Around the Premier League Tracks 2008
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Sunday, 9 March
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The Spring Trophy match due to be ridden at Glasgow between the Tigers and Edinburgh was postponed yesterday due to a waterlogged track. Needless to say when the match was scheduled to have started the sun was shining brightly in Glasgow with scarcely a cloud in the sky! This left the match at Newcastle where the Diamonds took on Berwick in the second leg of the Tyne Tweed Trophy as the sole action.


Tyne Tweed Trophy (second leg): Newcastle 44, Berwick 46 Newcastle won the trophy on aggregate by 90-89.


Both teams fielded the same sides as contested the first leg last night at Berwick. This meant that Stan Burza continued as a guest for the Bandits at number 4.

With a three point lead from the first leg most fans thought that there was little doubt that Newcastle were going to triumph comfortably. Clearly Berwick hadn’t read the script and carved out a two point victory on the night finishing with two 1-5s! Furthermore it was Berwick who were in charge for the first eight heats of this match during which they provided seven of the race winners. Newcastle called a halt after heat 8 for an interval during which work was done on the track. On the resumption, Newcastle looked a rejuvenated side but must have been devastated by the shock of the last two heats.

There was hardly any passing in the match with most races being won from the gate. The opening two races were shared with wins from Rymel and Magosi then the Bandits took the lead when Stan Burza became the third Berwick heat winner and this time was supported in third place by Tero Aarnio. This 2-4 was followed by another shared heat won by Makovsky who beat Stancl taking the score to 11-13.

Adrian Rymel kept the race winners coming for the Bandits winning heat 5 from Franc then the Bandits hit home a 1-5 when Michal Makovsky and Adam McKinna led Christian Henry home to open up a six point lead for the visitors which put them three points ahead on aggregate! At last Newcastle produced a race winner when George Stancl led Stan Burza home in heat 7. Jaimie Robertson’s third place gave the Diamonds a 4-2 to cut the Bandits’ lead to four points. In heat 8 Norbert Magosi scored his second race win to share the points and, with the interval now being taken, the score stood at 22-26 with Berwick also leading on aggregate by 68-69.

It was a different story on the resumption as Newcastle suddenly burst into life. Two heats later it was all square again with 4-2s in heats 9 and 10 thanks to wins by Franc and Henry. Stancl made it three race winners on the trot for the Diamonds winning heat 11 for a 3-3 then the home side took the lead for the first time in the match with a 5-1 in heat 12 from Franc and Stoddart which opened a four point gap taking the score to 38-34 (84-77 on aggregate) and it looked all over.

Not so! Although Newcastle scored a 4-2 in heat 13 won by Stancl from Rymel and Henry to increase their lead to six points, Berwick were far from finished. Magosi replaced McKinna in heat 14 and won the race while Burza followed him home for a 1-5 which narrowed the gap to two points at 43-41. How sweet it must have been for the visitors when they rammed home another 1-5 in the last heat from Burza and Rymel ahead of Stancl to snatch victory from the home side just as Newcastle had done to them last night. Newcastle won the trophy on aggregate but the Bandits’ fans surely went home the happier after this match.


Scorers: For Newcastle – George Stancl 12 (5), Josef Franc 10 (5), Sean Stoddart 8+2 (4), Christian Henry 6+1 (4), Ben Powell 4+1 (4), Jason King 2+1 (4), Jaimie Robertson 2+1 (4).

For Berwick – Adrian Rymel 12+1 (5), Stan Burza 12+1 (5), Norbert Magosi 10 (6), Michal Makovsky 8 (3), Adam McKinna 2+1 (4), Guglielmo Franchetti 1+1 (3), Tero Aarnio 1 (4).

(Riders’ scores subject to confirmation)