came as early as heat 5 when, yet again on the Rye track, Chris Holder blew a Tactical Ride. With the Islanders trailing 17-7 they gave the TR to Holder. On the third lap both Tai Woffinden and Holder came down and the referee excluded Holder and awarded the race as a 5-1 to Rye House.

Jason Bunyan won heat 7 for a 3-3 then Gathercole took two points behind Chris Neath for a 4-2 which took the score to 34-14. The rest of the meeting consisted of three 5-1s to the home side and four shared races. It was as well for the Isle of Wight that Stefan Ekberg turned in his worst score at Rye House since signing for the Rockets or they might well have been looking at an even bigger defeat than this. Ekberg was the only Rocket to register a last place, managing two of them, over the whole meeting.older


Scorers: For Rye House – Tai Woffinden 12+2 (5), Tommy Allen 12+2 (5), Chris Neath 11 (4), Adam Roynon 8+2 (4), Steve Boxall 8+1 (4), Luke Bowen 7+3 (4), Stefan Ekberg 3+2 (4).

For the Isle of Wight – Chris Holder 12 (5), Jason Bunyan 7 (5), Cory Gathercole 4 (4), Krzysztof Stojanowski 3 (4), Andrew Bargh 2 (5), Glen Phillips 1 (4), Chris Johnson 0 (4).



Young Shield quarter final, second leg: Stoke 59, Somerset 33 Somerset qualified for the semi-final on aggregate by 93-91.

Stoke were without Rusty Harrison and Glenn Cunningham so used Rider Replacement at number 4 and had Tony Atkin as a guest at number 3. Somerset had Jason Doyle as a guest for Magnus Zetterstrom.

It looked a forlorn hope for the Potters to pull back a 24 point deficit from last night, even more so when they had lost Glenn Cunningham, but pull it back they did in one of the best comebacks of the season.

There was little hint of what was to come in the early stages of the match. Wins for Jason Doyle, Stephan Katt and Emil Kramer in the opening five heats with only one Stoke race winner, Claus Vissing in heat 4, restricted the home side to a two point advantage which meant that they were still 22 points behind on aggregate with ten heats left. The Potters then stepped up a gear with two 4-2s and a 5-1 over the next three heats to increase their lead to ten points leaving them with 14 more to pull back with the score at 29-19.

Tony Atkin and Claus Vissing took a 5-1 in heat 9 and Lee Complin and Ben Barker brought worried looks to the Rebels camp with another maximum in heat 10 so with the Potters lead on the night now standing at 18 points, just six behind on aggregate, Somerset gave the unbeaten Jason Doyle a Tactical Ride in heat 11. This turned out to be a disastrous race for the Rebels. Doyle missed the start and the Potters gated to lead from the off. On bend four of the second lap, Jason Doyle got out of shape and crashed into the air fence. Worse still, Simon Walker ran into Doyle causing him to withdraw from the meeting. In the rerun the Potters added another 5-1 to surge 22 points ahead although Emil Kramer put the brakes on the home side’s scoring spree by winning heat 12 for a shared race. This took the score to 47-25 and the Rebels were now in trouble although still two ahead on aggregate.

Stephan Katt had to replace Jason Doyle in heat 13 and the Potters took advantage of the Rebels’ misfortunes by hitting another 5-1 which put them two points ahead on aggregate. In heat 14 Emil Kramer took a Tactical Substitute ride from 15 metres back. In the first running Jordan Frampton fell and was excluded from the rerun in which Emil Kramer got past Barrie Evans. He couldn’t catch Ben Barker though so the race resulted in a 4-4 which meant that the tie went down to a last heat decider with the Rebels trailing by two points and needing a 2-4 to force a run-off. In the last heat Emil Kramer gated with Claus Vissing in second place. The tie was decided behind them. Ritchie Hawkins and Lee Complin had a real battle for that vital third place point but on the last lap, just as it looked like Hawkins would take it, Lee Complin got up on the line to pass the Somerset man for the point which put Stoke through to the next round.

Scorers: For Stoke – Claus Vissing 14+3 (6), Lee Complin 13+2 (6), Barrie Evans 12+1 (6), Ben Barker 10+2 (5), Tony Atkin 7+2 (4), Jaimie Smith 3+1 (3).

For Somerset – Emil Kramer 14 (6)(with 4 point TS), Jason Doyle 6 (3), Ritchie Hawkins 5 (5), Stephan Katt 4 (5), Simon Walker 3 (4), Jordan Frampton 1 (4), Daniel Warwick 0 (3).



Young Shield, quarter final, first leg: Workington 58, Newcastle 35


Workington again used Rider Replacement for Mattia Carpanese and nominated Scott James as their number 8 while Newcastle had George Stancl at number 1 as a guest for Christian Henry and used Rider Replacement for Jonas Raun at number 2.

