Title Partner
REPORT Saturday 5th April 2008, 10:00pm
Edinburgh Monarchs
It might have been out first defeat, but a 3-point loss at Workington was a very good performance and a better result for us than the Comets.
It would be wrong to say we were unlucky to lose, but it doesn?t take too much imagination to see that we could have won.
We were fortunate to get a heat 12 8-1, but the luck balanced out due to our lost chains ? Aaron Summers when on a 5-1 with Matthew in heat 4, and Ryan Fisher when he had got the better of an exciting battle with Stoney in heat 15.
It was cold when we arrived at Derwent Park, and after heat 5 we had quite a heavy hailstorm, followed by rain. Nevertheless with some track work the surface seemed to be quite rideable thereafter.
Comets opened with a 4-2 and there was a fall for Ryan who made contact with Smith?s back wheel on the last lap. Joe Haines looked good winning heat 2 in a fast time but our lads shared it, and we had a fine win from Derek Sneddon to applaud in heat 3. He led Stonehewer all the way and never made a mistake.
The newly shaped track was looking like a gaters? paradise but we were working well round the first turn, and hopes were raised further as Summers and Wethers led Nieminen in heat 4 and looked set for a 5-1. Infuriatingly, Aaron shed a chain on the second bend of the last lap with a maximum in the bag.
Ryan made a better start in heat 5 and we shared it behind Stoney, a heat that was followed by a heavy hailstorm.
It was easy to imagine that this might have ended the match, but out came the tractors and a few races later the shiny surface had been transformed into an acceptable looking track. About half an hour after heat 5, heat 6 started and resulted in a home 4-2.
Nieminen won heat 7 but Joe Haines fell in third place. William?s gating was not good so far and he got a lucky point here.
Derek showed him how by taking his second victory in heat 8, another shared heat. We were four down and would have been level but for Aaron?s chain loss.
Not so good in heat 9 though ? Charles Wright led from Matthew with Stoney third. As Matthew tried to find a passing line on the leader, he was obviously coming under threat from the rear, and on the final lap a Stoney cutback did the trick and got the Comets? fans roaring with a 5-1.
Nermark won heat 10 of course, but we shared that. Fisher and Nieminen rode level into the first corner of heat 11 with Derek just outside him, and Derek was the victim of his own attempt to match the riders inside him. He swung wide and finished at the back, as Nieminen got the better of Fisher to stretch the gap to 10.
TR time and though he hadn?t done anything much to this point, it was given to William in heat 12.
It worked out, largely because Stonehewer stopped after a few yards in a shower of sparks. Andrew Tully led and William took a couple of laps to get the better of John Branney. Once he had taken over second place, Andrew was able to look back and slow to let William take the six points, to cries of ?cheats? from some woman behind me.
So suddenly in a match which was slipping away a bit, we were only 3 behind!
Heat 13 didn?t look easy but although Nermark won again, Fisher and Wethers comfortably kept Nieminen in fourth place.
Next we had William making a start at last to lead heat 14 while Andrew pushed hard on Wright. He was very close to passing a few times but didn?t do anything daft and took the point, leaving us just one down going into the last heat.
With Nermark in it, victory was never likely even though Matthew did edge ahead for a moment down the back straight. Nermark took over and we had an excellent battle between Stonehewer and Fisher, with Ryan twice cutting back to pass Stoney and seeming to have earned third when he lost a chain on the last lap.
These damn chains. But we had done the job we really came to do, keeping scores close, and now seem almost certain to reach the Premier Trophy semi finals.
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