Around the Premier League Tracks - 2007

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 25 July

There were two Premier League matches raced tonight. At Birmingham the Brummies raced Glasgow while at King’s Lynn the Stars took on Somerset .


Premier League: Birmingham 53, Glasgow 39


Birmingham , who introduced their new signing, Henrik Moller, at number 4 in place of Jon Armstrong, were at full strength. Glasgow were again at full strength.


Ulrich Ostergaard won the opening race from Craig Watson and David McAllan for a shared race but the Brummies were two points to the good with a 4-2 in heat 2 won by Manuel Hauzinger from Lee Dicken. Jason Lyons beat Shane Parker in heat three as Henrik Moller scored his first point for his new team by beating Robert Ksiezak for third. The 4-2 doubled the home team’s lead to four points and a third consecutive 4-2 in heat 4 increased it to six. Manuel Hauzinger won again, beating Trent Leverington, while Emiliano Sanchez was third. The score was now 15-9.

A 5-1 in heat 5 from Henrik Moller and Jason Lyons ahead of Craig Watson had the Tigers struggling as they now trailed by 10 points. Ulrich Ostergaard kept it that way by winning heat 6 for a shared race so Shane Parker was given a Tactical Ride in heat 7. It was Emiliano Sanchez who won the race though while Parker’s second place ahead of Lee Smart meant that the race was shared 4-4. Manuel Hauzinger made it three wins from three rides in heat 8 by beating McAllan and Powell for a 4-2 which took the score to 31-19.

Another Lyons/Moller 5-1 in heat 9 stretched the home side’s lead to 16 points but Glasgow hit back with a 2-4 in heat 10. Ksiezak and Hauzinger came together as the Birmingham man tried to pass Ksiezak round the outside for third place. Hauzinger was controversially excluded and the race awarded to race leader Shane Parker with Ulrich Ostergaard second. Back came the Brummies with a 4-2 in heat 11. Lee Smart won from Craig Watson with Sanchez third but Glasgow rallied to provide each of the last four race winners. Shane Parker was the first of them but Jason Lyons and Lee Smart finished behind him to ensure that the race was shared. The score was now 45-29.

Trent Leverington won heat 13 for the Tigers from Emiliano Sanchez. Craig Watson finished third so Glasgow scored another 2-4 cutting the gap to 14 points. The last two races were shared when, firstly, Robert Ksiezak gated and managed to hold off Henrik Moller then Shane Parker headed home Lyons and Ostergaard.

Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 12+1 (5), Manuel Hauzinger 10+1 (5), Ulrich Ostergaard 9+1 (5), Henrik Moller 8+1 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 7 (4), Lee Smart 6+1 (4), Ben Powell 1 (3).

For Glasgow – Shane Parker 15 (5)(with 4 point TR), Trent Leverington 8 (5), Craig Watson 6 (4), Robert Ksiezak 4 (4), David McAllan 3+1 (4), Lee Dicken 2 (4), Michael Coles 1+1 (4).



Premier League: King’s Lynn 56, Somerset 36 King’s Lynn won the aggregate bonus point by 102-80.


King’s Lynn were without Paul Lee through injury and used Rider Replacement at number 4. Somerset were missing Magnus Zetterstrom through illness and had Chris Holder as a guest at number 1.

The Rebels made a good start to the opening heat when Holder and Katt led from the tapes but Tomas Topinka passed them both to share the race 3-3 before the Stars moved ahead with a 4-2 in heat 2 won by James Brundle after Danny Warwick had led from the start. A Nermark/Harding 5-1 in heat 3 saw the home side into a six point lead and Trevor Harding beat Ritchie Hawkins in heat 4 to increase the lead to eight points with the score at 16-8.

Heat 5 produced a heat advantage for the Rebels when Chris Holder beat Daniel Nermark with Stephan Katt third. This cut the Stars’ lead to six points but it was back to eight when Topinka won heat 6. Simon Walker took second with Chris Mills third for a 4-2 then Emil Kramer came through the field from third to first to win heat 7 for the Rebels for a shared race. Mills and Katt had a good tussle in heat 8 until the home man pulled away for the win. Benji Compton fell off at the back so the race was shared and the score now stood at 28-20.

Another Nermark/Harding 5-1 in heat 9 effectively ended the visitors’ hopes as the Stars surged into a 12 point lead. Heat 10 saw Kramer and Mills pass and repass each other for second place behind race leader Tomas Topinka. The Rebels’ man won the battle but King’s Lynn still took a 4-2 from the race to lead by 14 points. In heat 11 Somerset gave Chris Holder a Tactical Ride but it was Trevor Harding who won the race from the Rebels’ guest with James Brundle third for a 4-4 shared heat. Daniel Nermark won again in heat 12 but Emil Kramer and Simon Walker shared the race behind him and the score now read 44-30.

Tomas Topinka continued on his maximum way by beating Chris Holder again while Trevor Harding passed Ritchie Hawkins for a home 4-2. Topinka and Brundle added a 5-1 in heat 14 with Warwick third before Daniel Nermark won the final race by beating Chris Holder and Emil Kramer for a shared race and a 20 point win which earned the league champions all three points.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Tomas Topinka 15 (5)(full maximum), Daniel Nermark 14 (5), Trevor Harding 11=1 (6), James Brundle 7+2 (5), Chris Mills 7+1 (5), Benji Compton 2 (4).

For Somerset – Chris Holder 13 (5)(with 4 point TR), Emil Kramer 9+1 (5), Simon Walker 5+1 (4), Stephan Katt 4+1 (4), Ritchie Hawkins 3 (4), Daniel Warwick 2+1 (4), Jordan Frampton 0 (4).

[Merlin]

Thursday, 26 July



Another day, another match postponed. There was an early call off to the match at Sheffield where Newport were due to contest a Premier League match leaving the fixture at Redcar where Birmingham were the visitors as the survivor after heavy afternoon rain again for a Premier League Match.



Premier League: Redcar 42, Birmingham 53 .


Redcar were without wrist-injury victim Josh Auty and had Simon Lambert as a guest at number 2. They also had Shane Waldron as a guest at number 7. Birmingham were at full strength tracking the same team which defeated Glasgow last night.

The start of this match was delayed to allow the track to dry out a bit after some heavy late afternoon rain. The opening two heats, both of which were shared, saw three riders fall as the track cut up so there was a further delay to allow grading to take place.

Gary Havelock won the opening race from the gate while Ulrich Ostergaard and Ben Powell were left to follow him home for a 3-3 after Simon Lambert had fallen on the second lap. The second bend was proving problematical as, in heat 2, Manuel Hauzinger followed Lambert’s example in heat 1 by falling at the same place again on the second lap. On the fourth lap Shane Waldron also fell on the second bend but remounted to take the third place point. Lee Smart won the race for the Brummies from Daniel Giffard so this heat finished as a 3-3 too. Jason Lyons was soon off and away in heat 3 while James Grieves and Chris Kerr slotted into second and third but also had trouble with the first two bends. Henrik Moller passed Chris Kerr to get into third place on the third lap but Kerr rounded him on the last bend for the odd point which resulted in the third consecutive 3-3. There was no break in the deadlock in heat 4. Mathieu Tressarieu won the race but his partner, Shane Waldron, fell again on the second lap. This left Emiliano Sanchez and Manuel Hauzinger, the latter looking particularly tentative, to cruise round for another shared heat which took the score to 12-12.

