Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Monday, 28 April

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Tonight’s match was at Reading where the Racers faced King’s Lynn in a Knock Out Cup tie.


Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Reading 59, King’s Lynn 34.


Both teams were at full strength.

Reading were down to six riders after Danny Warwick fell in heat 2 and was withdrawn from the meeting. King’s Lynn fared even worse. Kevin Doolan crashed in heat 3 and, although he took part in the rerun, he subsequently withdrew having aggravated injuries he was already carrying. Kozza Smith was also withdrawn after falling in heat 12 but it was on the say-so of one of the paramedics, a decision with which the rider himself disagreed. This resulted in some unpleasantness in the pits which required the presence of the referee to sort out.

The teams traded 4-2s in the opening two heats. Mark Lemon won heat 1 from Tomas Topinka then John Oliver won a rerun heat 2 from Jaimie Smith after Danny Warwick had fallen and been excluded. Reading pulled away with a 5-1 in heat 3 though after a fearsome looking accident when Kevin Doolan contacted Suchanek and fell with Ostergaard crashing into his bike before heading through the fence. In the all-four-back rerun Suchanek and Ostergaard finished ahead of Doolan then in heat 4 the Racers added another 5-1 thanks to Jaimie Smith and Tom P Madsen with Shaun Tacey finishing third taking the score to 16-8.

Topinka could only split Ostergaard and Suchanek in heat 5 as a 4-2 went the Racers way then the Stars were in big trouble when Lemon and Mills added another 5-1 in heat 6 for a 14 point lead. Kevin Doolan withdrew from the meeting to add further to the visitors’ misery but Rusty Harrison steadied the ship by winning heat 7 for a shared heat. Tomas Topinka was given a Tactical Substitute ride from 15 metres back in place of Simon Lambert in heat 8 in which Kozza Smith rode round the boards on the third and fourth bends to take the lead. Topinka passed Jaimie Smith on the third lap for third place so the Stars took a 2-5 from the heat reducing the difference between the teams to 11 points with the score now reading 30-19.

Heats 9 and 10 both went the home side’s way with 5-1s, the first from Ostergaard and Suchanek and the second from Lemon and Mills so the lead increased to 19 points. Tomas Topinka stopped the rot by winning heat 11 for a shared race but the respite was only temporary as Ostergaard and Jaimie Smith added another 5-1 in heat 12 taking the score to 48-25.

Mark Lemon made it four wins on the trot in heat 13 as he led home Tomas Topinka with Suchanek third for a 4-2 before Rusty Harrison took a Tactical Ride in heat 14. Jaimie Smith beat him though but his second place resulted in a 4-4 shared race then Lemon wrapped things up by completing his maximum in heat 15. However Ulrich Ostergaard having gone from last place to third wiped out Rusty Harrison on the last bend so was excluded. Topinka finished second and Harrison was awarded third for a shared race.

The Racers’ 25 point win will give King’s Lynn plenty to think about for the second leg on Wednesday.

Scorers: For Reading – Mark Lemon 15 (5) (maximum), Jaimie Smith 12+3 (7), Ulrich Ostergaard 11+1 (5), Chris Mills 7+2 (4), Tom P Madsen 7+1 (4), Tomas Suchanek 7+1 (4), Danny Warwick 0 (1).

For King’s Lynn – Tomas Topinka 13 (6) (with 2 point TS), Rusty Harrison 9+1 (5) (with 4 point TR), John Oliver 5 (5), Kozza Smith 4 (6), Shaun Tacey 2 (4), Kevin Doolan 1 (1), Simon Lambert 0 (3).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008
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Sunday, 27 April
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Today’s events were overshadowed by the death of Newport promoter, Tim Stone. The scheduled Knock Out Cup tie between Newport and Rye House was of course cancelled. The Premier Trophy match between Birmingham and King’s Lynn was a casualty of the weather but four other matches took place. At Glasgow the Tigers faced Edinburgh in a Premier Trophy match and at Mildenhall the Fen Tigers took on Redcar in a Knock Out Cup tie. The third match was at Newcastle where the Diamonds raced against Somerset in a Knock Out Cup tie and the fourth was at Stoke where the Potters had Workington as their visitors also in the Knock Out Cup.



Premier Trophy: Glasgow 34, Edinburgh 58


Both teams were at full strength.

Glasgow have had an indifferent start to the season but their win at Birmingham last Wednesday seemed to be just the spur they needed to get their season on track and what better way to do it than take on their nearest and dearest rivals, Edinburgh Monarchs, in another derby match. Edinburgh only had to score 25 points to ensure that they qualified for the semi-finals of the Premier Trophy by topping the section. You wouldn’t have known it though as Glasgow suffered one of their most depressing defeats ever on a warm, sunny afternoon at Ashfield.

It’s hard to say whether any records were set by the score but one record that did change was the track record when Shane Parker lowered the time to 57.1 in heat 3. Parker in fact fought a near lone battle for the Tigers scoring 19 of their 34 points some 56% of their total. He prevented William Lawson, Thomas Jonasson and Matthew Wethers from going through the meeting unbeaten by an opponent.

Heat 1 had to be rerun after Ryan Fisher and Trent Leverington clashed coming off bend 2 with Leverington falling. Fisher was excluded but in the rerun Derek Sneddon made the fastest gate and went on to win despite being pressurised by Leverington for a 3-3. A foretaste of what was to come appeared in the reserves race. Aaron Summers made a superb gate while Andrew Tully followed him home although Josh Grajczonek was never far behind. This gave the Monarchs a 1-5 and four point lead. Shane Parker stormed to the front from the tapes to win heat 3 in a record time but Thomas Jonasson and William Lawson finished behind him for a shared race. Another fine gate by Aaron Summers resulted in another race win for the young Australian. Matthew Wethers followed him home well ahead of Mitchell Davey as Ross Brady slipped from second to last for another 1-5 to the visitors taking the score to 8-16.

Heat 5 provided another tapes-to-flag win for Shane Parker but Derek Sneddon and Ryan Fisher followed him home for a 3-3. It was then announced that Trent Leverington had withdrawn from the meeting so Shane Parker replaced him as a Tactical Substitute in heat 6 from 15 metres back. Robert Ksiezak made the gate but Matthew Wethers passed him on the fourth bend on the first lap. Shane Parker made up the ground on Andrew Tully but found passing him another matter. On the third lap Ksiezak locked up and Tully ran into him and fell. This let Parker through to second but he was too far behind to get near Wethers who won the race. The Tigers took a 5-3 from the race so now trailed by just six points but another 1-5 for the Monarchs in heat 7 shot them into a ten point lead. Thomas Jonasson made an excellent start from Josh Grajczonek. William Lawson passed Grajczonek on the third lap with Brady tailed off badly at the back for the maximum. Now ten points in arrears Glasgow gave Robert Ksiezak a TR in heat 8. Aaron Summers was again fast away with Josh Grajczonek in pursuit but Ryan Fisher cut back off the second bend to pass Grajczonek and the two Monarchs headed off for another 1-5. Grajczonek slowed to allow a woeful Ksiezak through on the tactical ride but he finished miles behind the Edinburgh pair. The score now stood at 18-32 and Glasgow were looking down the barrel of a third home defeat on the trot.

Shane Parker lifted the gloom for the home fans with another superb tapes-to-flag win in heat 10. Andrew Tully and Matthew Wethers filled the minor places so the race was shared heat but heat 10 produced another 1-5 for the visitors. The race had to be rerun with all four back after Grajczonek had fallen before reaching the first turn. In the rerun Lawson and Jonasson left Ksiezak and Grajczonek trailing off the second bend putting the visitors out of sight with an eighteen point lead. Bad went to worse for the Tigers when they conceded another 1-5 in heat 11, the fourth Monarchs 1-5 in five heats. This time it was Fisher and Sneddon who led Davey and Brady home by miles stretching the lead to 22 points. Shane Parker again raised home spirits with another superb win in heat 12. William Lawson finished second but Josh Grajczonek kept Andrew Tully at the back giving Glasgow their second race advantage of the meeting by 4-2 taking the score to 27-47.

Matthew Wethers shot to the front in heat 13 but Grajczonek kept him occupied for the whole four laps. Behind this pair Ross Brady took third place after Derek Sneddon kept making a hash of his attempts to pass him by pulling lockers on the second bend. This resulted in a shared race then heat 14 provided the race of the afternoon. Aaron Summers going for his maximum touched the tapes and went from 15 metres back. That looked to have ended his chances on a track that was now super-slick but it didn’t put him off. Thomas Jonasson was soon off to win the race while Summers at the back reeled in Grajczonek to sit on his tail for a couple of laps. On the third lap he rounded Grajczonek in fine style on the fourth bend and kept the gas on down the home straight to thunder under Lee Dicken approaching the first bend. He made the pass stick and followed Jonasson home for a brilliant ride to complete a paid maximum much to the delight of the Monarchs’ support and his own team mates. The 1-5 increased the lead to 24 points and it stayed that way when Shane Parker completed a brilliant personal performance with his fifth race win of the meeting. Lawson and Wethers finished ahead of Ksiezak for a shared race.

Scorers: For Glasgow – Shane Parker 19 (6) (with 4 point TR), Josh Grajczonek 5 (7), Robert Ksiezak 4+2, Trent Leverington 2 (1), Mitchell Davey 2 (3), Ross Brady 1+1 (4), Lee Dicken 1 (4).

For Edinburgh – Aaron Summers 11+1 (4) (paid maximum), Matthew Wethers 10+3 (5), William Lawson 10+2 (5), Thomas Jonasson 10+1 (4), Derek Sneddon 7+1 (4), Ryan Fisher 6+2 (4), Andrew Tully 4+1 (4).



Knock Out Cup (first round, second leg): Mildenhall 40, Redcar 50 Redcar won through to the second round on aggregate by 103-80.


Mildenhall used Rider Replacement at number 1 in place of Casper Wortmann while Redcar used Rider Replacement for Chris Kerr at number 2.

The Fen Tigers had thirteen points to pull back from the first leg at Redcar last Thursday but they never looked like doing it. The euphoria after their win over King’s Lynn yesterday soon evaporated as another home defeat materialised. Redcar scored solidly throughout the team and, with the top end punch provided by James Grieves and Ty Proctor, they were able to win with ease without the usual double figure score from Gary Havelock.

Any chance the Fen Tigers had of pulling back the arrears all but disappeared after the first four races by which time the Bears had added another eight points to their overall lead. Daniel Giffard won the first race from Jan Graversen while Gary Havelock finished third for a 2-4 then Arlo Bugeja won the reserves race from Matt Wright. Giffard added third place for another 2-4 then James Grieves won a rerun heat 3 after Josh Auty had fallen and been excluded for a 3-3. Ty Proctor and Dan Giffard took advantage of Robbie Kessler’s engine failure by adding a 1-5 in heat 4 taking the score to 8-16.

