April 2006

[Genghis]

CHEETAHS GO DOWN FIGHTING

Monday, April 3, 2006
WOLVERHAMPTON 54 OXFORD 40 (Elite League K.O. Cup, 1st round, 2nd leg)
Wolves win 101-83 on aggregate and progress to the second round

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: Stayed dry - and it's finally getting warmer!
TRACK CONDITIONS: Dusty from the off - but some top-notch racing nevertheless.
REFEREE: Graham Reeve.

The Oxford Cheetahs are out of the 2006 Elite League KO Cup - but only after a sterling effort at Monmore Green. Wolverhampton, already holding a four-point advantage from the first leg at Cowley, were always in control, taking a 9-3 lead after two races, but the Cheetahs at least gave them a match - a vast improvement from our drubbings at Swindon & Ipswich.
David Howe almost had a winning start on his return to his 2005 club in HEAT 1. Howe gated, but soon had Peter Karlsson on his tail, while Eric Andersson got out of shape on the second bend and surrendered third place to Ronnie Correy. Howe did all he could to resist Karlsson, but the silky Swede blasted around him towards the end of lap 2 and Wolves started with a heat advantage (4-2).
HEAT 2 again proved to be something of an Achilles' Heel for the Cheetahs. Ben Wilson gated, and with Adam Pietraszko riding too tight a line, Christian Hefenbrock swooped around the Pole on the back straight to move from third to first. Lubos Tomicek soon got past his team-mate into third, and despite pressuring Wilson for the final two laps, the Czech was unable to dislodge his opponent from second place (9-3).
Fredrik Lindgren resisted severe early pressure from Adam Skornicki in HEAT 3, while Davey Watt took a comfortable third over Magnus Karlsson (12-6).
Tony Rickardsson & Billy Hamill battled it out for the opening half-lap of HEAT 4, before Rickardsson (on the outside) took control of the race on the back straight (15-9).
HEAT 5 was a fine race. Andersson led from the start, but Magnus Karlsson got under him on the back straight. Andersson kept the throttle on and shot back around his fellow Swede on the third and fourth bends. Lindgren then took over second place from his team-mate, and there was synchronised passing on the second bend of lap 2, with Lindgren inside Andersson to take the lead and Howe relieving Karlsson of third at the same point. Howe passed team-mate Andersson on lap 3, but the race now looked certain to finish as a 3-3 - and so it proved (18-12).
Rickardsson & Pietraszko flew from the tapes in HEAT 6, but Pietraszko misjudged the second bend, went wide, and Peter Karlsson and Correy came through to ensure a share of the spoils (21-15).
In HEAT 7, Hamill gated, but came under pressure on both sides on the second bend from Watt & Skornicki. Watt sneaked momentarily in front on the inside of Hamill, but Hamill was on the faster line, and retook the lead down the back straight, in what proved to be a fifth successive shared race (24-18).
Tomicek lifted as the tapes flew up in HEAT 8 and was last away. Hefenbrock led from the start, while a hotly contested second bend saw Correy go wide as he tried to push out Andersson, and Tomicek moved into third past Correy as a result. Tomicek initially rode a nice line, but he then started leaving gaps on the inside for Correy, and Correy came through on the second bend of the final lap to snatch third as Wolves moved eight in front (28-20).
Rickardsson had the slight edge on Lindgren from the tapes in HEAT 9, but Lindgren pounced on the inside on the second bend and took the lead, while Pietraszko drifted wide at this point, and conceded third to Magnus Karlsson. Rickardsson then inched closer and closer to Lindgren, and almost got back under Lindgren at the finish. However, Lindgren just held on, and then fell off after the race, leading to a sporting Rickardsson giving him a lift and taking him around on a victory lap (32-22).
HEAT 10 saw an element of good fortune for Wolverhampton. Skornicki gated, and Peter Karlsson went for the charge around the outside, but lost it on the first corner and came down, with Watt neatly laying his bike down behind Karlsson. Both riders were soon to their feet, while the referee's all-four back verdict was mystifying as Karlsson's fall had been completely of his own making. In the re-run, Skornicki again gated, but his decision to run Karlsson wide on the second bend proved to be his undoing. Correy, left with a gap on the inside, pounced to take the lead, and then Karlsson took second from Skornicki with an inside move on the second bend of lap 2. So Wolves took a 5-1 from a race which would have been no more than a 3-3 had Karlsson picked up his rightful exclusion (37-23).
Oxford team boss Graeme Gordon nominated Howe as a tactical ride in HEAT 11 - and early on, the move looked to have backfired, as Hamill gated, then Wilson took second after an excellent inside run on the second bend. However, Andersson and then Howe soon moved past Wilson, and Andersson - again showing no fear for reputations - closed in on Hamill. Andersson got level at one point, but Hamill held him off and then on the final lap, Andersson moved aside to allow Howe (on double points) into second place. The resultant 5-3 was Oxford's only heat advantage on the night (40-28).
Davey Watt was a tactical ride in HEAT 12, but Magnus Karlsson - having done very little until this point - popped out of the gate. Watt, riding the outside line, tried hard, but Karlsson eventually pulled away, with Hefenbrock took third, having won an early battle with Tomicek (44-32).
HEAT 13 was an epic. It's hard to describe everything that happened in this race, but here goes. Peter Karlsson & Hamill had the edge from the tapes, but Howe & Rickardsson had both battled inside Hamill by the back straight. However, Hamill squeezed back around Rickardsson on the third turn and then took second place back from Howe as the first lap finished. It was Rickardsson now taking the fight to the Wolves pair, and he passed Hamill - and nearly Karlsson at the same time - with an inside move on the back straight of lap 2. Hamill whizzed back around Rickardsson as the race reached its halfway stage, but Rickardsson was not to be denied and got inside Hamill again on the second bend of lap 3. While this had all been going on, Howe hadn't been far away either, and he almost pounced on Hamill on the final lap. The race finally ended as a 4-2 to Wolves - and left the crowd in raptures (48-34).
Skornicki gated in HEAT 14, before Wilson - again using the inside on the second bend to great effect - took the lead. Skornicki was not to be denied and had flown back around the British youngster by the end of the opening lap. Lindgren then moved into second place, but Skornicki held him off, to inflict the first defeat of the evening on Lindgren. Meanwhile, Tomicek nearly took third from Wilson at one point, but couldn't get by and finished with just one point from five rides - his efforts deserved more (51-37).
Rickardsson completed his final meeting at Monmore Green by winning HEAT 15. Lindgren did threaten at one point on the third bend, but Rickardsson then pulled away, while Howe closed in on Hamill, but too late to take third. Rickardsson threw his goggles into the crowd on a victory lap - having clearly enjoyed his evening (54-40).
So an encouraging performance from the Cheetahs. The top five were pretty solid, and Eric Andersson showed up very well on his first appearance on a track that many take many years to master. It was good to see Tony Rickardsson out there and really racing as well. But we again lost out at reserve, and changes at this end of the team cannot be too far away.

WOLVERHAMPTON 54
Peter Karlsson 11 (4), Ronnie Correy 5+2 (4), Magnus Karlsson 4 (4), Fredrik Lindgren 13 (5), Billy Hamill 10+1 (5), Ben Wilson 3+2 (4), Christian Hefenbrock 8+1 (4).

OXFORD 40
David Howe 8 (5) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Eric Andersson 4+2 (4), Davey Watt 7+1 (4) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Adam Skornicki 7+1 (4), Tony Rickardsson 13 (5), Adam Pietraszko 0 (3), Lubos Tomicek 1 (5).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: P. Karlsson (W), Howe (O), Correy (W), Andersson (O), 58.04 (4-2).
2: Hefenbrock (W), Wilson (W), Tomicek (O), Pietraszko (O), 59.62 (9-3).
3: Lindgren (W), Skornicki (O), Watt (O), M. Karlsson (W), 59.28 (12-6).
4: Rickardsson (O), Hamill (W), Hefenbrock (W), Tomicek (O), 58.45 (15-9).
5: Lindgren (W), Howe (O), Andersson (O), M. Karlsson (W), 59.46 (18-12).
6: Rickardsson (O), P. Karlsson (W), Correy (W), Pietraszko (O), 58.37 (21-15).
7: Hamill (W), Watt (O), Skornicki (O), Wilson (W), 59.44 (24-18).
8: Hefenbrock (W), Andersson (O), Correy (W), Tomicek (O), 60.01 (28-20).
9: Lindgren (W), Rickardsson (O), M. Karlsson (W), Pietraszko (O), 59.35 (32-22).
10: (Re-run) P. Karlsson (W), Correy (W), Skornicki (O), Watt (O), 60.94 (37-23).
11: Hamill (W), Howe (O) (TR), Andersson (O), Wilson (W), 60.59 (40-28).
12: M. Karlsson (W), Watt (O) (TR), Hefenbrock (W), Tomicek (O), 60.56 (44-32).
13: P. Karlsson (W), Rickardsson (O), Hamill (W), Howe (O), 59.88 (48-34).
14: Skornicki (O), Lindgren (W), Wilson (W), Tomicek (O), 60.99 (51-37).
15: Rickardsson (O), Lindgren (W), Hamill (W), Howe (O), 59.71 (54-40).