There was more track grading before heat 5 in which Birmingham drew first blood by winning 2-4 but again it was a fall which had a bearing on the result. This time it was Chris Kerr who came to grief on the second bend again as Ulrich Ostergaard and Ben Powell headed in front. James Grieves passed Ben Powell on the first lap but could make on inroads on Ostergaard. After this further work took place on the track with the blade now making an appearance to take off the top surface with some of the riders looking on without enthusiasm. This was followed by a bit of tyre packing in an effort to get the surface into a raceable condition. After a lengthy delay Gary Havelock emerged to win heat 6 but, with Simon Lambert retiring from the race, this was only good enough for a shared race. In heat 7 Henrik Moller and Jason Lyons made the gate. Tressarieu got past Lyons on the second lap but then got out of shape on the next lap which prevented him from making a move on Moller. The 1-5 put the Brummies six points in front. Heat 8 had to be rerun after Shane Waldron had fallen on the first bend. In an all-four-back rerun Waldron fell again leaving Simon Lambert to chase forlornly after Ben Powell and Manuel Hauzinger as the Brummies banged home another 1-5 which took the score to 19-29.

Ten points down, Redcar gave James Grieves a Tactical Ride in heat 9. This race was a shambles. Firstly Grieves was run wide on the opening bend and nearly fell off. Then Lee Smart fell and remounted on the second bend on the next lap. Finally Chris Kerr fell while leading on the next lap on the, you’ve guessed it, second bend. He remounted too and when the dust, or rather mud, had settled Emiliano Sanchez had won the race with Grieves second and Kerr third for a 5-3 to the Bears cutting their deficit to eight points. In heat 10 Redcar gave a Tactical Substitute ride to Mathieu Tressarieu, replacing Simon Lambert, from 15 metres back to partner Havelock as the Bears struggled to get back into contention. This was much more successful as the home side scored the big 8-1! Jason Lyons fell on, yep, the second bend leaving Moller to contest the race on his own for the Brummies. Mathieu Tressarieu caught and passed Moller by the end of the second lap then Gary Havelock let his partner through for the full six points. This cut the gap to just one point with five races remaining. However the visitors pulled off a 2-4 success in heat 11. Ulrich Ostergaard won the race from Mathieu Tressarieu while Ben Powell picked up the third place point to stretch the Brummies’ lead to three points. Shane Waldron was replaced by Daniel Giffard in heat 12 for the Bears but Birmingham scored another 2-4 when Jason Lyons held off a hard challenge from James Grieves and Lee Smart passed Daniel Giffard for third. This increased the visitors’ lead to five points as the score stood at 36-41.

It was clear that Redcar desperately needed an advantage from heat 13 to have any chance of pulling off another escape from jail. It all went pear-shaped though. Gary Havelock, leading the race, let his partner, Mathieu Tressarieu through but was then also passed by Ulrich Ostergaard and Emiliano Sanchez to finish last. This meant that the race was shared and Birmingham were almost home and dry needing just three points from heat 14 for an away victory. They did better than that as Lee Smart won the race and was followed home by his partner, Henrik Moller, for a killer 1-5 ahead of Chris Kerr to clinch the match for Birmingham. In the last race Ulrich Ostergaard rounded off a great night for the Brummies by winning from Mathieu Tressarieu while Jason Lyons finished third after James Grieves suffered an engine failure at the gate.

Scorers: For Redcar – Mathieu Tressarieu 17 (6)(with 6 point TS), James Grieves 10 (5)(with 4 point TR), Gary Havelock 8+1 (4), Chris Kerr 3+2 (4), Daniel Giffard 2 (5), Simon Lambert 1 (3), Shane Waldron 1+1 (3).

For Birmingham – Ulrich Ostergaard 12+1 (5), Jason Lyons 9+1 (5), Lee Smart 9 (5), Emiliano Sanchez 7+2 (4), Ben Powell 7 (4), Henrik Moller 6+1 (4), Manuel Hauzinger 3+2 (3).

[Merlin]

Friday, 27 July


I’m off to Prague this morning for the Czech Grand Prix so no reports over the weekend.

Back next week though!

Cheers.

[Merlin]

Tuesday, 31 July



The Tuesday night, Isle of Wight , highlight was the Premier League match between the Islanders and Newcastle .



Premier League: Isle of Wight 57, Newcastle 35 Isle of Wight won the aggregate bonus point by 102-84.



The Isle of Wight were at full strength while Newcastle had Simon Lambert as a guest at number 6 in place of the injured Adam McKinna.


Newcastle had a four point lead from the first leg towards the fight for the bonus point but it was never going to be enough against a team whose home form is mostly awesome. The Diamonds provided the first two race winners but it wasn’t long before they were hit by a string of 5-1s as happens to many visitors to the Island leaving them sunk without trace.

Against the strong home pairing of Holder and Gathercole, Newcastle opened with a 2-4 race advantage. A titanic struggle between Christian Henry and Chris Holder ended in victory for the Diamond when he was given the verdict on the line in a very close finish which must have given the referee a problem trying to separate the two riders. Gathercole didn’t seem to be at full power and Carl Wilkinson took advantage to finish third. Sean Stoddart then won heat 2 for the Diamonds in a shared race before the floodgates opened as the home side banged home four consecutive 5-1s effectively finishing the visitors’ challenge. Bunyan and Stojanowski started the run in heat 3 which had to be rerun after Ross Brady had jumped the gate. Glen Phillips and Chris Johnson added another in heat 4 with Johnson reversing his heat 2 defeat at the hands of Stoddart taking the score to 15-9.

Jason Bunyan led Christian Henry in heat 5 before being joined up front by Krzysztof Stojanowski for another maximum and it was four on the trot when Gathercole and Holder added another in heat 6. This left the Diamonds reeling some 14 points in arrears and it went to 16 in heat 7 with a 4-2 to the Islanders. Glen Phillips beat Josef Franc who seemed to impede his partner, Ross Brady, causing Brady to fall and the race to be awarded with Andrew Bargh third. Hindsight is a great thing and it would be much easier for teams to play their Tactical Ride card if they knew which heats they were going to win. Alas Newcastle were not gifted with such hindsight so they were left to rue not having given Carl Wilkinson the TR ride in heat 8 particularly since, not only did he win the race, but Sean Stoddart followed him home, ahead of Gathercole, for a 1-5 cutting the gap to 12 points with the score at 30-18.

Heat 9 propelled the Islanders to 16 points up again thanks to another Stojanowski/Bunyan maximum against Josef Raun who found himself on the wrong end of this score for the third time. Holder and Gathercole added another 5-1 in heat 10 against Josef Franc and Sean Stoddart who replaced Ross Brady still being examined by the medics after his heat 7 fall. Newcastle then gave Christian Henry a Tactical Ride but Glen Phillips, who is used to defending leads against TRs, soon passed Henry after a poor start to win the race. Carl Wilkinson finished third so the Diamonds took a 3-5 race advantage then shared heat 12 thanks to a win for Josef Franc against Jason Bunyan and Chris Johnson. This took the score to 46-28.

Christian Henry lowered Chris Holder’s colours for a second time in heat 13 after passing the Isle of Wight’s number 1 and holding on for the win. Glen Phillips took third so the race was shared. Ross Brady was replaced in heat 14 and the Islanders scored their seventh 5-1 of the match to stretch their lead to 22 points. Finally in the last race Christian Henry rounded off an excellent performance with another heat win this time from Bunyan and Stojanowski for another shared race.

Scorers: For the Isle of Wight – Jason Bunyan 12+1 (5), Krzysztof Stojanowski 11+3 (5), Glen Phillips 10+1 (4), Chris Holder 9+1 (4), Cory Gathercole 6+1 (4), Chris Johnson 5+2 (4), Andrew Bargh 4+2 (4).

