BRITISH SPEEDWAY ROUND-UP #26

HERE’S the latest news and fixtures from around the tracks up and down the country.

PIC OF THE WEEK…

POOLE regained the BSN Series trophy with a 52-38 win over holders Redcar at Wimborne Road for an eight-point victory on aggregate.
The Bears put up a strong defence of the silverware in Dorset and they were still ahead on aggregate midway through a tense encounter.
Pirates levelled overall with a 5-1 from Will Cairns and Slater Lightcap in a controversial Heat 8, as Cairns and Jake Mulford clashed prior to the start, and maximum points from Lewis Kerr and Cooper Rushen in the next race put them in front overall.
Rushen secured the aggregate success by winning the penultimate race, before home No.1 Richard Lawson became the first rider to beat Redcar counterpart Charles Wright in Heat 15 after Jake Allen had crashed out.
Photo credit: LIAM COCKWELL

ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP LATEST

HOW IT STANDS
BELLE Vue have clinched their place in the Grand Final after a 40-point aggregate win over Ipswich in the play-off semi-finals. Sheffield lead Leicester 57-33 at the halfway stage of the second semi.

ACES READY AND WAITING
BELLE Vue manager Mark Lemon is delighted to be looking ahead to the prospect of a home decider in the ROWE Motor Oil Premiership Grand Final.
The Aces will face either Sheffield or Leicester in the title decider, and Lemon has already confirmed they will take the second leg on their own track.
He said: “We’ve had a lot of success over the last ten years, and that’s really down to the riders that we bring into the camp.
“It’s been a great transition over the period, the focus is always about winning and doing the job right, and in a fair manner, and these guys have excelled in that aspect.
“Brady (Kurtz) has led us as captain for a number of years now, and hopefully he can lead us to another championship. We’re not getting carried away, but with the opportunity to win it at home, there’s a little bit more on this one.”

WITCHES BOW OUT
IPSWICH boss Paul Hurry paid tribute to Tom Brennan and skipper Danny King after his side’s title defence ended in a heavy play-off semi-final defeat at the hands of Belle Vue.
Brennan and King contributed 20 of the Witches’ 32 points at the National Speedway Stadium with Brennan ending a tough campaign on a high.
Hurry said: “He had that injury in the winter and then he had a bang to the head during the season. It takes time to get over those things – more than people let on. He did well on Monday. He came good. His bikes were working well, and he was back to the old Tom.
“When Danny makes a start, he can beat the best in the world, as he proved in Manchester.
“There were a couple of rides when he was having good battles. Danny had another good night. It was nice to finish with a 5-1 from Tom and Danny in the last race at Belle Vue.”

TIGERS TAKE CHARGE
SHEFFIELD are firmly in control of their play-off semi-final against Leicester after running up a 57-33 win at Owlerton on Thursday.
The Tigers led by six points approaching the halfway stage but then pulled clear in the closing stages of the meeting to give them a hefty margin to defend at the Hydroscand Arena on Thursday.
Manager Simon Stead said: “I’d have absolutely snatched your hand off for a lead like that beforehand, but it’s leg one and Leicester are a phenomenal outfit at their place.
“We’ve struggled there this season for various reasons, but Max (Fricke) gives us a little more stability at the top, so hopefully that takes some of the pressure off the rest of the guys and they can settle into it and score the points we need.
“But Stewart (Dickson) will have his boys firing and we will be under no illusions that the task in hand is still only halfway done, so it will be all guns blazing and may the best team win.”

LIONS NEED BIG COMEBACK
LEICESTER boss Stewart Dickson admitted things hadn’t gone according to plan in the first leg of their play-off semi-final at Sheffield.
The Lions have reached the last two Premiership Grand Finals but they need to score 58 points against the Tigers on their home circuit this Thursday if they are to make it three.
Dickson said: “I wanted us to keep it within single figures, but the bottom line is we’ve not done so. Sheffield beat us out of the gate and they were bullying us, they were harder and tougher, and they deserved the win.
“We’ve not been what we should have been. To find ourselves 24 points down with the team I’ve got is not really acceptable, and we’re facing a very big uphill task – it’s been a difficult night.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
SHEFFIELD travel to Leicester on Thursday holding a comfortable 24-point lead going into the second leg of their play-off semi-final… Northampton stage the Tai Woffinden Testimonial at the Shaleway on Saturday (6pm) before wrapping up their league campaign with a re-arranged fixture at home to King’s Lynn next Tuesday.

CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP LATEST

HOW IT STANDS
SCUNTHORPE have joined Poole in the Grand Final after successfully defending a 16-point first leg advantage in the play-off semi-finals at Glasgow.

ONE IN THE BAG
POOLE regained the BSN Series title from previous winners Redcar after a highly competitive Final over two legs.
The Pirates chased down a six-point first leg deficit and clinched the silverware in front of their home crowd at Wimborne Road last Wednesday.
Heat leader Richard Lawson said: “It’s back where it belongs. This is a Pirates trophy and it is back in our cabinet again.
“Fair play to Redcar, they made it really tough for us and we had to really work for this title, but that is what Finals are all about.
“You find out what you’ve got and who your team-mates are and you couldn’t ask for much more, so it’s awesome and we are just warming up now for the league title.”