Henning Loof and Kai Laukkanen scored a 5-1 ahead of Gary Havelock in heat 5 to revive home hopes but another win by Ty Proctor in heat 6 when he beat Robbie Kessler was accompanied by an excellent ride by Arlo Bugeja for third and another 2-4 increasing the visitors’ lead to six points. The Fen Tigers rallied again with two 4-2s in heats 7 and 8. Kessler beat Grieves in heat 7 then Graversen held off Proctor in heat 8 cutting the lead to two points and taking the score to 23-25.

Ty Proctor won again in heat 9 this time beating Kai Laukkanen while Arlo Bugeja took third from Loof for a 2-4 and four point lead. The Bears took another 2-4 in heat 10 when James Grieves beat Kai Laukkanen. Jan Graversen touched the tapes and had to go from 15 metres back so Josh Auty was able to take third putting the visitors six points ahead in the match. In an excellent heat 11 Gary Havelock finally won a race beating Kessler and Auty for another 2-4 and eight point lead. Grieves beat Laukkanen again in heat 12 while at the back Jari Makinen and Arlo Bugeja had a great race for third. Graversen prevailed so the heat was shared and the score stood at 32-40.

The lead increased to ten in heat 13 with yet another 2-4. Robbie Kessler had an engine failure as Ty Proctor won again from Graversen and Havelock. Henning Loof took a TR in heat 14 but finished last. Matt Wright led until the last bend when Josh Auty got past him while Dan Giffard finished third for Redcar’s eighth 2-4. Kai Laukkanen won the last race from James Grieves while Jan Graversen took third place ahead of Ty Proctor. The 4-2 cut the winning lead from 12 to 10.

Scorers: For Mildenhall – Kai Laukkanen 13+1 (6), Jan Graversen 8 (6), Robbie Kessler 7 (5), Matt Wright 5 (4), Henning Loof 4+1 (5), Jari Makinen 3+1 (4).

For Redcar – Ty Proctor 14 (6), James Grieves 13 (5), Daniel Giffard 7+1 (5), Gary Havelock 6 (4), Josh Auty 5 (5), Arlo Bugeja 5 (5).



Knock Out Cup (first round, second leg): Newcastle 39, Somerset 39 – match abandoned after heat 13 due to rain. The result stands. Somerset won through to the second round on aggregate by 103-67


Newcastle used Rider Replacement at number 2 in place of George Stancl while Somerset were at full strength.

There are no further details currently available for this match.

Scorers: For Newcastle – Josef Franc 13 (5), Christian Henry 10 (4), Ben Powell 5+3 (4), Jason King 5 (5), Sean Stoddart 4+1 (5), Jaimie Robertson 2+2 (3).

For Somerset – Emil Kramer 12 (4) (maximum), Brent Werner 9 (5), Jason Doyle 8 (4), Jordan Frampton 6+2 (4), Matthias Kroger 3 (4), Simon Walker 1+1 (3), Stephan Katt 0 (2).



Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Stoke 42, Workington 50

Both teams were at full strength.

This was scheduled to be the second leg of this Cup tie but with last night’s match at Workington postponed due to the weather it became the first leg. When Stoke led by ten points after heat 9 it was hard to foresee that they would lose by eight points just six heats later but that’s what happened. The Potters simply collapsed over the last third of the match losing by 10-28 with heat advantages to the Comets in every one of the last six races. Their chances of winning the tie now look slim with the away leg still to come.

The first race, won by Daniel Nermark, was shared but the Potters took a four point lead with a 5-1 in the reserves race. Workington hit back with a 2-4 in heat 3 as Kauko Nieminen won from Klaus Jacobsen with Charles Wright winning an exciting battle at the back with Ben Barker for third. Carl Stonehewer rounded Jesper Kristiansen in heat 4 for another 3-3 taking the score to 13-11.

Another Nermark win in heat 5 produced another 3-3 but Lee Complin won a passing bout with Carl Stonehewer in heat 6 to set up a 4-2 with Mark Burrows third. This put the Potters four points to the good and, after another Nieminen win in heat 7 for another shared race, they followed it with a 5-1 in heat 8 to storm into an eight point lead. Mark Burrows and Jesper Kristiansen led the Potters charge from John Branney taking the score to 28-20.

Stoke continued to stretch their lead in heat 9 when a 4-2 from Ben Barker and Klaus Jakobsen separated by Carl Stonehewer put the Potters ten points in front. The Comets pulled two points back in heat 10 when Charles Wright took advantage of a Lee Complin engine failure at the tapes to win from Mark Burrows. Nieminen had an argument with the fence but almost got up to pip Burrows on the line but, in retrospect, it turned out well for the visitors that he didn’t! Now eight points down Workington introduced Kauko Nieminen to heat 11 as a Tactical Substitute for Scott Smith from 15 metres back. As Daniel Nermark headed off into the distance, Nieminen was soon past Barrie Evans to hunt down Emiliano Sanchez. He caught and passed him right on the line for a 1-7 to the Comets who had now pulled their arrears back to just two points. It was all square one heat later when Nieminen, out for his third ride on the trot, won from Ben Barker while Joe Haines beat Jesper Kristiansen for third place and a 4-2 which took the score to 37-37.

Stoke just couldn’t stop the tide now as Daniel Nermark continued his winning ways in heat 13 heading Lee Complin home after the two riders had passed and repassed each other. Carl Stonehewer took third for a 2-4 which put the Comets two points ahead. Charles Wright got into the act again by winning heat 14 from Barrie Evans with John Branney passing Klaus Jakobsen for third and another 2-4 for a four point lead. It seemed inevitable at this stage that Nermark and Nieminen would finish the match off with a 1-5 in heat 15 and that’s what happened but not before Nieminen had won a terrific battle with Lee Complin to get second place on the line. This gave the Comets an eight point lead to take into the second leg.

Scorers: For Stoke – Lee Complin 8 (5), Mark Burrows 7+1 (4), Jesper Kristiansen 7+1 (4), Ben Barker 7 (5), Barrie Evans 6+1 (4), Klaus Jakobsen 4+1 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 3+1 (4).

For Workington – Kauko Nieminen 16+1 (6) (with 4 point TS) Daniel Nermark 15 (5) (maximum), Carl Stonehewer 8 (4), Charles Wright 7 (4), John Branney 3 (4), Joe Haines 1 (4), Scott Smith 0 (3).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Saturday, 26 April

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The rain struck again today causing the postponement of the Knock Out Cup tie between Workington and Stoke. The three other scheduled matches went ahead though. At Berwick the Bandits faced Edinburgh in a Knock Out Cup first round, second leg tie, at Mildenhall the Fen Tigers took on King’s Lynn in a Premier Trophy match while at Rye House the Rockets raced against Newport in a first round, first leg Knock Out Cup tie.


Knock Out Cup (first round, second leg): Berwick 42, Edinburgh 51. Edinburgh won through to the second round on aggregate by 105-80.


Berwick were again without Adrian Rymel on European Championship duty and used Rider Replacement at number 1. Guglielmo Franchetti was also missing after crashing last night so the Bandits intended to use Ben Powell (Newcastle) as a guest but he failed to arrive so had to go with John McPhail at number 4. Edinburgh were at full strength.

Edinburgh carried a 16 point lead from the first leg and, although Berwick shot into a four point lead after two heats, it soon became clear that they were no match for a determined Monarchs’ side. Their cause wasn’t helped by the non-appearance of Ben Powell, who had been booked as a guest for Guglielmo Franchetti, which forced them to track a junior, John McPhail, at number 4 and a woeful display by Henning Bager in his last match for the Bandits.

Derek Sneddon fell on the third bend of the opening lap causing a rerun without him but Ryan Fisher leapt from the tapes to lead Norbert Magosi and Michal Makovsky home for a shared race. There was a glimmer of hope for the Bandits when they scored a 5-1 from the reserves race. A fine gate by Adam McKinna saw him score a comfortable tapes-to-flag win backed up by Tero Aarnio who defied the challenges of Andrew Tully to take second place. The glimmer was extinguished in heat 3 when the Monarchs replied with a 1-5. William Lawson and Thomas Jonasson beat Henning Bager to the first bend and that was that. In heat 4 Adam McKinna made another superb gate and led down the back straight with Matthew Wethers in hot pursuit. Michal Makovsky passed Wethers on the inside and tried to move him out to the fence. However he misjudged it and fell against the fence forcing Wethers to lay down. In the rerun, McKinna gated again but was soon passed by Wethers so Edinburgh took the lead with a 2-4 with the score at 11-13.

When Ryan Fisher and Derek Sneddon rounded Henning Bager off the second bend of heat 5 Edinburgh were off for another 1-5 to increase their lead to six points. Berwick looked like they might pull two points back when Norbert Magosi passed Matthew Wethers in heat 6 with Aarnio in third but Wethers was having none of it and, after trying several different lines to pass Magosi, he finally succeeded at the end of lap three with a round the boards swoop. That resulted in a shared race then the Bandits got within touching distance again with a 5-1 in heat 7. Michal Makovsky made the gate and Tero Aarnio passed William Lawson round the outside off the second bend to join him cutting the lead to only two points. Norbert Magosi then won heat 8 to share the points taking the score to 23-25.

Edinburgh struck with successive maximums in heats 9 and 10. In the former Matthew Wethers and Andrew Tully saw off the woeful Henning Bager from the start and, in the latter, Thomas Jonasson and William Lawson did the same to Tero Aarnio. The visitors’ lead had now rocketed to ten points so Berwick were able to give a TR to Michal Makovsky in heat 11. This turned out to be the race of the night! Fisher and Sneddon gated for the Monarchs but Makovsky was a man possessed. He chased down Sneddon and passed him on the third bend of lap 2 before setting off after Fisher. After nearly falling twice and almost riding on the fence on the third and fourth bends he eventually passed the American on the second bend of the last lap to win the race for the full six points. This gave the Bandits a 6-3 cutting the gap to seven points but, in heat 12, Andrew Tully made a superb start to lead McKinna and Bager for almost the entire race. William Lawson roared round the last two bends of the last lap to pass Bager and almost caught McKinna on the line. The 2-4 stretched the lead to nine points again with the score at 33-42.

Makovsky and Magosi made the gate in heat 13 but Matthew Wethers passed Magosi on the last lap limiting the Bandits to a 4-2 which cut the lead to seven points again. It was all over when heat 14 was shared. Magosi led the race from Jonasson while McKinna settled in third place having to defend his position against Aaron Summers. Summers, after several unsuccessful attempts to force his way through on the inside, switched to the outside run on bends 1 and 2 of the last lap to swoop past him for third and a 3-3. In the last race Ryan Fisher beat Makovsky while Wethers finished third for a 2-4 giving the Monarchs a win on the night of nine points and aggregate success by twenty five.

Scorers: For Berwick – Michal Makovsky 15+1 (6), Tero Aarnio 9+3 (7), Norbert Magosi 8 (5), Adam McKinna 7 (5), Henning Bager 3 (4), John McPhail 0 (3).