The Comets stormed into a 16 point lead over the opening 6 heats but Newcastle fought back well to win the next 6 heats by 17-22 to cut the gap to just 11 points with three heats to go. However it all fell apart for them when Workington scored 5-1s in each of the last three heats to win by 23 points leaving the Diamonds with it all to do in the second leg tomorrow night.

The Comets provided the first seven race winners and took six heat advantages, two 5-1s and four 4-2s, to lead by 26-10. Newcastle finally stopped the rot in heat 7 by sharing the race before finally hitting back to get back into the match in heat 8. In this heat Carl Wilkinson took a Tactical Ride and won the race followed home by Paul Clews to score a big 1-8 ahead of the Branney brothers with James falling on the third lap while at the back. This clawed back seven points for the Diamonds with the score standing at 30-21. Although James Wright and Craig Branney replied with a 4-2 in heat 9 the next three races were all shared in no small part due to two retirements by John Branney taking the score to 43-32.

Just when Newcastle needed to dig deep to keep it close they collapsed. Kauko Nieminen and Ulrich Ostergaard took a 5-1 in heat 13 from George Stancl and Carl Wilkinson before the Branney brothers did likewise to Clews and Stoddart. The Comets completed the demolition of their visitors with a final 5-1 from Nieminen and James Wright for the 23 point win.

Newcastle managed only one race winner – Wilkinson on his TR in heat 8 - which is likely to cost them dearly in the second leg.

Scorers: For Workington – Kauko Nieminen 15 (5)(full maximum), James Wright 14+1 (5)(paid maximum), Ulrich Ostergaard 11+1 (4)(paid maximum), Craig Branney 8+1 (5), Charles Wright 5+1 (3), John Branney 5+1 (7), Scott James 0 (1)

For Newcastle – Carl Wilkinson 12 (6)(with 6 point TR), Josef Franc 9 (5), Paul Clews 7+3 (7), George Stancl 5 (4), Sean Stoddart 2+2 (5), Sam Dore 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 10 October

There were two matches raced tonight. At King’s Lynn the Stars raced Sheffield in the second leg of the semi-final of the Play Offs while at Birmingham the Brummies took on Stoke in the first leg of the semi-final for the Young Shield.


Premier League Play Offs, semi-final, second leg: King’s Lynn 55, Sheffield 37 Sheffield qualified for the final on aggregate by 99-86


King’s Lynn had Simon Lambert at number 7 replacing Benji Compton while Sheffield had Jordan Frampton at number 6 in place of James Birkinshaw.

There had been plenty of hype before this match took place with Sheffield coming into it with a 31 point advantage. King’s Lynn knew they would have to be at their best to pull this round and the recent history of results at the Norfolk Arena between these two sides was in their favour.

Although Ricky Ashworth made the gate in the opening heat, Tomas Topinka passed him on the third bend. With Paul Lee falling at the back the race was shared but King’s Lynn got four points back when Adam Allott and Simon Lambert took a 5-1 ahead of Jordan Frampton. This was the prelude to two more 5-1s in heats 3 and 4. Daniel Nermark won heat 3 comfortably but behind him Trevor Harding chased Andre Compton for three laps before making the pass on the last lap. The Sheffield riders were struggling with the deep and grippy track and lost another maximum heat win in heat 4. Chris Mills won the race while Joel Parsons briefly held second place before being passed by Simon Lambert. This took the score to 18-6 cutting Sheffield’s aggregate lead to 19 points.

Sheffield threatened to take a 1-5 from heat 5 when Ricky Ashworth and Ben Wilson streaked into the lead from the gate. However with Daniel Nermark closing in Ben Wilson went too wide on the last bend of lap three to let Nermark and Harding through for a shared race. Heat 6 was also shared. Tomas Topinka won easily enough but Paul Lee suffered an engine failure at the tapes allowing Parsons and Frampton to pick up the three points. Sheffield then produced a massively important 1-5 in heat 7 which improved their prospects no end. Andre Compton and Paul Cooper did the damage for the Tigers. Adam Allott made the gate but dropped to last after Andre Compton had passed him. Chris Mills was in second place until the last lap when he fell while being challenged by Paul Cooper. This cut the gap on the night to 8 points but it could have been down to 5 had Sheffield given Compton a Tactical Ride! King’s Lynn just couldn’t make any further headway following their deadly opening four heats. In heat 8 Ben Wilson put another nail in their championship coffin by winning from a hard challenging Paul Lee and Adam Allott for another shared heat taking the score to 28-20 with Sheffield still leading on aggregate by 23 points with just seven heats left.

