Around the Premier League Tracks 2009

[Merlin]

Sunday, 23 August



Premier League:

Glasgow v. Birmingham
Newport v. Scun'thorpe
Newcastle v. Edinburgh



Premier League: ..... Glasgow v Birmingham match postponed due to a waterlogged track.


This match was called off early in the morning halting Birmingham's northern tour which had already produced a point at Edinburgh and a win at Berwick.


Premier League: ..... Newport 44 (0 points), Scun'thorpe 46 (3 points).


Team changes: Newport were without Paul Fry and used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 5. They again had Kyle Newman at number 6 for the injured Marek Mroz. Scun'thorpe were at full strength.

Newport were desperate for the three points on offer in their quest to get off the bottom of the league. Scun'thorpe, on the other hand, were looking for points to consolidate their top twelve spot for the Young Shield.

Leigh Lanham was the heat one race winner from Magnus Karlsson and Ritchie Hawkins for a 3-3 the same result as in the reserves race won by Chris Kerr. Kyle Newman and Jerran Hart fell on the third lap and the race was awarded with Newman excluded. First blood was drawn by the Scorpions when they took a 2-4 from heat 3. David Howe had a tapes to flag victory while, behind him, Jonas Andersson fell on the first bend and remounted. Jordan Frampton got the better of Viktor Bergstrom coming off bend 2 then Andersson pulled up on the second lap. Carl Wilkinson gated in heat 4 to win for the visitors but Chris Kerr and James Holder kept Simon Lambert at the back for another shared heat which took the score to 11-13.

Heat 5 produced the fourth shared race but Newport were unlucky when Jonas Andersson suffered an engine failure at the end of the first lap while sitting on a 5-1 with his partner, Jordan Frampton. Ritchie Hawkins and Magnus Karlsson were the beneficiaries and finished behind Frampton for three points. Heat 6 needed two restarts. The first was after an unsatisfactory start and the second after James Holder had fallen on the first bend and been excluded. At the third attempt Leigh Lanham won the race while Jerran Hart finished second after Carl Wilkinson fell and remounted for third. The result was a fifth shared race. Heat 7 saw the visitors romp from the gate for a 1-5 with David Howe leading Viktor Bergstrom. Chris Kerr (R/R) fell at the end of the third lap and the race was awarded. Scun'thorpe now enjoyed a six point lead and the Wasps were in deep trouble. James Holder and Chris Kerr looked like getting the home side into the match when they gated in heat 8 but Kerr pulled up on the last bend to allow Hawkins and Lambert through for a shared race taking the score to 21-27. Newport had only had two finishers in three of the eight heats at this point!

The Wasps clawed two points back in heat 9. Jordan Frampton won again beating Carl Wilkinson while Jonas Andersson finally completed four laps for the vital third place and a 4-2 cutting the gap to four points. A David Howe win in heat 10 on the line after passing Leigh Lanham was only good enough for a shared race for the visitors then Jordan Frampton won for the third time in heat 11 beating Magnus Karlsson. Chris Kerr finished third so another 4-2 for the Wasps saw them cut their arrears to just two points. Viktor Bergstrom won heat 12 from Andersson and Kerr in heat 12 for a 3-3 which took the score to 32-34.

Scun'thorpe took a massive step towards winning the match by taking a 1-5 from heat 13. Magnus Karlsson fell on the back straight and Leigh Lanham was excluded for causing his fall. Carl Wilkinson and Karlsson had an easy maximum ahead of (R/R) Kyle Newman so the Scorpions were now six points ahead again. Newport weren't finished yet though and replied in heat 14 with a 5-1 from Frampton and Kerr. David Howe couldn't get past Kerr so the Wasps had cut the gap to just two points again going into the last race. There was no happy ending for the home fans though. David Howe gated to win the last race from Jordan Frampton while Carl Wilkinson suffered an engine failure as Leigh Lanham took third for a final shared race.


Scorers: Newport – Jordan Frampton 16 (6), Chris Kerr 9+2 (7), Leigh Lanham 9+1 (5), James Holder 5+2 (5), Jonas Andersson 3 (4), Kyle Newman 2 (3).

Scun'thorpe – David Howe 13 (5), Carl Wilkinson 9+1 (5), Magnus Karlsson 7+2 (4), Viktor Bergstrom 6+1 (4), Ritchie Hawkins 5+1 (4), Jerran Hart 3+1 (4), Simon Lambert 3+1 (4).



Premier League: ..... Newcastle 54 (3 points), Edinburgh 38 (0 points).


Team changes: Newcastle were without Rene Bach who was riding for Denmark in the European under 19 Team Final at Holsted. They used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 2 in his stead. Edinburgh were at full strength.

Edinburgh took the lead with a 2-4 in heat 1 with Ryan Fisher leading home Kenni Larsen. Michal Rajkowski took the vital third point from Adam Mckinna. The reserves race was shared. Aaron Summers won from the gate beating Trent Leverington while Adam McKinna and Byron Bekker had a good tussle at the back which Mckinna won for third. Heat 3 had to be stopped when Matthew Wethers, having passed Derek Sneddon for second, hit the fence and was excluded. The race was awarded to Jason King and Derek Sneddon with Max Dilger third. The 5-1 put the Diamonds two points ahead and it stretched to four after Mark Lemon passed Kevin Woelbert and held off his challenge to repass. Trent Leverington took third for a 4-2 and the score stood at 14-10.

Edinburgh quickly stormed into a 1-5 position in heat 5 but Derek Sneddon then Jason King picked Rajkowski off to finish behind Fisher for a shared heat. Aaron Summers led heat 6 but was passed by Kenni Larsen then Kevin Woelbert with Trent Leverington at the back for another shared race but the Diamonds gated for a 5-1 from Lemon and McKinna in heat 7 leaving the Monarchs eight points adrift. It got worse for them in heat 8 as they slipped ten points down. Rajkowski again gated only to be quickly passed by Jason King (R/R) then Aaron Summers. Finally he fell gifting third place to Leverington and a 4-2 to the Diamonds. The score now stood at 29-19.

Kevin Woelbert took a tactical ride in heat 9 but it was Jason King and Derek Sneddon who gated. Woelbert passed Sneddon for second then Aaron Summers did likewise as Sneddon fell and remounted. Edinburgh took a 3-5 from the race to cut their arrears to eight points again. Kenni Larsen gated to lead heat 10 while Byron Bekker replacing Max Dilger slotted into second ahead of Derek Sneddon. Matthew Wethers then passed Sneddon and the Newcastle rider went too wide trying to regain his third place and fell. The race was stopped and awarded as a 3-3. Heat 11 was shared too. Rajkowski again made the gate but was passed by Mark Lemon. That's the way it finished with Fisher back in third place so Newcastle were still eight points up. Heat 12 was a cracker. Jason King gated but was passed by Aaron Summers. Trent Leverington then came through to take the lead and Max Dilger moved into second place. King then passed Summers to take third but couldn't get past Dilger until the run in to the line. The result was a 5-1 to the Diamonds who now led by 43-31.

Ryan Fisher took a tactical ride in heat 13 but it turned out a disaster for Edinburgh. Fisher made the gate and Woelbert came round to join Fisher up front. Kenni Larsen then challenged for the lead and Ryan Fisher fell with Kevin Woelbert crashing into him. Fisher was excluded from the rerun in which Lemon and Larsen led from the gate. However an amazing round the boards burst from Kevin Woelbert saw him pass both Newcastle riders for a stunning win. It only shared the points though and Edinburgh still needed a heat advantage in heat 14 to have any chance of taking a point. They didn't get it. Wethers withdrew from the heat leaving Edinburgh having to track their two reserves. Derek Sneddon led Aaron Summers until the last lap when Trent Leverington passed Summers for second and a 5-1 which put the Diamonds 16 points up. In the last race Kevin Woelbert gated to lead Kenni Larsen, Mark Lemon and Ryan Fisher home for a shared race giving Newcastle all three points.

Kevin Woelbert won the Julian Barnett Memorial Trophy awarded to the winner of heat 15 in memory of a Newcastle supporter who was killed in a road accident returning from a match at King's Lynn.


Scorers: Newcastle – Jason King 12+2 (5), Mark Lemon 12+1 (5), Kenni Larsen 11+1 (5), Trent Leverington 9+1 (6), Derek Sneddon 7+1 (5), Adam Mckinna 3+2 (4).

Edinburgh –Kevin Woelbert 14 (5) (incl a 4 point TR), Aaron Summers 8+2 (6), Ryan Fisher 7+1 (5), Michal Rajkowski 3 (4), Matthew Wethers 2+1 (3), Max Dilger 2 (3), Byron Bekker 2 (4).

[Merlin]

Monday, 24 August



Premier League:..... Redcar 47 (3 points), Edinburgh 39 (0 points) match abandoned after heat 14 as the curfew had been reached so the result stands..


Team changes: Redcar were without Robbie Kessler and used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 3. Edinburgh were at full strength.

It's doubtful if this match would have started if the Sky Sports television cameras had not been there. The meeting was postponed until 8.00 pm to give the track staff time to work on it. Eventually the weather relented and it was clear that gating was likely to be the key to the result. So it proved. Redcar were on fire at the start while Edinburgh were pathetic but question marks were raised about the starting gate which seemed to be lifting at the outside faster than on the inside. Redcar sussed this out and took full advantage by watching the magnets on the outside, Edinburgh didn't and made some woeful starts.

A tapes fault in the opening race twice on the trot didn't help matters causing a further delay to the start. When the action did get underway Ty Proctor blasted from the tapes with Ryan Fisher in pursuit. Carl Stonehewer got the better of Fisher coming off the second bend and the home pair raced off for a 5-1. Stuart Swales and Arlo Bugeja gated for another maximum in heat 2 and Edinburgh were already looking down the barrel at a heavy defeat. Matthew Wethers stopped the rot by rounding Ben Wilson on bend 2 after Wilson had made the gate. Max Dilger passed Bugeja (R/R) on the second bend and the Monarchs took a 2-4 cutting the gap to six points. Aaron Summers slid off on the first bend of heat 4 with assistance from Stuart Swales as Gary Havelock led from the tapes. Kevin Woelbert crashed into Summers and the race was rerun with all four back. In the rerun Aaron Summers had to switch to Matthew Wethers' bike. Gary Havelock gated again but was pushed all the way by Kevin Wolbert. Behind this pair Aaron Summers held off the hard challenging Swales for third and the result was a shared race taking the score to 15-9.