For Edinburgh – Ryan Fisher 12+1 (5), Matthew Wethers 12 (5), Thomas Jonasson 8+1 (4), William Lawson 6+1 (4), Andrew Summers 6+1 (4), Aaron Summers 4+1 (4), Derek Sneddon 3+2 (4).



Premier Trophy: Mildenhall 46, King’s Lynn 44


Mildenhall were without Casper Wortmann so used Rider Replacement at number 4. They introduced new signing, Henning Loof, at number 2. Matt Wright again guested for Mark Baseby at number 6 and Jari Makinen moved to number 7. King’s Lynn were at full strength.

We’ve had a lot of shock away wins this season but this time we had a shock home win! Consider the maulings the Fen Tigers have suffered at home at the hands (or wheels) of Berwick, Birmingham and the Isle of Wight, King’s Lynn would with good reason have thought that the three points were there for the taking. However a moral boosting display by Robbie Kessler well supported by Kai Laukkanen turned a two point arrears after heat 14 into a two point win with a last heat maximum. As a result King’s Lynn are out of the Premier Trophy with Birmingham now established as section winners.

There was no sign of the drama to come when the Stars took a 1-5 in the opening heat which required two reruns before it could be completed. Jan Graversen was excluded for bringing down Simon Lambert. Tomas Topinka gated with Lambert for the maximum. Matt Wright and Jari Makinen then gated for the home side but John Oliver and Kozza Smith passed the Finn to share the heat before the Stars moved six points in front in the next race. Kevin Doolan won the race from Kai Laukkanen while Rusty Harrison got the better of Matt Wright for the 2-4. The Fen Tigers got two points back with a 4-2 in heat 4 won by Robbie Kessler from Kozza Smith which took the score to 10-14.

Kai Laukkanen won heat 5 for the Fen Tigers from Tomas Topinka while Jan Graversen passed Simon Lambert for a 4-2 which cut the lead to two points then it was all square again after another home 4-2 when Jan Graversen beat Shaun Tacey with Henning Loof third. The Stars regained the lead in heat 7 when Kevin Doolan beat Robbie Kessler while Rusty Harrison took the third place point after Jari Makinen had fallen and been excluded. The 2-4 put the visitors two points in front but the home side levelled the scores again with a 4-2 in heat 8 thanks to a win from Matt Wright and a third place from Henning Loof behind Kozza Smith. The score now stood at 24-24.

Mildenhall took the lead in heat 9. Robbie Kessler and Kai Laukkanen scored a 5-1 ahead of Shaun Tacey for a four point advantage then Henning Loof beat none other than Kevin Doolan while Jan Graversen took third from Harrison for a 4-2 in heat 10 for a six point lead. Robbie Kessler kept it that way by winning heat 10 from Topinka and Lambert but back came King’s Lynn with a 2-4 in heat 12. Kevin Doolan beat Kai Laukkanen while John Oliver just pipped Jari Makinen for third to cut the lead to four points with the score at 38-34.

It was down to two points with another 2-4 for the visitors in heat 13 as Topinka beat Kessler with Tacey third from Graversen then King’s Lynn punched home a 1-5 in heat 14 to regain the lead by two points leaving the home fans with the usual sinking feeling. Rusty Harrison and Kozza Smith beat Matt Wright to set up a last heat decider. The Fen Tigers’ fans went wild when Robbie Kessler and Kai Laukkanen score the 5-1 from Topinka and Doolan in heat 15 which gave them their first win of the season after a great match.

Scorers: For Mildenhall – Robbie Kessler 16 (6), Kai Laukkanen 11+2 (5), Matt Wright 7 (5), Henning Fool 6 (5), Jan Graversen 5 (5), Jari Makinen 1 (4).

For King's Lynn – Tomas Topinka 11 (5), Kevin Doolan 11 (5), Kozza Smith 7+2 (4), Rusty Harrison 5 (4), Shaun Tacey 4 (4), Simon Lambert 3+2 (4), John Oliver 3 (4).



Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Rye House 60, Newport 30


Rye House were missing Luke Bowen and Tommy Allen so used Rider Replacement for Allen and had Daniel Halsey as a guest at number 2 for Bowen. Gary Cottham was nominated as their number 8. Newport were without Tony Atkin so used Rider Replacement at number 4.

The feature of this match was the phenomenal 19+1 score from Rye House reserve, Robert Mear. He was unlucky to drop his only point to Marek Mroz as a result of a flat tyre on the last bend of heat 14. It was the same old story though at Rye House as the Rockets without Luke Bowen and Tommy Allen disposed of Newport with ease.

Craig Watson split the home pairing of Chris Neath and Daniel Halsey in heat 1 for a 4-2 then the reserves race was shared after Robert Mear had won it and Danny Betson had retired with machine trouble at the end of the second lap. Sebastian Truminski then separated the home pair of Tai Woffinden and Daniel Halsey for a 4-2 in heat 3 before the Rockets scored the first of their five 5-1s in heat 4 with Robert Mear and Stefan Ekberg leading the Wasps home. The score stood at 16-8 at this point.

Ekberg won heat 5 while Tai Woffinden passed Craig Watson on the line for another 5-1 but the Wasps shared heat 6 behind Chris Neath. Jerran hart and Paul Clews took second and third but, in heat 7, Ekberg and Mear added another 5-1 increasing the home side’s lead to 16 points. It was then announced that Danny Betson had withdrawn from the meeting due to injuries he had sustained the previous evening. The Rockets made light work of this handicap. Mear won again in heat 8 from Marek Mroz while Daniel Halsey got up to pip Nick Simmons on the line for a 4-2 which took the score to 33-15.

Another two 4-2s went to the home side in heats 9 and 10. Woffinden beat Clews in the first then Chris Neath beat Marek Mroz in the rerun of the second after Sebastian Truminski had fallen in the first running and been excluded. Robert Mear won heat 11 but Craig Watson and Nick Simmons kept Stefan Ekberg back in last place for a shared heat 11 but Rye House took another 5-1 in heat 12 from Mear and Woffinden to take the score to 49-23.

In heat 13 Chris Neath broke the tapes and went from 15 metres back. In the rerun Craig Watson suffered an engine failure on the second lap then Neath did likewise on lap three but pushed home for third place behind Ekberg and Clews for a 4-2. Marek Mroz won heat 14 for a shared race after Mear suffered a flat tyre before Woffinden and Neath wrapped up a thirty point win with a last heat 5-1.

Scorers: For Rye House – Robert Mear 19+1 (7), Tai Woffinden 13+2 (5) (paid maximum), Stefan Ekberg 11+1 (5), Chris Neath 12+1 (5), Daniel Halsey 4 (5), Gary Cottham 1 (2).

For Newport – Marek Mroz 9+1 (6), Paul Clews 7+1 (6), Craig Watson 5 (4), Sebastian Truminski 4 (4), Jerran Hart 4 (5), Nick Simmons 1+1 (5).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Friday, 25 April

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Two more first round, first leg Knock Out Cup matches were raced tonight. One was at Edinburgh where the Monarchs raced Berwick while the other was at Somerset where the Rebels took on Newcastle.


Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Edinburgh 54, Berwick 38


Edinburgh were missing William Lawson and Andrew Tully who were both at Lakeside for the final of the British under 21 Championship. They had two guests in their places. James Grieves (Redcar) was at number 3 for William Lawson while Lee Dicken (Glasgow) was at number 7 for Andrew Tully. Berwick were without Adrian Rymel who was riding abroad in the European Championships so had to use Rider Replacement at number 1.

It was another rain-sodden track at Armadale tonight which caused the riders lots of problems. However it turned out to be a very interesting meeting with a highly controversial last heat. At one point the Monarchs led by 20 points but a late surge by the Bandits eventually cut the winning margin to 16 points. It might have been only seven points but for the stormy heat 15.

Norbert Magosi made a lightning start to the opening race but was soon passed by Ryan Fisher. He then had to fend off the challenges of Derek Sneddon but just made it to the line with his second place intact. This gave the Monarchs a 4-2, a score which was repeated in heat 2 when Lee Dicken made a storming start to win the reserves race with ease. Behind him Tero Aarnio was passed by Aaron Summers but he regained his second place for another 4-2. Henning Bager introduced Thomas Jonasson to the second bend fence in heat 3 causing a rerun with all-four-back. The rerun was stopped too when Guglielmo Franchetti fell on the fourth bend and couldn’t clear the track in time. At the third time of asking James Grieves won the race under pressure from Henning Bager whose white line ride produced some drive. Thomas Jonasson was third so this was the third consecutive 4-2 stretching the Edinburgh lead to six points. Michal Makovsky rocketed from the gate in heat 4 and won comfortably while Matthew Wethers and Aaron Summers followed for a 3-3 bringing the score to 15-9.

Heat 5 saw two stunning passes! Norbert Magosi made another of his jet-propelled starts but James Grieves passed him on the outside of the fourth bend in great style while Thomas Jonasson stormed past him too on the inside on the home straight. Magosi then fell on the next lap leaving Bager to pick up the odd point. The 5-1 put the Monarchs ten points in front and they added another 5-1 in heat 6. Michal Makovsky made the gate but came to grief on the second bend causing the race to be rerun without him. Fisher and Sneddon took the expected 5-1 but Adam McKinna made sure that Sneddon couldn’t relax. Berwick just couldn’t stem the tide and they lost three more 4-2s in the next three heats. Matthew Wethers made the gate in heat 7 but Henning Bager eased past him off the inside of the second bend. Wethers gave chase and, after failing to catch Bager on the second lap, managed it on the third to win the race with Lee Dicken picking up third. Norbert Magosi shot from the start again in heat 8 but again found that this wasn’t enough to win the race. Ryan Fisher soon powered past him and Magosi again had to defend second place this time under pressure from Aaron Summers. The line arrived just in time for him so the result was a 4-2 and the score was 33-15.

Grieves and Jonasson made the gate in heat 9 but Michal Makovsky, finding superb drive off the second bend, soon passed Jonasson for another 4-2 which put the Monarchs twenty points in front. They were never to improve on that although prospects looked bright for another home advantage in heat 10. Derek Sneddon led from the start but was soon under pressure from Bager who in turn had to fend off Fisher. The three riders had a superb battle which ended when Sneddon fell and the race was awarded to Bager. This gave the Bandits a 2-4 and a fine Makovsky win in heat 11 resulted in a 3-3. An excellent race between Grieves and Bager in heat 12 saw Grieves passed by Bager who, like Makovsky, was finding tremendous grip off turn two. Summers finished third for another shared race and the score now stood at 45-27.

