Post by Genghis on Sept 27, 2007 20:11:13 GMT
Hi guys - I've been pretty busy the last week, so this has been my first change to post these across onto here... another three to follow.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
CLEVELAND BAYS 43 OXFORD LCD PUBLISHING CHEETAHS 49
Oxford win aggregate point by 119-61
(Conference League)
The LCD Publishing Cheetahs were made to work hard, before overcoming the Cleveland Bays to pick up the three league points which ensure that Oxford will avoid Scunthorpe in the semi-finals of the play-offs.
Director of Speedway Peter Oakes had his full top six available for this meeting - and Kyle Hughes was the unlucky rider to miss out.
Promising 15-year-old Kye Norton, younger brother of former Oxford rider Danny Norton, was plucked out of the pool of Grade 1 riders to accompany Brendan Johnson at reserve.
Lee Smethills won 5-1 in a time of 55.1 seconds - thus becoming the joint second fastest visitor at CL level at the South Tees Motorsport Park during 2007. With Mark "Buzz" Burrows in second and Sam Martin third, the Cheetahs took an opening 4-2 heat advantage (2-4).
Cleveland's reserve pairing of Martin Emerson and Rusty Hodgson hit back with a 5-1 in Heat 2, with Norton falling in pursuit of Hodgson, and Johnson coming through to take third (7-5).
Heat 3 looked good for the Cheetahs as Jordan Frampton & Andrew Bargh leapt from the tapes. But Steve Jones raced around Bargh after a lap, while race-leader Frampton suffered a puncture on the second lap. Jones & Bargh were still battling it out, but Jones came out on top, and the Bays took a 4-2 (11-7).
Danny Betson defeated Jones to get off to a winning start in Heat 4, but with Emerson flying around Norton on the second bend, the race was shared (14-10).
Smethills led all the way in Heat 5, while Martin missed the gate, but then commenced a thrilling chase, blasting around Emerson on the third bend of lap 1, and still sticking to the outside line, he passed Gary Beaton for second place as they completed the halfway stage of the race. However, Martin then slid a little too wide on the second bend of lap 3, and Beaton came through, and then blocked Martin's attempts to get back past. An entertaining race finished as a 4-2 to the Cheetahs (16-14).
Betson & Burrows charged to the first turn side-by-side in Heat 6, but a no-nonsense first bend by Betson saw him take charge of the race and it almost created an opening for Johnson. The race then settled down as another 4-2 to Oxford (18-18).
Frampton led Heat 7, while Bargh came inside Hodgson on fourth turn to take third. However, Bargh's pursuit of second-placed Jones was cut short when fourth-placed Hodgson came down awkwardly on the third bend of lap 3. With race-leader Frampton on his final lap, the race was awarded as a 4-2 to the visitors (20-22).
Martin swept around the outside on the opening bends to win a shared Heat 8 (23-25), while the Bays levelled the scores with a 4-2 in Heat 9, with Burrows inflicting the first defeat of the evening on Betson (27-27).
Heat 10 was halted after Mike Pickering and Bargh came down on the first turn. All four riders were allowed in the re-run, and although Pickering looked a doubtful starter at one stage, he eventually took his place in the re-start. Frampton led all the way, while Bargh found himself pushed very wide by Burrows on the first bend; he almost came to a stop and lost a lot of ground. Bargh set off in pursuit of third-placed Pickering, and made real inroads, and would have been right with the Cleveland rider given another lap. The race finished as a 3-3, as the teams remained deadlocked together (30-30).
Martin and Smethills flew out of the tapes to inflict a 5-1 on Jones in Heat 11, with fourth-placed Hodgson falling and remounting on the opening turns (31-35).
Bargh gated in Heat 12, with Emerson taking up pursuit of the New Zealander. However, Emerson looked a little unsteady, and after nearly falling on the fourth bend, he came a cropper on the second bend of lap 2. With Emerson clearing the track, the race continued, and Johnson started to close in on Beaton. However, Johnson's pursuit was halted when he fell on the opening bends of lap 4, and he then remounted to take the third-placed point (33-39).
The Cheetahs maintained their run of heat advantages, with a 4-2 in Heat 13, with Smethills withstanding an early challenge from Burrows, with Betson in third (35-43).
Cleveland team manager Jason Pipe introduced Burrows into Heat 14 as a tactical substitute off the 15m marker. Frampton & Johnson got out in front, but Beaton edged inside Johnson on the fourth turn, while 43-year-old Burrows blasted around the Oxford youngster nearly a third of his age on the second bend of lap 2. However, it took Burrows a further two laps to get past team-mate Beaton, and by then Frampton was well on his way to the race win which clinched the meeting for the Cheetahs (40-46).
Smethills's chances of a paid maximum were ended by a ruthless first bend by Burrows, as the home skipper headed home a shared Heat 15, also inflicting the only proper defeat of the evening on Frampton (43-49).
