Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Sunday, 30 March

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Five Premier League matches were raced today. First up was the rearranged match at Scunthorpe where the Scorpions faced Redcar while at Newport the Wasps took on Reading. The third match was at Glasgow where the Tigers raced against Workington. Next to start was the match at Mildenhall where the Fen Tigers took on Berwick. Finally at Newcastle the Diamonds had Sheffield as their visitors. All the matches were for Premier Trophy points except the one at Mildenhall which was the first Premier League match of the season.

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Premier Trophy: Scunthorpe 45, Redcar 45

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Scunthorpe were at full strength but James Grieves had not recovered from his chest infection so Redcar used Rider Replacement at number 3.

The teams exchanged 5-1s in the first two races. In heat 1 Gary Havelock got to the front off the first two bends and he was followed by Ty Proctor one bend later for a Bears’ maximum. It looked ominous for the visitors as their reserves lost a 5-1 in heat 2 to Benji Compton and Byron Bekker to level the scores again. Gary Havelock (R/R) won again in heat 3 while Josh Auty took third from Viktor Bergstrom and a 2-4 which restored Redcar’s lead and it stayed that way when Chris Kerr won heat 4 for a shared heat in the next race taking the score to 11-13.

Magnus Karlsson won heat 5 despite a challenge from Havelock on the last bend. Ty Proctor took third so the race was shared as was heat 6 when Chris Kerr won again. He had no support once more so the shared race kept the visitors two points in front. Although Richard Hall led from the first bend to win heat 7, he didn’t get it all his own way as Josh Auty and Ty Proctor (R/R) challenged him hard. The race was shared to keep the Bears two in front. The Scorpions just couldn’t seem to get back on level terms. Although Carl Wilkinson won heat 8, Proctor and Giffard filled the minor places for another shared race taking the score to 23-25.

In heat 9 Chris Kerr and Viktor Bergstrom crashed on the first bend and the interval was taken as Chris Kerr required ambulance assistance. He had to withdraw from the meeting as a result of what was later diagnosed as a broken right leg leaving the Bears with just one heat leader and five fit riders. The Scorpions cashed in with a 5-1 in the rerun. Byron Bekker replaced Viktor Bergstrom and Daniel Giffard replaced the unfortunate Kerr but it was Magnus Karlsson and Byron Bekker who finished ahead of the Redcar reserves to turn a two point deficit to a two point lead. The Bears fought on though with Josh Auty winning heat 10 from Carl Wilkinson and Andrew Moore for a shared race. Heat 11 provided another 3-3. Richard Hall won from the gate but Proctor and Havelock finished behind him as Byron Bekker fell and retired from the race. Still the short-handed Bears clung on. In heat 12 Magnus Karlsson won the race under some pressure from Josh Auty. Daniel Giffard played his part by relegating Benji Compton to the back giving the visitors another shared race and taking the score to 37-35.

Andrew Moore beat Gary Havelock in heat 13 but Havelock passed Richard Hall to take second place and limit the damage to a 4-2 putting the Scorpions four ahead. The Bears came roaring back in heat 14 though with a 1-5 which squared the match. Josh Auty and Daniel Giffard made the gate and headed Byron Bekker home to set up a last heat decider. This was Ty Proctor’s race! With the Scorpions on a 5-1 with Karlsson and Hall leading the race, Proctor passed Richard Hall on the first lap then Magnus Karlsson on the third lap to win the heat. Unfortunately for the Bears, Gary Havelock could make no impression at the back but this was a remarkable result for Redcar after losing Chris Kerr in heat 9 given they were already without James Grieves.

Scorers: For Scunthorpe – Magnus Karlsson 13 (5), Richard Hall 10+1 (5), Andrew Moore 7+1 (4), Carl Wilkinson 6+1 (4), Byron Bekker 5+2 (5), Benji Compton 4+1 (5), Viktor Bergstrom 0 (2).

For Redcar – Ty Proctor 11+3 (6), Gary Havelock 11+1 (6), Josh Auty 11 (5), Daniel Giffard 6+3 (6), Chris Kerr 6 (2), Arlo Bugeja 0 (5).

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Premier Trophy: Newport 34, Reading 56

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Newport were at full strength for this match but Reading had Mark Burrows as a guest at reserve in place of the injured Danny Warwick.