It had been clear for some time that Berwick were saving their TR for heat 13 and sure enough out came Michal Makovsky with the black and white helmet cover. Sneddon and Wethers gated for the Monarchs but Makovsky again slipped easily inside them off the second bend for the full six points with Magosi trailing at the back. The 3-6 cut the lead to 15 and it was down to eleven when heat 14 produced an astonishing turnaround. Lee Dicken made a great start and was joined round the outside by Thomas Jonasson for a potential 5-1 for the home side but Dicken spun round on the second bend and fell causing Guglielmo Franchetti to crash into him. Dicken was excluded from the rerun and Tero Aarnio replaced the unfortunate Franchetti who had to withdraw from the meeting. In the rerun Adam McKinna ran Thomas Jonasson out to the fence and by the time the Swede had sorted himself out in the slime both Aarnio and McKinna were gone for a repeat 1-5 of the Premier Trophy match in the same heat a few weeks earlier. Things were now looking a bit worrying for the Monarchs as their lead looked as if it might be whittled down further with Makovsky and Bager in the last race especially when the Bandits pair rocketed from the gate to leave Fisher and Grieves in their wake. Fisher was a man on a mission though and he hunted down and brilliantly passed Bager clamping him to the inside of bend two. Bager’s response was to knock Fisher off so the race was rerun without him. In the second running of the race the three riders made an even start but as Fisher and Grieves powered round the outside of Makovsky the Bandit thrust his back wheel into Fisher causing him and Grieves to crash. Makovsky got a reprieve so the race was rerun with all-three-back. In the rerun the same thing happened. Makovsky wiped out Fisher on the same bend. The referee had clearly had enough of it and excluded Makovsky. This left the two Edinburgh riders to contest the rerun unchallenged but even then the drama wasn’t over. In the second rerun, Grieves suffered an engine failure passing the start line for the fourth lap. He managed to coast to the first bend then had to push home for the remaining three quarters of a lap. It’s not often a rider pushes home for a paid win and, after crossing the line, Grieves celebrated with a somersault much to the delight of the home support.

Scorers: For Edinburgh – Ryan Fisher 14 (5), James grieves 13+1 (5), Matthew Wethers 9 (4), Thomas Jonasson 5+1 (4), Lee Dicken 5+1 (4), Derek Sneddon 4+2 (4), Aaron Summers 4+2 (4).

For Berwick – Michal Makovsky 14 (6) (with 6 point TR), Henning Bager 11 (6), Tero Aarnio 5 (5), Norbert Magosi 4 (5), Adam McKinna 3+1 (5), Guglielmo Franchetti 1 (3).



Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Somerset 64, Newcastle 28.


Somerset had new signing, Matthias Kroger, at number 4 replacing Henning Loof who has gone to Mildenhall. Newcastle were again without George Stancl and used Rider Replacement at number 2. They were also without Sean Stoddart who was on duty at the final of the British under 21 Championship at Lakeside so had former Rebel, Daniel Warwick, at number 7 as guest instead.

What an annihilation this was! The Diamonds are now looking for a miracle to qualify after losing this first leg tie by 36 points. For the Rebels newcomer, Matthias Kroger, scored three paid wins in a superb all round team performance with only Brent Werner underperforming. Newcastle produced only two race winners, one of them from their guest, Danny Warwick.

It didn’t look too bad for the Diamonds in the early stages. They lost a 4-2 to Jason Doyle and Jordan Frampton in the opening race but shared the reserves race when Jaimie Robertson kept Brent Werner at the back as Simon Walker won from Danny Warwick. Emil Kramer and Matthias Kroger took a 5-1 from Christian Henry in heat 3 then Danny Warwick won heat 4 for another shared race talking the score to 15-9.

The Diamonds pulled two points back with a 2-4 in heat 5 won by Josef Franc from Emil Kramer. There were only four points between the teams at this point but Somerset pulled eight points clear with a 5-1 in heat 6 from Doyle and Frampton. Eight went to ten as the Rebels added a 4-2 when Simon Walker won from Christian Henry and Stephan Katt. This gave Josef Franc the chance to take a TR in heat 8 as he came in as the R/R for Stancl. Jordan Frampton won the race so Franc’s second place ahead of Brent Werner produced a 4-4 taking the score to 30-20.

Newcastle will want to draw a veil over the rest of this match. The next four heats produced consecutive 5-1s for the Rebels leaving the Diamonds trailing by 50-24. It seemed that only Danny Warwick’s efforts for the visitors provided any excitement in heats 11 and 12 even though he finished last in both.

It didn’t get much better over the last three heats either as heats 13 and 14 both went to Somerset by 5-1 scores too. Franc and Doyle collided on the second bend of heat 13 and Franc was excluded from the rerun then an excellent race between Simon Walker, Matthias Kroger and Danny Warwick (again) over the first two laps ended with the Rebels’ pair pulling away. Finally Josef Franc managed second behind Jason Doyle in heat 15 for a 4-2 which brought the curtain down on a most emphatic home win which will surely see them coast through to the next round.

Scorers: For Somerset – Jason Doyle 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Simon Walker 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Emil Kramer 12 (5), Jordan Frampton 8+2 (4), Stephan Katt 7+2 (4), Matthias Kroger 6+3 (4), Brent Werner 3 (3).

For Newcastle – Josef Franc 12 (6) (with 4 point TR), Christian Henry 5 (5), Danny Warwick 5 (7), Jason King 3 (4), Ben Powell 2 (5), Jaimie Robertson 1+1 (3).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Thursday, 24 April

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This is Knock Out Cup week and there were two first round, first leg matches raced tonight. One was at Redcar where the Bears raced Mildenhall, the other was at Sheffield where the Tigers took on the Isle of Wight.


Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Redcar 53, Mildenhall 40


Redcar again used Rider Replacement for Chris Kerr at number 2 and nominated David Wallinger as their number 8. The contingent injured in the match at Newport were all pronounced fit as was Daniel Giffard after his illness. Mildenhall used Rider Replacement at number 4 in place of Casper Wortmann and had two guests at reserve. Ben Taylor (Buxton) replaced the injured Mark Baseby while Matthew Wright took over from James Cockle who has been ‘rested’.

Redcar were relieved to be able to track their usual team for this match. They announced to the crowd before the meeting started that, on the recommendation of Kai Laukkanen, they had agreed terms with Finnish rider Johnny Peckerman (is that really a Finnish name?) who will make his debut for the Bears next month. Mildenhall welcomed Robbie Kessler back to the side to give them some much needed top end punch.

The Bears started with a 5-1. Gary Havelock won the race while Dan Giffard (R/R) rode well to maintain his lead over Jan Graversen. However the Fen Tigers took a 2-4 from the reserves race. Matthew Wright won from Arlo Bugeja while Ben Taylor left Dan Giffard pointless to cut the lead to two points. A James Grieves win in heat 3 was only good enough for a 3-3 when Josh Auty suffered an engine failure on the second lap when he lay third to Kai Laukkanen. Redcar pulled a further two points clear in heat 4 when Ty Proctor roared round Robbie Kessler in fine style on the last bend to win the heat while Arlo Bugeja took third. The 4-2 took the score to 14-10.

James Grieves won again in heat 5 after passing Jan Graversen round the outside on the last bend and Josh Auty had an engine failure again on the first lap for another shared race. Gary Havelock scored his second win in heat 6 after pulling away from Robbie Kessler after a tight first lap. Arlo Bugeja took third place for a 4-2 and six point lead but the Fen Tigers hit back in style with a 1-5 in heat 7. Jan Graversen and Kai Laukkanen made the gate and pulled away after a brief challenge from Ty Proctor to cut four points from the lead to stand two points down. Redcar got it all back in the next heat though. Ty Proctor and Dan Giffard gated to beat Jari Makinen taking the score to 27-21.

In heat 9 James Grieves and Josh Auty produced another 5-1 to stretch the home side’s lead to ten points so Kai Laukkanen took a TR in heat 10. He led Gary Havelock entering the third lap when Josh Auty dived under Jari Makinen resulting in the Fen Tiger falling but it was Makinen who was excluded from the rerun. Again Laukkanen made the gate to win for a 3-6 which cut the lead to seven points. Ty Proctor was fast away with Arlo Bugeja in heat 11 but Jan Graversen, who made an awful start, chased down Bugeja to pass him on the line limiting the damage to a 4-2 which stretched the lead to nine points. In heat 12 Kai Laukkanen made the gate from Giffard and Grieves but Giffard passed him on the third bend to take the lead and go on to win the race. James Grieves finished behind Laukkanen so the Bears took a 4-2 which increased their lead to eleven points with the score now 43-32.

Robbie Kessler made the gate in heat 13 and held off the challenges of Gary Havelock and Ty Proctor for a 3-3. Mildenhall tried giving Jan Graversen a Tactical Substitute ride in heat 14 replacing Matthew Wright from 15 metres back while Robbie Kessler took the R/R ride. It didn’t work though as Josh Auty got the better of Kessler while Bugeja kept Graversen at the back for a 4-2 to the Bears taking their lead to 13 points. It looked like being increased further in the last heat when Havelock and Grieves led for a 5-1 but James Grieves suffered an engine failure on the last lap so the race points were shared giving Redcar a 13 point lead to take into the second leg.

Scorers: For Redcar – Gary Havelock 13 (5), Ty Proctor 11+1 (5), James Grieves 10 (5), Daniel Giffard 7+2 (5), Josh Auty 6+2 (5), Arlo Bugeja 6 (6).

For Mildenhall – Kai Laukkanen 14 (5) (with 6 point TR), Robbie Kessler 10 (5), Jan Graversen 9+1 (7), Matthew Wright 3 (5), Jari Makinen 2+1 (4), Ben Taylor 2+1 (4).



Knock Out Cup (first round, first leg): Sheffield 52, Isle of Wight 38.


Both teams were at full strength.

Sheffield didn’t get it all their own way in this match. The Islanders led by two points after heat 4 and trailed by only two points after heat ten. However a late surge by the Tigers who scored 5-1s in heats 11, 13 and 15 increased the home side’s lead to 14 points. Incredibly the Islanders failed to give Paul Fry a TR ride in heat 14 after trailing by ten points after heat 13. Fry’s second place would have given the Islanders another two points cutting the lead to twelve points. This oversight could yet come back to haunt the Islanders in the second leg.

The visitors made a good start to this match. Cory Gathercole saw off the strong opening pairing of Parsons and Ashworth to share the opening heat but the Tigers took the lead with a 4-2 in the reserves race won by Sam Martin. It took a pass by James Holder on Lee Smethills to prevent it being a 5-1. Andre Compton won heat 3 but the Islanders took a share of the spoils when Paul Cooper spun round on the third lap finishing last behind Glen Phillips and Paul Fry. The visitors wiped out their two point arrears and went two in front with a 1-5 in heat 4. James Holder gated and Jason Bunyan followed him home ahead of Ben Wilson to take the score to 11-13.