For Newcastle – Christian Henry 14 (5)(with 4 point TR), Sean Stoddart 7+1 (6), Josef Franc 7 (4), Carl Wilkinson 5+1 (4), Jonas Raun 2 (4), Simon Lambert 0 (4), Ross Brady 0 (2).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 1 August

Two Premier League matches were raced tonight. At King’s Lynn the Stars raced against Berwick while at Birmingham the Brummies took on Newcastle .


Premier League: King’s Lynn 64, Berwick 28 King’s Lynn won the aggregate bonus point by 110-72


King’s Lynn were back at full strength but Berwick were missing Stanislaw Burza and Andreas Bergstrom. They used Rider Replacement at number 4 in place of Burza and had Tomas Suchanek as a guest in place of Bergstrom at number 2.

Having lost at home to the Stars the bonus point looked a lost cause for the Bandits. They started badly losing the opening race 5-1 to Topinka and Mills and looked like doing the same in heat 2 when Brundle and Compton led after Meldrum had fallen on the first lap and remounted. However, Compton then fell on the third lap and the race was awarded as a 3-3. Daniel Nermark and Paul Lee added another 5-1 in heat 3 after Lee had passed a struggling Jacek Rempala but another fall by Benji Compton in heat 4 resulted in another shared race when Trevor Harding passed early race leader, Michal Makovsky, on the second lap. This took the score to 16-8.

Heat 5 produced another 5-1 to the home side, the third in five heats, as Nermark and Lee repeated their heat 3 result although Sebastian Truminski was more on the pace and kept Paul Lee focused. The Stars added another two points to their lead with a 4-2 in heat 7. Trevor Harding passed Makovsky again to win the race while Brundle finished third ahead of Rempala. Mills and Compton, who stayed on this time, added another 5-1 in heat 8 to take the score to 35-13.

The 5-1 blitz continued in heat 9 as Nermark and Lee made it three on the trot as a pairing to open a 26 point lead. At last in heat 10, Berwick produced a race winner. Jacek Rempala made the gate and Topinka could do nothing about it. Chris Mills took third place so the race was shared as was heat 11, won by Trevor Harding. James Brundle was excluded in the first running of the race and was excluded. Then Tomas Suchanek was excluded from the rerun for failing to meet the two minute time allowance so he was replaced by Sam Martin. In heat 12 Jacek Rempala took a Tactical Ride but finished second behind Daniel Nermark. Benji Compton finished third so the heat was shared 4-4 taking the score to 50-24.

Trevor Harding completed a full four ride maximum and, together with Tomas Topinka, added a 5-1 in heat 13. Paul Lee and Brundle then added the Stars’ eighth 5-1 in heat 14. In heat 15 Daniel Nermark completed his full five ride maximum but Jacek Rempala prevented Trevor Harding from doing likewise by holding on to second place as the Stars finished with a 4-2 for a 36 point win.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Daniel Nermark 15 (5)(full maximum), Trevor Harding 13 (5), Tomas Topinka 10+1 (4), Paul Lee 9+3 (4)(paid maximum), Chris Mills 8+ (4), James Brundle 6+1 (4), Benji Compton 3+1 (4).

For Berwick – Jacek Rempala 9 (5)(with 4 point TR), Michal Makovsky 7 (6), Sam Martin 5+1 (6), Sebastian Truminski 3 (4), David Meldrum 2+2 (5), Tomas Suchanek 2 (5).



Premier League: Birmingham 57, Newcastle 36 .


Birmingham were at full strength. Newcastle had Simon Lambert as a guest in place of the injured Adam McKinna at number 6.

Birmingham got off to a flying start with a 5-1 from Ulrich Ostergaard and Ben Powell after both the home riders passed early leader Christian Henry when the Diamonds’ number 1 made a mess of the fourth bend. Manuel Hauzinger won heat 2 from Sean Stoddart while Lee Smart was third for a 4-2. Birmingham then scored another 5-1 from Jason Lyons and Henrik Moller in heat 3 after Ross Brady had been excluded from the race for tape touching and replaced by Sean Stoddart. Newcastle provided their first race winner in heat 4 when Jonas Raun beat Emiliano Sanchez. Hauzinger’s third place meant a shared race taking the score to 17-7.

The home side added another two points to their lead in heat 5 as Jason Lyons won from Carl Wilkinson. Henrik Moller took third while Christian Henry fell at the back. Heat 6, won by Ostergaard was shared then Josef Franc took a TR in heat 7. He won it by beating Sanchez and Smart and Newcastle scored a 3-6. The Brummies added two more points to their lead with a 4-2 in heat 8. In this heat Carl Wilkinson fell challenging Ben Powell for second place behind Manuel Hauzinger. Ben Powell slowed expecting the race to be stopped and Sean Stoddart took advantage to slip through to second place. This took the score to 31-20.

Lyons and Moller added another 5-1 for the home side in heat 9 but the next two races both went to Newcastle. Jason Franc lowered Ulrich Ostergaard’s colours in heat 10 while Brady finished third for a 2-4 then Carl Wilkinson and Christian Henry threatened to add a 1-5 in heat 11 until Emiliano Sanchez passed Henry to limit the damage to a 2-4. Jason Lyons won heat 12 completing a four ride full maximum beating Josef Franc and Manuel Hauzinger took third for a 4-2 taking the score to 44-31.

Newcastle needed to keep it tight to have any chance for the bonus point but conceded two 5-1s in heats 13 and 14. Ostergaard won heat 13 and Sanchez passed Henry again for the first maximum then Moller and Smart headed home Ross Brady for the second. A rerun heat 13 saw Josef Franc ruin Jason Lyons’ maximum hopes by winning the race. Ulrich Ostergaard was third to share the race and the Brummies had secured a 21 lead to take to Brough Park in search of the bonus point.

Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 14 (5), Ulrich Ostergaard 12 (5), Henrik Moller 8+3 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 8+1 (4), Manuel Hauzinger 8+1 (4), Lee Smart 4+2 (4), Ben Powell 3+1 (4).

For Newcastle – Josef Franc 15 (5)(with 6 point TR), Jonas Raun 6 (4), Carl Wilkinson 5 (5), Sean Stoddart 4 (4), Christian Henry 3 (4), Ross Brady 2 (4), Simon Lambert 1+1 (5).

[Merlin]

Thursday, 2 August

As usual there were two Premier League matches raced tonight. At Sheffield the Tigers raced against Stoke while on the Isle of Wight the Islanders took on Birmingham.


Premier League: Sheffield 51, Stoke 39


Sheffield and Stokewere both at full strength for this Premier League match.

Sheffield lined up in their usual order but Rusty Harrison moved to number 1 for Stoke with Glenn Cunningham at number 3 and Claus Vissing taking over the number 5 slot.

This was no walk in the park for Sheffield who only led by 42-36 with two heats to go. Advantages in the last two heats put a better reflection on things for the Tigers who were unlucky to have Ricky Ashworth pull out of the meeting after his second ride with only one point to his name.

Stoke have often proved difficult visitors for Sheffield and looked as though they might be so again when they took an opening heat 1-5. Ben Barker and Rusty Harrison did the damage leading home Ben Wilson as Ricky Ashworth pulled up at the back. In heat 2 Sheffield got two points back when Paul Cooper beat Barrie Evans. Jaimie Smith fell on the first lap while James Cockle did likewise but remounted for the third place point. Andre Compton set off for another maximum by winning heat 3 but Stoke shared the heat by filling the minor places. Sheffield got back on level terms with a 4-2 in heat 4. James Cockle held off the determined challenges of Claus Vissing while Joel Parsons was third. The score was now 12-12.