Redcar increased their lead to eight points in heat 5 with a 4-2. Ben Wilson gated as Fisher lifted at the start and that was that while Swales took third from Rajkowski. Ty Proctor leapt from the gate with Carl Stonehewer in heat 6 but Kevin Woelbert sailed round the outside of Stonehewer on bend 4 for second place as Bekker was tailed off badly at the back. The 4-2 stretched the home side's lead to ten points. Immediately Edinburgh gave a tactical ride to Matthew Wethers in heat 7. The race was stopped and rerun after Havelock had jumped the start. Bugeja and Havelock left Wethers for dead at the start in the rerun and the result was another 5-1 for the Bears stretching their lead to fourteen points. Michal Rajkowski finally made the gate in heat 8 to give the Monarchs some respite but Swales and Stonehewer followed him home for a shared race which took the score to 31-17.

Edinburgh's second tactical ride went to Kevin Woelbert in heat 9 which seemed a strange decision off gate 1 against the fast gating Ben Wilson. Needless to say Wilson stormed from the gate while Woelbert passed Bugeja for second and a 4-4. The Bears scored another 4-2 in heat 10. Ty Proctor made another stunning start and Carl Stonehewer followed him in second. However Max Dilger passed Stonehewer round the outside and Wethers almost caught Stonehewer too on the line. Finally the Edinburgh riders made the gate with Fisher leading Rajkowski. With Havelock chasing Rajkowski hard the Edinburgh rider chose the wrong option of f the final bend by sticking to the line and Havelock stormed round the outside to get the verdict on the line. Edinburgh took a 2-4 from the race taking the score to 41-27. In heat 12 another fast start saw Wilson hit the front. Max Dilger swept round the first two bends to get into second but Swales took Dilger's leg away going into the third bend and was excluded from the rerun.Wilson gated again to lead the rerun by a distance but unaccountably he fell on the fourth bend of the third lap so Dilger and Summers sailed past for a 1-5 as Wilson remounted for the third place point. The score now stood at 42-32.

Edinburgh pulled another two points back in a thrilling heat 13. Ryan Fisher made the gate but off the second bend Gary Havelock passed him on the inside to take up the lead with Woelbert in third. Fisher dived inside Havelock into second place and Woelbert moved through with Proctor too into second and third as Havelcok got out of shape. Then Ty Proctor passed Woelbert to chase Fisher. Fisher just held on for the win by moving out to stop Proctor's run off the fourth bend for a 2-4 The lead was down to eight points now and things got worse for the Bears in heat 14 when Ben Wilson comfortably in front again hit trouble on the fourth bend. He slid off the bike but crashed into the fence leg first in a bad looking crash. Fortunately Wilson was able to get into the ambulance under his own steam but he was excluded from the rerun. In the rerun Bugeja hit the front off the second bend passing Matthew Wethers. He went out into the dirt, the Edinburgh riders didn't and won with ease to bring the house down by clinching the match for the home side. This left Edinburgh needing a 2-4 in heat 15 to escape with a point from the match. In the first running of the heat Ty Proctor charged into Havelock on the first bend causing Havelock to run into Fisher with both Havelock and Fisher coming down. The referee called for all four back but Havelock became the second rider needing an ambulance ride back to the pits.Arlo Bugeja replaced Havelock in the rerun but the second running never took place. With medical attention being given to Havelock and the curfew time having been reached the match was abandoned and Edinburgh were deprived of a chance to take a point from the match.

Scorers: Redcar – Ty Proctor 11 (4), Arlo Bugeja 9+1 (5), Ben Wilson 9 (5), Gary Havelock 7+1 (4), Stuart Swales 6 (5), Carl Stonehewer 5+2 (4),

Edinburgh – Ryan Fisher 9 (4), Kevin Woelbert 9 (4) (incl 4 point TR), Max Dilger 6 (4), Matthew Wethers 6 (4), Aaron Summers 5+3 (5), Michal Rajkowski 4 (4), Byron Bekker 0 (3).

[Merlin]

Wednesday, 26 August



Premier League:

Birmingham v. Edinburgh
King's Lynn v. Somerset



Premier League: .... Birmingham v.Edinburgh match postponed due to a waterlogged track – rescheduled for September 16.



Birmingham called this match off at 10.00am after heavy overnight rain had left the track waterlogged. This saved the Edinburgh fans and riders from making a 600 mile plus round trip which would have been in vain.



Premier League: .... King's Lynn 59 (3 points), Somerset 33 (0 points).



Team changes: King's Lynn had Simon Lambert at number 6 in place of the injured Kozza Smith. Somerset used Rider Replacement (R/R) for the injured Simon Walker and had Kyle Hughes at number 6 for Tom Brown.


With King's Lynn shedding points to engine failures King's Lynn managed what is now considered a highly respectable score at the Norfolk Arena these days. Cory Gathercole was their hero against a Stars side whose reserves scored 22 points of their total. However Gathercole received scant support. He won three races but none of the other Rebels managed a heat win.

Steve Johnston took the lead off the opening bends of heat 1. Darcy Ward chased after him hard and passed him on the last lap to snatch the win. Linus Eklof took third and the Stars opened with a 4-2. The next two races resulted in 5-1s for the home side, Simon Lambert and Jan Graversen swept past the Rebels pair who had made the gate in heat 2 then Chris Schramm and Emiliano Sanchez did likewise to Emil Kramer in heat 3. Cory Gathercole then passed Jan Graversen to follow Tomas Topinka home in heat 4 restricting the Stars to a 4-2 and the score now read 18-6.

Steve Johnston took a tactical ride in heat 5 but Sanchez won comfortably. Meanwhile Chris Schramm suffered an engine failure at the starting gate so, with Kyle Hughes picking up the gift third place point, the Rebels took a 3-5 heat advantage to cut their arrears to ten points. Darcy Ward was next to suffer an engine failure in heat 6 after pulling ahead of Cory Gathercole following a tyre to tyre battle. Gathercole went on to win while Nick Simmons followed him home after Linus Eklof made a dog's breakfast of the second bend and couldn't recover. This gave the Rebels a 1-5 and the gap had now been reduced to six points. Simon Lambert passed Emil Kramer to win heat 7 with Tomas Topinka unusually relegated to third so the home side took a 4-2 and eight point lead. There was more joy for the Rebels in heat 8 when Linus Eklof this time had an engine failure at the start. Cory Gathercole (R/R) won with ease from Graversen and Simmons for a 2-4 which cut the gap to six again with the score now 28-22.

King's Lynn then stepped up a gear and dropped just a single point over the next four races. In heat 9 Emiliano Sanchez touched the tapes and was replaced by Simon Lambert. Lambert and Schramm then went on to head Gathercole home for a 5-1 and Darcy Ward passed Emil Kramer in the next race while Lambert took third from Justin Sedgmen who suffered an engine failure for a 4-2. Next up were Topinka and Graversen who scored another 5-1 as Johnston finished at the back. Lambert and Sanchez added yet another maximum in heat 12 ahead of Sedgmen which took the score to 47-27.

Darcy Ward burst through the tapes in heat 13 and went from 15 metres back. Although he made up the handicap to pass Steve Johnston he couldn't catch Cory Gathercole who finished behind Topinka for a 4-2. Another 5-1 in heat 14 from Schramm and Graversen took the Stars' total to 56 points with a possible 60 once again within sight in a home league match. However it was not to be this time as Cory Gathercole won heat 15 from Topinka and Ward to deny them.


Scorers: King's Lynn – Simon Lambert 12+1 (5), Jan Graversen 10+2 (5), Tomas Topinka 12 (5), Chris Schramm 8+1 (4), Darcy Ward 8+1 (5), Emiliano Sanchez 7+2 (4), Linus Eklof 2 (3).

Somerset – Cory Gathercole 14 (6), Steve Johnston 6 (4) (incl 4 point TR), Nick Simmons 5+1 (6), Emil Kramer 4 (5), Justin Sedgmen 3 (5), Kyle Hughes 1+1 (4).

[Merlin]

Thursday, 27 August



Premier League:..... Sheffield 46 (1 point), Workington 46 (2 points).


Team changes: Sheffield were at full strength while Workington had Simon Lambert as a guest for Phil Morris and used Rider Replacement (R/R) for Richard Lawson at number 4.

Two 5-1s and a 4-2 in the opening three heats for Sheffield left Workington facing an uphill task to get back into this match but it was just the prelude to a real thriller which went to a last heat decider. Chris Mills and Ricky Ashworth made the gate in the opening heat but it was Simon Lambert who took up the chase rather than Kevin Doolan, stuck at the back and off the pace. Craig Cook made the gate in heat 2 but he was passed by Scott Smith on the third bend, by Hugh Skidmore at the start of lap two then by Craig Branney at the end of lap two leading to another Tigers' 5-1. Adrian Rymel split the Richard Hall, Joel Parsons pairing in heat 3 for a 4-2 then Andre Compton, returning to his old stamping ground, stopped the rot by winning heat 4 from Skidmore and Josh Auty for a 3-3 which took the score to 17-7.

Workington decided not to give a tactical ride in heat 5 to Kevin Doolan which was unfortunate for them because he won the race. It was Simon Lambert though who made the gate but he got out of shape on the second bend and slipped to the back. Undaunted he then repassed Richard Hall on the third bend then, on the last bend of lap three, Joel Parsons to sit behind his partner on a 1-5. The Tigers weren't about to take this lying down and Joel Parsons moved back to second on the second bend of the last lap and Richard Hall brought the house down by passing Lambert again for third on the last bend. A superb race ended with the points shared. Andre Compton took a tactical ride in heat 5 but, after passing Ricky Ashworth on the third bend, Ashworth repassed him at the start of lap 2. Compton chased hard for the rest of the race but Ashworth held him off. With Chris Mills in third place the result was another shared race this time by 4-4. The Comets finally got a heat advantage and shaved two points from the home side's lead with a 2-4 in heat 7. Adrian Rymel won the race while Simon Lambert passed Scott Smith to finish behind Josh Auty in third place. Flushed with that success the Comets went one better with a 1-5 in heat 8. Joel Parsons charged into the tapes and went from 15 metres back. Simon Lambert and John Branney hit the front from the tapes in the rerun and there was no joy for the Tigers although High Skidmore tried his hardest in vain to get on terms with Branney. There were now just four points between the teams with the score at 27-23.