SCORPIONS HAVE BELIEF
SCUNTHORPE promoter Rob Godfrey says he has confidence in his side to upset holders Poole in the Cab Direct Championship Grand Final.
The Scorpions stage the first leg of title decider on a huge night at the Eddie Wright Raceway on Friday, and Godfrey feels they can put themselves in position to defend an advantage when they head south for the return.
He said: “We need to build up a lead at home, and then go to Poole with a similar defensive attitude we had at Glasgow.
“I was heartened how Redcar performed at Poole in the BSN Series Final – they didn’t get steamrollered.
“I believe we can beat Poole on aggregate and so does David Howe, our team manager, and so does Josh Pickering, our superb skipper, and the rest of the boys.”

TIGERS GENEROUS IN DEFEAT
GLASGOW manager Cami Brown paid tribute to opponents Scunthorpe after seeing his side miss out on reaching the Grand Final with their semi-final defeat to the Scorpions.
Brown said: “This was a bridge too far in the end. It’s just frustrating because it came down to seven bad races at Scunny, that was the biggest blow.
“I’m still proud of this team. We lost Kyle Howarth with three months still to go and still got this close to reaching a third Grand Final in four seasons.
“The boys gave it everything. But it always comes down to fine margins in the end. Fair play to Scunny, they did a great job to get it over the line and I fancy them to give Poole a hard Final.”

ADVANTAGE BANDITS
BERWICK are halfway towards clinching the MAXiCab KO Cup after a hugely impressive 58-32 win over Plymouth in the first leg of the Final in front of a bumper crowd at Shielfield Park.
The Bandits will head to Devon for the decider on Saturday October 10 as strong favourites to lift the silverware for the first time in nearly four decades.
Manager Stewart Dickson said: “It was an almost perfect night, but we won’t get too carried away. We still have to go to Plymouth and do a professional job.
“The atmosphere in the stadium was fantastic and all six of my riders responded to the support they were getting from the fans.”

BEARS MISS OUT
REDCAR boss Gavin Parr had no complaints as his side lost out on retaining the BSN Series despite a real battle with Poole last week.
The Bears were beaten by eight points on aggregate as they took the tie down to the penultimate race at Wimborne Road, scene of their dramatic trophy win last year.
Parr said: “The lads battled so hard but we fell just short across the 30 heats. The team spirit was excellent and all of them gave everything.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
SCUNTHORPE and Poole kick off the Cab Direct Championship Grand Final with the first leg at the Eddie Wright Raceway on Friday… The same night sees Edinburgh and Glasgow meet for the last time this season in the second leg of the Scottish Cup, with the Monarchs holding a six-point advantage from a win at Ashfield earlier in the campaign.

WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE LATEST

HOW IT STANDS
EDINBURGH’S magnificent run now stands at nine wins out of nine this season… Behind the champions, the remaining five teams are separated by just three points with several possible permutations before finishing positions can be confirmed.

MAGNIFICENT MONARCHS ACADEMY
NDL Champions Edinburgh were 49-40 winners at Oxford on Sunday to move to within one match of completing a perfect 100 per cent record this season.
The Monarchs Academy will be presented with the league trophy at Armadale this Friday when the senior team face Glasgow in the Scottish Cup.
Manager Scott Wilson said: “Once again this team showed its quality and fighting spirit. The most pleasing aspect, as it has been all season, was the contribution of the whole team.”

CHARGERS SET FOR FINALE
OXFORD’S home defeat to Edinburgh last Sunday means the Chargers need to defeat Buxton on Friday in order to move off the foot of the table.
Skipper Jody Scott said: “We aim to win all the meetings throughout the season. But, of course, it would be even nicer to win at Oxford on Friday for our final meeting of the season against Buxton.
“They have a decent side too and we lost up there, but hopefully we can show them the way around Oxford.”

THE WEEK AHEAD…
OXFORD wrap up their campaign with a Friday home clash against Buxton at Cowley… The Bulls then race the final official home fixture of their comeback campaign when they host Leicester on Sunday.

FIXTURE PICTURE…

THURSDAY OCTOBER 1:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP PLAY-OFF SEMI-FINAL 2nd leg: Leicester (33) v Sheffield (57) 7.30

FRIDAY OCTOBER 2:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 1st leg: Scunthorpe v Poole 7.30
SCOTTISH CUP 2nd leg: Edinburgh (48) v Glasgow (42) 7.30
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Oxford (38) v Buxton (51) 7.30

SATURDAY OCTOBER 3:
TAI WOFFINDEN TESTIMONIAL: Northampton 6pm

SUNDAY OCTOBER 4:
NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Buxton (29) v Leicester (61) 3pm

TUESDAY OCTOBER 6:
ROWE MOTOR OIL PREMIERSHIP R2: Northampton (45) v King’s Lynn (45) 7.30

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 7:
CAB DIRECT CHAMPIONSHIP GRAND FINAL 2nd leg: Poole v Scunthorpe 7.30

SATURDAY OCTOBER 10:
MAXICAB KO CUP FINAL 2nd leg: Plymouth (32) v Berwick (58) 7pm

SUNDAY OCTOBER 11:
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Leicester (45) v King’s Lynn (45) 5pm

SATURDAY OCTOBER 17:
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE: Leicester (25) v Edinburgh (65) 7pm