Andre Compton won again for a shared race in heat 5 while Claus Vissing did likewise in heat 6. Heat 7 brought the crowd to their feet as Joel Parsons and Lee Complin passed and repassed each other for the opening three laps before Parsons got home for the win. Behind them Paul Cooper and Glenn Cunningham had a good battle for third until Cooper’s bike failed him. When the dust had settled the race was shared 3-3. Sheffield finally got their noses in front with a 5-1 in heat 8 won by Cockle and Wilson from Barker taking the score to 26-22.

They added another killer 5-1 in heat 9 from Compton and Birkinshaw to open up some clear water but Stoke were in no mood to roll over. The next three races were all shared won by Andre Compton, Ben Wilson and Rusty Harrison without support from their partners taking the score to 40-32 after 12 heats.

A highly contentious heat 13 saw the Potters pull two points back. Paul Cooper replaced Ricky Ashworth who had withdrawn from the meeting and was involved in an exciting race with Claus Vissing when Vissing took Cooper wide causing him to fall. The Sheffield support were incensed when Cooper was excluded and the Sheffield man was none too pleased about it on his return to the pits where he tried to make his feelings known in a more physical way. In the rerun, Rusty Harrison won he race from Joel Parsons with Vissing third and the Tigers lead was cut to six points. Stoke’s hopes disappeared in heat 14 though when Sheffield scored a 5-1 from Cooper and Birkinshaw after Lee Complin had fallen. Andre Compton completed another maximum in heat 15 while Rusty Harrison was second ahead of Ben Wilson for a 4-2 giving the home side a 12 point win.

Scorers: For Sheffield – Andre Compton 15 (5), Ben Wilson 9+1 (5), Joel Parsons 8+1 (4), Paul Cooper 7+1 (5), James Cockle 7 (5), James Birkinshaw 4+2 (4), Ricky Ashworth 1+1 (2).

For Stoke – Rusty Harrison 11+2 (5), Claus Vissing 7 (5), Ben Barker 6 (4), Lee Complin 6 (4), Glenn Cunningham 5+2 (4), Barrie Evans 4 (4), Jamie Smith 0 (3).



Premier League: Isle of Wight 60, Birmingham 33 the Isle of Wight won the aggregate bonus point by 100-85.


The Isle of Wight and Birmingham were both at full strength.

This was the Isle of Wight’s second home match in three days having beaten Newcastle comfortably on Tuesday night. It was Birmingham’s second match in two days also having beaten Newcastle comfortably last night.

The Islanders were never troubled in this match. They produced a heat advantage in each of the first six heats to thunder into a 16 point lead before Birmingham could stem the flood. A rerun of the first heat when Holder and Ostergaard came down on the opening bends saw Cory Gathercole win the race from Ulrich Ostergaard and Chris Holder for a 4-2. Heat 2 produced the same result when Lee Smart split Johnson and Bargh then Stojanowski and Bunyan scored a 5-1 over Lyons and Moller. Glen Phillips won heat 4 while Johnson took third behind Hauzinger for another 4-2 which took the score to 17-7.

Ulrich Ostergaard retired with engine trouble in heat 5 but Ben Powell salvaged two points for the Brummies by finishing second to Jason Bunyan. Gathercole and Holder hit another 5-1 in heat 6 so Birmingham gave Jason Lyons a TR in heat 7. He won it too but received no support from Henrik Moller so the Brummies took a 3-6 from the race. They added a 2-4 in heat 8 when Ben Powell won from Cory Gathercole with Manuel Hauzinger third to cut the deficit to 11 points at 31-20.

Any chance of a Birmingham revival was put to bed when the home side’s top two pairings took two 5-1 heat wins from heats 9 and 10 but Ulrich Ostergaard won heat 11 from Glen Phillips and Ben Powell supported him by finishing third for a 2-4. Jason Lyons won heat 12 for a shared heat to take the score to 46-29.

A Holder/Phillips 5-1 in heat 13 all but clinched the bonus point then a 4-2 in heat 14 did when Stojanowski beat Hauzinger. Finally Chris Holder won the last race while Jason Bunyan did well to pass Jason Lyons for second place to end the night for the Islanders with a 5-1 and 27 point victory which earned them all three points.

Scorers: For the Isle of Wight – Jason Bunyan 12+2 (5), Chris Holder 12+1 (5), Cory Gathercole 10+1 (4), Glen Phillips 9+1 (4), Krzysztof Stojanowski 9+1 (4), Chris Johnson 5+1 (4), Andrew Bargh 3+1 (4).

For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 12 (5)(with 6 point TR), Ben Powell 6 (4), Manuel Hauzinger 6 (5), Ulrich Ostergaard 5 (5), Lee Smart 4 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 0 (3), Henrik Moller 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Saturday, 4 August

There was a full programme of four Premier League matches raced tonight. At Workington the Comets faced the Isle of Wight while at Rye House the Rockets took on Newport . The third match was at Stoke where the Potters raced against Sheffield . Finally at Berwick the Bandits had Redcar as their visitors.


Premier League: Workington 42, Isle of Wight 53


Workington were in a state of shambles for this meeting with only two of their top five plus the two reserves fit enough to take their places in the side. Carl Stonehewer was missing after crashing badly at Edinburgh last night and the Comets had to use Rider Replacement at number 1 to cover his absence. Mattia Carpanese was still out through injury so Benji Compton was drafted in as a guest replacement at number 2. Craig Branney was again absent due to injury so Robert Ksiezak came in as a guest replacement for him at number 4. The Isle of Wight by contrast were at full strength.

It was clear from the outset that the Comets did not have enough firepower to outgun the Islanders and things went from bad to worse when James Wright was pulled out of the meeting by the doctor after heat 12 through illness.

The Islanders sensing victory were soon in a commanding lead. They started with a 2-4 from Chris Holder and Cory Gathercole in the opening heat then shared the reserves race won by John Branney before romping six points ahead with a 1-5 in heat 3. James Wright made a terrible start to the race and couldn’t catch Jason Bunyan and Krzysztof Stojanowski. Kauko Nieminen won heat 4 but Glen Phillips and Chris Johnson followed him home for another shared race taking the score to 9-15.

James Wright missed the gate again in heat 5 and could only split Cory Gathercole and Chris Holder as the Islanders added two points to their lead with the 2-4 but in the next race James Wright won by a mile from Glen Phillips. This time there was support from Benji Compton who finished third for a Comets’ 4-2 to cut their deficit to six points. Kauko Nieminen won again in heat 7 but the race was shared as Charles Wright retired at the back. Heat 8 was a disaster for the home side as they lost a 1-5 to Chris Johnson and Cory Gathercole taking the score to 19-29.

Now ten points adrift Workington gave James Wright a Tactical Ride in heat 9 and he won it for the full six points. Robert Ksiezak finished third behind Glen Phillips for the point which gave the Comets a 7-2 heat advantage to cut the gap to just five points. It increased to seven though when Jason Bunyan held off Kauko Nieminen who had to pass Stojanowski for second place giving the visitors a 2-4 and they added another in heat 11 when this time Chris Holder beat Kauko Nieminen who had to pass Cory Gathercole for second place. Jason Bunyan then zoomed past James Wright to win heat 12 for a shared race taking the score to 33-42.

The match was over after heat 13 when Holder and Phillips scored a 1-5 ahead of Nieminen to put the Islanders out of sight 13 points ahead. Kauko Nieminen was out again for the fourth time in five races as a Tactical Substitute from 15 metres back replacing John Branney. Krzysztof Stojanowski won the race but Nieminen worked his way through to second place for four points while Robert Ksiezak’s third place point gave the Comets a 5-2 heat advantage. Nieminen then won heat 15, his fifth outing in six races for a shared heat ahead of Holder and Bunyan.

Scorers: For Workington – Kauko Nieminen 18 (7)(with 4 point TS), James Wright 14 (5)(with 6 point TS), John Branney 5+1 (4), Robert Ksiezak 4+1 (6), Benji Compton 1 (4), Charles Wright 0 (4).