Heat 9 provided yet another race advantage to the Comets. Andre Compton left Richard Hall in his wake by winning the race comfortably. Behind this pair Craig Cook finally got on the scoresheet by taking third place from Parsons so the visitors took a 2-4 cutting the lead to just two points. Ricky Ashworth won heat 10 for the Tigers while Adrian Rymel moved into second by passing Chris Mills who had a passing and repassing bout with Craig Branney for third which Branney won. The race was shared as was heat 11 won from the gate by Kevin Doolan from Auty and Scott Smith. Adrian Rymel won heat 12 from Smith and Skidmore so this third shared heat on the trot took the score to 38-36 with three heats remaining.

Kevin Doolan drove hard under Josh Auty on the first bend of lap 2 in heat 13. Auty fell and was excluded from the rerun in which Ricky Ashworth was left to take on Kevin Doolan and Andre Compton on his own. He saw them both off after a getting the better of Doolan down the back straight. Another shared race kept the Tigers two points in front and there was no change after Andre Compton had won heat 14 from Hall and Smith. It was all down to the last race therefore with all results possible for a share of the three points. Sheffield gained an advantage by winning the toss for gate positions taking 1 and 3. However it was Adrian Rymel who won the final race by a narrow margin from Ricky Ashworth while behind them Andre Compton took third after a terrific battle with Richard Hall. When the dust settled Workington had taken a 2-4 and the match was drawn 46-46 – a classic match. Workington might reflect that had they given the TR to Doolan in heat 5 rather than Compton in heat 6 they would have won. Hindsight is a great thing!


Scorers: Sheffield – Ricky Ashworth 13+1 (5), Richard Hall 8+1 (5), Scott Smith 7+2 (5), Hugh Skidmore 6+2 (4), Josh Auty 5+1 (4), Chris Mills 4 (4), Joel Parsons 3 (3).

Workington – Andre Compton 16 (6) (incl 4 point TR), Adrian Rymel 13 (5), Kevin Doolan 7+1 (4), Simon Lambert 5 (5), John Branney 4+2 (7), Craig Cook 1 (3).

[Merlin]

Friday, 28 August



Premier League:

Edinburgh v. Glasgow
Scun'thorpe v. Newport
Somerset v. Birmingham



Premier League: ..... Edinburgh 50 (3 points), Glasgow 39 (0 points).


Team changes: Edinburgh were at full strength. Glasgow were without Aleksander Conda and used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 4.

Edinburgh returned home after a busy week to face local rivals Glasgow. With their two new German riders still relatively new to Armadale and the Tigers' team carrying a heat leader trio no strangers to the track the Tigers posed a real threat at the Monarchs' stronghold for the first time in ages. It wasn't enough though and after a close match the Monarchs emerged with all three points.

The first lap had just reached the first corner when Max Dilger and Josh Grajczonek locked together and headed to the fence at high speed. Luckily neither rider was seriously injured but Dilger had subsequently to withdraw from the meeting with a swollen thumb. Dilger was excluded but in the rerun Grajczonek pulled up on the first bend with engine problems. Meanwhile Ryan Fisher left Shane Parker in his wake to record a time one fifth of a second outside the track record for a 3-2 heat advantage. Aaron Summers was fast away to win heat 2 while Lee Dicken in second had to look lively to keep Byron Bekker in third. The 4-2 took the Monarchs lead to three points. This increased to seven points with a 5-1 in heat 3. Matthew Wethers and William Lawson led into the first bend but Kevin Woelbert oozed round the outside of both of them to head off for a fast win. Immedieately Glasgow hit back with a 1-5. Michal Rajkowski made a fast start but was soon passed by James Grieves. Lee Dicken was also on Rajkowski's tail and passed him smoothly on the third lap to joing his partner for the maximum cutting the lead to three points again with the heat 4 score reading 13-10.

Shane Parker rocketed from the gate in heat 5 leaving Wethers and Woelbert to chase him home for a shared heat. In heat 6 Ryan Fisher made a good start but James Grieves passed him off the second bend only to be repassed on the third bend. Behind them Max Dilger comfortably held third place until straightening up on the second lap allowing Mitchell Davey through for third and another shared race. Lee Dicken made the gate in heat 7 with Rajkowski on his tail. William Lawson tried to pass Rajkowski on the inside and, although he did manage it briefly, Rajkowski on the outside line had the better run off the bends and repassed him to follow Dicken home. The 2-4 to the Tigers reduced the deficit to to just one point and it stayed that way after a Summers win in heat 8 from Grajczonek and Dicken taking the score to 24-23.

James Grieves made the gate in heat 9 but was passed by Woelbert on the outside and Wethers on the inside coming off bend two with the Edinburgh pair heading off for a 5-1 which gave the Monarchs some breathing space with a five point lead. It looked like Ryan Fisher and Aaron Summers were going to add another maximum in heat 10 but Summers overshot the fourth bend on the second lap and clipped the fence. He was lucky to stay on and William Lawson took the opportunity to slip through on the inside for second. The 4-2 stretched the Edinburgh lead further to seven points but Glasgow hit back with a big 1-5 in heat 11. Josh Grajczonek and Shane Parker led Rajkowski from the start and headed off for a comfortable maximum which cut the deficit to just three points again. Kevin Woelbert won heat 12 with ease but William Lawson and Lee Dicken shared the race against a tailed off Summers taking the score to 37-34.

Heat 13 was the definitive race. Michal Rajkowski made a great start off gate 4 and Ryan Fisher slipped in behind him sitting on his tail for all four laps covering the gaps which James Grieves was eager to exploit. There was no way through for Grieves so good was Fisher's positioning and, with Shane Parker tailed off at the back, the Monarchs scored a 5-1 which put them seven points ahead with just two races to go. Matthew Wethers stormed from the gate in heat 14 pursued by Lee Dicken. Lawson eventually passed his partner to take up the chase but Wethers' lead was unassailable. With Summers again badly tailed off at the back the race was shared guaranteeing an Edinburgh win. However there was still the matter of the third point to be decided in the last heat. In the first running James Grieves came to grief before reaching the first bend and was unable to take his place in the all four back rerun. William Lawson replaced him but Ryan Fisher and Kevin Woelbert stormed home for a 5-1 which left the final score suggesting that the match had not been as close as it had.


Scorers: Edinburgh – Ryan Fisher 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Kevin Woelbert 12+2 (5), Matthew Wethers 9+2 (4), Michal Rajkowski 7 (4), Aaron Summers 7 (7), Byron Bekker 1 (3).

Glasgow – Lee Dicken 10+4 (7), Shane Parker 9 (5), William Lawson 8 (6), James Grieves 7 (5), Josh Grajczonek 4+1 (4), Mitchell Davey 1+1 (4).



Premier League: ..... Scun'thorpe 56 (3 points), Newport 39 (0 points).


Team changes: Scun'thorpe were at full strength. Newport had Sam Hurst at number 6 in place of Marek Mroz.

Scun'thorpe were looking to complete the double after winning at Newport last Sunday. A win would go a long way to cementing a Young Shield place for the Scorpions. Newport on the other hand badly needed the points to have any chance of moving off the bottom of the league table.

Three 5-1s in the first five races had the Scorpions on easy street. However the first race won from the gate by David Howe was shared when Ritchie Hawkins retired. Simon Lambert and Jerran Hart overcame a good start from Chris Kerr by passing him for a 5-1 in the reserves race then Viktor Bergstrom shot from the gate in heat 3. David Howe came from the back to join him for another maximum and eight point lead. Carl Wilkinson kept the run of Scun'thorpe winners going by taking heat 4 but this time Jordan Frampton took second and Chris Kerr passed Simon Lambert for third and a 3-3. The score was now 13-5.

Bergstrom and Howe both passed early race leader Leigh Lanham for another 5-1 in heat 5 taking the home side's lead to 12 points so the Wasps gave Jordan Frampton a tactical ride in heat 6. He won it too beating Wilkinson and Hawkins for a 3-6 to the visitors and they backed this up with a 2-4 in heat 7. Carl Wilkinson led the race until the end of the third lap but pulled out of the race leaving Paul Fry to race home for the win from Jerran Hart and Jonas Andersson. The home side's lead was now down to seven points and Newport cut it further to five with another 2-4 in heat 8. James Holder was the race winner from Ritchie Hawkins while Chris Kerr passed Simon Lambert for third. The score now stood at 28-23.

Howe and Bergstrom recorded their third maximum as a pairing in heat 9 ahead of Frampton and the Scorpions were now nine ahead again. Paul Fry fell in heat 10 while chasing Ritchie Hawkins who won the race. Jonas Andersson took second for a 4-2 and eleven point lead for the home side. Leigh Lanham won heat 12 for a shared race then Lambert and Bergstrom led heat 12 looking for a maximum but Kerr got up to pass Bergstrom on the line so the home pair had to be content with a 4-2 which took the score to 44-31.

Newport were able to play their second tactical card and gave the ride to Leigh Lanham in heat 13. Bergstrom won the race from the gate but Lanham and Frampton finished behind him for a 3-5 heat advantage. David Howe kept his unbeaten run going by winning heat 14. Chris Kerr passed Jerran Hart for second so the Scorpions took a 4-2 and 13 point lead going into the last race in which the Howe, Bergstrom partnership scored their fourth 5-1 together to round things off.


Scorers: Scun'thorpe – David Howe 16+2 (6), Viktor Bergstrom 14+2 (6), Jerran Hart 8+1 (5), Ritchie Hawkins 6+1 (4), Carl Wilkinson 6+1 (5), Simon Lambert 6 (4).