[Genghis]

ERIC STARS FOR UNLUCKY CHEETAHS

Wednesday, April 5, 2006
OXFORD 42 PETERBOROUGH 47 (Elite League A)

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: Quite a pleasant evening!
TRACK CONDITIONS: Very good.
OXFORD MAN OF THE MATCH: Eric Andersson.
REFEREE: Robbie Perks.

Oxford have still to register their first win of 2006 - but it's certainly not for the want of trying. In this match, the Cheetahs just lost out to Peterborough, the bookies' favourites for the Elite League. Indeed, but for some misfortune, plus a couple of dubious refereeing decisions, it would have been even tighter finish.
HEAT 1 saw Hans Andersen just beat David Howe out of the second bend - and the race then settled down as a 3-3, with Eric Andersson finishing third ahead of Tomasz Bajerski (3-3).
Pietraszko & Ostergaard were side-by-side around the opening bends of HEAT 2, but Pietraszko got out of shape on the second bend and Ostergaard pulled clear. The erratic Pietraszko then dropped backwards, being overhauled by both team-mate Tomicek and then Richard Hall on the back straight of the second lap, as Oxford conceded a 2-4 (5-7).
HEAT 3 saw Jesper B. Jensen steamroller into the tapes, and Peterborough manager Trevor Swales took the option of reinstating him off a 15m handicap. In the re-run, Adam Skornicki had the edge early on, but Niels-Kristian Iversen whizzed around on the back straight. In the meantime, Watt had gone well wide on the second bend, and a grateful Jensen nipped through into third. On the second bend of lap 2, it was second-placed Skornicki's turn to go wide, and he clouted the fence and came down. With Skornicki struggling to free his bike from under the air fence, the referee had no choice to stop the race - but he then took the controversial step to award the race as a 5-1 to the Panthers rather than order a further re-run. As all four riders had completed a lap (just!), the referee did have this option, but as Skornicki had fallen in second place rather than in fourth, it did seem a bit of an oddity and caused much discussion amongst the fans who come to see racing - not awarded races (6-12).
Tony Rickardsson showed his class in HEAT 4. With Tomicek pulling out before the first bend with a sick motor, Rickardsson was left chasing Ryan Sullivan & Ostergaard. He rounded Ostergaard on the pits bend of lap 1, and almost passed Sullivan at the end of this lap. Rickardsson continued to press Sullvian both inside and out, before shooting inside Sullivan on the third bend of lap 3, on the way to a hard-earned race win (9-15).
HEAT 5 proved to be something of a non-event, with Skornicki left on the starting line with machinery problems and Bajerski also limping around on a sick bike. Bajerski only got to the fourth bend of lap 2, before he was lapped by team-mate Andersen, and Bajerski then pulled onto the centre. Andersen was a convincing winner of what turned out to be a match-race against Watt (11-18).
In HEAT 6, the Oxford crowd came alive as Andersson & Howe exploded out of the gate. Howe settled in second behind his team-mate, while the expected challenge from Sullivan was not forthcoming. It was Andersson's first win in a Cheetahs racejacket (16-19).
Rickardsson was the easy winner of a shared HEAT 7, winning in 57.92 seconds, the fastest time of the season at Cowley, but still over one-and-a-half seconds outside Hans Nielsen's track record time (19-22).
HEAT 8 was highly eventful. Ostergaard gated, but Andersson charged under him on the entry of the third turn. Ostergaard tried to hit back, but got it horribly wrong, running into Andersson's back wheel halfway around the pits bend, and bringing both riders tumbling down. However, both riders were soon back to their feet, with Ostergaard excluded from the race. In the re-run, Andersson led all the way, while Bajerski resisted pressure from the ever-pressing Tomicek. However, coming out of the final bend, Bajerski lifted and as he fought for control, he came off the back of the bike, allowing Tomicek to snatch second place. It looked like a 5-0 to the Cheetahs, however the referee took the incredible decision to award third place to Bajerski. A somersaulting Bajerski and his bike had crossed the line - but clearly not together. It's just as well Oxford didn't end up losing the match by a single point! Meanwhile, it took a shaken Bajerski a few minutes to get to his feet (24-23).
Sullivan gated in HEAT 9, and put a stop to Watt's outside challenge on the second bend, to ensure he won the race. Hall pulled up on the third lap while tailed-off in fourth (27-26).
Jensen & Iversen had the edge from the tapes in HEAT 10, but Iversen found himself under attack from all angles on the second bend, with Howe powering around him and Andersson chopping inside him. Iversen recovered one place by blasting around Andersson on the fourth bend. Howe then started to close in on Jensen, but he misjudged his passing move on the first bend of lap 3 and lost ground. Meanwhile, fourth-placed Andersson continued to give it all he's got but fell on the second bend of lap 3, and did well to leave the track in time to allow the race to finish (29-30).
The first clash of the big guns in HEAT 11 went the way of Andersen, after he got the better of Rickardsson in a hotly contested opening couple of bends. With Ostergaard in third, Peterborough took a three-point lead into the interval (31-34).
While Jensen headed home ahead of Watt in HEAT 12, there was an early battle for the minor positions. Tomicek dived under Ostergaard entering the third bend, and the two riders were side-by-side, until the exit of the fourth bend, when Ostergaard retook the advantage. The ever-trying Tomicek continued to chase, but never got as close again, and with the Panthers taking a third successive 4-2, the match was starting to slide away from Oxford (33-38).
HEAT 13 saw Andersen continue his winning run, with Rickardsson unable to take advantage of a couple of opportunities to get through on the opening lap. Howe finished third ahead of a tailed-off Sullivan (36-41).
Skornicki gated in HEAT 14, and led from an ever-chasing Iversen, but with Ostergaard heading Pietraszko out of the second bend, the Panthers had the 3-3 they needed (39-44).
Rickardsson & Howe charged from the tapes in HEAT 15, but Howe had got something of a roller, so the referee brought them all back for another go. Rickardsson gated again in the re-run, but Howe missed the start this time, and came in fourth behind Rickardsson and the Peterborough pair of Andersen and Jensen, as Rickardsson halted the maximum hopes of Andersen (42-47).
So an entertaining night of Speedway - but still not the morale-boosting win that Oxford need. However, there are some positives that can be drawn from this match - in particular the form of Eric Andersson. Paid eight points from the tricky No. 2 berth is a fine tally, and with team changes afoot in the coming weeks, it seems likely that the young Swede will move to one of the reserve spots. With Andersson then free to take up to seven rides, it could provide the tail-end strength that could make all the difference to the side.

OXFORD 42
David Howe 7+2 (5), Eric Andersson 7+1 (4), Davey Watt 6+1 (4), Adam Skornicki 5 (4), Tony Rickardsson 13 (5), Adam Pietraszko 0 (3), Lubos Tomicek 4+1 (5).

PETERBOROUGH 47
Hans Andersen 14 (5), Tomasz Bajerski 1 (3), Jesper B Jensen 10+3 (5), Niels-Kristian Iversen 8 (4), Ryan Sullivan 6 (4), Richard Hall 1 (3), Ulrich Ostergaard 7+2 (6).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Andersen (P), Howe (O), Andersson (O), Bajerski (P), 58.71 (3-3).
2: Ostergaard (P), Tomicek (O), Hall (P), Pietraszko (O), 60.62 (5-7).
3: (Re-run) Iversen (P), Jensen (P) (penalised 15m for touching tapes), Watt (O), Skornicki (O) (fell, excluded), awarded - no time (6-12).
4: Rickardsson (O), Sullivan (P), Ostergaard (P), Tomicek (O) (ret), 58.65 (9-15).
5: Andersen (P), Watt (O), Bajerski (P) (excluded, lapped), Skornicki (O) (ret), 60.38 (11-18).
6: Andersson (O), Howe (O), Sullivan (P), Hall (P), 59.86 (16-19).
7: Rickardsson (O), Iversen (P), Jensen (P), Pietraszko (O), 57.92 (19-22).
8: (Re-run) Andersson (O), Tomicek (O), Bajerski (P), Ostergaard (P) (fell, excluded), 60.52 (24-23).
9: Sullivan (P), Skornicki (O), Watt (O), Hall (P) (ret), 60.18 (27-26).
10: Jensen (P), Howe (O), Iversen (P), Andersson (O) (fell), 59.74 (29-30).
11: Andersen (P), Rickardsson (O), Ostergaard (P), Tomicek (O), 59.15 (31-34).
12: Jensen (P), Watt (O), Ostergaard (P), Tomicek (O), 59.90 (33-38).
13: Andersen (P), Rickardsson (O), Howe (O), Sullivan (P), 59.08 (36-41).
14: Skornicki (O), Iversen (P), Ostergaard (P), Pietraszko (O), 60.64 (39-44).
15: (Re-run) Rickardsson (O), Andersen (P), Jensen (P), Howe (O), 59.30 (42-47).