For the Isle of Wight – Jason Bunyan 12+1 (5), Chris Holder 12 (5), Glen Phillips 8+1 (4), Krzysztof Stojanowski 7+2 (4), Cory Gathercole 7+1 (4), Chris Johnson 5+2 (4), Andrew Bargh 2 (4).



Premier League: Rye House 68, Newport 23


Rye House started at full strength but were down to six men before a race had been completed . Newport, too, were at full strength .

For the second week running Rye House rattled up 68 points at home but this time they did it with only six riders after Robbie Kessler was brought down by Tom Hedley in the opening race and was taken to hospital with a suspected broken shoulder. This meant that the reserves had to fill in for all four of his rides.

What can you say about a match like this? Newport never got to grips with the Rye House track and failed to produce a race winner all match. Had Boxall not been controversially excluded from heat 15 after falling when Phil Morris locked up in front of him the Rockets would surely have hit the 70 point mark.

As it happened the Rockets rattled home ten 5-1s. They dropped just one point from the opening four races when Tom Hedley managed a second place behind Chris Neath in the opening race and led 19-5 after heat 4.

Three more 5-1s followed this then the Wasps gave Tom Hedley a Tactical Ride in heat 8. Adam Roynon came through the field to win the race but Luke Bowen was none too happy about finishing last after being taken to the fence on the fourth bend by Barry Burchatt who finished second. Hedley on the TR finished third and the Wasps gained a 3-4 heat advantage, their highlight of the night. The score after eight heats was 37-12.

In heat 10 Phil Morris took second place behind Adam Roynon and ahead of Chris Neath for a 4-2 to the Rockets but this was the only break in a run of five heats, four of which produced 5-1s. The heat 12 score was 56-17.

Tony Atkin managed a second place in heat 14 while the last race was shared after Boxall had fallen and been excluded giving the Rockets a 45 point win.

Scorers: For Rye House – Adam Roynon 15+3 (6)(paid maximum), Tommy Allen 12 (4)(full maximum), Tai Woffinden 11+4 (5)(paid maximum), Steve Boxall 11+1 (5), Luke Bowen 10+1 (6), Chris Neath 9+1 (4), Robbie Kessler – withdrawn.

For Newport – Tom Hedley 7+2 (5)(with 2 point TR), Phil Morris 7 (5), Barry Burchatt 3 (4), Tony Atkin 2 (4), Nick Simmons 2 (4), Michal Rajkowski 1 (4), Chris Schramm 1 (4).



Premier League: Stoke 55, Sheffield 35 Stoke won the aggregate bonus point by 94-86


Stoke were at full strength while Sheffield had to use Rider Replacement at number 1 for the injured Ricky Ashworth.

With Rider Replacement for Ricky Ashworth producing only four points, Sheffield did not have the firepower to upset a strength-in-depth Stoke side. Only Jaimie Smith failed to register a win or paid win for the Potters who ran out 20 point winners to claim all three points.

It didn’t start out looking so comfortable for the home side as the opening four heats were shared with the teams trading 4-2s in heats 2 and 3. However 5-1s in heats 4 and 5 from Complin and Cunningham then Barker and Harrison were decisive, thrusting the home side into an eight point lead. When Ben Barker and Barrie Evans scored a 4-2 in heat 8 the Potters stretched the gap to 10 points leading 29-19 after heat 8.

Another 5-1 from Complin and Cunningham in heat 9 had Sheffield reaching for the black and white helmet cover to give Andre Compton a Tactical Ride in heat 10. Although Compton gated Rusty Harrison drove round the outside to lead down the back straight then Ben Barker followed through on the last bend of the third lap for another Stoke 5-1 which extinguished any lingering hope Sheffield might have had of getting back into the match. Ben Wilson cheered up the Tigers by winning an exciting heat 11. Joel Parsons and Claus Vissing indulged in a passing and repassing bout behind him but it was Parsons who prevailed leading to a 1-5 for the visitors. Andre Compton then won heat 12 to take the score to 43-29.

Harrison and Complin won heats 13 and 14 for shared heats before Rusty Harrison finished off proceedings by winning heat 15. However after passing Ben Wilson the Sheffield man fell and was hit by the machines of Andre Compton and Ben Barker who baled out to prevent a more serious collision. Wilson crashed into the fence and had to be taken off by ambulance. The race was awarded with Wilson excluded for a final 4-2 to the Potters.

Scorers: For Stoke – Rusty Harrison 12+2 (5), Ben Barker 11+1 (5), Lee Complin 10 (4), Glenn Cunningham 9+2 (4), Barrie Evans 7+3 (5), Claus Vissing 6 (4), Jaimie Smith 0 (3).

For Sheffield – Ben Wilson 11 (6), Andre Compton 11 (6), Joel Parsons 7+2 (5), James Cockle 3+1 (4), Paul Cooper 3 (6), James Birkinshaw 0 (3).



Premier League: Berwick 50, Redcar 43 Redcar won the aggregate bonus point by 92-91


Berwick were at full strength but Redcar had Byron Bekker as a guest replacement for the injured Josh Auty. Jack Hargreaves was at number 7.

After two 5-1s in the opening four heats Berwick were always in the driving seat in this match and the real interest focussed on the bonus point for which the Bears had arrived with an eight point advantage.

Truminski and Bergstrom saw off the challenge of Gary Havelock in the opener then the next two races were shared with wins for David Meldrum and James Grieves. Michal Makovsky and David Meldrum added another 5-1 in heat 4 to take the score to 16-8.

The teams were now already tied on aggregate so it looked as if the bonus point was heading the Bandits’ way but it didn’t work out that way. Stanislaw Burza won heat 5 but Jacek Rempala had an engine failure so the heat was shared. Andreas Bergstrom won heat 6 but Tressarieu and Giffard kept Truminski at the back for another 3-3. The pattern continued in heat 7 with Michal Makovsky winning but James Grieves, dropping his only point of the match, and Chris Kerr finished behind him. The stalemate was broken in heat 8 when David Meldrum and Andreas Bergstrom scored a 5-1 which seemed to put Berwick in easy street at 30-18 with the Bandits leading 71-67 on aggregate.

Another 5-1 went Berwick’s way in heat 9 thanks to Rempala and Burza increasing the lead to 16 points (eight on aggregate) but Redcar rallied. James Grieves took a Tactical Ride in heat 10 and beat Bergstrom and Truminski for a 3-6 heat advantage then Michal Makovsky headed home Gary Havelock and Byron Bekker for a shared race. In heat 12, rerun after David Meldrum had fallen, the Bears pulled another two points back with a 2-4 when James Grieves won again this time beating Jacek Rempala while Daniel Giffard picked up the third place point. The score now stood at 43-32 with the Bandits leading on aggregate by three points.

Heat 13 was a real shocker for the home side as Gary Havelock and Mathieu Tressarieu scored a 1-5 against Michal Makovsky and Sebastian Truminski cutting the home side’s lead to just 7 points. Although it wasn’t likely to prevent a Bandits’ win it did turn things round for the bonus point as the Bears now led by a single point on aggregate. There was no change in heat 14. Burza won the race but Giffard and Kerr shared the points behind him. In the last heat, James Grieves wrapped up the bonus point for the visitors completing an excellent performance which netted him 17 points Gary Havelock, the early race leader, slipped to the back with both Makovsky and Burza passing him.

Scorers: For Berwick – Michal Makovsky 12 (5), Stanislaw Burza 10+3 (5), Andreas Bergstrom 9+2 (4), David Meldrum 8+1 (4), Jacek Rempala 7 (4), Sebastian Truminski 4+1 (4), Sam Martin 0 (4).