Both teams were at full strength.

After last week’s home and away hammerings by Somerset the Wasps needed a good result here against one of the league’s new teams. Things looked bright when they took a 5-1 from Craig Watson and Paul Clews in the opening race after Mark Lemon had retired then had Jerran Hart leading in the reserves race. However Hart suffered an engine failure at the end of the third lap and it was Jaimie Smith and Mark Burrows who scored a 1-5 to level the scores. Ulrich Ostergaard won heat 3 but the Wasps’ pair of Atkin and Mroz took second and third for a shared race. Mark Burrows was excluded from heat 4 under the two minute time allowance so was replaced by Jaimie Smith. Sebastian Truminski won the race but another last place for Nick Simmons resulted in another shared race with the score at 12-12.

Tomas Suchanek won heat 5 from Marek Mroz but again Mark Lemon finished at the back so the race was shared but when Craig Watson fell in heat 6 Reading stepped in to score a 1-5 as Tom P Madsen and Jaimie Smith won from Paul Clews. The Racers went further ahead in heat 7 with another Ostergaard win this time from Truminski with Chris Mills third. The 2-4 opened the gap to six points and Newport were in big trouble when they lost another 1-5 in heat 8 as Tomas Suchanek and Mark Burrows left Paul Clews in their wake. The score was now 19-29 and the Wasps were looking down the barrel of another hammering.

It just went from bad to worse for Newport. Marek Mroz brought down Jaimie Smith in heat 9 and was excluded from the rerun which was won by Tom P Madsen from Tony Atkin for a 2-4 opening the lead to 12 points. Newport gave Craig Watson a TR in heat 10 but it was a disaster as the Newport number 1 finished at the wrong end of a 1-5 thanks to Chris Mills and Ulrich Ostergaard. Newport were now 16 points behind with little to look forward to in the closing races. Mark Lemon finally came to the party winning heat 11 but Nick Simmons took second and Sebastian Truminski third to share the spoils. Ulrich Ostergaard completed a four ride paid maximum in heat 12 but again the Wasps filled the minor places for another 3-3 which took the score to 28-44.

Craig Watson gave the home support something to cheer about by winning heat 13 from Mark Lemon. Truminski finished third so the Wasps scored a 4-2 but it was back to Misery City for them when they lost a 1-5 in heat 14. Chris Mills and Mark Burrows did the damage leaving Tony Atkin to trail in third. Finally Ostergaard and Madsen capped off an impressive Reading performance with another 1-5 in heat 15 leaving Truminski and Watson to bring up the rear.

Scorers: For Newport – Sebastian Truminski 8+1 (5), Craig Watson 7 (5), Tony Atkin 6+1 (4), Nick Simmons 5 (4), Marek Mroz 4+2 (4), Paul Clews 4+1 (4), Jerran Hart 0 (4).

For Reading – Ulrich Ostergaard 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Tom P Madsen 10+1 (5), Jaimie Smith 7+2 (5), Tomas Suchanek 7 (4), Chris Mills 7 (4), Mark Burrows 6+3 (3), Mark Lemon 5 (4).

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Premier Trophy: Glasgow 47, Workington 43

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Both teams were at full strength.

Workington hit the front in the opening race. Ross Brady made the gate but was passed by the field and it was Daniel Nermark who won the race from Shane Parker for a 2-4. Lee Dicken won the reserves race but there was a three way battle behind him for the minor places with John Branney and Joe Haines edging out Josh Grajczonek for a shared race. Mitchell Davey had a spectacular set-to with the kickboards on the first bend second time round after Charles Wright had fallen in front of him. The race was stopped and Wright excluded from the rerun which was won by Carl Stonehewer for another shared race. Kauko Nieminen won heat 4 from Lee Dicken and Robert Ksiezak and another 3-3 which took the score to 11-13.

Glasgow fell four points adrift in heat 5 as Daniel Nermark sailed off for a comfortable win from Trent Leverington. Scott Smith took third for a 2-4 to the visitors. Heat 6 had to be rerun with all four after Kauko Nieminen fell on the second bend. The Workington rider was none too pleased at Shane Parker’s involvement in his fall. Nieminen won the rerun after seeing off Parker but Ross Brady took third for a shared heat. Josh Grajczonek passed Stonehewer on the second bend of Heat 7. He held off the challenge of the Workington man to win the race. Robert Ksiezak finished third so Glasgow scored a 4-2 to pull two points back. They then hit the front with a 5-1 in heat 8. Ross Brady won the race with Lee Dicken following him home ahead of Scott Smith for the maximum which gave the Tigers a two point lead with the score now 25-23.