CLEVELAND BAYS 43
Mark Burrows 2 2 3 2 2 4# 3 (18)
Mike Pickering 0 0 1* 1* (2+2)
Rider replacement - Jack Hargreaves
Gary Beaton 1 2 1 2 1* 0 (7+1)
Steve Jones 3 2 2 1 0 (8)
Rusty Hodgson 2* FX 0 (2+1)
Martin Emerson 3 1* 0 2 F (6+1)
Team manager: Jason Pipe
OXFORD LCD PUBLISHING CHEETAHS 49
Lee Smethills 3 3 2* 3 1* (12+2)
Sam Martin 1 1 3 3 (8)
Andrew Bargh 2 1 0 3 (6)
Jordan Frampton R 3 3 3 2 (11)
Danny Betson 3 3 2 1 (9)
Brendan Johnson 1 1 0 1 0 (3)
Kye Norton F 0 0 (0)
Team manager: Peter Oakes
Referee: Craig Ackroyd
# = tactical substitute from 15m
HEAT DETAILS:
1: Smethills (O), Burrows (C), Martin (O), Pickering (C), 55.1 (2-4).
2: Emerson (C), Hodgson (C), Johnson (O), Norton (O) (fell), 56.9 (7-5).
3: Jones (C), Bargh (O), Beaton (C), Frampton (O) (ret), 59.0 (11-7).
4: Betson (O), Jones (C), Emerson (C), Norton (O), 56.4 (14-10).
5: Smethills (O), Beaton (C), Martin (O), Emerson (C), 56.6 (16-14).
6: Betson (O), Burrows (C), Johnson (O), Pickering (C), 56.4 (18-18).
7: Frampton (O), Jones (C), Bargh (O), Hodgson (C) (fell, excluded), awarded - no time (20-22).
8: Martin (O), Emerson (C), Pickering (C), Johnson (O), 56.3 (23-25).
9: Burrows (C), Betson (O), Beaton (C), Norton (O), 56.7 (27-27).
10: (Re-run) Frampton (O), Burrows (C), Pickering (C), Bargh (O), 56.4 (30-30).
11: Martin (O), Smethills (O), Jones (C), Hodgson (C) (fell, remounted), 56.4 (31-35).
12: Bargh (O), Beaton (C), Johnson (O) (fell, remounted), Emerson (C) (fell), 56.9 (33-39).
13: Smethills (O), Burrows (C), Betson (O), Jones (C), 55.6 (35-43).
14: Frampton (O), Burrows (C) (t/s - off 15m), Beaton (C), Johnson (O), 56.4 (40-46).
15: Burrows (C), Frampton (O), Smethills (O), Beaton (C), 56.2 (43-49).
REPORT: ROB PEASLEY
Thursday, September 20, 2007
CLEVELAND BAYS 43 OXFORD LCD PUBLISHING CHEETAHS 49
Oxford win aggregate point by 119-61
(Conference League)
The LCD Publishing Cheetahs were made to work hard, before overcoming the Cleveland Bays to pick up the three league points which ensure that Oxford will avoid Scunthorpe in the semi-finals of the play-offs.
Director of Speedway Peter Oakes had his full top six available for this meeting - and Kyle Hughes was the unlucky rider to miss out.
Promising 15-year-old Kye Norton, younger brother of former Oxford rider Danny Norton, was plucked out of the pool of Grade 1 riders to accompany Brendan Johnson at reserve.
Lee Smethills won 5-1 in a time of 55.1 seconds - thus becoming the joint second fastest visitor at CL level at the South Tees Motorsport Park during 2007. With Mark "Buzz" Burrows in second and Sam Martin third, the Cheetahs took an opening 4-2 heat advantage (2-4).
Cleveland's reserve pairing of Martin Emerson and Rusty Hodgson hit back with a 5-1 in Heat 2, with Norton falling in pursuit of Hodgson, and Johnson coming through to take third (7-5).
Heat 3 looked good for the Cheetahs as Jordan Frampton & Andrew Bargh leapt from the tapes. But Steve Jones raced around Bargh after a lap, while race-leader Frampton suffered a puncture on the second lap. Jones & Bargh were still battling it out, but Jones came out on top, and the Bays took a 4-2 (11-7).
Danny Betson defeated Jones to get off to a winning start in Heat 4, but with Emerson flying around Norton on the second bend, the race was shared (14-10).
Smethills led all the way in Heat 5, while Martin missed the gate, but then commenced a thrilling chase, blasting around Emerson on the third bend of lap 1, and still sticking to the outside line, he passed Gary Beaton for second place as they completed the halfway stage of the race. However, Martin then slid a little too wide on the second bend of lap 3, and Beaton came through, and then blocked Martin's attempts to get back past. An entertaining race finished as a 4-2 to the Cheetahs (16-14).
Betson & Burrows charged to the first turn side-by-side in Heat 6, but a no-nonsense first bend by Betson saw him take charge of the race and it almost created an opening for Johnson. The race then settled down as another 4-2 to Oxford (18-18).