[Genghis]

CHEETAHS STILL SEARCHING FOR FIRST WIN

Wednesday, April 12, 2006
OXFORD 42 EASTBOURNE 48 (Elite League A)
REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: A bit of drizzle in the air, otherwise OK
TRACK CONDITIONS: Got slick towards end.
REFEREE: Ronnie Allan.

For the third successive home match, Oxford were just a few points shy of notching up enough points to register a win, while at the same time, never really looking quite able to win the match.
David Norris gated in HEAT 1, but David Howe raced through the narrowest gaps on the third bend to take the lead. Howe's momentum took then took him off the line, and Norris nearly came back under him as the two riders completed the opening lap. A robust opening corner of lap two saw Howe take control of the race, and with Andrew Moore in third ahead of Eric Andersson, the evening commenced with a shared heat (3-3).
Adam Pietraszko shot from the tapes to lead HEAT 2 from pillar to post, while Tomasz Piszcz, guesting for the unavailable Lubos Tomicek, cut under Lewis Bridger and almost Andrew Appleton as well on the second bend, as he moved from fourth to third. The wide-riding Piszcz gave it his all in an attempt to round Appleton, and he wasn't too far away at the end of the race (7-5).
After an encouraging start, Oxford were brought crashing back down to earth in HEAT 3. Adam Shields & Dean Barker led all the way from Adam Skornicki, while Davey Watt fell and remounted on the second bend of the opening lap after a poor gate (8-10).
HEAT 4 saw Tony Rickardsson earn the wrath of the Oxford fans, with some hugely selfish riding. Jason Crump, guesting for flu victim Nicki Pedersen, and Bridger got out in front, but Piszcz blasted around Bridger on the fourth bend. Rickardsson, having completed missed the gate, was up with Bridger by lap 2, but appeared a bit cautious, and didn't pass Bridger until the opening bend of lap 4. Second-placed Piszcz then drifted a bit wide on the second bend of the final lap, but instead of sitting behind him, Rickardsson went straight through the gap, pushing Piszcz further wide. A grateful Bridger nipped through to take third place, while the Oxford faithful were left stunned by Rickardsson's complete refusal to team-ride (10-14).
HEAT 5 looked very good for the Cheetahs early on, as Skornicki & Watt hit the front, but Norris came around Watt after a lap to restrict Oxford to a 4-2 (14-16).
The next couple of races were processional, with Crump an easy winner of HEAT 6, while Howe settled in behind team-mate Andersson to ensure the 3-3 (17-19), then Rickardsson won HEAT 7 by a mile (20-22).
Andersson & Piszcz led for Oxford in HEAT 8, but Piszcz rode a much tighter line than in his previous two races, and it proved to be a mistake as Moore went around him on the back straight of lap 3, then Bridger repeated this move a lap later on the final circuit. So what had looked for over half the race as a 5-1 to Oxford ended as a shared heat (23-25).
Jason Crump exuded class in HEAT 9. Skornicki gated ahead of Crump, while Watt cut to the inside and got level with Crump on the back straight. Just as it looked that Crump would get squeezed out between the Oxford pair, he found a little extra speed from somewhere and raced through the middle of the Oxford pair to take the lead. A World Class ride from a World Class rider (26-28).
HEAT 10 looked encouraging for the Cheetahs early on, with Andersson inside Shields on the second bend to take the lead, and Howe almost following on the third bend. However, Shields then blasted around Andersson on the fourth bend to re-take the lead, while Howe moved off the line on the second bend of lap 2 and was punished as Barker raced through into third. Barker then closed on Andersson, but Andersson resisted his inside move on the final bend of lap 3, allowing Howe (riding around the outside) to close back in on Barker. Howe then changed his line, to try to cut inside Barker on the second bend of the final bend, but Howe clipped Barker's back wheel and fell. The race was stopped and awarded as a 4-2 to the Eagles (28-32).
HEAT 11 saw the Eagles pair of Moore and Norris first away, then Rickardsson charged inside Norris on the second bend, resulting in Norris moving over into the path of Pietraszko and the Pole coming to a near standstill. Sensibly, referee Ronnie Allan brought all four back for another go, and surprisingly, Moore again gated in front of Rickardsson. However, Rickardsson simply had too much speed, and he flew around Moore down the back straight, before winning comfortably (31-35).
Watt made some amends for earlier disappointments by leading Barker all the way to win HEAT 12, while Piszcz, back to riding the outside line, charged around Bridger on the back straight to take third (35-37).
Rickardsson moved at the start in HEAT 13, however as Crump & Norris gated, the referee let the race continue. Rickardsson blasted around Norris on the back straight of lap 2, but had no chance of catching Crump, as the Eagles reopened a four-point gap with just two races to go (37-41).
Piszcz was given a reserve ride in place of Pietraszko in HEAT 14, and he gave Shields a real run for his money. He got inside Shields on the second bend, and Shields had to fight to get back around Piszcz entering the third bend. Skornicki looked all set to take third, despite having a "moment" on the final bend of lap 2, but Skornicki drifted wide out of the second bend of the final bend, and Bridger came through to take third. Skornicki attempted to hit back, but failed, and the Eagles were home with a 4-2 (39-45).
Rickardsson and Crump clashed for a third time in HEAT 15, and Rickardsson was finally triumphant against the rider likely to be his main rival in the GP series, even though with the match already decided, the result was slightly academic. Rickardsson gated, and resisted pressure from Crump, who almost stole inside him on the back straight of the opening lap. Meanwhile, fourth-placed Andersson gave it his all, and fell after losing control coming out of the final bend. He was given a lift back to the pits by Rickardsson (42-48).
So again a case of so near but so far. The run of five successive home defeats at the start of a season is a rather unwanted new club record, but with changes on the way, only an extra three or four points are needed to turn defeats at Sandy Lane into wins.
This match was followed by a clash between a junior Oxford side and the USA Dream Team. Unfortunately, what had proved to be a highly eventful second half event was brought to a premature halt, after the Dream Team's Tim Gomez collided with the air fence in Heat 4, causing damage that could not be fixed before the 10.00pm curfew. The Oxford lads were 13-10 ahead at the time, with Sam Martin the top scorer with 8 points.

OXFORD 42
David Howe 4+1 (4), Eric Andersson 7 (5), Davey Watt 5+1 (4), Adam Skornicki 6 (4), Tony Rickardsson 13 (5), Adam Pietraszko 3 (3), Tomasz Piszcz (guest for Lubos Tomicek) 4 (5)

EASTBOURNE 48
David Norris 6+1 (4), Andrew Moore 5+1 (4), Dean Barker 6+2 (4), Adam Shields 12+1 (5), Jason Crump (guest for Nicki Pedersen) 14 (5), Andrew Appleton 2 (3), Lewis Bridger 3+1 (5)

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Howe (O), Norris (E), Moore (E), Andersson (O), 59.71 (3-3).
2: Pietraszko (O), Appleton (E), Piszcz (O), Bridger (E), 60.96 (7-5).
3: Shields (E), Barker (E), Skornicki (O), Watt (O) (fell, remounted), 59.90 (8-10).
4: Crump (E), Rickardsson (O), Bridger (E), Piszcz (O), 59.31 (10-14).
5: Skornicki (O), Norris (E), Watt (O), Moore (E), 59.96 (14-16).
6: Crump (E), Andersson (O), Howe (O), Appleton (E), 59.58 (17-19).
7: Rickardsson (O), Shields (E), Barker (E), Pietraszko (O), 58.74 (20-22).
8: Andersson (O), Moore (E), Bridger (E), Piszcz (O), 61.20 (23-25).
9: Crump (E), Skornicki (O), Watt (O), Appleton (E), 59.77 (26-28).
10: Shields (E), Andersson (O), Barker (E), Howe (O) (fell, excluded), awarded - no time (28-32).
11: (Re-run) Rickardsson (O), Moore (E), Norris (E), Pietraszko (O), 59.52 (31-35).
12: Watt (O), Barker (E), Piszcz (O), Bridger (E), 61.05 (35-37).
13: Crump (E), Rickardsson (O), Norris (E), Howe (O), 59.45 (37-41).
14: Shields (E), Piszcz (O), Bridger (E), Skornicki (O), 61.04 (39-45).
15: Rickardsson (O), Crump (E), Shields (E), Andersson (O) (fell), 60.02 (42-48).

[Genghis]

DAVID DEFEATS GOLIATH!

Friday, April 14, 2006
OXFORD 50 READING 44 (Elite League A)

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: Fine during the meeting - but the Sandy Lane had been hit by a heavy downpour during the morning.
TRACK CONDITIONS: Heavy - particularly early on.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Tony Rickardsson.
REFEREE: Frank Ebdon.