Newport – Leigh Lanham 11 (5) (incl 4 point TR), Jordan Frampton 10+1 (5) (incl a 6 point TR), Chris Kerr 7+1 (5), James Holder 4+1 (4), Paul Fry 4 (4), Jonas Andersson 3 (4), Sam Hurst 0 (1).



Premier League: ..... Somerset 48 (2 points), Birmingham 42 (1 point).


Team changes: Somerset introduced their new signing, Jari Makinen, at number 3. Birmingham were at full strength.

This match looked like providing the greatest threat to Somerset's home record of the teams left to visit the Oak Tree Arena. Newcomer. Jari Makinen's signing meant that Justin Sedgmen could return to a reserve berth strengthening up the options open to the Rebels. Birmingham, however, were there on serious business and needed to win to keep the pressure on King's Lynn at the top of the table.

What a start for the Brummies! They hit the Rebels with 1-5s in both the opening two races to lead by eight points. In the first Tomasz Piszcz and Rusty Harrison gated to head Steve Johnston home for the first of the maximums then Jay Herne and Lee Smart raced off to head Justin Sedgmen home in heat 2. Emil Kramer gated to win heat three but Ludvig Lindgren and Richard Sweetman finished behind him for a shared heat. Cory Gathercole got the better of Jason Lyons in heat 4 and, with Lee Smart suffering an engine failure at the tapes, Sedgmen took third and the Rebels hit back with a 4-2. The score was now 9-15.

Birmingham restored their eight point lead in heat 5. Tomasz Piszcz and Rusty Harrison again made the gate but this time Emil Kramer passed Harrison to restrict the damage to a 2-4. Jason Lyons kept the visitors eight ahead by winning heat 6 from Steve Johnston and Justin Sedgmen but the Rebels finally got a 5-1 in heat 7 when Sedgmen and Gathercole made the gate to lead Richard Sweetman home to halve their arrears. It was all square when they scored another maximum in heat 8. Cory Gathercole led from the start with Lee Herne in second. Justin Sedgmen chased Herne hard though and finally made the pass on the last bend. The score now stood at 24-24.

Birmingham were back in front again after heat 9. Jason Lyons was the race winner beating Emil Kramer with Jay Herne in third for a 2-4 and two point lead but Somerset levelled again in heat 10 when Steve Johnston finally won a race beating Ludvig Lindgren while Sedgmen held off Sweetman for third. The Rebels took the lead for the first time in heat 11 when Cory Gathercole ended Tomasz Piszcz's unbeaten run and Nick Simmons took third from Harrison. Jay Herne was excluded from the first running of heat 12 for causing Justin Sedgmen to fall. In the rerun Ludvig Lindgren won from Jari Makinen, scoring his first point for the Rebels, and Sedgmen. The 3-3 took the score to 37-35.

Piszcz was back to winning ways in heat 13 heading home Gathecole and Johnston who gave hime a hard time of it sharing the race then Justin Sweetman kept the Brummies two behind by winning heat 14 from Simmons and Kramer for a shared race meaning that it was all to race for in heat 15. The Rebels won the toss for gate positions and Gathercole and Johnston took full advantage of the outside gates by romping off to a 5-1 ahead of Lyons and Piszcz. Although the Rebels secured victory, Birmingham took a league point for their efforts.


Scorers: Somerset – Cory Gathercole 16+1 (6), Justin Sedgmen 10+3 (7), Steve Johnston 9+2 (5), Emil Kramer 8+1 (4), Nick Simmons 3 (6), Jari Makinen 2 (4).

Birmingham – Tomasz Piszcz 11 (5), Jason Lyons 9 (5), Ludvig Lindgren 7 (4), Richard Sweetman 5+1 (4), Jay Herne 4 (4), Rusty Harrison 3+1 (4), Lee Smart 3+1 (4).

[Merlin]

Saturday, 29 August



Premier League:

Berwick v. Workington
Stoke v. Rye House



Premier League:.... Berwick 42 (0 points), Workington 48 (3 points).



Team changes: Berwick introduced their new signing, Tamas Sike, at number 2 in place of Frank Facher while Workington , without Phil Morris and Richard Lawson, had Chris Kerr as a guest for Morris and used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 4 for Lawson.


Berwick were anxious to get back to winning ways at home after last week's defeat by Birmingham while Workington were looking to build on the away points they took from their draw at Sheffield on Thursday. However it turned out to be another bad night for the Bandits who managed only four race winners all evening while Workington fell a point short of a four point away win.

Gating is the key to success at Shielfield Park. Workington had no problems in this department; Berwick couldn't match them. In fact the Bandits had only four race winners all match. The Workington heat leaders scored 34 points between them and with 9 points from John Branney at reserve and 5 from guest, Chris Kerr, they had too much for the home side. However there were only two points between the teams going into the last heat when a 1-5 for the visitors put some gloss on the score for them.

The Comets took the lead in heat 1 with a 2-4 from Kevin Doolan and Chris Kerr then shared the next three with wins from Craig Branney, Adrian Rymel and Andre Compton for an 11-13 score. Stan Burza became Berwick's first race winner in heat 4 in a time one hundredth of a second outside the track record and with Paul Clews third the Bandits levelled with a 4-2. John Branney beat Josef Franc in heat 6 and, with Andre Compton third, the Comets were back in front again with the 2-4. Wins for Adrian Rymel and Tero Aarnio in heats 7 and 8 resulted in shared heats and the score stood at 23-25.

Berwick's big moment of joy came in heat 9 when Paul Clews and Stan Burza scored a 5-1 over the Branney, Compton pairing the latter having to go from 15 metres back after being excluded under the two minute time allowance. Suddenly the Bandits led by two at 28-26. Their lead was short-lived though as Rymel and Kerr scored a 2-4 in heat 10 to level the scores again. Michal Makovsky had his sole race win in heat 11 for a share of the spoils but the Comets were back in front again with a 2-4 in heat 12 from Adrian Rymel and John Branney split by Paul Clews taking the score to 35-37.

Doolan and Compton won heats 13 and 14 for shared races for the Comets then Rymel and Doolan combined to score a last heat 1-5 for the visitors and a six point win. Not a night to remember for the home supporters.


Scorers: Berwick – Stan Burza 9+1 (5), Josef Franc 9 (5), Tero Aarnio 8+1 (6), Michal Makovsky 7+2 (4), Paul Clews 7+1 (4), Gino Franchetti 2+2 (3), Tamas Sike 0 (3).

Workington – Adrian Rymel 15 (5), Kevin Doolan 12+1 (5), John Branney 9 (7), Andre Compton 7 (5), Chris Kerr 5+1 (5), Craig Cook 0 (3).



Premier League: .... Stoke 48 (2 points), Rye House 42 (1 point).



Team changes: Stoke were at full strength. Rye House , however, were missing Luke Bowen and Linus Sundstrom so had Ludviug Lindgren as a guest at number 3 for Bowen and used Rider Replacement (R/R) for Linus Sundstrom at number 5.


Stoke found themselves six points down with three heats to go but three consecutive 5-1 wins turned the match around. Rye House were unlucky to suffer further injury problems when Robert Mear was hit from behind by Lee Complin in heat 5 and fell damaging his right hand. He had to withdraw from the meeting and his three rides were taken by the Rockets' reserves. Despite their loss, the Rockets looked to be heading for victory until they ran out of steam over the last three heats.

Robert Mear won the opening race for the visitors and a 3-3 then the Rockets took the lead in the reserves race won by Andrew Silver from Craig Branney for a 2-4. They doubled it with another 2-4 in heat 3 won by their guest, Ludvig Lindgren, from Lee Complin and Chris Neath but the Potters wiped their lead out with a 5-1 from Robert Ksiezak and Tom P Madsen in heat 4 with the score now 12-12.

Lee Complin and Robert Mear crashed going into the third bend of heat 5 after Complin had straightened up. Mear had to withdraw from the meeting with a hand injury while Complin was excluded from the rerun won by Joe Haines for a 2-4 which put the Rockets two in front again. Jason Bunyan rode a storing race in heat 6 to come from the back passing his partner and both the Rockets to win the race for a 3-3 but the visitors extended their lead with a 1-5 from Chris Neath and Ludvig Lindgren in heat 7 for a six point advantage. Jesper Kristiansen won heat 8 but the race was shared so the score then stood at 21-27.

Stoke hit back with a 5-1 in heat 9 with Klaus Jakobsen and Lee Complin leading Joe Haines home cutting the gap to two points again but after another win for Ludvig Lindgren and shared race in heat 10 Rye House then scored consecutive 2-4s in heats 11 and 12. Joe Haines beat Robert Ksiezak in the first with Tommy Allen third then Ludvig Lindgren won the latter from Jakobsen with Andrew Silver third. The score was now 33-39.

That was the end for the Rockets though as they lost the three remaining races to 5-1s. The first from Bunyan and Ksiezak from the gate, the second from Complin and Madsen also from the gate and the last from Complin and Bunyan who relegated Ludvig Lindgren to third as Joe Haines had an engine failure at the starting line. Rye House at least got a point from their efforts and were greatly indebted to the high scoring of their guest, Ludvig Lindgren, for that.

Scorers: Stoke – Jason Bunyan 12+1 (5), Lee Complin 10+1 (5), Robert Ksiezak 8+1 (4), Klaus Jakobsen 7 (4), Jesper Kristiansen 5+1 (4), Tom P Madsen 4+1 (5), Craig Branney 2 (3).

Rye House – Ludvig Lindgren 14+1 (6), Joe Haines 9 (6), Andrew Silver 8 (6) Tommy Allen 4+1 (4), Chris Neath 4 (4), Robert Mear 3 (1).

[Merlin]

Sunday, 30 August



Premier League:

Birmingham v. King's Lynn
Glasgow v. Newcastle
Newport v. Somerset



Premier League: ..... Birmingham 55 (3 points), King's Lynn 36 (0 points).


Team changes: Birmingham were at full strength. King's Lynn had Simon Lambert at number 6 in place of the injured Kozza Smith.