There was no change after heat 9. Kauko Nieminen won again this time from Trent Leverington while Mitchell Davey finished third, pipping Joe Haines on the line, for a 3-3. Workington had now provided six race winners from the first nine races yet still trailed by two points! The Comets squared the match in heat 10 however when Carl Stonehewer gated to beat Shane Parker. Charles Wright finished third ahead of a tiring Ross Brady for a 2-4. It stayed all square after Daniel Nermark won heat 11 from Ksiezak and Grajczonek for another 3-3. Heat 12 had to be rerun with all four back after Carl Stonehewer crashed with some help from Lee Dicken. Stonehewer made his displeasure known to Dicken both on the track and off it. He won the rerun from the gate however from Dicken and Leverington for the match’s seventh shared race taking the score to 36-36.

It was building up to a grand finale with Workington represented by the unbeaten Nermark and Nieminen in heat 13 but with Shane Parker to contend with while in heat 14 they had to go with the ineffective Charles Wright and John Branney. Glasgow would have been the happier side to have shared heat 13. Nermark eased to another victory but this time Parker and Ksiezak kept Nieminen at the back for a shared race leaving the Comets to worry about the result of heat 14 in which Lee Dicken replaced Mitchell Davey and Joe Haines replaced John Branney. The Glasgow pair gated for the expected 5-1 which put the Tigers four points ahead going into the last race. Nermark won heat 15 to complete another fine maximum but Parker and Leverington were content to take the minor places to ensure a Glasgow victory. Workington were left to reflect on the statistics which showed that they had 11 first places and 11 zeroes. Indeed the two Glasgow reserves outscored the combined totals of Nieminen, Smith, Wright, Branney and Haines!

Scorers: For Glasgow– Lee Dicken 12+1 (5), Shane Parker 10 (5), Trent Leverington 8+1 (5), Josh Grajczonek 6+2 (4), Robert Ksiezak 5+2 (4), Ross Brady 4+1 (4), Mitchell Davey 2+2 (3).

For Workington– Daniel Nermark 15 (5) (maximum), Carl Stonehewer 11 (4), Kauko Nieminen 9 (4), Scott Smith 3 (4), Joe Haines 2 (4), John Branney 2+1 (4), Charles Wright 1 (4)

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Premier League: Mildenhall 29, Berwick 61

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Mildenhall were again without Shane Colvin and Robbie Kessler so used Rider Replacement for Kessler at number 5 and had John Oliver (King’s Lynn) as a guest at number 2 for Colvin. They nominated Aaron Baseby as their number 8. Berwick, without the injured Shane Colvin, used Rider Replacement at number 2.

This was Mildenhall’s first home match of the season but it turned out to be anything but a happy one! In fact it was a humiliation for the home side who were simply never in the hunt after heat 6 at which point they trailed by only two points. Berwick won the last nine races by 10-52! And rattled up seven 1-5 heat wins. By contrast poor Mildenhall had only two race winners. This must surely be a record away win in a Premier League match.

Adrian Rymel won heat 1 for the Bandits but Kai Laukkanen and John Oliver finished ahead of (R/R) Norbert Magosi to share the heat. The Bandits then took the lead when Magosi won the reserves race from Mark Baseby. Adam McKinna took the third point place from James Cockle for a 2-4. Back came Mildenhall with a 4-2 from John Oliver, who beat Henning Bager, and Jan Graversen. Berwick were back in front after heat 4 though. Michal Makovsky won the race after Casper Wortmann suffered an engine failure for a 2-4 taking the score to 11-13.

Rymel and Makovsky won again in heats 5 and 6 both for shared heats but no less than five consecutive 1-5s for the Bandits put them in Easy Street. Baseby fell in heat 7 as Tero Aarnio and Henning Bager took the first of them from Casper Wortmann then Norbert Magosi and Michal Makovsky banged in another in heat 8 taking the score to 19-29.