The Isle of Wight continued their resistance with a shared heat 5 won by Andre Compton again. This time Cory Gathercole and Krzysztof Stojanowski kept Paul Cooper at the back but the Tigers got their noses back in front again with a 5-1 in heat 6. It was Joel Parsons and Ricky Ashworth who did the damage by keeping out Jason Bunyan whose challenge ended when he suffered an engine failure while lying third. The Isle of Wight levelled the match again with a 2-4 in heat 7. Glen Phillips passed Ben Wilson round the outside on the last bend of the first lap to win the race while Paul Fry picked up third after Sam Martin had dropped out with machine trouble. Sheffield responded in kind with a 4-2 in heat 8. Joel Parsons won the race from Cory Gathercole who had duelled with Lee Smethills before securing second place. The score now stood at 25-23.

Jason Bunyan flew from the gate to beat Andre Compton in heat 9 but this time Paul Cooper finished third to deny the Islanders a heat advantage so the race was shared then Paul Fry was next up for a fine race win beating Joel Parsons and Ricky Ashworth in the process. Ricky Ashworth had a problem with the fence off the second bend and slipped to the back in this race but he got past Glen Phillips on the last lap while Fry had his hands full keeping Parsons at bay. There were still just two points between the teams at this point but the Tigers relieved the pressure with a 5-1 in heat 11 to treble their lead. Ben Wilson led the race from the start while young Sam Martin came past both Stojanowski and Gathercole off the second bend then held on under pressure from both the visitors for the rest of the race to record the maximum. Andre Compton won again in heat 12 but Glen Phillips and James Holder kept Lee Smethills at the back for a shared race taking the score to 39-33.

Another 5-1 for Sheffield in heat 13 from Ashworth and Wilson stretched the home side’s lead to ten points but for whatever reason the Isle of Wight did not produce the black and white helmet cover in heat 14. As a result Paul Fry’s second place behind Paul Cooper counted for just two points instead of four. James Holder finished third ahead of Sam Martin so the points were shared then in the last race the Tigers took a 5-1 from the gate as Compton and Parsons wrapped things up by giving the Tigers a fourteen point advantage for the second leg on the Island.

Scorers: For Sheffield – Andre Compton 14 (5), Joel Parsons 12+1 (5), Ben Wilson 8+1 (4), Ricky Ashworth 6+3 (4), Sam Martin 5+1 (4), Paul Cooper 4+1 (4), Lee Smethills 2 (4).

For the Isle of Wight – Cory Gathercole 8 (5), Paul Fry 7+1 (4), James Holder 7+1 (6), Glen Phillips 7 (5), Jason Bunyan 6+1 (4), Krzysztof Stojanowski 2+1 (4), Andrew Bargh 1 (4).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Wednesday, 23 April

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In what must be one of the wettest ever starts to the season, tonight saw yet another casualty when heavy rain during the day caused the postponement of the King’s Lynn versus Newcastle Premier League match. One fixture did take place, however, and that was the second leg of the first round Knock Out Cup tie at Birmingham between the Brummies raced and Glasgow.


Knock Out Cup (first round, second leg): Birmingham 43, Glasgow 47. Birmingham won through to the second round on aggregate by 95-87.


Birmingham introduced at number 7 their new signing, Mattia Carpanese, who took over from Jack Roberts who in turn had deputised for James Birkinshaw and was nominated as their number 8 for this match. They also had Chris Schramm as a guest at number 4 in place of Phil Morris and used Rider Replacement at number 1 for Kyle Legault. Glasgow were missing Ross Brady and Mitchell Davey who were both recovering from injuries. They had Chris Mills (Reading) as a guest for Mitchell Davey and used Rider Replacement at number 2 for Ross Brady.

Trailing by twelve points from the first leg of the tie at Ashfield last Sunday, Glasgow had the proverbial mountain to climb to have any further interest in this competition. Birmingham despite all their injury problems seem capable of rising to any occasion and must have been confident of winning through with something to spare. It didn’t work out that way though.

Clearly Glasgow hadn’t read the script! They shot into a four point lead with a 1-5 in the first heat when Shane Parker and Robert Ksiezak (R/R) led home Lee Smart and the Birmingham number 8, Jack Roberts, who took the (R/R) ride then promptly increased their lead to six in heat 2 with a 2-4. Mattia Carpanese went through the tapes and had to go from 15 metres back in his debut for his new club. Josh Grajczonek won the rerun from Jack Hargreaves with Lee Dicken third. Back came Birmingham in heat 3 with a 5-1 from Jason Lyons and Chris Schramm against Trent Leverington to cut the gap to two points and it stayed that way after a shared heat 4. Robert Ksiezak and Lee Dicken led from the start but Adam Roynon passed both Glasgow riders within a lap to win the race with Carpanese trailed off at the back taking the score to 11-13.

Birmingham completed the recovery by levelling the match again in heat 5. Jason Lyons beat Shane Parker while Chris Schramm took third from Josh Grajczonek (R/R) for a 4-2. The home side then stormed four points in front with a 5-1 in heat 6. Jason Lyons (R/R) won the race while Lee Smart caught and passed Robert Ksiezak in fine style to join him up front for the maximum. However the Brummies got another rude awakening when Trent Leverington won heat 7 from Adam Roynon while Chris Mills took third from Hargreaves for a 2-4 which cut the gap to two. Then they found themselves behind again when they lost another 1-5 in heat 8! Josh Grajczonek and Trent Leverington (R/R) headed home Lee Smart and Mattia Carpanese for the maximum which put the Tigers two points ahead again with the score now 23-25.

Birmingham wiped out the Glasgow lead to go two up again with a 5-1 in heat 9 when Jason Lyons and Chris Schramm beat Robert Ksiezak then a thrilling heat 10 involving all four riders was won by the Glasgow guest, Chris Mills. Roynon (R/R) and Smart kept Leverington at the back so the race was shared. Adam Roynon won heat 12 by a distance for the home side but Shane Parker and Chris Mills (R/R) kept Jack Hargreaves at the back for the second of three consecutive shared races. The third was won by Jason Lyons who had to pass Leverington and Grajczonek as Carpanese again finished last so the score went to 37-35.

The scores were level again after heat 13 when Shane Parker and Robert Ksiezak made the gate. Adam Roynon passed Ksiezak so the Tigers took a 2-4 then they added a 1-5 in heat 14. This was a tale of two guests. Chris Mills won for Glasgow while Chris Schramm suffered an engine failure for Birmingham. Josh Grajczonek followed Mills home ahead of Jack Hargreaves who had had a miserable night so the Tigers went four points ahead with one race to go. Shane Parker won heat 15 from Roynon and Lyons to see the Tigers home. It was a great result for Glasgow which served only as consolation as they were beaten on aggregate.

Scorers: For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 16+1 (6), Adam Roynon 14 (6), Lee Smart 5+2 (4), Chris Schramm 5+2 (5), Jack Hargreaves 3 (4), Jack Roberts 0 (1), Mattia Carpanese 0 (4).

For Glasgow – Shane Parker 13 (5), Josh Grajczonek 9+2 (6), Chris Mills 8+1 (5), Trent Leverington 8+1 (6), Robert Ksiezak 7+1 (5), Lee Dicken 2+1 (3).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Tuesday, 22 April

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It was Tuesday night on the Isle of Wight where the visitors were Workington in a Premier League match.


Premier League: Isle of Wight 49, Workington 44.


Both teams were at full strength.

After losing at Reading last night Workington made the trip across the Solent to take on the Isle of Wight who were still savouring their win at Mildenhall on Sunday afternoon. There were some tasty looking encounters lined up between Bunyan, Phillips and Stojanowski for the home side and Nermark, Nieminen and Stonehewer for the visitors. By a quirk of the new interim averages Jason Bunyan found himself at number 5 instead of number 1 for the home side.

The opening heat was shared. Daniel Nermark won it for the Comets but it was clear that the track had been overwatered. New shale had been laid on it but apparently it hadn’t bedded in well so there was a delay before the running of the reserves race while the track was regraded. When it eventually was raced all four were called back after Branney had been taken wide and fallen on the first bend. There was more grading before the rerun in which John Branney suffered an engine failure on the first bend. James Holder won from Joe Haines for a 4-2 for the home side and they doubled the lead with another in heat 3. Glen Phillips won the race but the challenge didn’t come from Kauko Nieminen as expected but from Charles Wright who caught and passed Paul Fry on the last bend for second place. Another 4-2 in heat 4 put the Islanders six ahead. Although Carl Stonehewer made a blinder of a gate it took Jason Bunyan till half way down the back straight to pass him and go on to win by a mile. James Holder picked up third taking the score to 15-9.

Daniel Nermark won again in heat 5 but once more he received no backing so the points were shared but the Isle of Wight soared into an eight point lead with their fourth 4-2 in heat 6 when Cory Gathercole won unchallenged from Stonehewer while Stojanowski took third passing Haines off bend 2. Heat 7, won by Jason Bunyan from Nieminen and Wright, was shared but in heat 8 the home side struck a 5-1 from Cory Gathercole and James Holder to increase their lead to twelve points. Joe Haines held second place until the last lap when he was passed by Holder and then fell. The score now read 30-18.

In heat 9 the Comets fell another two points in arrears when they lost a 4-2. Glen Phillips beat Carl Stonehewer while Paul Fry passed John Branney for third so the lead increased to 14 points. Workington pulled two points back in heat 10. Kauko Nieminen won from Cory Gathercole while Charles Wright finished third after Krzysztof Stojanowski had an engine failure on the second lap. The gap was back to twelve and Daniel Nermark took a TR in heat 11 attempting to get Workington even closer. He succeeded too beating the impressive Jason Bunyan. Better still for the Comets Andrew Bargh had an engine failure so Scott Smith finished third giving Workington a 2-7 heat advantage and cutting their arrears to seven points. Nieminen kept the pressure on the Islanders by winning heat 12 but, again, he received no support so the result was a 3-3 taking the score to 41-34.

The Comets made further inroads to their deficit with a 2-4 in heat 13. Daniel Nermark won comfortably from Jason Bunyan while Carl Stonehewer’s third place cut the arrears further to five points but it was all over one race later when the Islanders secured victory with a 5-1 from Paul Fry and James Holder. The Comets finished with a bang though as Nieminen and Nermark scored a last heat 1-5 after Jason Bunyan had fallen on the second bend in the shake out. It was too little too late as the home side won by five points.

Scorers: For the Isle of Wight – Cory Gathercole 11 (5), Jason Bunyan 10 (5), James Holder 9+2 (5), Glen Phillips 9+1 (4), Paul Fry 7 (4), Krzysztof Stojanowski 2+1 (4), Andrew Bargh 1 (3).

For Workington – Daniel Nermark 17+1 (5) (paid maximum), Kauko Nieminen 11 (5), Carl Stonehewer 7 (4), Charles Wright 4+1 (4), Joe Haines 2 (3), John Branney 2 (6), Scott Smith 1 (3).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Monday, 21 April

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With Newcastle switching from a Sunday to a Monday night there were two matches raced tonight. One was a Premier League match at Reading where the Racers faced Workington and the other the Premier Trophy match at Newcastle between the Diamonds and Scunthorpe.


