Around the Premier League Tracks 2007
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Wednesday, 20 June
There were two Premier League matches raced tonight. At Birmingham the Brummies raced against the Isle of Wight while at King’s Lynn the Stars took on Newport.
Premier League: Birmingham 48, Isle of Wight 42
Birmingham were at full strength but the Isle of Wight were missing reserve, Chris Johnson, so had Sam Martin as their Conference League guest at number 7.
This was Birmingham’s first meeting for two weeks since last week’s home match was rained off. The Isle of Wight were relieved to find that Jason Bunyan had recovered from the wrist injury he suffered last night on the Island although they were not so lucky with the injury to Chris Johnson. They would have taken heart from the way they coped with adversity in the match against Stoke last night and a close encounter was expected.
Chris Holder won the opening race with ease from Aidan Collins and Ulrich Ostergaard for a shared heat but the Brummies took the lead with a 5-1 in the reserves race thanks to Lee Smart and Ben Powell although Sam Martin was unlucky to suffer an engine failure on the second lap while lying second. Jason Lyons won heat 3 but Jason Bunyan and Krzysztof Stojanowski filled the minor places for another shared race. It was back to a home 5-1 in heat 4 with Emiliano Sanchez and Ben Powell heading home Glen Phillips to take the score to 16-8.
Heat 5 was rerun with all-four-back after Jason Lyons had fallen on the first bend. In the rerun Chris Holder won for the second time beating Jason Lyons who ruined an Islanders’ 1-5 by taking Cory Gathercole round the outside for a 2-4 cutting the home side’s lead to six points. It went back to eight in the next race when Ostergaard won from Phillips with Collins third. In heat 7 Stojanowski crashed into Lee Smart on the opening bend and was excluded from the rerun which was won by Emiliano Sanchez. Jason Bunyan took second place for a 4-2 so there were now 10 points between the teams. The Islanders passed up the chance to give Cory Gathercole a TR and must have regretted it when he won heat 8. It didn’t help the Brummies cause when Ben Powell had to go from 15 metres back after touching the tapes but, with Aidan Collins shedding a chain on the opening bend, he passed Sam Martin for second with Martin finishing third for a 2-4 to the visitors. This took the score to 28-20.
The Brummies regained their ten point lead in heat 9 when Jason Lyons won from Glen Phillips and Jon Armstrong for a 4-2 but it was back to eight again when Jason Bunyan beat Ulrich Ostergaard with Krzysztof Stojanowski third for a 2-4. The Islanders had given up a second opportunity to use a TR which again would have yielded an extra three points. This meant that Chris Holder could not go for double points in heat 11. The Islanders must have been kicking themselves about this because Chris Holder and Cory Gathercole scored a 1-5 in heat 11 ahead of Emiliano Sanchez which cut the lead to only four points. It could have been one point! Jason Lyons beat Jason Bunyan in heat 12 and, with Ben Powell third, the 4-2 increased the Brummies’ lead to six points again with the score now 39-33.
Chris Holder scored his fourth win of the match in heat 13 but Emiliano Sanchez and Ulrich Ostergaard kept Glen Phillips at the back so the race was shared. Krzysztof Stojanowski then won heat 14 but with Smart and Powell finishing behind him for a 3-3 the Brummies retained their six point lead and the match was out of the Islanders’ reach. It wouldn’t have been, of course, if they had used the TR when one of the two opportunities had arisen giving the crowd a last heat decider! As it turned out the Isle of Wight went with Holder and Gathercole instead of Bunyan but Cory Gathercole was excluded after crashing into the fence on the second bend leaving Chris Holder to fight for his maximum alone against Jason Lyons and Ulrich Ostergaard. He won the race for the full 15 points and the Brummies ended up with a 6 point win.
Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 12+1 (5), Ulrich Ostergaard 9+2 (5), Emiliano Sanchez 9 (4), Ben Powell 8+3 (5), Lee Smart 6 (4), Aidan Collins 3 (4), Jon Armstrong 1 (3).
For the Isle of Wight – Chris Holder 15 (5)(full maximum), Jason Bunyan 9 (4), Cory Gathercole 6+1 (5), Krzysztof Stojanowski 5+1 (4), Glen Phillips 5 (4), Andrew Bargh 1 (4), Sam Martin 1 (4).
Premier League: King’s Lynn 56, Newport 36
King’s Lynn were at full strength with Grant MacDonald making his home debut for the Stars at number 7. Newport were missing Tony Atkin so used Rider Replacement at number 4. They were also without Barry Burchatt so had former King’s Lynn rider, Simon Lambert, at number 7.