Heat 9 provided another Bandits’ 1-5 as Magosi and Makovsky (both out again), headed home Jan Graversen stretching the visitors’ lead to 14 points. Then Kai Laukkanen took a TR in heat 10. The home side’s shambles continued though as Laukkanen suffered a two minutes’ time exclusion resulting in him having to start from 15 metres back. Henning Bager and Tero Aarnio said “thanks” and helped themselves to Berwick’s fourth 1-5 in a row and it went to five when Rymel and Aarnio added another in heat 11 for a 22 point lead. Jan Graversen managed to split the Bager/Magosi pairing in heat 12 so the Bandits had to content themselves with a 2-4 which took the score to 24-48.

At last Mildenhall provided a race winner when Kai Laukkanen won heat 13. It was only good enough for a shared race though as Rymel and Makovsky finished behind him. To add insult to injury though, Tero Aarnio and Adam McKinna raced off for a sixth Berwick 1-5 ahead of a demoralised Baseby and Wortmann before Adrian Rymel and Michal Makovsky brought the curtain down with a seventh 1-5 for the Bandits. Graversen led the race briefly but was brushed aside by Rymel as Makovsky followed him home.

Scorers: For Mildenhall – John Oliver 7+1 (5), Kai Laukkanen 6+1 (5), Jan Graversen 6+1 (5), Mark Baseby 5 (6), James Cockle 3 (4), Casper Wortmann 2 (5).

For Berwick – Adrian Rymel 14 (5), Michal Makovsky 13+4 (6), Tero Aarnio 10+2 (5), Henning Bager 10+1 (4), Norbert Magosi 10 (6), Adam McKinna 4+1 (4).

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Premier Trophy: Newcastle 63, Sheffield 27

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Newcastle were at full strength but Sheffield had Simon Lambert (King’s Lynn) as a guest at reserve in place of the injured Lee Smethills.

The Diamonds opened with a 5-1 as Christian Henry and Ben Powell headed home Joel Parsons as Ricky Ashworth retired. Sheffield’s guest Simon Lambert won the reserves race for them by beating Sean Stoddart. With Sam Martin picking up third the 2-4 cut the gap to two points. Newcastle rattled in another 5-1 from Josef Franc and Jason King in heat 3 against Andre Compton then added another from Sean Stoddart and George Stancl to take the score to 17-7.

Already ten points down Sheffield fell right out of contention when they lost two more 5-1s in heats 5 and 6. Jason King and Josef Franc did the damage in heat 5 as Ashworth again failed to score then Ben Powell and Christian Henry added another ahead of Ben Wilson in heat 6. Andre Compton stopped the rot in heat 7 beating George Stancl and Jaimie Robertson for a shared race then Sheffield got another 3-3 in heat 8 won by Ben Powell from Joel Parsons and Simon Lambert taking the score to 33-15.

The Tigers were rampant now and banged home another two 5-1s in heat 9 as Josef Franc and Jason King won from Sam Mrtin after Ben Wilson had retired, and heat 10 as Andre Compton could not prevent Christian Henry and Ben Powell scoring another maximum. Joel Parsons managed a second place in heat 11 when he finished second to George Stancl and ahead of Jaimie Robertson. In heat 12 Josef Franc completed his four ride paid maximum while Andre Compton finished behind him for a 4-2 to the Diamonds which took the score to 51-21.

Christian Henry fell in heat 13 and the race was awarded to George Stancl from Ashworth and Lambert. Jason King lost out on his paid maximum by finishing third to Paul Cooper in heat 14 when he finished second to Jaimie Robertson. The result was a 4-2 to the Diamonds putting them 32 points in front. Finally Josef Franc completed the rout and a personal five ride maximum accompanied by Christian Henry to bang home another 5-1 against Andre Compton to leave Sheffield in tatters.

Scorers: For Newcastle – Josef Franc 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Ben Powell 10+2 (4) (paid maximum), Christian Henry 10+2 (5), George Stancl 10+1 (4), Jason King 8+2 (4), Sean Stoddart 6 (4), Jaimie Robertson 5+1 (4).

For Sheffield – Andre Compton 8 (5), Simon Lambert 6+2 (5), Joel parsons 6 (5), Ricky Ashworth 2 (4), Paul Cooper 2 (4), Sam Martin 2 (4), Ben Wilson 1 (3).