Well, who'd have thought it! Oxford turned the formbook upside down, to win their first meeting of the season against league leaders Reading in front of a large Good Friday crowd.
The Cheetahs entered this meeting without a single win home or away, while the Bulldogs had not been defeated away from home. But Oxford received a "gift from above" in the form of a heavy localised shower during the morning. It left the track saturated, and led due to a delay in the start-time. However, the Oxford track staff performed miracles to get the track into a raceable condition, and then the Oxford lads attacked the track with greater gusto than their wary Reading counterparts - particularly in the opening stages.
HEAT 1 saw Tony Rickardsson fly from the tapes for a tapes-to-flag win. However, second-placed Hancock drifted wide on the fourth bend, and Eric Andersson came through to collect a paid win. By the end of the race, Rickardsson had almost lapped fourth-placed Andy Smith, who didn't complete his final lap (5-1).
Adam Pietraszko gated in HEAT 2, but Janusz Kolodziej rounded him on the second bend. The race then seemed all set to end as a 4-2 to Reading - but Pietraszko went wide and fell on the final bend, allowing Zdenek Simota to nip through into second place, as the Bulldogs pulled back level (6-6).
Adam Skornicki had a tiger on his tail in the shape of former Oxford rider Travis McGowan in HEAT 3, but the Pole held on to win. Skornicki resisted an inside move by McGowan after two laps, then McGowan made a mistake on the final lap as he prepared to make his final challenge. Meanwhile, Davey Watt passed a pedestrian Matej Zagar on the opening bends to take third (10-8).
Lubos Tomicek moved at the start of HEAT 4, and with Kolodziej left stranded on the starting grid, referee Frank Ebdon stopped the race and excluded Tomicek. Pietraszko came in for Tomicek for the re-run, in which David Howe took the lead after Kolodziej drifted wide on the fourth turn. Pietraszko then closed in on Kolodziej, but an attempt to go around his fellow Pole led to Pietraszko going wide and striking the air fence on the final bend of lap 3. The race was stopped and awarded as a 3-3, and attention then turned to the fallen Pietraszko. He was clearly in some discomfort, and picked up a shoulder injury that ruled him out of the rest of the meeting and also the return at Smallmead at night. A sad end to Pietraszko's Oxford career, who is replaced by Freddie Eriksson in the forthcoming team reshuffle (13-11).
Skornicki and Watt led early on in HEAT 5, but Watt drifted wide on the fourth turn of lap 1 and Hancock passed him at the conclusion of that lap. However, Hancock then fell on the first bend of lap 3, causing Watt to lay it down promptly behind him - quick thinking from the Aussie. In the re-run, the Oxford boys got in front, with Smith chasing Watt hard until Smith made an error on the final lap. Skornicki then drifted wide on the final bend - but he only lost position to his team-mate as the Cheetahs took a 5-1 (18-12).
Rickardsson was an easy winner of HEAT 6 ahead of Charlie Gjedde, while an early battle took place for third place. Simota rode around Andersson on the second bend, but the Cheetah thrust himself inside Simota entering the third bend. Both drifted wide, but Simota recovered first and got back inside Andersson on the fourth bend. However, Andersson was not to be denied, and Andersson barged around Simota on the first bend of lap 2. After all this action, the race then settled down as a 4-2 (22-14).
McGowan & Zagar seemed set to reduce the deficit when they gated in HEAT 7, but Howe came inside the struggling Zagar on the fourth bend. Tomicek then reeled in Zagar, and on the back straight of the last lap Tomicek went inside his opponent, to the accompaniment of a great cheer from the Oxford faithful (25-17).
Kolodziej was the first to show from the tapes in HEAT 8, but Andersson swooped around him on the opening bends. Tomicek then closed in, and got level on the inside of Kolodziej on the second bend of lap 2, but Kolodziej held him off. Fourth-placed Smith then went wide on the fourth bend of lap 2, fell and ended up under the air fence. Fortunately he was OK, although Smith was excluded from the re-run, which looked all set to end as a 5-1 to Oxford, after Tomicek went around Kolodziej on the fourth bend to move into second place behind Andersson. Sadly, though, Tomicek's chain snapped entering the third bend of lap 3, depositing him into the air fence. Tomicek tried to remount, but there simply wasn't enough time, and the race was stopped and awarded as a 3-2 to Oxford (28-19).
With the Bulldogs 9 points in arrears, Gjedde was nominated as a tactical ride in HEAT 9. He led from the tapes, while Skornicki inadvertently took team-mate Watt wide on the second bend, allowing Simota into third. However, Skornicki then produced an aggressive move to battle inside Gjedde on the fourth bend, with contact between the two riders as Skornicki went through, while Watt passed Simota after a lap, to leave the result as a 4-4 (32-23).
HEAT 10 didn't look good for Oxford. Zagar flew from the tapes, McGowan swept under Andersson on the second bend to take second, while Rickardsson was nowhere, after being pushed out on the opening bend. However, McGowan picked up a little too much drive on the entry to the third bend of lap 2, and he rammed into the fence. McGowan hurt an ankle, although he was able to continue in the meeting. With McGowan excluded, Zagar again gated in the re-run, but Rickardsson swept around him on the second bend and then won easily. Andersson's third place left him with a highly creditable paid 8 on the afternoon (36-25).
Hancock dragged Reading back in the match by winning HEAT 11 while on double points, with Howe second. Smith and Tomicek battled for third on the opening lap, and it was Smith who came out on top, with Tomicek then pulling out on lap 3 as his engine expired. The 7-2 to the Bulldogs closed the gap to six points (38-32).
After an even break in HEAT 12, Watt made the most of his inside advantage and then moved across on the second bend to block the Reading pair of Kolodziej & McGowan. It all got very close, with McGowan squeezing around the boards into the lead, but Kolodziej was left in no man's land and dropped to fourth behind Tomicek, and Tomicek (on-board a machine belonging to Andersson) then rode a sensible race to take the third-placed point (41-35).
Since the start of the season, the Oxford fans have been wondering when the real Tony Rickardsson would turn up, and it happened in HEAT 13. Hancock gated, but soon had Rickardsson all over him. Rickardsson's outside swoop on the fourth bend was almost successful, before Rickardsson changed lines and blasted under Hancock on the back straight of lap 2. A real charging ride from Rickardsson - and one that left Oxford close to victory (44-38).
It looked good for the Cheetahs early in HEAT 14. Although Zagar led, the Oxford pair of Skornicki & Tomicek looked settled in second & third. However, it soon become clear that Tomicek was lacking power in his machine, and Kolodziej went around Tomicek after two laps. Tomicek then pulled up, with his paid 5 tally from 7 rides a very poor reward for all his efforts. Meanwhile, the match headed into a last-heat decider (46-42).
So onto HEAT 15, and it was Rickardsson & Skornicki versus Hancock & McGowan. Hancock gated ahead of Rickardsson, and for one moment it looked like McGowan may come through on the inside on the opening bends to join Hancock at the front. However, Rickardsson shrugged off McGowan's challenge and Skornicki went around McGowan into third place as the riders came out of the second bend. What followed was little short of sensational, as Rickardsson tore around Hancock in incredible style on the fourth bend and Rickardsson then powered away to win in the fastest time of the afternoon - 58.27 seconds (50-44).
To cap a memorable afternoon, Oxford promoter Aaron Lanney then ran around the circuit wearing nothing but a Cheetahs racetop, his footwear and his underpants! Lanney had made an off-the-cuff remark to local radio station Radio Oxford that he would run around the track in his underpants if Oxford beat the Bulldogs - and he was true to his word. Lanney was, understandably, elated at the victory - and the result will also be a great lift to both the Oxford riders and the supporters.
So we've finally won a match - and what a match to win! Rickardsson was class personified in his final home meeting for the Cheetahs, although it did raise questions on why some of his other performances for Oxford this season have been so lacklustre. He was well supported by the rest of the top five, in particular Adam Skornicki, while Tomicek was unlucky to have such a catalogue of misfortune befall him.

OXFORD 50
Tony Rickardsson 15 (5) (FULL MAXIMUM), Eric Andersson 7+1 (4), Davey Watt 7 (4), Adam Skornicki 11+1 (5), David Howe 7 (4), Adam Pietraszko 0 (2), Lubos Tomicek 3+2 (7).