It’s an incredible statistic but due to involvement in other competitions and to rain-offs this was King’s Lynn’s first home league meeting of the season while all other tracks had ridden at least three. They could hardly have asked to meet a team with a poorer league record at Saddlebow Road. On their last two league matches Newport scored 26 points in each losing 64-26 last year and 67-26 in 2005. Nevertheless this proved a much better and more incident-packed meeting than might have been expected.
It was perhaps no surprise when the Stars opened with a 5-1 from Tomas Topinka and Chris Mills. Tom Hedley was in second place but struggled badly on the bends which allowed Chris Mills to pass him on the third lap. Nick Simmons then had to lay his bike down to avoid hitting his partner who was clearly ill at ease. Newport’s sensational high-scoring reserve got his evening off to a good start by winning the reserves race despite the attentions of James Brundle while Simon Lambert, in third place, got into trouble allowing Grant MacDonald to open his home account with the third place point. The third race was full of incident. Tom Hedley made the start and led the race comfortably when he fell off on the third lap. Meanwhile Trevor Harding passed Phil Morris to move into third place on the first lap before also passing Daniel Nermark on the last bend to win the race. The result was another 5-1 to King’s Lynn which took them eight points ahead. Heat 4 was shared. Paul Lee won the race surviving a hard challenge by Chris Schramm by letting the Newport rider through then cutting back to repass him. Simon Lambert beat Grant MacDonald for third place so the points were shared as the score went to 16-8.
Trevor Harding and Daniel Nermark gated in heat 5 for another home 5-1 ahead of Hedley to go twelve points ahead. Michal Rajkowski and Chris Schramm made excellent gates in heat 6 and Rajkowski went on to win the race although Tomas Topinka and Chris Mills both passed Schramm for a shared heat to keep the pattern of 5-1s and 3-3s going. The pattern continued in heat 7 as King’s Lynn scored another 5-1. This time Michal Rajkowski took the R/R ride but he missed the gate this time and never figured in the race. James Brundle and Paul Lee took all five points from Phil Morris to open a 16 point gap. Heat 8 and the 5-1/3-3 pattern continued. This time a 3-3 was due and it duly arrived. Chris Mills won the race but Tom Hedley and Simon Lambert finished behind him as the score went to 32-16.
Things changed in heat 9 when Daniel Nermark fell and was excluded. Michal Rajkowski again caused the Stars some problems with another fast start. Nermark gave chase and passed him on the third lap but crashed into the fence in doing so. The race was rerun and the unthinkable happened. The pattern was continued with the race ending in a 1-5 this time for the Wasps! Michal Rajkowski made another fast start to head off for the win while, behind him, Chris Schramm passed Trevor Harding for the maximum reducing the gap to 12 points. At last there was a 4-2 - in heat 10. Michal Rajkowski was off once again but this time Topinka executed a fine cut back to pass the Newport reserve. Chris Mills finished third so the gap increased to 14 points. The Stars added another 4-2 in heat 11 when Paul Lee won the race. Simon Lambert finished second ahead of James Brundle while Tom Hedley finished last then, in heat 12, Michal Rajkowski was given a TR. It turned out to be the wrong heat for the TR though as this time he was beaten by Daniel Nermark who passed him on the outside of the third bend. Newport were still heading for a heat advantage until Phil Morris fell heavily on the last bend while lying third. This let James Brundle through for third place so the race was shared 4-4 with the score now standing at 45-29.
Paul Lee and Tomas Topinka scored a 5-1 against Chris Schramm in heat 13 but Schramm was out again as R/R in heat 14 and this time it was a different story. The Newport rider worked his way through from last place to second passing James Brundle then, on the last bend, Trevor Harding with a very forceful inside dive to join his partner, Michal Rajkowski up front for a 1-5. In the last race King’s Lynn ensured a 20 point win with another Lee/Topinka 5-1 again ahead of Schramm out for the third consecutive heat. Newport’s two reserves ended up scoring 22 of their 36 points!
Scorers: For King’s Lynn Paul Lee 14+1 (5)(paid maximum), Tomas Topinka 12+2 (5), Trevor Harding 8 (4), Daniel Nermark 7+2 (4), Chris Mills 7+2 (4), James Brundle 7 (5), Grant MacDonald 1+1 (3).
For Newport – Michal Rajkowski 18 (7)(with a 4 point TR), Chris Schramm 8+2 (6), Simon Lambert 4+2 (4), Tom Hedley 4 (6), Phil Morris 2 (4), Nick Simmons 0 (3).