Frampton led Heat 7, while Bargh came inside Hodgson on fourth turn to take third. However, Bargh's pursuit of second-placed Jones was cut short when fourth-placed Hodgson came down awkwardly on the third bend of lap 3. With race-leader Frampton on his final lap, the race was awarded as a 4-2 to the visitors (20-22).
Martin swept around the outside on the opening bends to win a shared Heat 8 (23-25), while the Bays levelled the scores with a 4-2 in Heat 9, with Burrows inflicting the first defeat of the evening on Betson (27-27).
Heat 10 was halted after Mike Pickering and Bargh came down on the first turn. All four riders were allowed in the re-run, and although Pickering looked a doubtful starter at one stage, he eventually took his place in the re-start. Frampton led all the way, while Bargh found himself pushed very wide by Burrows on the first bend; he almost came to a stop and lost a lot of ground. Bargh set off in pursuit of third-placed Pickering, and made real inroads, and would have been right with the Cleveland rider given another lap. The race finished as a 3-3, as the teams remained deadlocked together (30-30).
Martin and Smethills flew out of the tapes to inflict a 5-1 on Jones in Heat 11, with fourth-placed Hodgson falling and remounting on the opening turns (31-35).
Bargh gated in Heat 12, with Emerson taking up pursuit of the New Zealander. However, Emerson looked a little unsteady, and after nearly falling on the fourth bend, he came a cropper on the second bend of lap 2. With Emerson clearing the track, the race continued, and Johnson started to close in on Beaton. However, Johnson's pursuit was halted when he fell on the opening bends of lap 4, and he then remounted to take the third-placed point (33-39).
The Cheetahs maintained their run of heat advantages, with a 4-2 in Heat 13, with Smethills withstanding an early challenge from Burrows, with Betson in third (35-43).
Cleveland team manager Jason Pipe introduced Burrows into Heat 14 as a tactical substitute off the 15m marker. Frampton & Johnson got out in front, but Beaton edged inside Johnson on the fourth turn, while 43-year-old Burrows blasted around the Oxford youngster nearly a third of his age on the second bend of lap 2. However, it took Burrows a further two laps to get past team-mate Beaton, and by then Frampton was well on his way to the race win which clinched the meeting for the Cheetahs (40-46).
Smethills's chances of a paid maximum were ended by a ruthless first bend by Burrows, as the home skipper headed home a shared Heat 15, also inflicting the only proper defeat of the evening on Frampton (43-49).
CLEVELAND BAYS 43
Mark Burrows 2 2 3 2 2 4# 3 (18)
Mike Pickering 0 0 1* 1* (2+2)
Rider replacement - Jack Hargreaves
Gary Beaton 1 2 1 2 1* 0 (7+1)
Steve Jones 3 2 2 1 0 (8)
Rusty Hodgson 2* FX 0 (2+1)
Martin Emerson 3 1* 0 2 F (6+1)
Team manager: Jason Pipe
OXFORD LCD PUBLISHING CHEETAHS 49
Lee Smethills 3 3 2* 3 1* (12+2)
Sam Martin 1 1 3 3 (8)
Andrew Bargh 2 1 0 3 (6)
Jordan Frampton R 3 3 3 2 (11)
Danny Betson 3 3 2 1 (9)
Brendan Johnson 1 1 0 1 0 (3)
Kye Norton F 0 0 (0)
Team manager: Peter Oakes
Referee: Craig Ackroyd
# = tactical substitute from 15m
HEAT DETAILS:
1: Smethills (O), Burrows (C), Martin (O), Pickering (C), 55.1 (2-4).
2: Emerson (C), Hodgson (C), Johnson (O), Norton (O) (fell), 56.9 (7-5).
3: Jones (C), Bargh (O), Beaton (C), Frampton (O) (ret), 59.0 (11-7).
4: Betson (O), Jones (C), Emerson (C), Norton (O), 56.4 (14-10).
5: Smethills (O), Beaton (C), Martin (O), Emerson (C), 56.6 (16-14).
6: Betson (O), Burrows (C), Johnson (O), Pickering (C), 56.4 (18-18).
7: Frampton (O), Jones (C), Bargh (O), Hodgson (C) (fell, excluded), awarded - no time (20-22).
8: Martin (O), Emerson (C), Pickering (C), Johnson (O), 56.3 (23-25).
9: Burrows (C), Betson (O), Beaton (C), Norton (O), 56.7 (27-27).
10: (Re-run) Frampton (O), Burrows (C), Pickering (C), Bargh (O), 56.4 (30-30).
11: Martin (O), Smethills (O), Jones (C), Hodgson (C) (fell, remounted), 56.4 (31-35).
12: Bargh (O), Beaton (C), Johnson (O) (fell, remounted), Emerson (C) (fell), 56.9 (33-39).
13: Smethills (O), Burrows (C), Betson (O), Jones (C), 55.6 (35-43).
14: Frampton (O), Burrows (C) (t/s - off 15m), Beaton (C), Johnson (O), 56.4 (40-46).
15: Burrows (C), Frampton (O), Smethills (O), Beaton (C), 56.2 (43-49).
REPORT: ROB PEASLEY