This had all the makings of one of the most hotly contested fixtures left in the Premier League calendar for this season. Birmingham, on a terrific run of form, looked well set to give the Stars a hard match to keep alive their dwindling chances of snatching the title from their opponents. It had all the makings of a classic.

Well heat 1 did not lack incident. Firstly Linus Eklof suffered an engine failure at the starting gate and was excluded under the two minute rule. He was replaced by Simon Lambert. Then Rusty Harrison also suffered an engine failure at the tapes and he, too, was excluded under the two minute rule. He was replaced by Lee Smart.Then the race started but on the second lap Darcy Ward fell trying to pass Tomasz Piszcz and was excluded from the rerun. In the melee Simon Lambert also fell and was injured so was replaced in the second rerun by Jan Graversen. In the second rerun Lee Smart suffered an engine failure leaving Tomasz Piszcz to head Jan Graversen home for a 3-2....and that was just the first race! Unfortunately it was then announced that Simon Lambert had been withdrawn from the meeting as a result of his heat 1 crash which meant that there would be only three riders in heat 2 (engine failures and falls permitting). Jay Herne won it from Jan Graversen and Lee Smart so the Brummies added a 4-2 to their 3-2 and led by three points. It was all change in heat 3 though as Emiliano Sanchez and Chris Schramm gated to lead Richard Sweetman home for a 1-5 which wiped out the Brummies lead and put the Stars a point ahead. The lead changed hands again in heat 4 when Jason Lyons beat Tomas Topinka with Lee Smart taking third as Jan Graversen packed up with bike trouble. The 4-2 took the score to 12-11 as it started to drizzle again on a very wet track which had the riders two-wheeling into the bends.

So to heat 5 in which Ludvig Lindgren's bike appeared to give up the ghost on the line. Richard Sweetman led Darcy Ward home and Linus Eklof's machine also packed up on the third lap but he pushed home for the point so the heat was shared. Tomas Topinka won heat 6 from Piszcz and Harrison for another shared race as Jan Graversen fell on the first lap then Jason Lyons won from Emiliano Sanchez and Chris Schramm in heat 7 for the third 3-3 on the trot. The Brummies pulled two more points clear in heat 7, however, when Lee Smart passed Linus Eklof with Rusty Harrison in third. This took the score to 25-22.

Only three riders appeared for heat 9 in which Richard Sweetman headed Tomas Topinka home. Ludvig Lindgren fell and retired from the race so there were only two finishers with Birmingham taking another 3-2 and opening up a four point lead. In heat 10 Emiliano Sanchez fell on the third lap and was excluded from the rerun in which Chris Schramm passed Tomasz Piszcz only to lose control and slip to the back allowing Piszcz and Harrison through for a 5-1 which put the home side eight points ahead. The lead went to twelve with another 5-1 in heat 11 when Jay Herne and Jason Lyons gated to leave Darcy Ward back in third place. A third 5-1 in heat 12 from Lee Smart and Ludvig Lindgren all but killed off the Stars who now trailed by 43-27 with three races left.

In heat 13 King's Lynn gave Darcy Ward a tactical ride and he won it by beating Piszcz and Lyons. With Tomas Topinka finishing at the back the Stars' advantage was restricted to a 3-6 and the gap was down to 13 points. This allowed the Stars to give Emiliano Sanchez a tactical ride in heat 14. This was not a success though as he was excluded after falling on the first bend in a clash with Jay Herne. Herne won the rerun and with Sweetman passing Graversen to follow him home so Birmingham scored another 5-1 to lead by 17 points. Heat 15 needed two reruns before it could be completed. First time Topinka and Sweetman came down on the opening bends and the race was rerun with all four back. In the rerun Piszcz rode a hard first bend and Ward fell. Again it was all four back for the second rerun. This time Tomasz Piszcz made the gate and was stalked for three laps by Darcy Ward. However Ward overdid it and fell leaving Piszcz to lead Topinka and Sweetman home for a 4-2 to the home side giving them a 19 point win.


Scorers: Birmingham – Tomasz Piszcz 13 (5), Richard Sweetman 10+1 (5), Jason Lyons 9+2 (4), Jay Herne 9 (4), Lee Smart 8 (5), Rusty Harrison 4+1 (4), Ludvig Lindgren 2+1 (4).

King's Lynn – Darcy Ward 9 (5) (incl 6 point TR), Tomas Topinka 9 (5), (4), Chris Schramm 5+1 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 5 (3), Jan Graversen 5 (7), Linus Eklof 3 (4), Simon Lambert 0 (1).



Premier League: ..... Glasgow 43 (0 points), Newcastle 47 (3 points).


Team changes: Glasgow again used Rider Replacement (R/R) for the injured Alexsander Conda at number 4. Newcastle were at full strength.

The annual bank holiday home and away fixtures between these two teams were eagerly anticipated as usual. Glasgow's hopes of qualifying for the Young Shield really needed a three point win from this match. Newcastle's charge up the table finds them still short of touching distance for a top four Play-off place so a win in this fixture was badly needed by them too. The drizzle which fell throughout the match turned to heavy rain by the end and it was the visitors who coped better with the conditions.

Glasgow could hardly have made a worse start. Derek Sneddon made the gate in heat 1 and led the others home. Shane Parker passed Kenni Larsen for secvond and Larsen in turn passed Josh Grajczonek for third so the race ended a 2-4 to the Diamonds. Heat 2 was a disaster for the Tigers. Lee Dicken suffered a two minute time excusion and had to go from 15 metres back after turning up for the race without a dirt deflector. Adam McKinna made the gate but Mitchell Davey, in second place, pulled up with a puncture so Trent Leverington moved into second for a 1-5 to the visitors who now had a six point lead. Glasgow pulled two points back with a 4-2 in heat 3. William Lawson made the gate to head home Jason King while Mitchell Davey scored a valuable point by keeping Rene Bach at the back. Another Tigers 2-4 reduced the gap to two points. James Grieves gated to lead Trent Leverington home while Lee Dicken passed Mark Lemon for third taking the score to 11-13.

Newcastle hit back with a 1-5 in heat 5. The race was pulled back after an unsatisfactory start with the visiting pair in the lead but it was no different at the second attempt. Kenni Larsen and Derek Sneddon gated to lead William Lawson home as Lee Dicken suffered an engine failure. Newcastle now led by six points again but Glasgow pulled back two of their arrears in heat 6. Grajczonek gated with Lemon and McKinna in the minor places. Shane Parker passed McKinna on the first lap to take third place and provide a 4-2 for the home side. Heat 7 saw a close battle between James Grieves and Rene Bach which Grieves won. Jason King took third place so the race was shared. Josh Grajczonek fell in heat 8 after Derek Sneddon had got out of shape. Sneddon was excluded as the cause of the stoppage. In the rerun Josh Grajczonek made the gate to lead the others home. Behind him Mitchell Davey held on for second place ahead of Trent Leverington for a 5-1 which levelled the match score at 24-24.

Mark Lemon won heat 9 from Mitchell Davey. Meanwhile at the back William Lawson passed Adam McKinna to take the third place point for a shared race. But Newcastle were back in front after heat 10. Jason King and Rene Bach took a 1-5 with Shane Parker third but Josh Grajczonek was aggrieved when Bach locked up during the race baulking him in the process. The Diamonds led by four points at this stage and they increased it to six with another race advantage in heat 11 when Kenni Larsen stopped James Grieves' winning run. The battle for second place was behind him and he held on to take second from Derek Sneddon. The Diamonds took a 2-4 as a result but Glasgow pulled two points back in heat 12 won by William Lawson from Jason King and Lee Dicken. The score now stood at 34-38 with just three races left.

Heat 13 had to be stopped when Shane Parker fell on the third bend. Kenni Larsen also fell but the race had been stopped before he came to grief so he was allowed back in the rerun with Parker excluded. Newcastle all but wrapped the match up when they took a 1-5 in the rerun as Glasgow's heat 13 jinx struck again. James Grieves was a bit out of shape on the first lap battling for second and slipped to the back. Newcastle now led by eight points and had their sights set on all four league points. With the rain now getting heavier Rene Bach spun round in the first running of heat 14 and caused Lee Dicken to crash taking avoiding action. Bach was excluded from the rerun in which Mitchell Davey replaced Dicken. Mitchell Davey made a fast start in the rerun then was passed by his partner, William Lawson. Trent Leverington fell on the second lap but remounted to take third place. The 5-1 kept Glasgow in the hunt for a draw so there was a lot depending on the last race as Newcastle needed a 1-5 for all four points and at least two points to guarantee a win. Glasgow of couse needed another 5-1 to earn a draw. Lawson and Grajczonek were nominated for heat 15 for Glasgow and Larsen and Lemon for the Diamonds. It was Lemon who made the gate but his partner, Kenni Larsen, suffered an engine failure so Lawson and Grajczonek's second and third places meant a shared heat and four point win to Newcastle which earned them three league points.


Scorers: Glasgow – William Lawson 13+1 (6), James Grieves 9 (4), Mitchell Davey 7+2 (7), Josh Grajczonek 7+1 (5), Shane Parker 4 (4), Lee Dicken 3 (4).

Newcastle – Mark Lemon 10+1 (5), Kenni Larsen 10 |(5), Jason King 8+1 (4),Derek Sneddon 6+1 (4), Trent Leverington 6+1 (4), Rene Bach 4+1 (4), Adam McKinna 3 (4).



Premier League: ..... Newport 44 (0 points), Somerset 48 (3 points).


Team changes: Newport again had Kyle Newman in place of Marek Mroz at number 6. Somerset were without Simon Walker and used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 2 instead..

Newport, now cast adrift at the foot of the league, were desperately looking for a win from this match to end their current dismal run of defeats but Somerset were in no mood to be charitable as they chase a place in the top four to make the Play-offs. King's Lynn and Birmingham look set to finish first and second but there is a veritable gaggle of clubs queueing up for third and fourth places.