READING 44
Greg Hancock 11 (5) (incl. 6-point tactical ride), Andy Smith 2 (4), Travis McGowan 8 (5), Matej Zagar 5 (4), Charlie Gjedde 8+2 (4) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Zdenek Simota 2+1 (3), Janusz Kolodziej 8 (5).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Rickardsson (O), Andersson (O), Hancock (R), Smith (R) (ret), 59.02 (5-1).
2: Kolodziej (R), Simota (R), Tomicek (O), Pietraszko (R) (fell), 62.05 (6-6).
3: Skornicki (O), McGowan (R), Watt (O), Zagar (R), 60.30 (10-8).
4: (Re-run) Rickardsson (O), Kolodziej (R), Gjedde (R), Pietraszko (O) (fell, excluded), Tomicek (O) (excluded, starting offence), awarded - no time (13-11).
5: (Re-run) Watt (O), Skornicki (O), Smith (R), Hancock (R) (fell, excluded), 61.83 (18-12).
6: Rickardsson (O), Gjedde (R), Andersson (O), Simota (R), 58.58 (22-14).
7: McGowan (R), Howe (O), Tomicek (O), Zagar (R), 59.77 (25-17).
8: (Re-run) Andersson (O), Kolodziej (R), Tomicek (O) (fell, excluded), Smith (R) (fell, excluded), awarded - no time (28-19).
9: Skornicki (O), Gjedde (R) (TR), Watt (O), Simota (R), 59.77 (32-23).
10: (Re-run) Rickardsson (O), Zagar (R), Andersson (O), McGowan (R) (fell, excluded), 59.02 (36-25).
11: Hancock (R) (TR), Howe (O), Smith (R), Tomicek (O) (ret), 60.24 (38-32).
12: McGowan (R), Watt (O), Tomicek (O), Kolodziej (R), 59.90 (41-35).
13: Rickardsson (O), Hancock (R), Gjedde (R), Howe (O), 58.62 (44-38).
14: Zagar (R), Skornicki (O), Kolodziej (R), Tomicek (O) (ret), 60.11 (46-42).
15: Rickardsson (O), Hancock (R), Skornicki (O), McGowan (R), 58.27 (50-44).

[Genghis]

BULLDOGS TAKE THEIR REVENGE

Friday, April 14, 2006
READING 67 OXFORD 28 (Elite League A)
Reading win aggregate point by 111-78

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: Fine.
TRACK CONDITIONS: Very slick.
REFEREE: Craig Ackroyd.

Like Oxford in the afternoon, this meeting was attended by a very sizeable crowd. Sadly Oxford were no match for the Bulldogs on their own track at Smallmead - with the meeting practically over after Reading took three 5-1s in the opening three races. Meanwhile, World Champion Tony Rickardsson's spell at Oxford came to a controversial end - with Rickardsson refusing to go out in Heat 15 for the Cheetahs.
Eric Andersson hit machinery trouble shortly before HEAT 1. Andersson emerged on Tomicek's bike, then Tomicek came racing out of the pits on Andersson's bike, but just too late for the bikes to be swapped over. In the race itself, Charlie Gjedde gated and led all the way, while Andersson got the better of tussle with Travis McGowan on the opening bends, with Howe getting past McGowan into third as a result. However, Andersson went wide on the fourth turn, and McGowan shot under both Cheetahs to go from fourth to second. Andersson kept the power on and edged back in front of McGowan as they completed the lap, but McGowan had the better line into the bend, and emerged from the second bend of lap 2 in second place as the Bulldogs took maximum points. Fourth-placed Howe ground to a halt on the third lap (5-1).
HEAT 2 and HEAT 3 were much less interesting. The first of these races saw Sam Simota and Janusz Kolodziej taking a convincing 5-1 against Lubos Tomicek and former Oxford Academy rider Jamie Courtney, the latter replacing Adam Pietraszko, who had been injured in the afternoon meeting (10-2). The latter race saw Matej Zagar and Andy Smith never troubled by Davey Watt or Adam Skornicki after beating them out of the second bend (15-3).
Tony Rickardsson broke the run of 5-1 results by winning HEAT 4 from Greg Hancock in another procession (18-6). Andersson came out on his own bike for HEAT 5, but the machine made a large bang and he eventually took his place on Watt's bike. Zagar gated, while Smith took Howe on the opening bends as Reading took a fourth maximum on the night (23-7).
Rickardsson was nominated as a tactical ride in HEAT 6, and was an easy winner ahead of the Bulldogs pair of Gjedde & McGowan (26-13).
Simota was the surprise leader of HEAT 7, while second-placed Skornicki came under pressure from Hancock. Skornicki bounced off the fence on the fourth bend of lap 1, momentarily losing second before his superior speed took him back past Hancock. Hancock stuck to the inside, and a lap later on the fourth bend of lap 2, he again got inside Skornicki and this time held onto the position (31-14).
Andersson fell in a first bend incident in HEAT 8, and referee Craig Ackroyd's decision was a restart with all 4 riders. What was rapidly turning into a dull, one-sided meeting saw McGowan & Kolodziej lead all the way in the re-run (36-15).
HEAT 9 saw a surprise. Zagar outgated Rickardsson, and then pulled out a big lead on the World Champion, with McGowan third in yet another processional race (40-17).
Reading wrapped up the match five heats early with a 5-1 from Gjedde & McGowan over Skornicki in HEAT 10. Fourth-placed Watt stopped on lap 3 (45-18).
Howe was given a TR outing in HEAT 11, and he and Andersson filled the minor placings behind Hancock to ensure a 5-3 heat advantage to Oxford (48-23).
HEAT 12 saw the first passing since Heat 7 and the first decent race since Heat 1. Watt & Courtney were first away, and Courtney made a plucky attempt to keep hold of second, but was pushed aside by Kolodziej on the back straight and then Smith as the riders completed a lap. Kolodziej then closed in on Watt, before shooting around him on the back straight of the final lap in a classy move (52-25).
Hancock & Gjedde took a 5-1 from HEAT 13, after Gjedde held off an inside challenge from Howe on the opening lap. Meanwhile, a disinterested looking Rickardsson finished a distant last, popping a few wheelies around at the back (57-26). Tomicek was left on the startline with an engine failure in HEAT 14, as Zagar & Simota defeated Skornicki (62-27).
Rickardsson then refused to turn out for HEAT 15, having apparently taken a verbal swipe at his team-mates in the pits. His actions earned condemnation from Oxford promoter Aaron Lanney, and angered the Oxford fans present. The race itself was an easy 5-1 for Zagar - who completed a faultless full maximum - and Gjedde in Reading's tenth 5-1 of the evening (67-28).
So something of a crash down back to Earth, after our win against the Bulldogs earlier in the day. The Bulldogs, hurt by defeat at Cowley, showed their class in this meeting. However, 99% of Oxford fans would have settled for 2 points out of 5 against Reading, and being competitive away is far less important than being able to win at home.
As for Rickardsson, well, quite frankly, most Oxford fans are glad to see the back of him. With the exception of the Reading home match, we only rarely saw glimpses of the form that won him six World Championships. It wasn't the lack of scoring, but rather the apparent lack of effort that upset the Oxford faithful. Todd Wiltshire will be a far better team man, and with Eric Andersson dropping to reserve, the revised team line-up looks far better balanced.

READING 67
Charlie Gjedde 12+2 (5), Travis McGowan 8+3 (4), Andy Smith 6+2 (4), Matej Zagar 15 (5) (FULL MAXIMUM), Greg Hancock 10+1 (4), Sam Simota 8+1 (4), Janusz Kolodziej 8+3 (4).

OXFORD 28
David Howe 7 (5) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Eric Andersson 2+1 (4), Davey Watt 3 (5), Adam Skornicki 3 (4), Tony Rickardsson 11 (4) (incl. 6-point tactical ride), Jamie Courtney 0 (4), Lubos Tomicek 2 (4).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Gjedde (R), McGowan (R), Andersson (O), Howe (O) (ret), 61.21 (5-1).
2: Simota (R), Kolodziej (R), Tomicek (O), Courtney (O), 61.21 (10-2).
3: Zagar (R), Smith (R), Watt (O), Skornicki (O), 62.02 (15-3).
4: Rickardsson (O), Hancock (R), Kolodziej (R), Tomicek (O), 61.06 (18-6).
5: Zagar (R), Smith (R), Howe (O), Andersson (O), 62.75 (23-7).
6: Rickardsson (O) (TR), Gjedde (R), McGowan (R), Courtney (O), 61.20 (26-13).
7: Simota (R), Hancock (R), Skornicki (O), Watt (O), 62.24 (31-14).
8: (Re-run) McGowan (R), Kolodziej (R), Tomicek (O), Andersson (O), 62.80 (36-15).
9: Zagar (R), Rickardsson (O), Smith (R), Courtney (O), 60.60 (40-17).
10: Gjedde (R), McGowan (R), Skornicki (O), Watt (O) (ret), 62.93 (45-18).
11: Hancock (R), Howe (O) (TR), Andersson (O), Simota (R), 62.05 (48-23).
12: Kolodziej (R), Watt (O), Smith (R), Courtney (O), 62.98 (52-25).
13: Hancock (R), Gjedde (R), Howe (O), Rickardsson (O), 62.83 (57-26).
14: Zagar (R), Simota (R), Skornicki (O), Tomicek (O) (ret), 62.02 (62-27).
15: Zagar (R), Gjedde (R), Howe (O), Watt (O), 61.90 (67-28).

[Genghis]

Reserved for Eastbourne v Oxford - April 21

[Genghis]

CHEETAHS WELL BEATEN, BUT SOME SIGNS OF ENCOURAGEMENT

Tuesday, April 25, 2006
PETERBOROUGH 63 OXFORD 31 (Elite League A)
Peterborough win aggregate point by 110-73

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: Fine.
TRACK CONDITIONS: A bit patchy.
REFEREE: Tony Steele.