Premier League: Reading 54, Workington 39

Both teams were at full strength.

Both teams have been tipped as potential top four qualifiers this season so this match provided an opportunity to weigh up their claims. For Workington this was the first of a two match southern tour which would take them to the Isle of Wight tomorrow night. They would be disappointed if they had to return home empty handed.

With Carl Stonehewer providing only 6 points and the Workington tail scoring the same in total between the four of them the Comets’ big two had too much to do. Reading had only two last places all match and that statistic almost guaranteed them victory.

Workington almost got off to a winning start. Daniel Nermark won the opening race by some distance while Scott Smith held third behind Lemon until the second lap when a mistake allowed Chris Mills home for third place and a shared race. Jaimie Smith won the reserves race for the home side while Daniel Warwick had a fight on his hands to hold on to second against the Workington reserves. He succeeded though so the Racers stormed into a four point lead with the 5-1. Ulrich Ostergaard won heat 3 from Kauko Nieminen while Tomas Suchanek’s third place provided a 4-2 which increased Reading’s lead to six points. The home side threatened another 5-1 in heat 4 when Tom P Madsen and Danny Warwick led the race. Carl Stonehewer passed Warwick then Warwick got into trouble on the last bend which let Jon Branney through for third and a 3-3 taking the score to 15-9.

Reading pulled further ahead in heat 5 after a titanic battle between Ostergaard and Nermark won by the home man. Suchanek backed him up by passing Scott Smith for third and a 4-2 put the Racers eight points ahead. Workington hit back in style in heat 6 though. Carl Stonehewer and young reserve, Joe Haines, led home Mark Lemon for a 1-5 which cut the gap to four points. Kauko Nieminen then won heat 7 from Jaimie Smith and Madsen to keep it that way but another 4-2 went the Racers’ way in heat 8 won by Chris Mills from Joe Haines and Jaimie Smith in an exciting race which took the score to 27-21.

When Ostergaard and Suchanek took a 5-1 from Stonehewer in heat 9 Workington fell ten points behind and Nieminen’s win for a share of the points in heat 10 kept it that way. In heat 11 Daniel Nermark took the expected Tactical Ride and won from Jaimie Smith and Madsen by a mile. The 3-6 cut the gap to seven points then Kauko Nieminen became one the few riders to beat Ulrich Ostergaard round Smallmead this season in heat 12. Again though he had no support so the heat was shared and the score now stood at 41-34.

Another 4-2 in heat 13 left the Comets struggling. Carl Stonehewer suffered an engine failure on the first bend while Mark Lemon came to life by beating Daniel Nermark. Madsen also suffered an engine failure but since it was on the last lap he was able to push home for the point which put the Racers within touching distance of victory. Workington gave Kauko Nieminen a Tactical Substitute ride in heat 14 in place of Jon Branney but he couldn’t prevent Suchanek and Jaimie Smith from scoring the 5-1 which sealed a win for the home side. Ostergaard beat Nermark again in heat 15 while Suchanek finished third for a 4-2 which stretched the winning margin to 15 points.

Scorers: For Reading – Ulrich Ostergaard 14 (5), Jaimie Smith 10+1 (5), Tomas Suchanek 8+1 (5), Mark Lemon 7+1 (4), Tom P Madsen 6+2 (4), Chris Mills 6+1 (4), Danny Warwick 3+1 (3).

For Workington – Daniel Nermark 15 (5) (with 6 point TR), Kauko Nieminen 12 (6), Carl Stonehewer 6 (4), Joe Haines 4+1 (6), John Branney 2+1 (3), Scott Smith 0 (3), Charles Wright 0 (3).



Premier Trophy: Newcastle 43, Scunthorpe 47.


Newcastle again had to operate Rider Replacement for the injured George Stancl at number 2 while Scunthorpe ere at full strength.

There was little at stake in this match but with former Diamonds Carl Wilkinson and Byron Bekker in the Scorpions’ side there was plenty of interest. Again Newcastle looked vulnerable in George Stancl’s absence and Scun.thorpe took full advantage by romping to a four point win. Every Scorpions’ rider won at least one race apart from Benji Compton who nevertheless had two paid wins.

Newcastle scored a 5-1 in the opening race. Carl Wilkinson was the early race leader but slipped to the back as Josef Franc and Ben Powell (R/R) provided the maximum but after Sean Stoddart retired at the start of the reserves race Byron Bekker and Benji Compton scored a 1-5 for the visitors to level the scores. Christian Henry passed Magnus Karlsson to win heat 3 while an interesting battle between Ben Powell and Viktor Bergstrom ended in success for the Diamond. The 4-2 put the home side two points ahead again. Jason King touched the tapes in heat 4 so went from 15 metres back. Richard Hall won the race for the visitors while Jason King passed Benji Compton for a shared race which took the score to 13-11.

Ben Powell won heat 5 from Andrew Moore but with Christian Henry finishing last the race was shared but the Diamonds took a 4-2 from heat 6 won by Josef Franc to move four points in front. The Scorpions were unlucky in heat 7. Sitting on a 1-5 Magnus Karlsson suffered an engine failure on the third lap leaving Viktor Bergstrom to race home on his own for a 3-3 but the maximum was only delayed by one race. In heat 8 Carl Wilkinson and Benji Compton headed Sean Stoddart home after Josef Franc (R/R) had fallen on the last bend after being passed by Wilkinson. This levelled the scores again at 24-24.

Newcastle started again in heat 9 by producing a 4-2 with Christian Henry winning from Byron Bekker while Ben Powell kept Richard Hall at the back. Josef Franc won heat 10 but Karlsson and Bergstrom shared the points then in heat 11 the Diamonds lost another 1-5 when Wilkinson and Moore scored an easy maximum ahead of Jason King to put the visitors two points ahead. Magnus Karlsson then beat Christian Henry in heat 12 for a shared heat which took the score to 35-37.

It looked as if the visitors might take another 1-5 in heat 13 when Andrew Moore and Richard Hall led the race but Josef Franc passed Hall to limit the damage to a 2-4 so Newcastle now trailed by four points. They pulled two points back in heat 14. Ben Powell passed Viktor Bergstrom to win the race while Jaimie Robertson took third. This set up a last heat decider with the Diamonds trailing by two points. There was to be no happy ending for them though as Carl Wilkinson won the race from Christian Henry while Andrew Moore’s third place ahead of Josef Franc was the icing on the cake as the Scorpions won by two points.

Scorers: For Newcastle – Ben Powell 11 (5), Josef Franc 10+1 (6), Christian Henry 10 (5), Jaimie Robertson 5+1 (5), Jason King 4+1 (5), Sean Stoddart 3+1 (4)

For Scunthorpe – Carl Wilkinson 10+1 (5), Andrew Moore 9+1 (5), Magnus Karlsson 7 (4), Viktor Bergstrom 6+1 (4), Richard Hall 6 (4), Byron Bekker 5 (4), Benji Compton 4+2 (4).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Sunday, 20 April

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Three matches were raced today. At Newport the Wasps faced Redcar in a Premier League match. At Glasgow the Tigers took on Birmingham in a Knock Out Cup tie while at Mildenhall the Fen Tigers raced against the Isle of Wight in a Premier League match.


Premier League: Newport 46, Redcar 47


Newport once again used Rider Replacement for the injured Tony Atkin at number 4 while Redcar used Rider Replacement for the injured Chris Kerr at number 2. They also had Aaron Summers (Edinburgh) as a guest at number 7 for Daniel Giffard who was ill.

This looked to be an extremely competitive match as both teams were looking for league points. Newport were hoping that Craig Watson had shaken off his problems to give the Wasps a strong spearhead while Redcar, like many visitors to the Welsh track, would look upon this as a target away win. The Bears were in easy street until an unfortunate accident in heat 10 resulted in James Grieves and Josh Auty being withdrawn from the meeting. Although the Wasps nibbled away at Redcar’s healthy lead they couldn’t make their numerical advantage count as the Bears held on for a one point victory

Redcar made a good start. Gary Havelock and Arlo Bugeja (R/R) made the gate in the opening heat but Paul Clews then Craig Watson passed Bugeja for a 3-3. The Bears took the lead with a 2-4 in the reserves race won by Aaron Summers from Marek Mroz with Arlo Bugeja in third as Jerran Hart fell and remounted. James Grieves passed Nick Simmons (R/R) and Sebastian Truminski to win heat 3 for another shared heat but Redcar doubled their lead with a 2-4 in heat 4. Ty Proctor was the race winner from Paul Clews while Aaron Summers passed Mroz for third place. The score was now 10-14.

Things began to look really bleak for the Wasps after heat 5. James Grieves won the race for the Bears but Sebastian Truminski had engine problems and retired from the race. Then Aaron Summers (R/R) passed Jerran Hart (R/R) on the last lap to join Grieves for a 1-5 which doubled the visitors’ lead to eight points. Ty Proctor beat Craig Watson in heat 6 but Nick Simmons passed Arlo Bugeja for third so the race was shared. Heat 7 produced another 1-5 for Redcar with James Grieves and Josh Auty getting the better of the weak Paul Clews/Jerran Hart pairing to stretch the lead to 12 points. Ty Proctor comfortably won heat 8 for the visitors but Simmons and Mroz kept Summers at the back for a shared heat which took the score to 18-30.

Finally the Wasps managed a heat advantage when Sebastian Truminski won heat 9 from Ty Proctor. Marek Mroz (R/R) took third place for a 4-2 cutting the gap between the sides to 10 points. Heat 10 was disaster for the Bears. Craig Watson took a TR but the race had to be stopped when Josh Auty picked up too much grip and ran into James Grieves with both Bears’ riders ending in the fence. James Grieves came off worse and was taken back to the pits by ambulance with a suspected broken rib. Josh Auty was excluded from the rerun while Aaron Summers replaced James Grieves. Watson and Simmons took the big 8-1 from the heat cutting the Bears’ lead to only three points. Paul Clews kept it that way by winning heat 11 from Gary Havelock and Arlo Bugeja for a shared race. With James Grieves out of the meeting, Redcar had to field both their reserves in heat 12. Sebastian Truminski won the race but Aaron Summers took second ahead of Mroz so the home side scored a 4-2 taking the score to 37-38. It was then announced that Josh Auty had withdrawn from the meeting too so Redcar were down to four fit riders. However with Havelock and Proctor due out in two of the last three heats all did not seem lost.

Gary Havelock won heat 13 for the Bears but, with Ty Proctor falling, Craig Watson and Paul Clews shared the race. Paul Clews took the R/R ride for Newport in heat 14 but fell on the second lap leaving Bugeja and Summers to share the race leaving the visitors one point ahead going into the last heat decider. In the first running Ty Proctor fell on the second lap causing the race to be stopped and rerun without him. At the second attempt, Craig Watson fell but the race was rerun with the three riders then at the third attempt Gary Havelock scored the win which gave the Bears a shared race and a one point win.