Somerset charged into the lead from the off and by the end of heat 4 had already taken a 9-15 lead in what was looking like a real hammering for the home side. A 1-5 in heat 5 from Justin Sedgmen and Steve Johnston from former Rebel, Jordan Frampton shot the Rebels into a ten point lead leading to the Wasps giving Leigh Lanham a tactical ride in heat 6. This turned out to be a complete failure as Sedgmen and Cory Gathercole added another 1-5 at Lanham's expense increasing the visitors' lead to 14 points. Paul Fry relieved the siege a little by winning heat 7 from Emil Kramer and Jari Makinen for a shared heat then James Holder did likewise in heat 8 by beating Cory Gathercole and Nick Simmons with Chris Kerr falling. The score now stood at 17-31.

Sedgmen and Jonas Andersson crashed into the air fence in heat 9 leading to a delay in the proceedings while the fence was repaired. When the action restarted the Wasps finally got heir act together and produced a 5-1 when Jordan Frampton and Jonas Andersson led Cory Gathercole home cutting the gap to 10 points. Leigh Lanham won heat 10 but Jari Makinen and Emil Kramer kept James Holder at the back for a shared heat. The Rebels added two more points to their lead with a 2-4 in heat 11 through Sedgmen and Johnston with Paul Fry splitting the Somerset pair. Now 12 points down again, Newport gave Chris Kerr a tactical ride in heat 12. It looked good for the Wasps when Kerr and Andersson headed off for an 8-1 but their joy was short lived as Justin Sedgmen slipped between the two of them to win the race. Newport still took a 5-3 advantage cutting the lead to 10 points again with the score at 32-42.

Paul Fry won heat 13 from Steve Johnston while Leigh Lanham took third from Cory Gathercole so the Wasps pulled two more back with the 4-2 and now stood eight points down. Jordan Frampton and Chris Kerr gave the Wasps some hope of a draw by taking a 5-1 from Emil Kramer in heat 14 so Newport had cut the deficit to just four points and could still rescue a point with a maximum in the last heat. In the first running of the race Paul Fry fell under pressure from Emil Kramer on the second bend of the second lap. Kramer was excluded so Steve Johnston, who was leading at the time, was left to see the Rebels home for the three points in the rerun. This he did by winning the race from Frampton and Fry for a 3-3 and four point win.


Scorers: Newport – Jordan Frampton 11 (5), Paul Fry 10+1 (5), Chris Kerr 9+1 (5) (incl a 4 point TR), Leigh Lanham 7 (4), Jonas Andersson 4+3 (4), James Holder 3 (4).

Somerset – Justin Sedgmen 15+1 (7), Steve Johnston 11+1 (5), Cory Gathercole 8+1 (5), Emil Kramer 7+1 (5), Nick Simmons 4+1 (4), Jari Makinen 3+1 (4).

[Merlin]

Monday, 31 August



Premier League:

Newcastle v. Glasgow
Rye House v. Stoke
Scun'thorpe v. King's Lynn
Workington v. Berwick



Premier League: .... Newcastle 53 (3 points), Glasgow 27 (0 points) match abandoned after heat 13 due to heavy rain – the result stands..


Team changes: Newcastle were at full strength. Glasgow were without Alexsander Conda, James Grieves and Lee Dicken. They used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 4 and had Jason Lyons as a guest for Grieves at number 5 and Robert McNeil at number 7 in place of Dicken.

Having lost to Newcastle at home yesterday by four points and having lost James Grieves and Lee Dicken to injury, Glasgow's hopes at Brough Park were not high. When it became clear that Shane Parker was struggling badly from a back injury their chances of taking anything from this match were effectively nil. Newcastle's solidity took them to a huge score with every one of their riders scoring at least a paid win.

Early on the track had to be watered as the dust appeared but with black clouds looming the home side decided to have a lengthy interval after heat 12 for some reason known only to them. Dead on cue as heat 13 began the heavens opened and this was the last heat ridden as the match was abandoned thereafter. The paying spectators were thus denied two races and questions were asked as to the wisdom of a 20 minute interval in such circumstances.

The opening two races were shared. Heat 1 went to Kenni Larsen and the reserves race to Mitchell Davey. William Lawson gated to lead heat 3 but he was passed by both Rene Bach then Jason King so Newcastle hit the front with a 5-1. Jason Lyons was the winner of heat 4 for a shared race so the score was then 14-10.

The formidable King, Bach pairing scored another 5-1 in heat 5 for an eight point lead then Lyons won heat 6 for another shared race. When Adam McKinna passed William Lawson in heat 7 to join Mark Lemon for a 5-1 in heat 7 the Diamonds then enjoyed a twelve point lead. Trent Leverington won heat 8 but Derek Sneddon fell on the first bend in a battle of elbows with Josh Grajczonek. Although he remounted Grajczonek and Davey shared the points taking the score to 30-18.

Glasgow dropped well out of contention by losing heats 9 and 10 to home 5-1s. The King, Bach combination did it again in heat 9 leading Jason Lyons who was on a tactical ride until the second last bend when Lyons fell trying to pass Bach on the inside. Larsen and Sneddon added another maximum in heat 10 then Glasgow gave Josh Grajczonek a second tactical ride in heat 11. He finished second to Mark Lemon while Shane Parker passed Adam McKinna on the last lap for third so the Tigers took a 3-5 advantage, their only success of the match. Leverington and King replied with another 5-1 in heat 12 and the score now stood at 48-26.

Jason Lyons fell on the third bend of heat 13 as the Newcastle pair sat on a 5-1 He was excluded from the rerun and, as the rain came thundering down, Lemon and Larsen delivered the 5-1 ahead of Parker in a time four seconds slower than the previous heat. There was a delay to see if the rain might pass but the damage to the track had been done so a halt was called to the proceedings.


Scorers: Newcastle – Mark Lemon 11 (4), Jason King 10+2 (4) (paid maximum), Kenni Larsen 10+1 (4), Trent Leverington 9+1 (4), Rene bach 7+2 (3), Adam McKinna 3+2 (3), Derek Sneddon 3+2 (4).

Glasgow – Josh Grajczonek 9 (4) (incl 4 point TR), Jason Lyons 6 (4), Mitchell Davey 4+1 (6), William Lawson 4 (4), Shane Parker 3+2 (3), Robert McNeil 1 (4).



Premier League: .... Rye House 65 (3 points), Stoke 30 (0 points).


Team changes: Rye House were without Robert Mear, Luke Bowen and Linus Sundstrom. They used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 1 for Rob Mear and had Ludvig Lindgren as a guest for Bowen at number 3 and Josh Auty as a guest for Linus Sundstrom at number 5. Stoke were at full strength.

Stoke came back from the dead to beat Rye House last night at Loomer Road last night but they were well and truly dead and buried in this match when they managed to score just eight points in the opening six races to trail by 20 points.

Jason Bunyan passed Chris Neath in heat 1 to follow Joe Haines home for a 4-2 in the opening race but the Potters were hit by three consecutive 5-1s. Andrew Silver started his six ride unbeaten run by passing Tom P Madsen then Craig Branney to follow Tommy Allen home in the reserves race. A routine Lindgren, Neath maximum in heat 3 was followed by a Josh Auty special in heat 4 as he passed Madsen then Ksiezak to follow Silver home and take the score to 19-5.

Jason Bunyan came off the second bend of heat 5 in front but he was passed by Chris Neath for a 4-2 to the Rockets who now led by 16. Robert Ksiezak was passed by Silver then Haines for another home 5-1 in heat 6 for a 20 point lead so Stoke gave Lee Complin a tactical ride in heat 7. He finished second to Allen with Auty third so the race was shared 4-4 but it was brief respite for the visitors as Haines won heat 8 and was eventually joined by Silver who passed Kristiansen on the run to the line for second. The 5-1 took the score to 37-13.

Rye House scored another 5-1 in heat 9, their sixth of the match at that stage when Neath and Lindgren headed Ksiezak home. Lee Complin passed Joe Haines for second place in heat 10 so the Rockets took a 4-2 advantage but the Potters moment of glory came in heat 11. Jason Bunyan took the second Stoke tactical ride and passed Tommy Allen for the full six points. Klaus Jakobsen took third from Josh Auty so the visitors took a 2-7 to trail by 25 points. Silver and Lindgren took a 5-1 in heat 12 for their impudence and the score then stood at 53-24.

Josh Auty won heat 13 from Robert Ksiezak as Jason Bunyan fell on the third bend while leading. The result was a 4-2 for the home side. Heat 14 won by Neath was shared when Complin and Madsen finished behind him but the Rockets finished with a 5-1 from Chris Neath and Andrew Silver, the latter completing a six ride unbeaten meeting.


Scorers: Rye House – Andrew Silver 15+3 (6), Chris Neath 15+1 (6), Tommy Allen 11 (5), Joe Haines 10+1 (5), Ludvig Lindgren 8+2 (4), Josh Auty 6+1 (4).

Stoke – Jason Bunyan 11 (5) (incl 6 point TR), Lee Complin 9 (5) (incl 4 point TR), Robert Ksiezak 4 (4), Jesper Kristiansen 2 (4), Craig Branney 2 (4), Tom P Madsen 2 (4).



Premier League: .... Scun'thorpe 57 (3 points), King's Lynn 35 (0 points).


Team changes: Scun'thorpe had Tomasz Piszcz as a guest for Magnus Karlsson at number 1 while King's Lynn had Hugh Skidmore at number 6 in place of Kozza Smith.

Considering that Scun'thorpe were beaten 38-54 at home by King's Lynn in the Premier Trophy match last April this must be one of the shock results of the season. It was complete revenge for the Scorpions as they restricted the Stars to managing only two race winners, both from Darcy Ward, over the 15 races. King's Lynn were maybe feeling the effects of their defeat at Birmingham last night but, if they thought they only had to turn up to walk away with the league points in this match, they were in for a shock.

Tomasz Piszcz, guesting for the Scorpions, won the opening heat from Darcy Ward with Ritchie Hawkins in third as Linus Eklof fell and remounted then Jerran Hart won the reserves race for a shared heat. The Scorpions pulled six points ahead with a 5-1 in heat 3 when David Howe and Viktor Bergstrom passed Chris Schramm on the fourth bend for the maximum then they hit the shell-shocked Stars with another 5-1 in heat 4. Carl Wilkinson jetted from the tapes but Simon Lambert was stuck at the back. Tomas Topinka fell on the fourth bend then Lambert caught and passed Jan Graversen for second on the last two bends of the race. The score then stood at 17-7.