For Redcar – James Grieves 17 (5)(with 6 point TR), Gary Havelock 8 (5), Mathieu Tressarieu 6+1 (4), Daniel Giffard 6+1 (5), Byron Bekker 3+2 (4), Chris Kerr 2+2 (4), Jack Hargreaves 1+1 (3).

[Merlin]

Sunday, 5 August

There were four Premier League matches scheduled for today but the one at Glasgow where Redcar were due to be the opposition fell victim to the weather . The other three went ahead. At Newport the Wasps met Berwick while at Mildenhall the Fen Tigers took on Birmingham . The other match was at Newcastle where the Diamonds raced against Edinburgh .


Premier League: Newport 38, Berwick 54


Newport were without Tom Hedley so had to use Rider Replacement at number 2. Berwick were missing Sebastian Truminski, Jacek Rempala and David Meldrum. They used Rider Replacement at number 1 in place of Truminski and had Lee Complin as guest in place of Rempala at number 3. Billy Legg rode at number 7 for the Bandits in place of Meldrum.

Newport must hate the sight of Lee Complin lining up against them. Having scored 19 points for Edinburgh in their win at the Newport track he appeared in this match for Berwick and recorded a full 15 point maximum to help the Bandits to a win. Mind you, he wasn’t the only maximum man as Stanislaw Burza also went through the card unbeaten by an opponent.

Tony Atkin won the opening heat for the Wasps but with Rajkowski failing to score the race points were shared. Newport then went into a four point lead with a 5-1 in heat 2 thanks to Nick Simmons and Barry Burchatt. The warning signs were out for the home side however when Lee Complin and Stanislaw Burza squared things with a Berwick 1-5 ahead of Tony Atkin and Phil Morris who fell and remounted. Michal Makovsky won heat 4 for a shared race which took the score to 12-12.

The Atkin/Morris pairing conceded another 1-5 in heat 5 this time to Andreas Bergstrom and Stanislaw Burza but the Wasps neutralised the effect of that with a 5-1 from Barry Burchatt and Michal Rajkowski in heat 6. Back came Berwick with another 1-5 in the maximum blitz with the Complin/Burza pairing striking again this time at the expense of Chris Schramm. Nick Simmons won a rerun heat 8 in a three man race after Chris Schramm fell on the first bend and was excluded taking the score to 22-26.

Michal Makovsky won heat 9 from Atkin and Morris then Berwick were able to field Lee Complin in each of the next three races. The Wasps’ nemesis led the Bandits to two 1-5s and a 2-4 to leave the home side gasping some 14 points in arrears. Complin was partnered by Burza in the first of these maximums then Bergstrom in the second. It didn’t help the home side when Phil Morris retired while leading heat 12 leaving Complin to score another race win from Nick Simmons with Sam Martin picking up the gift third place point. The score now read 29-43.

In heat 13 Newport gave Michal Rajkowski a Tactical Ride but he could only finish second to Michal Makovsky. Bergstrom finished third as Chris Schramm retired so the race was shared 4-4. In heat 14 Burza continued the rout beating Tony Atkin and Sam Martin finished third ahead of Nick Simmons for a 2-4 then Burza was out again to complete his six ride paid maximum in the final heat by winning from Atkin and Rajkowski who shared the points.

Scorers: For Newport – Tony Atkin 11 (6), Michal Rajkowski 8+2 (5)(with 4 point TR), Nick Simmons 8 (6), Barry Burchatt 6+2 (4), Chris Schramm 4 (5), Phil Morris 1+1 (4).

For Berwick – Lee Complin 15 (5)(full maximum), Stanislaw Burza 14+4 (6)(paid maximum), Michal Makovsky 11+1 (6), Andreas Bergstrom 10+1 (5), Sam Martin 4+1 (5), Billy Legg 0 (3).



Premier League: Mildenhall 42, Birmingham 48


Mildenhall were at full strength but Birmingham were missing Henrik Moller who was riding in the Nordic Round of the European Championships. They used Rider Replacement at number 4 instead.

This was a bad day at the office for the Fen Tigers whose poor gating was a major factor in this six point home defeat.

The Brummies got off to a 1-5 start thanks to Ulrich Ostergaard and Ben Powell who headed home Shaun Tacey and Tom P Madsen. Strangely enough these were the only points Ben Powell was to score in his five rides. A comfortable 5-1 for Tomas Suchanek and Mark Baseby in the reserves race returned the score to equality then Jason Lyons won heat 3 to keep it that way. Birmingham were back in front again after heat 4 though with another 1-5 from Manuel Hauzinger and Emiliano Sanchez against heat 2 race winner, Tomas Suchanek, and Jason King. This took the score to 10-14.

Mildenhall got two points back in heat 5 when Kyle Legault won the race from Ostergaard with Paul Fry third then Emiliano Sanchez won heat 6 for a shared race. Heat 7 was a sore one for Mildenhall when they lost another 1-5 this time to Jason Lyons and Manuel Hauzinger to increase the Brummies lead to six points. Manuel Hauzinger was out again in heat 8 and won the race from Tomas Suchanek and Shaun Tacey for a 3-3 taking the score to 21-27.

In heat 9 Mildenhall were looking for a 5-1 when Kyle Legault and Paul Fry led the race but Emiliano Sanchez passed Paul Fry on the last lap to limit the Fen Tigers to a 4-2, cutting the visitors’ lead to four points. Jason Lyons remained unbeaten by winning heat 10 but Tom P Madsen and Shaun Tacey kept the dangerous Hauzinger at the back for a shared race. Mildenhall got even closer after heat 11 when Tomas Suchanek beat Ulrich Ostergaard with Jason King third for a 4-2 reducing the gap between the teams to two points. Kyle Legault and Manuel Hauzinger crashed together going into the first bend in the rerun of heat 12. All four were invited back and Legault won the second rerun from Manuel Hauzinger. Behind this pair Tomas Suchanek passed Jason Lyons but was repassed by Lyons so the heat was shared taking the score to 35-37.

Tom P Madsen won heat 13 from Ostergaard and Sanchez for a 3-3 but Birmingham struck a decisive blow by taking heat 14 when Manuel Hauzinger beat Paul Fry with Emiliano Sanchez third for a 2-4 which put the Brummies four ahead with one race to go. The visitors wrapped things up with a 2-4 in the final race when Ulrich Ostergaard beat Kyle Legault with Jason Lyons third for a six point win.

Scorers: For Mildenhall – Kyle Legault 12+1 (5), Tomas Suchanek 9 (5), Tom P Madsen 7 (5), Paul Fry 6 (4), Shaun Tacey 4+3 (4), Mark Baseby 2+1 (3), Jason King 2 (4).

For Birmingham – Manuel Hauzinger 14+1 (7), Ulrich Ostergaard 12 (5), Jason Lyons 11+1 (5), Emiliano Sanchez 9+2 (5), Ben Powell 2+1 (5), Lee Smart 0 (3).



Premier League: Newcastle 46, Edinburgh 44


Newcastle had Sam Dore at number 6 as a replacement for Adam McKinna while Edinburgh had John McPhail at number 6 in place of Daniele Tessari.

Newcastle snatched victory from the jaws of defeat in this match after trailing by four points with just two heats to go. Edinburgh had pulled back from 6 points down after heat 7 to take the lead for the first time in heat 13 but the Diamonds produced a storming finish to gain the points.