Scorers: For Newport – Craig Watson 13+1 (5) (with 6 point TR), Sebastian Truminski 9+1 (5), Nick Simmons 8+3 (5), Marek Mroz 8+1 (6), Paul Clews 7+1 (5), Jerran Hart 1 (4).

For Redcar – Gary Havelock 14 (5), Ty Proctor 11 (6), Aaron Summers 10+2 (7), James Grieves 6 (2), Arlo Bugeja 4+1 (7), Josh Auty 2+1 (3).



Knock Out Cup (first leg, second round): Glasgow 40, Birmingham 52


Glasgow were at full strength again but Birmingham again without Kyle Legault used Rider Replacement at number 1 and had Jason King (Newcastle) as a guest at number 4 in place of Phil Morris.

With some extremely impressive away results in the last couple of weeks, Birmingham were hoping to at least keep the score in this match to reasonable proportions to maximise their chances of progress in the return leg next Wednesday. Glasgow were buoyed by their fighting finish in last week’s home Premier League match in which they almost pipped King’s Lynn after trailing badly during the earlier part of the match.

The Tigers got off to the best possible start by scoring a 5-1 in the opening race. Shane Parker and Ross Brady led from the tapes and, although Brady was pressed by Lee Smart, the Tigers’ pair took the maximum. The home side must have been looking for a repeat score in heat 2 particularly when Josh Grajczonek and Lee Dicken gated but Jack Hargreaves took Lee Dicken wide allowing Jack Roberts to slip through to second with Dicken slipping to the back for a shared race. It was all square again after heat 3. The two Jasons – King and Lyons – recorded a 1-5 for the Brummies after making the gate then the visitors took the lead in heat 4. The race was rerun with all-four-back after Dicken and Roberts clashed on the opening bend. In the rerun Adam Roynon made the gate while Lee Dicken slotted into second place with Jack Roberts leading Robert Ksiezak at the back. Dicken slipped back to last after making a mess of the opening bends but he fought with great determination to pass firstly his partner, Ksiezak, then Roberts to take second place. This limited the damage to a 2-4 as the score went to 11-13.

Trent Leverington and Mitchell Davey made the gate in heat 5 to sit on a 5-1 but, on the second lap, Davey lost control of his machine and baled out onto the centre green clearly in some pain. He was taken from the track by ambulance as a precaution. The race was awarded to Leverington with Lee Smart second and Jason King (R/R) third for a shared race. Davey withdrew from the meeting with bruising to his upper thigh. Glasgow levelled again in heat 6 with a 4-2. Although Ross Brady made the gate it was Shane Parker who came through from third to win the race while Adam Roynon finished second with Brady third. Birmingham went four points ahead with a 1-5 in heat 7. Jason King made the gate with Robert Ksiezak in pursuit but Jason Lyons worked his way past Ksiezak to join his partner up front for the maximum. Heat 8 was awarded after Ross Brady had fallen on the second bend of the third lap. Lee Dicken took the three points while Lee Smart and Jack Roberts took the minor placings for a 3-3 which took the score to 22-26.

Josh Grajczonek gated with Trent Leverington in heat 9 but Adam Roynon passed Grajczonek for second so the Tigers had to be content with a 4-2 which cut the gap to two points. Jason Lyons got the better of Shane Parker in heat 10 and with Jason King beating Lee Dicken, who replaced Ross Brady, Glasgow slipped four points behind as Birmingham took a 2-4. The Brummies then rocked Glasgow with an easy 1-5 in heat 11 from Lee Smart and Adam Roynon ahead of Robert Ksiezak doubling their lead to eight points. This signalled a Tactical Substitute ride for Shane Parker from 15 metres in heat 12. Although Glasgow hopes were raised when Trent Leverington made the gate, he was passed off the second bend by Jason Lyons who went on to win the race. Parker got by Hargreaves and Leverington for second so Glasgow took a 3-5 advantage from the heat cutting the gap to six points with the score now 34-40.

Jason Lyons stormed from the tapes to win heat 13 from Shane Parker and Robert Ksiezak but it was all over for the Tigers when they conceded another 1-5 in heat 14. Jason King and Jack Roberts headed home the two Glasgow reserves to put the Brummies into an unassailable 10 point lead. In the last race Jason Lyons completed a paid maximum by beating Shane Parker again while Adam Roynon finished third ahead of Trent Leverington for a 12 point win for the Brummies. It seems there’s no stopping this Birmingham side.

Scorers: For Glasgow – Shane Parker 16 (6) (with 4 point TS), Trent Leverington 8+1 (5), Josh Grajczonek 5 (5), Lee Dicken 5 (5), Ross Brady 3+1 (3), Robert Ksiezak 3+1 (4), Mitchell Davey 0 (2).

For Birmingham – Jason Lyons 16+2 (6) (paid maximum), Jason King 11+1 (5), Adam Roynon 10+1 (5), Lee Smart 8 (4), Jack Roberts 6+2 (4), Jack Hargreaves 1 (5)..



Premier League: Mildenhall 41, Isle of Wight 52

Mildenhall introduced their new signing Jari Makinen at number 2 to make an all Finnish top pairing (is this a first?). They also used Rider Replacement for Casper Wortmann at number 4 and had Chris Schramm as a guest for Robbie Kessler at number 5. The Isle of Wight were at full strength.

Mildenhall were hoping that Lady Luck would smile on them for a change after a series of rain-offs and injuries which has so far decimated their season. After home hammerings at the hands of Berwick and Birmingham they were also hoping to record their first win of the season. The Isle of Wight, now back at full strength were, of course, hoping to cash in on the Fen Tigers’ misfortunes. It turned out to be another hard afternoon for the home side.

The opening heat was shared but only after Jason Bunyan had fallen and remounted. Cory Gathercole won the race from the two Finns, Kai Laukkanen and Jari Makinen. Mildenhall’s problems began in the reserves race during which both home riders fell. James Holder and Andrew Bargh stayed on though for the four laps to record a 1-5. Jan Graversen (R/R) came through the field brilliantly to win heat 3 but Krzysztof Stojanowski and Paul Fry finished in the minor places for another shared race. Then the Islanders hit home another 1-5 from James Holder and Glen Phillips with Chris Schramm finishing third. This took the score to 8-16.

Things went from bad to worse for the Fen Tigers when both Graversen and Mark Baseby fell on the first bend of heat 5. Graversen was excluded and Baseby could do nothing to prevent Bunyan and Gathercole from running away with another 1-5 in the rerun to put the visitors twelve points ahead. Kai Laukkanen came out as a TR in heat 6 and won the race from Phillips and Bargh for a 6-3 shaving three points from the Islanders’ lead but the visitors added two more points to it with a 2-4 in heat 7 when Stojanowski beat Schramm with Paul Fry third. Heat 8 was another disaster for Mildenhall as James Holder scored his third successive race win with his partner, Cory Gathercole in second for another 1-5 for the Islanders which took the score to 18-33.

The home side rallied with a 5-1 in heat 9 as Jan Graversen and Chris Schramm (R/R) led Glen Phillips home. Then Kai Laukkanen won heat 10 for a shared race but it was then announced that Mark Baseby had withdrawn from the meeting with an ankle injury leaving the pointless James Cockle to complete his remaining rides. Chris Schramm won heat 11 beating Gathercole and Bunyan with Cockle last for another shared race. Jan Graversen won heat 12 but, with Cockle last again, Stojanowski and Bargh shared this heat too taking the score to 32-43.

The last three heats were all shared as the Isle of Wight successfully defended their lead. Kai Laukkanen beat Bunyan and Phillips in heat 13 while Paul Fry took heat 14 by winning from Graversen while James Cockle at the seventh attempt finally got on the score sheet by finishing third. Kai Laukkanen completed a brilliant personal display by winning heat 15 but again their was no heat advantage for the home side as Gathercole and Bunyan followed him home to share the points.

Scorers: For Mildenhall – Kai Laukkanen 17 (5) (with 6 point TR), Jan Graversen 11 (6), Chris Schramm 8+1 (5), Jari Makinen 2+1 (5), Mark Baseby 2 (2), James Cockle 1+1 (7).

For the Isle of Wight – Cory Gathercole 11+2 (5), James Holder 9 (4), Krzysztof Stojanowski 8+1 (4), Jason Bunyan 7+2 (5), Paul Fry 7+1 (4), Glen Phillips 6+2 (4), Andrew Bargh 4+3 (4).

Around the Premier League Tracks 2008

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Saturday, 19 April

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There was a full scheduled programme of four matches raced tonight. At Berwick the Bandits faced Sheffield in a Premier League match. The other three matches were Premier Trophy matches. At Workington the Comets took on Glasgow, at Rye House the Rockets raced against King’s Lynn, and at Stoke the Potters had Scunthorpe as their visitors.



Premier League: Berwick 52, Sheffield 41


Berwick could no longer use Rider Replacement for Guglielmo Franchetti since the 28 day facility had expired. Instead they had Scott James (Redcar Cubs) at number 4 as a guest. Sheffield were at full strength.

Berwick shrugged off the loss of the R/R facility and built up a healthy lead until the use of the TR got Sheffield back into the match big style. However, with Rymel and Makovsky in unbeatable form there was never much prospect of an away win.

Berwick got off to a 5-1 after a rerun heat one caused by Joel Parsons falling on the second lap when he hit the back straight fence. In the rerun Adrian Rymel and Norbert Magosi had no problem heading home Ricky Ashworth. Both home riders made the gate in the reserves race but Adam McKinna suffered an engine failure so the race was shared. Sheffield hit back in heat 3 when Andre Compton and Paul Cooper left Henning Bager in their wake but Bager passed Cooper on the last lap limiting the damage to a 2-4. Berwick replied in kind with a 4-2 from Makovsky and Tero Aarnio, who replaced Adam McKinna, taking the score to 14-10.

Henning Bager won heat 5 for a shared race but the Bandits pulled further ahead in heat 6 when Magosi and Rymel both made fast starts to score a comfortable 5-1 increasing the home side’s lead to eight points. It stayed that way when heat 7, won by Makovsky, was shared with Compton and Cooper content to keep Aarnio at the back. Heat 8 resulted in another shared race when Norbert Magosi passed Lee Smethills off the second bend to win it and take the score to 28-20.

Sheffield shaved two points from the lead with a 2-4 in heat 9 as Ben Wilson made the gate to win the race. Bager finished second but Sam Martin passed Scott James for third cutting the gap to six points. It was back to eight though when the Bandits took a 4-2 from heat 10 when Andre Compton could only split Rymel and Magosi. Michal Makovsky passed Ricky Ashworth to win heat 11 while Tero Aarnio won the battle for third with Joel Parsons for the 4-2 which put Berwick ten points ahead just in time for Andre Compton to take a TR. Lee Smethills replaced Sam Martin and both Tigers led from the start. Henning Bager brought down Smethills on the last lap so the race was awarded with Sheffield scoring the big 1-8 which cut the gap to three points with the score at 39-36.