Immediately the Stars gave Darcy Ward a tactical ride in heat 5 but he soon found himself on the end of another 5-1 until Viktor Bergstrom drifted too wide on the fourth bend allowing Ward through for second place behind David Howe. The race was shared 4-4 then Scun'thorpe added two more points to their lead in heat 6 when Ritchie Hawkins went to the front off the fourth bend to head Tomas Topinka home. Tomasz Piszcz couldn't get past Topinka so the race ended a 4-2. Carl Wilkinson flew from the tapes in heat 7 while Jerran Hart fell on the second bend leaving Schramm and Sanchez to fill the minor places for a shared race. Ritchie Hawkins worked himself to the front with a big drive round the third and fourth bends of the opening lap in heat 8 to lead Hugh Skidmore and Simon Lambert home after Linus Eklof had fallen. The 4-2 took the score to 32-18 with the Stars in some disarray.

Heat 9 was a real killer for King's Lynn. The race had to be rerun with all four back after Skidmore had fallen on the second bend. In the rerun Topinka and Bergstrom collided on the same bend. Bergstrom was injured and withdrew from the meeting while his place in the rerun was taken by Simon Lambert. In the second rerun Lambert and Topinka fell on the fourth bend of the second lap and Topinka was excluded from the second rerun in which David Howe and Lambert scored a 5-1 against Skidmore. Incredibly the Scorpions now led by 18 points so in heat 10 the Stars gave a tactical ride to Chris Schramm but this was not a success as Schramm finished last. Tomasz Piszcz led off the second bend and he was joined by Hawkins but Emiliano Sanchez passed Hawkins at the end of the third lap. Nonetheless it was another 4-2 for the home side whose lead had now extended to 20 points. Darcy Ward won heat 11 for a shared race but it was all over when Jerran Hart worked his way to the front in heat 12 to lead Skidmore and Lambert home for a 4-2 which took the score to 48-26.

Darcy Ward won heat 13 and the Stars managed their one and only heat advantage when Graversen finished ahead of Piszcz and behind Wilkinson for second place and a 2-4. David Howe completed his four ride maximum in heat 14 by beating Sanchez while Hart took third place for a 4-2 then Tomasz Piszcz won the last race beating Darcy Ward and Sanchez for a shared race. Darcy Ward must by then have been sick of the sight of Piszcz. The Scorpions were left to celebrate a 22 point win over the league champions elect who now face their strongest challenge on Wednesday night when Birmingham take them on at the Norfolk Arena in a match which could well have a huge bearing on the destination of the championship.


Scorers: Scun'thorpe – David Howe 12 (4) (full maxmum), Tomasz Piszcz 10 (5), Carl Wilkinson 10 (5), Jerran Hart 8+1 (5), Ritchie Hawkins 8 (4), Simon Lambert 6+2 (5), Viktor Bergstrom 3+1 (2).

King's Lynn – Darcy Ward 14 (5) (incl 6 point TR), Hugh Skidmore 7 (5), Emiliano Sanchez 6+2 (5), Jan Graversen 3+1 (4), Chris Schramm 3 (4), Tomas Topinka 2 (3).



Premier League: .... Workington v Berwick match postponed – re-arranged for Friday September 11th..

[Merlin]

Thursday, 3 September



Premier League:..... Sheffield 36 (0 points), Redcar 42 (3 points) match abandoned after heat 13 due to heavy rain and collapsed fence – the result stands..



Team changes: Sheffield were at full strength. Redcar were without the injured Gary Havelock so used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 2 in his place. However Robbie Kessler returned to the Bears' side at number 4 with Ben Wilson, who had been doubtful for the match, moving to number 5.

The two Thursday night tracks met tonight at Owlerton with both needing points in an effort to reach the top four and a place in the play-offs. It was a cold night with drizzle around at the start time as Mother Nature confirmed that she was ready to don her Autumnal clothes.

An entertaining opening race was won by Ricky Ashworth but all eyes were focussed on the action behind him as Hugh Skidmore passed Ty Proctor on the inside at the start of the second lap to chase after Robbie Kessler (R/R) in second place. Proctor kept him lively by unsuccessfully chasing hard to regain third place. Tigers had opened with a 4-2 but the Bears levelled in the reserves race with a 2-4. Arlo Bugeja continued his recent good form by winning from Scott Smith while Stuart Swales scored the third place point as Chris Mills pulled up on the last lap. The match remained tied with a 3-3 in heat 3 but Sheffield looked like taking the lead with a 4-2 until Joel Parsons fell while in third place on the last bend. Richard Hall won the race from Carl Stonehewer and Kessler benefitted from Parsons' fall by taking third. There was no advantage to either side in heat 4 either. Ben Wilson put his injury worries to one side by shooting to the front with an ultra-fast start with Chris Mills and Stuart Swales in pursuit. Josh Auty at the back made up a lot of ground to catch Swales and pass him on the run in to the line for the vital third place. After this heat the score stood at 12-12.

The rain decided to make its presence felt more strongly as heat 5 was reached but it didn't stop Richard Hall from recording his second win of the evening by rounding Ty Proctor and Carl Stonehewer (R/R) in fine style off the second bend. Ty Proctor chased hard for the last two laps but Hall held on for another 3-3. Then Sheffield finally regained their two point lead again in heat 6. As the rain pelted down Ricky Ashworth gated to lead Ben Wilson home with Hugh Skidmore relegating Arlo Bugeja to the back for a 4-2. Again Redcar levelled the scores in the very next race. Robbie Kessler made a fast start to heat 7 and headed for home while Carl Stonehewer moved into second place for a potential 1-5 for the visitors. However Josh Auty passed Stonehewer round the outside as they entered the last lap to take third and restrict the Bears to a 2-4. Ty Proctor prepared to take the R/R ride in heat 8 but the riders were called back to the pits no doubt for discussions about track conditions since the time for heat 7 had been over 3 second slower than that of heat 6. After a delay the riders re-emerged to produce another shared race, all from the gate, with Ty Proctor leading home Hugh Skidmore and Chris Mills taking the score to 24-24. With astonishing symmetry both sides had recorded four heat wins each, four second places, four thirds and four lasts at this point! Both sides had also managed two bonus points each.

The match changed course in heat 9 as Redcar took the lead for the first time. In a well strung out race, Ben Wilson scored his second win of the match, ending Richard Hall's winning run, while Arlo Bugeja picked up the third place point as Joel Parsons continued his pointless evening with an engine failure while in second place. The Bears took a 2-4 from the race and the home fans were worried with the possibility of a stoppage after heat 12. Just then the rain stopped and Sheffield celebrated by levelling the match again in heat ten with a 4-2 of their own. Ricky Ashworth continued his unbeaten run with a win ahead of Robbie Kessler. Behind this pair High Skidmore and Carl Stonehewer raced side by side for three laps before Stonehewer retired on the last bend having been finally relegated to last. Ben Wilson took the last R/R ride for the Bears in heat 11 to partner Ty Proctor and produce a strong visiting pair who were just too good for Scott Smith and Josh Auty as they punched home what looked like a decisive 1-5, the first of the match, giving the Bears a four point lead. Sheffield replaced Joel Parsons in heat 12 with Scott Smith in an all reserve pairing. It certainly paid off because Scott Smith held off the determined challenges of Carl Stonehewer for the whole race while his partner, Chris Mills, passed Arlo Bugeja on the second lap for third. This produced a 4-2 for Sheffield which reduced Redcar's lead to just two points at 35-37 and set up a cliffhanger of a contest over the last three races.

Something had to give in heat 13. The four riders had won eight of the twelve heats between them with only Ricky Ashworth unbeaten. The heavy rain returned for this heat no doubt to have a peek at the action. Through the downpour it was Redcar who struck a mortal blow with a 1-5 off the inside gates. Ty Proctor and Ben Wilson did the damage from the tapes destroying Ashworth's maximum hopes while Josh Auty finished at the back. The Bears' now led by six points with two to go and the second bend fence came out in sympathy by collapsing as there seemed no way back for the Tigers. There wasn't because the combination of heavy rain and demolished fence resulted in a halt being called to the proceedings. The result stands although both team might be wondering what might have happened had the match gone the distance. Could Sheffield have recovered with two 5-1s for a win or 5-1 and 4-2 for a draw or could Redcar have added another two points to their lead for all four league points? No-one will ever know.


Scorers: Sheffield – Ricky Ashworth 10 (4), Richard Hall 8 (3), Scott Smith 6 (4), Hugh Skidmore 5 (4), Chris Mills 4+1 (4), Josh Auty 3+1 (4), Joel Parsons 0 (3).

Redcar – Ben Wilson 13+1 (5), Ty Proctor 10+1 (5), Robbie Kessler 8+1 (4), Carl Stonehewer 6+1 (5), Arlo Bugeja 4 (4), Stuart Swales 1 (3).

[Merlin]

Friday, 4 September



Premier League:

Edinburgh v. Workington
Scun'thorpe v. Berwick
Somerset v. Newport



Premier League: ..... Edinburgh 55 (3 points), Workington 39 (0 points).


Team changes: Edinburgh were at full strength. Workington were without Phil Morris (injured), Adrian Rymel (not feeling well) and Richard Lawson (injured). They chose to use Rider Replacement (R/R) for Lawson at number 4 so had Trent Leverington as a guest for Morris at number 2 and Tomasz Piszcz as a guest for Rymel at number 3.

One look out of the window at 8.00 o'clock this morning was enough to convince anyone that there would be no speedway at Armadale tonight especially since it had rained virtually non-stop since Wednesday evening. However the weather relented and the track looked to be in excellent condition which was evidenced by some brilliant racing and excellent passes. Edinburgh rode under protest at Workington's use of Tomasz Piszcz as a guest for Adrian Rymel having learned of certain circumstances behind Rymel's non-appearance for this match. However even with Piszcz for Rymel the Comets were no match for a Monarchs side who were clearly well motivated for the challenge.