There were two Premier League matches raced tonight. At Birmingham the Brummies raced against the Isle of Wight while at King’s Lynn the Stars took on Newport.
Premier League: Birmingham 48, Isle of Wight 42
Birmingham were at full strength but the Isle of Wight were missing reserve, Chris Johnson, so had Sam Martin as their Conference League guest at number 7.
This was Birmingham’s first meeting for two weeks since last week’s home match was rained off. The Isle of Wight were relieved to find that Jason Bunyan had recovered from the wrist injury he suffered last night on the Island although they were not so lucky with the injury to Chris Johnson. They would have taken heart from the way they coped with adversity in the match against Stoke last night and a close encounter was expected.
Chris Holder won the opening race with ease from Aidan Collins and Ulrich Ostergaard for a shared heat but the Brummies took the lead with a 5-1 in the reserves race thanks to Lee Smart and Ben Powell although Sam Martin was unlucky to suffer an engine failure on the second lap while lying second. Jason Lyons won heat 3 but Jason Bunyan and Krzysztof Stojanowski filled the minor places for another shared race. It was back to a home 5-1 in heat 4 with Emiliano Sanchez and Ben Powell heading home Glen Phillips to take the score to 16-8.
Heat 5 was rerun with all-four-back after Jason Lyons had fallen on the first bend. In the rerun Chris Holder won for the second time beating Jason Lyons who ruined an Islanders’ 1-5 by taking Cory Gathercole round the outside for a 2-4 cutting the home side’s lead to six points. It went back to eight in the next race when Ostergaard won from Phillips with Collins third. In heat 7 Stojanowski crashed into Lee Smart on the opening bend and was excluded from the rerun which was won by Emiliano Sanchez. Jason Bunyan took second place for a 4-2 so there were now 10 points between the teams. The Islanders passed up the chance to give Cory Gathercole a TR and must have regretted it when he won heat 8. It didn’t help the Brummies cause when Ben Powell had to go from 15 metres back after touching the tapes but, with Aidan Collins shedding a chain on the opening bend, he passed Sam Martin for second with Martin finishing third for a 2-4 to the visitors. This took the score to 28-20.
The Brummies regained their ten point lead in heat 9 when Jason Lyons won from Glen Phillips and Jon Armstrong for a 4-2 but it was back to eight again when Jason Bunyan beat Ulrich Ostergaard with Krzysztof Stojanowski third for a 2-4. The Islanders had given up a second opportunity to use a TR which again would have yielded an extra three points. This meant that Chris Holder could not go for double points in heat 11. The Islanders must have been kicking themselves about this because Chris Holder and Cory Gathercole scored a 1-5 in heat 11 ahead of Emiliano Sanchez which cut the lead to only four points. It could have been one point! Jason Lyons beat Jason Bunyan in heat 12 and, with Ben Powell third, the 4-2 increased the Brummies’ lead to six points again with the score now 39-33.
Chris Holder scored his fourth win of the match in heat 13 but Emiliano Sanchez and Ulrich Ostergaard kept Glen Phillips at the back so the race was shared. Krzysztof Stojanowski then won heat 14 but with Smart and Powell finishing behind him for a 3-3 the Brummies retained their six point lead and the match was out of the Islanders’ reach. It wouldn’t have been, of course, if they had used the TR when one of the two opportunities had arisen giving the crowd a last heat decider! As it turned out the Isle of Wight went with Holder and Gathercole instead of Bunyan but Cory Gathercole was excluded after crashing into the fence on the second bend leaving Chris Holder to fight for his maximum alone against Jason Lyons and Ulrich Ostergaard. He won the race for the full 15 points and the Brummies ended up with a 6 point win.
Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 12+1 (5), Ulrich Ostergaard 9+2 (5), Emiliano Sanchez 9 (4), Ben Powell 8+3 (5), Lee Smart 6 (4), Aidan Collins 3 (4), Jon Armstrong 1 (3).
For the Isle of Wight – Chris Holder 15 (5)(full maximum), Jason Bunyan 9 (4), Cory Gathercole 6+1 (5), Krzysztof Stojanowski 5+1 (4), Glen Phillips 5 (4), Andrew Bargh 1 (4), Sam Martin 1 (4).
Premier League: King’s Lynn 56, Newport 36
King’s Lynn were at full strength with Grant MacDonald making his home debut for the Stars at number 7. Newport were missing Tony Atkin so used Rider Replacement at number 4. They were also without Barry Burchatt so had former King’s Lynn rider, Simon Lambert, at number 7.