George Stancl blazed past the field off the second bend to win the opening heat for a share of the points before Newcastle struck with a 4-2 in the reserves race. Sean Stoddart made the gate and Andrew Tully could not catch him. Sam Dore was third and the Diamonds were two up. Josef Franc won heat 3 after Ross Brady had made the start. Kai Laukkanen passed Brady on the second bend and Kalle Katajisto did likewise a lap later, again for a shared heat. Newcastle doubled their lead in heat 4 with another 4-2. Carl Wilkinson won the race comfortably while Matthew Wethers held off Sean Stoddart for second place. The score now stood at 14-10.

Edinburgh hit back with a 2-4 in heat 5. Derek Sneddon made the gate and led going into the third bend while George Stancl was at the back. A fantastic manoeuvre by Stancl saw him pass both Newcastle riders to slip in behind Sneddon going into the second lap. Stancl then tried to protect Sneddon but Josef Franc was much faster than the Edinburgh captain so Stancl had to abandon the plan to ensure he won the race. Sneddon took third and there were now just two points between the teams again. Back came Newcastle in heat 6 with a 4-2 from Christian Henry and Jonas Raun who finished behind Matthew Wethers then another 4-2 in heat 7 when Carl Wilkinson gated ahead of Kai Laukkanen and held off the Finn’s challenge to win the heat. Sam Dore took third place and the Diamonds had stretched their lead to six points. Edinburgh hit back with a 1-5 in heat 8. Sneddon and Tully were fast away and paired up coming off the second bend to ride side by side for all four laps. Raun could find no way through and in desperation tried a wide sweep round the third bend on the last lap only to come to grief as Tully led his partner home for the maximum. The score was now 25-23.

Josef Franc won heat 9 from the gate but the action was behind him. Matthew Wethers passed Ross Brady who was now in full flight but Andrew Tully hunted him down to pass him in the run in to the line after Brady had gone wide on the last bend. The race was shared then Newcastle pulled four points in front again with a 4-2 in heat 10. Christian Henry won this one from the gate with Laukkanen second while Jonas Raun took third place. The lead didn’t last long though because Edinburgh hit back with a 1-5 in heat 11. Derek Sneddon made the gate while George Stancl worked his way past Wilkinson to sit behind his partner and give an exemplary display in the art of team riding. Wilkinson was all over the place trying to pass the Monarchs’ pairing but Stancl was always in control of the situation and the Edinburgh maximum levelled the scores. They stayed level when Josef Franc won heat 12 from the gate with Laukkanen and Tully following him home for a shared race which took the score to 36-36.

The home fans were stunned as Edinburgh hit them with a 1-5 in heat 13. It was another fine effort from Stancl who got to the second bend in front of Wilkinson and Henry. Matthew Wethers slipped up the inside of both the Diamonds cutting back off gate 4 to join his partner but couldn’t hold off Wilkinson who passed him to move into second. That’s the way it stayed until the last bend when Carl Wilkinson went way out into the dirt to try to catch Stancl and ended up with an engine problem in the run up to the line allowing Matthew Wethers to repass him for the maximum. Edinburgh were now four points in front and looked to be in the driving seat. However the Diamonds had other ideas. Sean Stoddart simply flew from the gate in heat 14 and, try as he did, Andrew Tully just failed to pass him in the run in to the line after an excellent four lap battle. Sam Dore picked up the easy third place point from John McPhail so the visitors’ lead was down to two points going into the last race where they had to face the unbeaten Stancl. There was a delay to the start of heat 15 as the track was extensively watered for the one remaining race. This worked to Newcastle’s advantage for, as Josef Franc and George Stancl battled for the lead round the first two bends, Christian Henry picked up a colossal amount of drive off the outside of these bends to soar past both riders into the lead. Franc won his tussle on the outside of Stancl so the Diamonds secured the 5-1 they needed to win the match.

Scorers: For Newcastle – Josef Franc 13+1 (5), Christian Henry 11 (5), Carl Wilkinson 8 (4), Sean Stoddart 8 (6), Jonas Raun 3+1 (4), Sam Dore 3 (3), Ross Brady 0 (3).

For Edinburgh – George Stancl 13 (5), Andrew Tully 9+2 (6), Matthew Wethers 8+1 (4), Kai Laukkanen 8 (5), Derek Sneddon 5+2 (4), Kalle Katajisto 1+1 (3), John McPhail 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Tuesday, 7 August



The sole action tonight was, as usual for a Tuesday night, on the Isle of Wight where the Islanders took on Rye House in a Premier League Match.



Premier League: Isle of Wight 50, Rye House 40 .


The Isle of Wight were missing Andrew Bargh through injury and had Gary Cotham in his place at number 6. Rye House , too, were a rider short due to the injury to Robbie Kessler on Saturday night so were obliged to use Rider Replacement at number 2 instead.

Rye House called the shots in the early part of the meeting providing three of the first four race winners. The Islanders hit back with consecutive 5-1s but Rye House battled back before learning that Tai Woffinden had suffered a shoulder injury in a heat 3 fall and had to withdraw from the meeting. Left with only five riders and their two reserves having to cover for Kessler and Woffinden the Rockets resources were stretched to the limit but they kept the gap down to two points until heat 11.

Chris Neath won the first race from Chris Holder while Cory Gathercole, who had to start from 15 metres back after breaking the tapes, passed Luke Bowen, taking the Rider Replacement ride, for third place to share the race points. In heat 2 Adam Roynon won from Chris Johnson while Luke Bowen finished third for a 2-4 to the visitors who now led by two points. Tai Woffinden fell on the second lap of heat 3 leading to some concern as the ambulance took to the track but the young Rye House rider recovered to walk back to the pits unaided. He was excluded from the rerun though in which Jason Bunyan and Krzysztof Stojanowski registered a 5-1. Tommy Allen fell but remounted to take the third place point. This wiped out the Rockets’ two point lead and put the Islanders two in front but it was all change again after heat 4. Steve Boxall and Adam Roynon took a 1-5 for the visitors from Glen Phillips so the two point lead changed hands again with the score going to 11-13.

In heat 5, Rye House tracked two of their three race winners, Chris Neath and Adam Roynon, but the Bunyan/Stojanowski pairing repeated their heat 3 performance by scoring a 5-1 which put the home side two points up again. They stretched their lead to six points with another 5-1 in heat 6 through Chris Holder and Cory Gathercole, the latter passing Luke Bowen on the third lap to join his partner up front. Glen Phillips won heat 7 while Tai Woffinden and Tommy Allen shared the points behind him but Rye House came storming back into the match with another 1-5 in heat 8. Cory Gathercole fell on the last lap while lying second to Tommy Allen allowing Adam Roynon through for second place. The maximum took the score to 25-23 but Rye House were down to five riders when Tai Woffinden had to withdraw from the meeting with a shoulder injury leaving the two reserves to cover his two remaining rides and the remaining R/R ride.

The Rockets, familiar with such set backs, shared the points in heat 9 thanks to a Steve Boxall win which ended Bunyan and Stojanowski’s unbeaten run. Chris Holder won heat 10 but Cory Gathercole suffered an engine failure as Tommy Allen and Luke Bowen shared the points. There was no change in heat 11 either when Chris Neath won from Chris Johnson and Glen Phillips keeping the Rockets within two points of their hosts. The Rockets had no option but to track both their reserves in heat 12 and the Islanders took full advantage by scoring a 5-1, through Jason Bunyan and Chris Johnson, taking the score to 39-33.

The Islanders increased their lead to eight points with a 4-2 in heat 13. Glen Phillips won the race while Steve Boxall took second ahead of Chris Holder with Chris Neath at the back. Rye House hit back with a 2-4 in heat 14 when Adam Roynon beat Krzysztof Stojanowski while Tommy Allen finished third but it was too little, too late with the Rockets 6 points adrift with one heat left. In heat 15 Jason Bunyan hit the tapes and went from 15 metres back. Chris Holder won the race while Bunyan overcame the 15 metre handicap by passing Chris Neath and Steve Boxall for a closing 5-1 which gave the Islanders a 10 point win.