On the face of it, this was another heavy away defeat for Oxford, with Peterborough providing all 15 heat winners in this televised Elite League clash. However, encouraging performances from Todd Wiltshire, Freddie Eriksson & Lubos Tomicek meant that it wasn't a completely negative night from a Cheetahs perspective.
Hans Andersen was a convincing winner of HEAT 1, after just beating Todd Wiltshire to the first bend. Davey Watt passed Jonas Raun on the second lap to take third, as the evening started with a shared heat (3-3).
HEAT 2 also looked set to finish as a 3-3. Lubos Tomicek made a rare gate, while an Eric Andersson effort to go in between the Panthers reserve pair of Richard Hall & Ulrich Ostergaard on the second turn proved unsuccessful. However, at the end of the second lap, race-leader Tomicek was forced to pull out with a seized engine, and the Panthers took a somewhat lucky 5-1 (8-4).
Adam Skornicki was the early leader in HEAT 3, but Niels-Kristian Iversen barged him aside in a no-nonsense move down the back straight. This created an opening on the inside for Jesper B Jensen, who swept from third to first, to join team-mate Iversen for another 5-1 to the Panthers (13-5).
HEAT 4 saw Ryan Sullivan & Ostergaard slam in maximum points against Andersson and a struggling David Howe, and already the Panthers were 12 points ahead (18-6).
There was a little bit of argy bargy coming out of the tapes in HEAT 5. Wiltshire & Watt briefly had the upper hand, but Jensen's leg had become attached with Watt's bike, and Watt was dragged down to the ground, with Jensen lucky not to also fall. Referee Tony Steele, who enjoyed an excellent evening, correctly called an all-four restart. The re-run saw an even break, with Iversen taking the lead out of the second bend, after a good run around the outside. The Oxford boys briefly held second & third, but Jensen passed Watt for third after a lap. However, Wiltshire stayed ahead of Jensen and the Cheetahs had, at least, stopped the run of 5-1s to the Panthers (22-8).
Andersen & Raun gated in HEAT 6, but Tomicek was quickly into second place. Meanwhile, Howe's nightmare evening continued as his bike stopped and started for a couple of laps, before he pulled up (26-10).
HEAT 7 saw a share of the spoils, with Sullivan a convincing winner, while Skornicki tucked in behind Eriksson to ensure a 3-3 (29-13).
Watt was nominated as a tactical ride by Oxford manager Graeme Gordon in HEAT 8, but it was team-mate Tomicek who streaked from the tapes ahead of Ostergaard. Ostergaard hunted Tomicek down, and on the back straight of lap 3, Ostergaard squeezed between the Czech and the fence to take the lead - a high quality pass from a rider who has enjoyed a fantastic start to the 2006 season. On the final bend of the race, Tomicek slowed and allowed Watt into second to gain Oxford an extra point in a 5-3 heat advantage to the Cheetahs (32-18).
Jensen & Iversen gated in HEAT 9, and after a failed attempt to move under the Panthers on the second bend, the still struggling Howe then dropped back and was passed by team-mate Tomicek (37-19).
Eriksson wore the black-and-white helmet colour for double points in HEAT 10, and although he shot from the tapes, Andersen chopped under him on the second bend to take over the lead. Raun held third ahead of Skornicki, but went wide on the opening bend of lap 2, allowing Skornicki through. Raun then attempted to hit back on the outside coming out of the second bend, but judged the corner incorrectly, lifted and clobbered the fence down the back straight as he tried to correct himself, taking an awkward-looking tumble in the process. Fortunately, Raun was alright, although he was excluded from the re-run. Second time around, both Eriksson & Skornicki beat Andersen from the tapes, but Andersen went around them in imperious style on the second bend and didn't look back. Another 5-3 to Oxford - strange that we took two heat advantages on a night where we failed to have a heat winner! (40-24).
HEAT 11 was the race of the night. Sullivan gated, but soon had Wiltshire in close attendance. Wiltshire went to the outside at the end of the second lap, then switched lines to sweep under Sullivan on the opening bends of lap 3, with Wiltshire putting his front wheel across the centre green as he made his move (which is, of course, perfectly legal, as long as the back wheel doesn't follow). Sullivan wasn't beaten and swept around Wiltshire at the end of the lap, however the race then had to be stopped, as fourth-placed Hall had fallen. As the Sullivan / Wiltshire duel had still been going on, referee Tony Steele sensibly called for a re-run. This did bring about a protest from Peterborough manager Trevor Swales, who felt the race should have been awarded to Sullivan, however as the rulebook now reads, had the race have been awarded, it would have been to Wiltshire, who was leading when Hall fell. In the re-run, Sullivan again got ahead, with Wiltshire in close attendance on lap 2, but Sullivan then pulled out a small but telling lead (43-27).
HEAT 12 began a run of Peterborough 5-1s that lasted until the end of the evening. Jensen gated, while Ostergaard shot around Tomicek on the back straight of lap 1, with Ostergaard really pushing it and nearly coming a cropper on the next bend (48-28).
Wiltshire gated in HEAT 13, but although he tried hard to maintain his lead, he was overcome by Sullivan (on the final two bends of lap 1) and Andersen (on the first bend of lap 2), while Eric Andersson came in for Howe and finished fourth (53-29).
Iversen & Hall took a 5-1 from HEAT 14, with Eriksson almost under Hall after a lap, but Hall holding him off (58-30).
HEAT 15 saw Andersen & Sullivan both complete paid maximums, while Tomicek took the third-placed point and Eriksson pulled up with an engine failure (63-31).
So Oxford were well beaten by a very impressive looking Peterborough side, but not disgraced. The Panthers, pre-season EL favourites, have now got dialled in to their Showground circuit, and the Cheetahs won't be the last team to conceded 60+ points at the Showground.

PETERBOROUGH 63
Hans Andersen 14+1 (5) (PAID MAXIMUM), Jonas Raun 1 (4), Jesper B Jensen 10 (4), Niels Kristian Iversen 10+2 (4) (PAID MAXIMUM), Ryan Sullivan 14+1 (5) (PAID MAXIMUM), Richard Hall 5+1 (4), Ulrich Ostergaard 9+3 (4) (PAID MAXIMUM).

OXFORD 31
Todd Wiltshire 7 (4), Davey Watt 6+2 (4) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Adam Skornicki 4+2 (4), Freddie Eriksson 7 (5) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Lubos Tomicek 5+1 (6), Eric Andersson 2 (4).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Andersen (P), Wiltshire (O), Watt (O), Raun (P) (3-3).
2: Hall (P), Ostergaard (P), Andersson (O), Tomicek (O) (ret) (8-4).
3: Jensen (P), Iversen (P), Skornicki (O), Eriksson (O) (13-5).
4: Sullivan (P), Ostergaard (P), Andersson (O), Howe (O) (18-6).
5: (Re-run) Iversen (P), Wiltshire (O), Jensen (P), Watt (O) (22-8).
6: Andersen (P), Tomicek (O), Raun (P), Howe (O) (ret) (26-10).
7: Sullivan (P), Eriksson (O), Skornicki (O), Hall (P) (29-13).
8: Ostergaard (P), Watt (O) (TR), Tomicek (O), Raun (P) (32-18).
9: Jensen (P), Iversen (P), Tomicek (O), Howe (O) (37-19)
10: (Re-run) Andersen (P), Eriksson (O) (TR), Skornicki (O), Raun (P) (fell, excluded) (40-24).
11: (Re-run) Sullivan (P), Wiltshire (O), Watt (O), Hall (P) (fell, excluded) (43-27).
12: Jensen (P), Ostergaard (P), Skornicki (O), Tomicek (O) (48-28).
13: Sullivan (P), Andersen (P), Wiltshire (O), Andersson (O) (53-29).
14: Iversen (P), Hall (P), Eriksson (O), Andersson (O) (58-30).
15: Andersen (P), Sullivan (P), Tomicek (O), Eriksson (O) (ret) (63-31).

[Genghis]

CHEETAHS BEAT LEAGUE CHAMPIONS!

Wednesday, April 26, 2006
OXFORD 47 COVENTRY 43 (Elite League A)

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley
WEATHER: Fine.
TRACK CONDITIONS: Excellent.
MAN OF THE MATCH: Todd Wiltshire.
REFEREE: Dale Entwistle.