It’s an incredible statistic but due to involvement in other competitions and to rain-offs this was King’s Lynn’s first home league meeting of the season while all other tracks had ridden at least three. They could hardly have asked to meet a team with a poorer league record at Saddlebow Road. On their last two league matches Newport scored 26 points in each losing 64-26 last year and 67-26 in 2005. Nevertheless this proved a much better and more incident-packed meeting than might have been expected.
It was perhaps no surprise when the Stars opened with a 5-1 from Tomas Topinka and Chris Mills. Tom Hedley was in second place but struggled badly on the bends which allowed Chris Mills to pass him on the third lap. Nick Simmons then had to lay his bike down to avoid hitting his partner who was clearly ill at ease. Newport’s sensational high-scoring reserve got his evening off to a good start by winning the reserves race despite the attentions of James Brundle while Simon Lambert, in third place, got into trouble allowing Grant MacDonald to open his home account with the third place point. The third race was full of incident. Tom Hedley made the start and led the race comfortably when he fell off on the third lap. Meanwhile Trevor Harding passed Phil Morris to move into third place on the first lap before also passing Daniel Nermark on the last bend to win the race. The result was another 5-1 to King’s Lynn which took them eight points ahead. Heat 4 was shared. Paul Lee won the race surviving a hard challenge by Chris Schramm by letting the Newport rider through then cutting back to repass him. Simon Lambert beat Grant MacDonald for third place so the points were shared as the score went to 16-8.
Trevor Harding and Daniel Nermark gated in heat 5 for another home 5-1 ahead of Hedley to go twelve points ahead. Michal Rajkowski and Chris Schramm made excellent gates in heat 6 and Rajkowski went on to win the race although Tomas Topinka and Chris Mills both passed Schramm for a shared heat to keep the pattern of 5-1s and 3-3s going. The pattern continued in heat 7 as King’s Lynn scored another 5-1. This time Michal Rajkowski took the R/R ride but he missed the gate this time and never figured in the race. James Brundle and Paul Lee took all five points from Phil Morris to open a 16 point gap. Heat 8 and the 5-1/3-3 pattern continued. This time a 3-3 was due and it duly arrived. Chris Mills won the race but Tom Hedley and Simon Lambert finished behind him as the score went to 32-16.
Things changed in heat 9 when Daniel Nermark fell and was excluded. Michal Rajkowski again caused the Stars some problems with another fast start. Nermark gave chase and passed him on the third lap but crashed into the fence in doing so. The race was rerun and the unthinkable happened. The pattern was continued with the race ending in a 1-5 this time for the Wasps! Michal Rajkowski made another fast start to head off for the win while, behind him, Chris Schramm passed Trevor Harding for the maximum reducing the gap to 12 points. At last there was a 4-2 - in heat 10. Michal Rajkowski was off once again but this time Topinka executed a fine cut back to pass the Newport reserve. Chris Mills finished third so the gap increased to 14 points. The Stars added another 4-2 in heat 11 when Paul Lee won the race. Simon Lambert finished second ahead of James Brundle while Tom Hedley finished last then, in heat 12, Michal Rajkowski was given a TR. It turned out to be the wrong heat for the TR though as this time he was beaten by Daniel Nermark who passed him on the outside of the third bend. Newport were still heading for a heat advantage until Phil Morris fell heavily on the last bend while lying third. This let James Brundle through for third place so the race was shared 4-4 with the score now standing at 45-29.
Paul Lee and Tomas Topinka scored a 5-1 against Chris Schramm in heat 13 but Schramm was out again as R/R in heat 14 and this time it was a different story. The Newport rider worked his way through from last place to second passing James Brundle then, on the last bend, Trevor Harding with a very forceful inside dive to join his partner, Michal Rajkowski up front for a 1-5. In the last race King’s Lynn ensured a 20 point win with another Lee/Topinka 5-1 again ahead of Schramm out for the third consecutive heat. Newport’s two reserves ended up scoring 22 of their 36 points!
Scorers: For King’s Lynn Paul Lee 14+1 (5)(paid maximum), Tomas Topinka 12+2 (5), Trevor Harding 8 (4), Daniel Nermark 7+2 (4), Chris Mills 7+2 (4), James Brundle 7 (5), Grant MacDonald 1+1 (3).
For Newport – Michal Rajkowski 18 (7)(with a 4 point TR), Chris Schramm 8+2 (6), Simon Lambert 4+2 (4), Tom Hedley 4 (6), Phil Morris 2 (4), Nick Simmons 0 (3).
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