The Monarchs tore into the Comets from the start. Ryan Fisher gated ahead of Kevin Doolan in the opening race and pulled away for a comfortable win. However at the back Max Dilger crashed into Trent Leverington on the second bend causing Leverington to lose control and pull onto the centre green. The race was allowed to continue so the home side scored a 4-2 then added another in heat 2. Aaron Summers won the race to the first corner and was joined by his partner, Byron Bekker, round the first two bends. However John Branney scuppered home hopes of a 5-1 by charging up the inside of Bekker off the fourth turn of lap 3 for second so the result was another two point advantage for the Monarchs. Tomasz Piszcz probably thought he had heat 3 in his pocket with a good gate to lead out of the second bend but he reckoned without a stunning charge down the back straight from Woelbert and Wethers which got him out of sorts and he slipped to the back. The 5-1 rocketed Edinburgh into an eight point lead and it increased to 10 in heat 4. Michal Rajkowski mnade one of his fast starts and was chased by Andre Compton who got all out of shape on the third bend. Bekker and Branney took advantage to shoot past him then Branney chased and caught Bekker for second so Edinburgh took a 4-2 which took the score to 17-7.

Immediately the Comets gave Kevin Doolan a tactical ride in heat 5. Wethers made the gate while Woelbert shut the door on Doolan off the fourth bend to join his partner up front. However Doolan 'returned the compliment' after passing Woelbert off the second bend on the second lap. He then kept Woelbert at bay for the rest of the race to finish behind the untouchable Wethers for a 4-4 score. Heat 6 however did produce an advantage for the Comets. Andre Compton got to the first bend ahead of Fisher and blocked his inside run. Dilger came off the second bend in third but Craig Cook soon passed him so the visitors scored a 2-4 which cut the gap between the teams to eight points. Heat 7 was a corker! Tomasz Piszcz made the gate and led the race until the end of the second lap when Aaron Summers charged past to take the lead. The Comets' disappointment was alleviated by a fine chase from John Branney who caught a slow looking Rajkowski to pass him on the line for third and a shared heat. Heat 8, however, effectively saw then end of the Comets' challenge when they lost a 5-1 to Aaron Summers and Byron Bekker despite Trent Leverington's race long challenges on Bekker which the Monarchs' reserve withstood. The score was now 31-19 and Edinburgh were now well in command.

Heat 9 was another bad race for the visitors. Kevin Woelbert and Matthew Wethers left Andre Compton for dead at the gate to race off for a comfortable 5-1 and 16 point lead. Ryan Fisher won heat 10 comfortably but Tomasz Piszcz and John Branney had no problems taking second and third from a tailed off Dilger to share the points. Heat 11 resulted in another 3-3. Aaron Summers gated to lead Kevin Doolan for two laps but he couldn't hold the Workington number 1 who sailed past to win the race. Rajkowski took third from Branney so the Edinburgh lead remained at 16 points. In heat 12 Tomasz Piszcz took Workington's second tactical ride. Piszcz made the gate but Woelbert was too good for him passing the Comets' guest coming off the second bend of the second lap. Behind this pair Byron Bekker held third until Craig Cook charged underneath on the first bend of the third lap to take third. This gave the Comets a 3-5 race advantage which took the score to 45-31.

Michal Rajkowski came from his favourite gate 4 in heat 13 to storm round the field for a fine win. Fisher got stuck at the back but he charged inside Doolan at the start of lap three for third place. Doolan fell,but cleared the track so, with Compton second, the result was a 4-2 for the home side. Matthew Wethers' hopes of a maximum went down the tubes when Andre Compton charged from the gate to win the penultimate race. Aaron Summers finished second and the race was shared 3-3 as Branney finished at the back. Finally Kevin Woelbert came off gate 4 to sail round Piszcz and Doolan on the first two bends of Heat 15 to win with ease. Matthew Wethers, stuck at the back, fell on the last bend trying to pass Doolan on the inside so this race was shared too. Edinburgh were happy with the 16 point win but, once again, the talk on the terraces was the fantastic performance by Kevin Woelbert who dropped only one point – to Doolan in heat 5.


Scorers: Edinburgh –Kevin Woelbert 13 (5), Aaron Summers 13 (5), Ryan Fisher 9 (4), Matthew Wethers 8+3 (5), Michal Rajkowski 7+1 (4), Byron Bekker 4+1 (4), Max Dilger 1 (3).

Workington – Kevin Doolan 10+1 (5) (incl 4 point TR), Tomasz Piszcz 10 (5) (incl 4 point TR), Andre Compton 9 (5), John Branney 6+2 (6), Craig Cook 2+1 (4), Trent Leverington 2 (5).



Premier League: ..... Scun'thorpe 51 (3 points), Berwick 42 (0 points).


Team changes: Scun'thorpe had Magnus Karlsson back at number 1 but were without the injured Viktor Bergstrom so used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 2. Berwick were at full strength.

Although the Scorpions led by 12 points after heat 9, Berwick hit back to trail by just three points wo heats later. Scunthorpe managed to add two points to their lead after heat 14 leaving a last heat decider for the third league point.

Berwick opened in style with a 1-5 in the opening race from Makovsky and Aarnio but two races later they were two down. Jerran Hart won the reserves race from Tamas Sike for a 4-2 then Howe and Lambert fought their way through for a 5-1 in heat 3 and Wilkinson and Hawkins doubled the lead to four points with a 4-2 in heat 4. The score then stood at 14-10.

David Howe won again in heat 5 but this time Simon Lambert finished at the back after being passed by Michal Makovsky who joined his partner, Gino Franchetti, for a 3-3. Jerran Hart won heat 6 after passng Stan Burza. Magnus Karlsson took third and the home side took another 4-2 and six point lead. Wilkinson and Hart added another 4-2 in heat 7 then Wilkinson and Hawkins did likewise in heat 8 for a score of 29-19.

The Bandits gave Josef Franc a tactical ride in heat 9 and gated to lead the race home. He was followed by his partner, Paul Clews, so the visitors registered a big 1-8 cutting their arrears to just five points. They shaved two more points from their deficit with a 2-4 in heat 11, a race won by Michal Makovsky, from Carl Wilkinson with Tero Aarnio in third. Simon Lambert pulled another two points further ahead in heat 12 with a win from Gino Franchetti and third place for Ritchie Hawkins which eased the Scorpions five points ahead with the score at 40-35.

Mangnus Karlsson finally won a race in heat 13 but Makovsky and Burza kept Wilkinson at the back so the race was shared. Josef Franc won heat 14 from Howe and Hart to keep the Scorpions five ahead with just one race left. Howe and Karlsson both passed Josef Franc in heat 15 and held on for a maximum which gave the Scorpions all three points.


Scorers: Scun'thorpe – David Howe 14 (5), Carl Wilkinson 11 (5), Jerran Hart 9+1 (6), Simon Lambert 6+1 (4), Magnus Karlsson 6+1 (5), Ritchie Hawkins 5 (5).

Berwick – Josef Franc 12 (5) (incl 6 point TR), Michal Makovsky 9+1 (5), Tero Aarnio 7+1 (4), Stan Burza 5+1 (4), Guglielmo Franchetti 4 (5), Paul Clews 3+1 (4), Tamas Sike 2 (3).



Premier League: ..... Somerset 59 (3 points), Newport 34 (0 points).


Team changes: Somerset were again without Simon Walker and used Rider Replacement (R/R) at number 2. Newport again had Kyle Newman at number 6 for the injured Marek Mroz.

This was a top v bottom clash with the Rebels looking for all three points in their push for a play-off place and the Wasps desperately trying to avoid the wooden spoon. It turned out a bit of a non-event as the Rebels won with ease.

Chris Kerr stunned the home fans by romping away for a win in the opening heat despite Steve Johnston's challenges. It didn't produce a heat advantage for the Wasps though because Jari Makinen held off Leigh lanham for third and a shared race. Sedgmen and Simmons scored a home 5-1 in the reserves race while a Kramer win in heat 3 shared the points. Gathercole and Simmons added a second maximum for the home side in heat 4 which took the score to 16-8.

Leigh Lanham's machine blew to smithereens at the start of heat 5 causing a stoppage for the Burnham-on-sea environment department to clear away the debris. Jari Makinen had already fallen and been excluded so Kramer versus Kerr produced a 3-2 result. The next two races produced home 5-1s with Sedgmen featuring in both of them so the Wasps then trailed by 17 points. They gave Chris Kerr a tactical ride in heat 8 but although he led from the tapes Gathercole blasted round the outside on bend two to win the race. Chris Holder finished third ahead of Nick Simmons so Newport took a 3-5 advantage to cut their arrears to 15 points at 32-17.

A Kramer win in heat 9 from former Rebel, Jordan Frampton, produced another shared race then, in heat 10, Newport used their second tactical option by giving the black and white helmet cover to another former Rebel, Paul Fry. Steve Johnston soon recovered from a poor start to lead the race after the third bend but Fry, finishing second, was supported by Jonas Andersson in third for another 3-5 cutting the gap further to 13 points. Gathercole passed Kerr to win heat 11 for a 3-3 then Jari Makinen produced his first race win for the Rebels in heat 12 rounding Andersson in the latter stages of the first lap. Nick Simmons followed him home and the Rebels' lead was back to 17 points again with the score now 46-29.

Gathercole and Johnston gated to a 5-1 in heat 13 from Leigh Lanham then Emil Kramer passed Paul Fry for a 4-2 in heat 14 before Kramer won again in heat 15 from Chris Kerr and Steve Johnston for another 4-2 and 25 point win.


Scorers: Somerset – Emil Kramer 15 (5) (full maximum), Cory Gathercole 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Steve Johnston 11+1 (5), Justin Sedgmen 9+1 (5), Nick Simmons 6+3 (5), Jari Makinen 4+1 (5).

Newport – Chris Kerr 13 (5) (incl 4 point TR), Paul Fry 9 (4) (incl 4 point TR), Jordan Frampton 4 (4), Jonas Andersson 3+2 (4), James Holder 2+1 (4), Leigh Lanham 2+1 (5), Kyle Newman 1+1 (4).