Todd Wiltshire made a dream return to Cowley, as he inspired the Cheetahs to a well-deserved victory over the reigning Elite League Champions, Coventry. In a riveting match, Oxford put in their best team performance of the season, and made secure of the two league points with a 5-1 in Heat 14 from Freddie Eriksson, also making his 2006 home debut for Oxford, and Tomasz Piszcz, who put in a sensational guest performance.
Wiltshire beat Chris Harris to the first turn to win HEAT 1, while Davey Watt blasted around Billy Janniro with a lap remaining to take third (4-2).
A tight first bend of HEAT 2 saw Olly Allen fall after being squeezed out, with the race stopped with Tomasz Piszcz and Eric Andersson holding a 5-1 for the Cheetahs. Referee Dale Entwistle decided on all four back, and another hotly contested first bend in the re-run saw Martin Smolinski take an early lead. However, Piszcz battled around him on the back straight, and Andersson then looked for a route past Smolinski, but none materialised and Andersson had to be content with the third-placed point (8-4).
Skornicki gated in HEAT 3 ahead of Risager, while Schlein swooped around the outside on the second bend to move from fourth to second and leave Eriksson in last place. Schlein then closed in Skornicki, before performing a well-executed move to charge around Skornicki on the second bend of the final circuit, to become Coventry's first heat winner (10-8).
Allen edged into the lead early in HEAT 4, and when Nicholls went around the outside of Howe on the second bend and moved from third to first, it didn't look good for the Cheetahs. But moments later Howe took second from Allen, and then Andersson flew around Allen at the conclusion of the opening lap, as the Cheetahs salvaged a 3-3 (13-11).
Janniro & Harris took a very lucky 5-1 in HEAT 5, after race leader Skornicki suffered ignition problems on lap 2 and was forced to retire (14-16).
HEAT 6 saw a trademark fast start from Wiltshire, only for the referee to deem it as unsatisfactory. Video evidence suggested that Wiltshire had not been moving before the start, and his start had all been down to quick reactions. In the re-run, Nicholls got clear with Wiltshire & Watt packing the minor positions (17-19).
Howe gated in HEAT 7, while a superb run around the outside by Piszcz on the opening lap took him past Schlein on the second bend and Risager on the fourth bend. Piszcz was soon back under pressure from Risager, then with Schlein closing in on the outside, Piszcz had an opponent in close contention on either side. Schlein eventually got around Piszcz on the back straight of the final lap, but Piszcz retained his composure and stopped Risager from getting through on the inside on the final bend (21-21).
The luck with engine failures evened itself out in HEAT 8. Janniro & Allen got out in front, then Watt had little success in his quest to get around Allen. Watt went wide on the final bend of lap 3 and the race seemed over, but moments later Allen slowed and ground to a halt and Coventry were denied what had looked like a Bees 5-1 (24-24).
Nicholls won a shared HEAT 9, with Skornicki & Eriksson settling for the 3-3 (27-27), while HEAT 10 saw a high quality ride from Todd Wiltshire. Watt gated ahead of Schlein, but Wiltshire kept it screwed on and shot around Schlein on the back straight. Schlein attempted to hit back on the inside entering the third bend, but Wiltshire had his measure, with Wiltshire then settling into second place behind Watt to ensure the 5-1 and give the Cheetahs a four-point lead heading into the interval break (32-28).
Howe again showed he had his gating head on in HEAT 11, while Piszcz produced another fine outside run to fly around Janniro on the second bend to move into second. Piszcz then resisted pressure from Harris up the back straight of lap 1, but a lap later, Harris bustled inside, and with Piszcz still wide, Janniro came inside him on the fourth bend. Piszcz attempted to hit back, but was a faller on the second bend of lap 3, and he got his machine off the track to allow the race to continue. Harris got level on the inside of race-leader Howe with a lap to go, but Howe, showing a new found resolution, held him off to win the race (35-31).
HEAT 12 saw Skornicki & Andersson on a possible 5-1, but Andersson came under increasing pressure from the Coventry pair of Smolinski & Risager. On the second bend of lap 3, Andersson locked up and drifted slightly wide, with Smolinski getting into second place as a result. Andersson then righted himself, but Risager ran into the back of him and fell. The ref stopped the race and after some deliberation excluded Andersson as the cause of the stoppage, also awarding the race as a 3-3. Andersson can count himself unlucky, as there are many referees who would have called it the other way, due to Andersson being in front of Risager and therefore having the choice of racing lines (38-34).
Wiltshire was fastest away in HEAT 13, but Harris moved inside him on the second bend and Nicholls looked all set to follow through on the back straight. However, Wiltshire kept the power on, and to a large roar from the delighted Cheetahs fans, he charged back around Harris on the fourth bend. Harris is a rider who never gives up, and he was close to getting back under Wiltshire on the back straight of the final lap, but Wiltshire held him off to take a very important race win and maintain Oxford's four-point lead (41-37).
After a dazzling night's Speedway, it was appropriate that a scintillating HEAT 14 should settle the meeting. Piszcz led from the tapes, but Schlein cut under him on the second bend to take the lead, with Eriksson inside Allen into third at the same time. Piszcz got back under Schlein on the third bend after switching to the inside, and with the leading three riders in close quarters, Eriksson then forced a path inside Schlein on the back straight of lap 2. Schlein stayed in contention, but the Oxford pair combined to allow him no way back past, and the race finished with Piszcz & Eriksson taking a match-winning 5-1 just ahead of the still pressing Schlein (46-38).
HEAT 15 saw another very fast start from Wiltshire, and just as in Heat 6, the ref stopped the race stating an unsatisfactory start. However, yet again, the video suggested Wiltshire had made a fair start. In the re-run, Nicholls got into the lead, while Harris cut under Wiltshire on the back straight, as the Bees took a consolation 5-1 (47-43).
So the end of a highly satisfying night for the Cheetahs. Oxford's previous win over Reading had largely come about by the Bulldogs psyching themselves out of the meeting. However, this time, Oxford won the meeting as opposed to their opponents losing it, with every Cheetah contributing important points at one stage or another, and the team riding much better with each other than has been the case at other times this season.
And while it was a team performance, the influence of Todd Wiltshire cannot can underestimated. Wiltshire was involved in the psychologically important 5-1 in Heat 10, and then rode a blinder in Heat 13. But equally important was the encouragement given by Wiltshire to his team-mates. When interviewed in the post-match press conference, David Howe admitted that after his disastrous performance at Peterborough, he woke up in the morning wondering if he wanted to ride a bike again. But Wiltshire had a pre-match talk with Howe and got him motivated for the meeting, with Howe responding with his best performance of the season. Hopefully Howe has now taken off some of the pressure he has been placing on his own shoulders, and he can show people the talented motorcyclist he obviously is.

OXFORD 47
Todd Wiltshire 11+1 (5), Davey Watt 6+2 (5), Adam Skornicki 7 (4), Freddie Eriksson 5+1 (4), David Howe 8 (4), Tomasz Piszcz (guest for Lubos Tomicek) 6+1 (4), Eric Andersson 4+1 (4).

COVENTRY 43
Chris Harris 10+2 (5), Billy Janniro 7+1 (4), Morten Risager 2+1 (4), Rory Schlein 7 (4), Scott Nicholls 13+1 (5), Martin Smolinski 4 (4), Olly Allen 0 (4).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Wiltshire (O), Harris (C), Watt (O), Janniro (C), 59.65 (4-2).
2: (Re-run) Piszcz (O), Smolinski (C), Andersson (O), Allen (C), 60.58 (8-4).
3: Schlein (C), Skornicki (O), Risager (C), Eriksson (O), 60.37 (10-8).
4: Nicholls (C), Howe (O), Andersson (O), Allen (C), 59.86 (13-11).
5: Janniro (C), Harris (C), Eriksson (O), Skornicki (O) (ret), 60.77 (14-16).
6: (Re-run) Nicholls (C), Wiltshire (O), Watt (O), Smolinski (C), 59.02 (17-19).
7: Howe (O), Schlein (C), Piszcz (O), Risager (C), 60.43 (21-21).
8: Janniro (C), Andersson (O), Watt (O), Allen (C) (ret), 60.65 (24-24).
9: Nicholls (C), Skornicki (O), Eriksson (O), Smolinski (C), 60.52 (27-27).
10: Watt (O), Wiltshire (O), Schlein (C), Risager (C), 60.95 (32-28).
11: Howe (O), Harris (C), Janniro (C), Piszcz (O) (fell), 61.20 (35-31).
12: Skornicki (O), Smolinski (C), Risager (C), Andersson (O) (excluded, cause of stoppage), awarded - no time (38-34).
13: Wiltshire (O), Harris (C), Nicholls (C), Howe (O), 61.24 (41-37).
14: Eriksson (O), Piszcz (O), Schlein (C), Allen (C), 62.68 (46-38).
15: (Re-run) Nicholls (C), Harris (C), Wiltshire (O), Watt (O), 61.80 (47-43).

[Genghis]

CHEETAHS TAKE BEES TO LAST-HEAT DECIDER!

Friday, April 28, 2006
COVENTRY 50 OXFORD 42 (Elite League A)
Coventry win aggregate bonus point by 93-89

REPORT BY: Rob Peasley

WEATHER: OK.
TRACK CONDITIONS: Fair.
REFEREE: Ronnie Allan.