Rymel and Makovsky continued their unbeaten run by taking a 5-1 from Ricky Ashworth in heat 13 increasing the bandits’ lead to seven points and it was all over when Tero Aarnio won heat 14 from Cooper and Smethills for the shared heat which sealed a Berwick win. Rymel and Makovsky completed their paid maximums in heat 15 with Andre Compton relegated to third place.

Scorers: For Berwick – Adrian Rymel 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Michal Makovsky 13+2 (5) (paid maximum), Norbert Magosi 9+1 (4), Tero Aarnio 8 (5), Henning Bager 7 (4), Adam McKinna 1 (4), Scott James 0 (4).

For Sheffield – Andre Compton 13+1 (5) (with 6 point TR), Lee Smethills 8+3 (6), Ricky Ashworth 6 (4), Paul Cooper 5 (4), Sam Martin 4 (4), Ben Wilson 3 (4), Joel Parsons 2+2 (4).



Premier Trophy: Workington 60, Glasgow 32


Both teams were at full strength.

Workington needed a massive win and Glasgow any kind of win from this match to realistically stay in contention in their Premier Trophy section. Neither were successful although Workington with 13 of the 15 race winners came closer to their goal than Glasgow.

Daniel Nermark passed the fast gating Ross Brady to win the opening heat while Scott Smith finished third with Shane Parker bringing up the rear. This gave the Comets a 4-2 but Glasgow replied in kind as Josh Grajczonek won heat 2. It looked as though the fast-gating Tigers might score a 1-5 but Joe Haines passed Lee Dicken off the second bend for second place. The 2-4 levelled the scores but the Comets then scored two easy 5-1s in heats 3 and 4 to lead 16-8. Nieminen and Wright scored the first at the expense of Leverington, then Stonehewer and Branney did likewise with Lee Dicken in third.

Kauko Nieminen beat Shane Parker in heat 5 but Ross Brady finished third so the race was shared as was heat 6 won by Nermark. With Scott Smith retiring before the first bend the Tigers shared the heat points behind Nieminen. Carl Stonehewer won heat 7 from Leverington and Haines for another 4-2 which put the Comets ten points ahead so Ross Brady took a TR in heat 8. Brady made the gate again but was passed by Smith off the second bend. Smith won the race while Craig Branney relegated Grajczonek to the back. This meant that the race was shared 4-4 with the score moving to 30-20.

Robert Ksiezak gated in heat 9 but was soon passed by Kauko Nieminen down the back straight. With Charles Wright beating Lee Dicken the Comets added a 4-2 to lead by twelve points then they added a 5-1 in heat 10 when Daniel Nermark and Scott Smith scored a 5-1 ahead of Trent Leverington. Another 5-1 went to the home side in heat 11 as Carl Stonehewer won from the gate Joe Haines passed Shane Parker and Ross Brady to follow his partner home stretching the home side’s lead to 20 points. Kauko Nieminen gated to lead Trent Leverington and Josh Grajczonek in heat 12 but John Branney passed Grajczonek to give the home side a 4-2 taking the score to 48-26.

Shane Parker provided Glasgow’s second race winner of the night by winning heat 13 from Nermark and Ksiezak for a Tigers’ 2-4 before the home side finished with two 5-1s. Joe Haines and James Wright took the first from Mitchell Davey after Lee Dicken had fallen then Kauko Nieminen, completing his maximum, and Daniel Nermark, who rounded Shane Parker on the third bend, scored the second for a 28 point win.

Scorers: For Workington – Kauko Nieminen 15 (5) (maximum), Daniel Nermark 13+1 (5), Carl Stonehewer 9 (4), Joe Haines 8+1 (4), Scott Smith 6+1 (4), Charles Wright 5+2 (4), John Branney 4+1 (4).

For Glasgow – Ross Brady 7+1 (4) (with 4 point TR), Shane Parker 7 (5), Trent Leverington 6 (5), Robert Ksiezak 5 (4), Josh Grajczonek 4+1 (4), Lee Dicken 2 (4), Mitchell Davey 1 (4).



Premier Trophy: Rye House 55, King’s Lynn 35


Both teams were at full strength.

With drizzle continuing to fall throughout the match and during the day the Rye House track got steadily more slippery and there were a number of falls which resulted in the withdrawal from the meeting of Luke Bowen and Kevin Doolan.

There were two fallers in the opening race. Tomas Topinka came off on the first bend causing an all-four-back rerun but Luke Bowen’s crash in the rerun when miles in the lead resulted in an ambulance ride back to the pits and subsequent withdrawal from the meeting with shoulder and arm injuries. Shaun Tacey won the second rerun from Chris Neath so the visitors got off to a winning start with the 2-4. They didn’t have long to enjoy their lead since the Rye House reserves gated to win heat 2 putting the Rockets two points ahead. Tai Woffinden and Tommy Allen threatened a 5-1 in heat 3 but Kevin Doolan, who missed the gate, passed Tommy Allen before the end of the first lap to limit the Rockets’ advantage to a 4-2. In heat 4 a superb ride by Robert Mear saw him chase down and pass Rusty Harrison who rocketed from the gate. Stefan Ekberg’s third place gave the Rockets another 4-2 and the score went to 15-9.

Tai Woffinden won heat 5 but, with Tommy Allen falling, Topinka and Tacey shared the points as did Harrison and Oliver in heat 6 for the Stars. They were fortunate though since Robert Mear and Chris Neath were sitting on a 5-1 until Neath developed engine trouble which saw him slip to the back. Any hopes that the visitors still had all but disappeared when Kevin Doolan fell in heat 7 while lying second because he withdrew from the meeting thereafter. In the rerun Kozza Smith in second place fell bringing down Danny Betson. Smith was excluded too and the race was awarded as a 5-0 to the Rockets. This put them 11 points ahead but the Stars rallied with a 1-5 in heat 8. Shaun Tacey and Simon Lambert made excellent gates and the Rye House reserves could not catch them. Hindsight is a great thing and King’s Lynn must have been ruefully reflecting that they could have given Tacey a TR which would have cut their deficit to four points. As it was the score moved to 27-20.

Tai Woffinden roared round the field on the opening bends in heat 9 for another race win while Tommy Allen joined him up front on the third bend of the last lap to provide the home side with another 5-1 which restored their 11 point lead. Another 5-1 went the Rockets’ way in heat 10 as Chris Neath and Robert Mear saw off Simon Lambert, replacing Doolan, and Kozza Smith who fell increasing the gap to 15 points. Tomas Topinka took a TR in heat 11 but he was beaten by Stefan Ekberg. Simon Lambert took third though after Danny Betson had fallen on the second bend so the Stars gained a 3-5 advantage from the race to trail by 13. Then, with the track getting greasier, King’s Lynn had a 0-5 of their own in heat 12. Firstly Tai Woffinden fell while well in front causing a rerun then Robert Mear fell in the rerun resulting in a second rerun with only the two Stars’ riders. The uncontested maximum took the score to 40-32.

The last three heats all finished as home 5-1s. Neath and Ekberg scored the first in heat 13 as Tacey fell then Betson and Allen the second despite a good challenge from Lambert. Woffinden and Ekberg finished off with the third from Topinka and Tacey providing a 20 point win for the Rockets.

Scorers: For Rye House – Stefan Ekberg 12+1 (5), Tai Woffinden 12 (5), Robert Mear 10+2 (6), Danny Betson 9+1 (5), Chris Neath 7 (4), Tommy Allen 5+1 (4), Luke Bowen 0 (1).

For King’s Lynn – Tomas Topinka 9 (5) (with 4 point TR), Shaun Tacey 8+1 (5), Simon Lambert 7+2 (6), John Oliver 6 (4), Rusty Harrison 3+1 (4), Kevin Doolan 2 (2), Kozza Smith 0 (4).



Premier League: Stoke 51, Scunthorpe 39


Both teams were at full strength.

With only five shared heats the score swung one way then the other throughout this match but the Potters finished with two 5-1s to perhaps make it look more one-side than it was.

In the first race Andrew Moore came from the back to lose out on the line to race winner, Ben Barker. With Carl Wilkinson in third the race was shared but a 5-1 from Barrie Evans and Mark Burrows had the Potters in front after the reserves race. The Scorpions hit back with a 2-4 in heat 3 when Magnus Karlsson passed Lee Complin for a comfortable win while Viktor Bergstrom kept Complin lively for his second place. The visitors then stormed into a two point lead with a 1-5 in heat 4. Richard Hall won the race while a determined Benji Compton kept both Potters behind him with Emiliano Sanchez eventually falling on the last lap. This took the score to 11-13.

The Potters replied in kind with a 5-1 in heat 5. Lee Complin won the race while behind him Carl Wilkinson passed Jesper Kristensen into second place. He fell however and Andrew Moore was left to take up the chase. He didn’t make it so the home side were now two points in front. They doubled that lead in heat 6 with a 4-2 when Ben Barker passed Richard Hall with Klaus Jakobsen third. Another win from Magnus Karlsson ahead of Emiliano Sanchez and a third place for Viktor Bergstrom who passed Barrie Evans pulled two points back for the Scorpions with the 2-4 then Ben Barker won heat 8 after passing Benji Compton. Mark Burrows passed Carl Wilkinson for third then undid the good work by falling allowing Wilkinson to finish third for a shared race which took the score to 25-23.

A 5-1 for the Potters in heat 9 from Complin and Kristensen stretched the home side’s lead to six points and the Scorpions never recovered from the blow. Another Barker win in heat 10, lowering Karlsson’s colours for the first time, shared the heat while heat 11 was shared too after Andrew Moore had taken the chequered flag for the visitors. Scunthorpe pulled two points back in heat 12 when another fine win for Magnus Karlsson ahead of Kristensen and third place for Compton resulted in a 2-4 and a score of 38-34.

Andrew Moore won heat 13 after passing Jakobsen for a 3-3 but the Potters stormed home with two 5-1s in the last two races. Barrie Evans and Lee Complin sealed victory for them with the first in a thrilling race which saw Complin pip Bergstrom on the line then Complin and Barker added the second as the latter passed Magnus Karlsson at the end of the first lap.

Scorers: For Stoke – Ben Barker 14+1 (5) (paid maximum), Lee Complin 13+1 (5), Barrie Evans 8 (4), Jesper Kristensen 6+2 (4), Emiliano Sanchez 4+2 (4), Mark Burrows 3+1 (4), Klaus Jakobsen 3 (4),

For Scunthorpe – Magnus Karlsson 12 (5), Andrew Moore 9 (5), Benji Compton 6+1 (5), Richard Hall 6 (4), Viktor Bergstrom 4+1 (4), Carl Wilkinson 2+2 (4), Byron Bekker 0 (3).