The Stars kept their hopes alive with a 5-1 in heat 9 from Daniel Nermark and Trevor Harding ahead of Joel Parsons as Cockle fell at the back before remounting. Heat 10 was shared. Tomas Topinka triumphed for the third time in the match but Paul Cooper and Andre Compton kept Paul Lee at bay after he had locked up and slipped to the back leaving the Stars needing five 5-1s from the last five heats for the aggregate win. Adam Allott won heat 11 but Ricky Ashworth’s second place while on a Tactical Ride ensured that it was the Tigers who would go through to the final to meet Rye House. The heat ended up as a 4-4 and the Tigers then added a 2-4 when Andre Compton beat Daniel Nermark with Jordan Frampton third taking the score to 42-32.

Heat 13 was won by Topinka from Joel Parsons and Chris Mills for a 4-2 then James Cockle was excluded from heat 14 when he fell causing the race to be rerun. Although Paul Cooper made the gate Trevor Harding passed him round the outside. With Simon Lambert picking up the gift third place point the Stars scored another 4-2. They finished the match with a 5-1 from Topinka and Harding but it was Sheffield who were left to celebrate at the end.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Tomas Topinka 15 (5)(full maximum), Trevor Harding 10+4 (5), Daniel Nermark 10 (4), Adam Allott 8+1 (4), Simon Lambert 5+2 (4), Chris Mills 5 (4), Paul Lee 2 (4).

For Sheffield – Ricky Ashworth 10 (5)(with 4 point TR), Andre Compton 8 (4), Paul Cooper 6+1 (5), Joel Parsons 6 (4), Ben Wilson 4+1 (4), Jordan Frampton 3+1 (4), James Cockle 0 (4).



Young Shield (semi-final, first leg): Birmingham 54, Stoke 38 .


Birmingham were without Henning Bager, Manuel Hauzinger, Henrik Moller and Ben Powell. To cover these absences they used Rider Replacement at number 1, Craig Branney as a guest at number 3, Chris Schramm as a guest at number 5 and Daniel Warwick as a guest at number 6. Stoke were missing Rusty Harrison and Glenn Cunningham. They used Rider Replacement at number 4 and had Tony Atkin as a guest at number 3.

Jason Lyons came through the field from the back while taking the R/R ride in heat 1 to win the race but Ben Barker and Lee Complin shared the heat, finishing ahead of Phil Morris. The Brummies went ahead with a 4-2 in the reserves race when Danny Warwick beat Barrie Evans with Lee Smart third then hit a 5-1 in heart 3 from Jason Lyons and Craig Branney for a six point lead. Stoke hit back with a 2-4 in heat 4 when Claus Vissing beat Lee Smart after Chris Schramm had fallen on the last lap while lying second. This took the score to 14-10.

In heat 5 Lee Complin came down in a clash with Craig Branney causing the race to be rerun with Branney excluded. In the rerun Ben Barker headed Jason Lyons home while Lee Complin picked up the gift third place point for a 2-4 cutting the home side’s lead to two points. Heat 6 had to be rerun too after Claus Vissing had fallen and been excluded. In the rerun Birmingham took a 5-1 as Phil Morris and Chris Schramm won from Barrie Evans opening the lead to six points again. Heat 7 won by Chris Schramm was shared but Birmingham struck with another 5-1 in heat 8 as Lee Smart and Phil Morris kept Ben Barker back in third place. This took the score to 29-19 but Stoke were hit by another blow when Claus Vissing withdrew from the rest of the meeting as a result of his heat 6 fall.

Jason Lyons and Craig Branney added a 5-1 for the Brummies in heat 9 extending their lead to 14 points while Phil Morris won heat 10 for a shared race. In heat 11 Ben Barker took a Tactical Ride but it was Chris Schramm who won the rerun after he had fallen in the first running causing an all-four-back second start. Barker finished second but Lee Smart finished third ahead of Lee Complin so the race was shared 4-4. Jason Lyons won heat 12 but Evans and Atkin shared the points behind him taking the score to 44-30.

Heat 13 was awarded after Chris Schramm fell on the last lap while lying second to Phil Morris. This turned a prospective 5-1 into a 3-3. Tony Atkin took a Tactical Substitute ride from 15 metres in heat 14 but made no impression as Ben Barker won the race from Branney and Warwick for a 3-3. In the last race the Brummies broke the sequence of five consecutive shared heats by taking a 4-2. Jason Lyons won the race from Ben Barker while Phil Morris took third place giving the home side a 16 point lead for the second leg.

Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 17 (6), Phil Morris 12+1 (6), Chris Schramm 8+1 (5), Lee Smart 7 (5), Craig Branney 6+2 (5), Daniel Warwick 4+1 (3).

For Stoke – Ben Barker 15 (6)(with 4 point TR), Barrie Evans 7+1 (7), Lee Complin 6+1 (5), Tony Atkin 5+2 (6), Claus Vissing 3 (2), Jaimie Smith 2 (4).