Oxford put in easily their best away performance of the season at Brandon, leading in the opening part of the match and were still in with a chance of both a draw and the bonus point going into the final race. Scott Nicholls & Rory Schlein took a 5-1 from Heat 15 which secured all three league points for the reigning Elite League Champions, but Oxford had given the Bees a real battle and regained some pride after conceding 60 points or more in the previous three away matches.
Todd Wiltshire gated ahead of Chris Harris in HEAT 1, with Davey Watt & Billy Janniro involved in an early battle for third spot. Watt took the advantage on the third bend and pulled away from Janniro, while Wiltshire withstood a late challenge from Harris to win the race (2-4).
Eric Andersson was the early leader in HEAT 2, but clearly either man or machine wasn't properly dialled into the track, as Olly Allen flew past Andersson on the fourth turn and, by the second bend of the second lap, team-mate Clews and Smolinski had also passed the young Swede. However, Andersson then buckled down, and forced a route back inside Smolinski on the second bend of the final lap, to regain third and ensure a shared heat (5-7).
HEAT 3 saw an unfortunate accident to Coventry's Morten Risager. The Dane was in third behind Adam Skornicki & Rory Schlein when he touched the inside kerb entering the third bend, lost control and fell. Unfortunately, the following Freddie Eriksson was too close to take avoiding action and he clipped Risager as he also came down. Eriksson was soon back on his feet, but it was obvious that Risager wasn't going to be so fortunate, and a battered and bruised Risager was taken off by ambulance to the local hospital for precautionary x-rays to check that nothing was broken. In the re-run, Skornicki beat lone Coventry rider Schlein to the first bend, and pinned him to the inside to allow Eriksson into second place. Schlein's frantic pursuit of Eriksson came to an end when he fell on the fourth bend of lap 2, and Schlein then had to remount to take the third-placed point. The 5-1 to Oxford was the team's first maximum heat advantage away from home in 2006 (6-12).
Eric Andersson was involved in a bizarre pre-race accident in HEAT 4, when he flipped his machine doing a practice start on the back straight. Andersson was down for a bit, before getting back up but the bike was damaged, and he was excluded under the two-minute time allowance and replaced by Paul Clews. The race itself was a fairly straightforward 4-2 to Coventry, with Scott Nicholls starting his evening with a win over David Howe (10-14).
Wiltshire led HEAT 5 for three laps, before Schlein - who had been a constant threat on the outside - finally charged past the Oxford man to win the race. With Watt in third, the Cheetahs stayed four points ahead (13-17).
Howe gave further evidence that he has got his game together by winning HEAT 6 ahead of Janniro & Harris, despite the close attentions of Janniro, who was a constant threat, especially on the inside coming off the second bend (16-20).
Coventry pulled level as Nicholls & Smolinski led all the way in HEAT 7 from Skornicki & Eriksson (21-21), while Watt kept Oxford level with a stunning ride in HEAT 8. Beaten from the start by Allen & Janniro, Watt battled inside Janniro on the fourth turn of lap 1, then he flew around Allen at the halfway stage of the race to move into the lead (24-24).
Howe gated in HEAT 9 from Schlein, while Clews bustled under Allen to take third on the second bend. Allen hit back by going under Clews on the first bend of lap 2, then Clews came a cropper as he attempted to sweep back around Allen on the following bend. The race had to be stopped, with Clews excluded. In the re-run, Schlein got away and Howe, leading at the time of the stoppage, had to settle for second place (28-26).
Coventry extended their lead in the final race before the interval, HEAT 10. Janniro gated, while Harris weaved between the Oxford pair of Skornicki & Eriksson on the second place to join Janniro for a 5-1 (33-27).
Watt was left at the tapes after a ragged start to HEAT 11, and referee Ronnie Allan stopped the race and brought all four back for another go. In the re-run, it looked good for the Bees as Nicholls took the lead with Wiltshire at the back after receiving a contact from Smolinski entering the first bend. However, Wiltshire cut to the inside and charged under Smolinski on the back straight, then a loss of control from Smolinski on the opening bend of lap 2, that saw Smolinski momentarily heading for the fence, allowed Watt into third place, as Oxford salvaged a-3-3 from the race (36-30).
HEAT 12 looked like a killer blow for Oxford. Allen & Smolinski got out in front, but Skornicki tried hard all the way, and a final sweep around the outside coming off the final bend left him extremely close to the Coventry riders. But the ref's verdict went to the Bees pair and the 5-1 left them 10 points ahead with just three races to go (41-31).
Oxford team boss Graeme Gordon selected Wiltshire as a tactical ride in HEAT 13. Nicholls outgated Wiltshire, while Howe won an early contest for third with Harris. Harris went wider & wider in an attempt to get around Howe and wasn't far behind at the end of the race, but Howe held on. With Wiltshire's two points doubled to four, it meant a 5-3 to Oxford (44-36).
The Cheetahs now needed two 5-1s to force a draw. In HEAT 14, Andersson & Eriksson took command of the race after a brutal first bend. Schlein closed in, and entering the third bend of the final lap, Schlein had got level on the outside of Eriksson. It looked like Schlein had the speed to get past, but Eriksson wasn't ready to give up, Schlein slipped slightly wider than he would have liked on the final bend, and Eriksson took the verdict for second place by a whisker. So, for the first time in 2006, Oxford had forced a last-heat decider. And, to add a little extra interest, it was now all level in terms of the aggregate score over the two legs (45-41).
HEAT 15 was a slight anti-climax. Nicholls & Schlein beat Wiltshire & Howe to the first turn, and that was that, as the Coventry pair then extended their lead to ensure all three points for the Bees (50-42).
So it's suddenly looking a lot brighter. The home win against the Bees two days earlier was a huge boost to everyone connected with the club, and that momentum was carried forward into this match. Early on, a shock away win looked a possibility, and although that didn't happen and also we didn't quite hold onto the bonus point, this can still be judged as a very positive result for Oxford Speedway.
Great to see David Howe amongst the points again as well. Todd Wiltshire's arrival really seems to have helped Howe, as indeed it has the rest of the team. It just shows what a difference a rider of Todd's stature can make to a side.

COVENTRY 50
Chris Harris 6+1 (4), Billy Janniro 5+2 (4), Morten Risager 0 (1), Rory Schlein 10+1 (5), Scott Nicholls 15 (5) (FULL MAXIMUM), Martin Smolinski 4+2 (5), Olly Allen 10 (6).

OXFORD 42
Todd Wiltshire 11 (5) (incl. 4-point tactical ride), Davey Watt 6+2 (4), Adam Skornicki 6 (4), Freddie Eriksson 4+2 (4), David Howe 9+1 (5), Paul Clews (guest for Lubos Tomicek) 2 (4), Eric Andersson 4+1 (4).

HEAT DETAILS:
1: Wiltshire (O), Harris (C), Watt (O), Janniro (C), 58.8 (2-4).
2: Allen (C), Clews (O), Andersson (O), Smolinski (C), 60.5 (5-7).
3: (Re-run) Skornicki (O), Eriksson (O), Schlein (C) (fell, remounted), Risager (C) (fell, excluded), 60.2 (6-12).
4: (Re-run) Nicholls (C), Howe (O), Allen (C), Clews (O), Andersson (O) (excluded, two minutes), 59.9 (10-14).
5: Schlein (C), Wiltshire (O), Watt (O), Smolinski (C), 59.5 (13-17).
6: Howe (O), Janniro (C), Harris (C), Clews (O), 60.1 (16-20).
7: Nicholls (C), Smolinski (C), Skornicki (O), Eriksson (O), 59.4 (21-21).
8: Watt (O), Allen (C), Janniro (C), Andersson (O), 60.2 (24-24).
9: (Re-run) Schlein (C), Howe (O), Risager (C), Clews (O) (fell, excluded), 59.1 (28-26).
10: Harris (C), Janniro (C), Skornicki (O), Eriksson (O), 60.9 (33-27).
11: (Re-run) Nicholls (C), Wiltshire (O), Watt (O), Smolinski (C), 59.4 (36-30).
12: Allen (C), Smolinski (C), Skornicki (O), Andersson (O), 61.1 (41-31).
13: Nicholls (C), Wiltshire (O) (TR), Howe (O), Harris (C), 60.1 (44-36).
14: Andersson (O), Eriksson (O), Schlein (C), Allen (C), 61.6 (45-41).
15: Nicholls (C), Schlein (C), Howe (O), Wiltshire (O), 60.8 (50-42).

[stuartroad]

May 6, 2008 20:33:56 GMT Genghis said:

CHEETAHS WELL BEATEN, BUT SOME SIGNS OF ENCOURAGEMENT

Tuesday, April 25, 2006
PETERBOROUGH 63 OXFORD 31 (Elite League A)
Peterborough win aggregate point by 110-73

BOLLOCKS BY: Rob Peasley

what the fuck are you doing genghis,you are completely ruining my wwos experience,most people on here,like me have the attention span of a goldfish, when you post we are pretty sure it will be BOLLOCKS but we dont need 10000 words to prove it. STOP IT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!