Scorers: For the Isle of Wight – Jason Bunyan 13+1 (5), Chris Holder 12 (5), Glen Phillips 8+1 (4), Chris Johnson 7+1 (5), Krzysztof Stojanowski 7+3 (4), Cory Gathercole 3+2 (4), Gary Cotham 0 (3).

For Rye House – Adam Roynon 11+2 (7), Steve Boxall 9 (5), Tommy Allen 8+1 (5), Chris Neath 7 (5), Luke Bowen 3+1 (6), Tai Woffinden 2 (2).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 8 August

There were two Premier League matches raced tonight. At King’s Lynn the Stars raced Edinburgh while at Birmingham the Brummies took on Redcar .


Premier League: King’s Lynn 60, Edinburgh 33 King’s Lynn won the aggregate bonus point by 107-76


King’s Lynn were at full strength but Edinburgh were missing Daniele Tessari and had Nathan Irwin as their Conference League guest at number 6.

Edinburgh, already four points down in the battle for the bonus point, failed to trouble the Stars after sharing the opening heat and went the way of many other visitors to the Norfolk Arena. However an excellent performance by Kai Laukkanen ensured that none of the Stars scored a maximum.

Tomas Topinka won heat 1 from George Stancl while Derek Sneddon got the better of Chris Mills on the opening bends to take third place and share the race points but the Stars took an easy 5-1 from the reserves race to go four points ahead. Another 5-1 resulted in heat 3 when Daniel Nermark won the race while Paul Lee rounded Kai Laukkanen on the last bend to join him up front. Trevor Harding gated to win heat 4 while Matthew Wethers took second ahead of Benji Compton for a home 4-2 which took the score to 17-7.

Another 5-1 went King’s Lynn’s way in heat 5. George Stancl led from the gate but he was passed by both Daniel Nermark and Paul Lee while Derek Sneddon pulled up at the back. Heat 6 produced the same score from the Topinka/Mills pairing although Matthew Wethers gave Mills a hard time during the early part of the race. Kai Laukkanen brought some relief to the beleaguered visitors by winning heat 7 from Harding and Brundle for a shared race taking the Monarchs into double figures. The visitors shared heat 8 too after leading from the gate. Chris Mills won the race by passing, first, Andrew Tully then Derek Sneddon with Benji Compton relegated to the back. This took the score to 33-15.

Heat 9 resulted in the expected 5-1 from Daniel Nermark and Paul Lee, their third consecutive maximum as a pairing, although once again Matthew Wethers challenged hard for second place. Tomas Topinka won heat 10 but Kai Laukkanen passed Chris Mills as the Stars added another two points to their lead with a 4-2. Trevor Harding crashed into George Stancl at the start of heat 11, was excluded from the rerun and taken to hospital with a jaw injury. James Brundle won the rerun so the race was shared. Kai Laukkanen took a Tactical Ride in heat 12 while Andrew Tully replaced Nathan Irwin. Laukkanen won the race ending Daniel Nermark’s unbeaten run after passing the King’s Lynn number 3 but Benji Compton held off Andrew Tully for third so the race resulted in a 3-6 for the Monarchs taking the score to 48-27.

Tomas Topinka and James Brundle took a 5-1 from heat 13. Brundle led from the tapes while Topinka passed both Stancl and Wethers. Wethers almost got up on the line to pass Brundle but the King’s Lynn reserve held on. The Stars then added a 4-2 in heat 14. Andrew Tully led the race until he was passed by Paul Lee on the second lap. Finally Kai Laukkanen ruined the maximums of both Tomas Topinka and Paul Lee by winning heat 15 for a shared race which resulted in a 27 point victory for the home side who picked up all three points.

Scorers: For King’s Lynn – Tomas Topinka 14 (5), Daniel Nermark 11 (4), Paul Lee 10+4 (5), James Brundle 9+2 (4), Chris Mills 6+1 (4), Benji Compton 5+2 (5), Trevor Harding 5 (3).

For Edinburgh – Kai Laukkanen 15 (5)(with 6 point TR), George Stancl 5 (4), Matthew Wethers 5 (4), Derek Sneddon 4+2 (5), Andrew Tully 4+1 (5), Nathan Irwin 0 (3), Kalle Katajisto 0 (4).



Premier League: Birmingham 54, Redcar 41 Birmingham won the aggregate bonus point by 107-83.


Birmingham had their new signing, Henning Bager, at number 1 in place of dismissed, Ulrich Ostergaard. Redcar had Byron Bekker at number 2 in place of Josh Auty and Jack Hargreaves at number 7.

The Brummies got off to the perfect start with a maximum in heat 1 when Manuel Hauzinger went from the back of the field out of the second bend to pass Byron Bekker and Gary Havelock down the back straight to join new man, Henning Bager up front. Jack Hargreaves won heat 2 for the Bears but Lee Smart passed Daniel Giffard on the third lap to ensure a share of the points. Birmingham added a 4-2 in heat 3 when Jason Lyons won from James Grieves. Henrik Moller passed Chris Kerr for the third place point to give the home side a six point lead. The Bears hit back in heat 4 when Mathieu Tressarieu beat Emiliano Sanchez and Jack Hargreaves took third place. This took the score to 14-10.

Jason Lyons won heat 5 by a distance while Gary Havelock finished second ahead of Henrik Moller giving the Brummies another 4-2 stretching their lead to six points and they then added another in heat 6 when Manuel Hauzinger won under pressure from Tressarieu while Henning Bager passed Daniel Giffard on the third lap for third place taking the lead to eight points. Heat 7 was won by Emiliano Sanchez who passed James Grieves on the last bend. Chris Kerr finished third so the race was shared. Heat 8 had to be rerun after both home men fell as a result of first bend bunching. They got up to score a 5-1 in the rerun so the score went to 30-18.

Another 5-1 in heat 9 from Lyons and Moller put the Brummies out of sight now 16 points ahead but James Grieves stemmed the tide by winning heat 10 after making the gate. Henning Bager passed Grieves but the Redcar man repassed him for a shared race. In heat 11 Gary Havelock took a Tactical Ride while Jack Hargreaves replaced Byron Bekker as a reserve replacement. Havelock won the race from Sanchez with both riders passing Lee Smart on the last bend while Hargreaves finished at the back. As a result the Bears took a 3-6 from the race. James Grieves then ruined Jason Lyons’ maximum hopes by winning heat 12 for a shared race which took the score to 44-31.

Things got even better for the Bears in heat 13 when they scored a 1-5! Gary Havelock and Mathieu Tressarieu brought home the goods by beating Henning Bager and Emiliano Sanchez to cut another four points of the home side’s lead. Still in with a very outside chance of victory, Mathieu Tressarieu tried his luck as a Tactical Substitute from 15 metres back in heat 14 replacing Jack Hargreaves and partnering Chris Kerr. Henrik Moller won the race while Tressarieu passed both Chris Kerr and Lee Smart for second place to share the race 4-4. In the last race Jason Lyons and Henning Bager scored a 5-1 from James Grieves to give the Brummies a 13 point lead and all three points.

Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 14 (5), Manuel Hauzinger 10+1 (4), Henning Bager 8+2 (5), Henrik Moller 7+1 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 7 (4), Ben Powell 5+2 (4), Lee Smart 3+2 (4).

For Redcar – Mathieu Tressarieu 12+1 (6)(with 4 point TS), Gary Havelock 12 (4)(with 6 point TR), James Grieves 11 (5), Jack Hargreaves 5 (4), Chris Kerr 1+1 (4), Byron Bekker 0 (3), Daniel Giffard 0 (4).