Sheffield made the long trip down to Hethersett in Norwich for their opening match in this years British Team Championship. The oldest member of the team being 23 and the youngest 16, it was very much about the ‘Young Lions’ and their chance to shine. To a man they didn’t let the side down and turned in a storming performance which saw the home side go down by 18pts.

The Stars Elite League experience served them well as they frequently looked the sharper side out of the starts, Matt Smith was on top form as he cruised to a 20pt maximum score and Ryan Hoyland (17pts) provided great support.

Youngsters Aiden Owen, Kyle Holland, Zach Smurthwaite, Matt Parrott and Richard Hudson all made big contributions and mixed it with the Hethersett riders proving just how much they have all developed over the last 12 months.

Plenty of tough first corners and some big crashes did not dampen the enthusiasm of the Sheffield 8 and this proved pivotal  in their victory. Lee Smith had another hard day after injuring his shoulder last week at Ipswich, he came to grief again, however he was always in the thick of the action.

For the home side Dan Chambers was in great form but lacked support from his team mates which proved to big a hurdle for the Norwich team, all in all an entertaining fixture with the Stars safely through to the next round.

With the draw having just been made, Sheffield are at home to the mighty Wednesfield Aces on the 14th July. A tough fixture indeed but a great chance for this young Sheffield team to race some of the best riders in the country.

Hethersett 79

Dan Chambers 18, David Adams 12, Olly Riley 11, Ollie Buxton 11, Lee Cossey 11, Danni Riley 6, Josh Herring 5, Lee Grange 5

Sheffield 97

Matt Smith 20, Ryan Hoyland 17, Kyle Holland 13, Zach Smurthwaite 12, Aiden Owen 11, Richard Hudson 9, Lee Smith 8, Matt Parrott 7

Referee: Terry Ashford (Suffolk)

So where did it all go wrong? To many exclusions for one thing, some were warranted others questionable, but we all got to listen to the man in the middle, I am not going to moan or criticise the Referee. Fair play to Ipswich, we made a solid start and they fought there way back into the match and finally won.

For the supporter it had everything, great racing and bags of controversy, never a dull moment! We have lost one but its not over yet, Poole next, we just have to work twice as hard now.

Ipswich welcomed unbeaten Sheffield Stars looking to continue to build on their recent success over Birmingham and continue their steady progress in this season’s Elite League.

Ipswich started the afternoon without their captain Josh Brooke who will be sidelined for up to three months following recent knee surgery. Sheffield were also missing several first team members which gave a balance to both sides and as the afternoon progressed this proved right.

Heats one to three went the way of the visitors with three consecutive 6-4 advantages.  The match, even at this early stage, looked to be slipping away from the home team. Heat four Ipswich managed to steady the ship with a shared heat.

Then in heat five the home team came to life when young Charlie Rumbold and Richard Fellgett incredibly secured a 6-4 over reigning British champion Andy Angell and team mate Jake Read, after Rumbold dumped Angell on the fourth bend (pictured above), much to the delight of his team mates and home supporters.

This seemed to spur the home team on with a shared heat in six.  Heat seven saw the first exclusion when Stephenson moved at the tapes. The home team went on to record a 6-3 to move within one point of Sheffield. Heat eight saw another shared heat.  The final heat of the first half saw Sheffield`s Lee Smith excluded after failing to remount his bike. Matt Smith limited the damage by winning the heat so both teams went into the half time interval level on 44 points each.

Heat ten saw for the first time in the match the home team edge in front with a 6-3 after Jamie Ball was excluded for legging. The next two heats were well contested, heats that were shared as the home team showed their mental strength.  Heat thirteen saw a double exclusion firstly to Andy Angell for the use of a leg and with Ipswich looking to have an advantage Richard Williamson was excluded in the re-run for bringing down Hoyland. The second re-run saw Roberts win the heat 4-3 to the home team, moving Ipswich into a four point lead.

At this stage you wouldn’t blame the home team thinking that a famous victory was on the cards but in the following heat fourteen Sheffield made the most of a mix up between the Ipswich pairing and went onto secure the heat 7-3 to bring the match back to level at 67 points all.

Heat fifteen saw Ipswich retake the lead with a 6-4 through Lewis Osborne and Rumbold.  Once again we had drama in heat sixteen when Roberts and Chris Osborne came out to face Hoyland and Ball.  In an incident packed heat, Sheffield`s Jamie Ball suffered his second exclusion in which it appeared he used his head to knock Roberts off his bike.  In the re-run Ipswich recorded a 6-3 heat win to move five points clear and it was clear to see that Sheffield were starting to get desperate (pictured below) as the match was slowly slipping away from them.

Ipswich went out in heat seventeen knowing that if they could share the heat the match was theirs for the taking as long as they avoided any exclusions in the final heat.  Adam Peck and Jamie Chittock duly managed to split the Sheffield pairing so it was left to Lewis Osborne and Richard Williamson to see the home team over the line to victory, although the race was called back the first time round.  Then in the re-run, with Osborne fending off Angell down the back straight, Angell appeared to remove one of his hands from his bike and linked arms with Osborne and pulled him down hoping to get the Ipswich rider excluded.

After several riders from both sides entered the track from the pits, referee Colin Simmons declared a re-run with all four riders.  In the re-run, Sheffield`s Adam Stephenson was excluded at the tapes, much to the delight of the home supporters. Heat eighteen got underway once again with Angell chasing down Osborne, the Ipswich rider was able to clamp Angell to the outside allowing his team mate to come through (pictured below).  With this Angell dismounted his bike and walked back to the pits thus giving Ipswich a 7-0 win.

Ipswich 91

Adam Peck 18, Lewis Roberts 18, Lewis Osborne 14, Jamie Chittock 10, Richard Williamson 10, Charlie Rumbold 8, Chris Osborne 6, Leon Mower 5, Richard Fellett 2

Sheffield 79

Ryan Hoyland 16, Matt Smith 15, Adam Stephenson 12, Jake Read 10, Jamie Ball 9, Dan Chambers 7, Lee Smith 5, Andy Angell 5

Referee: Colin Simmons (Gwent)

After all the action-packed heats of the Elite League fixture, it was the turn of the two unbeaten teams in this season’s Combination League to show what they could do.  Ipswich were looking to preserve an unbeaten home record in this competition with Sheffield having to give away ten penalties points before even any racing got under way.

The Ipswich youngsters are a proud bunch and clearly wanted to show they don’t need a helping hand and wanted to win the match on merit. The two teams looked evenly matched and it was Sheffield that raced into a four point lead straight from the off.  Ipswich hit back immediately after Hudson suffered a tape exclusion.  They took full advantage winning 7-2.  Heat three was shared.

Heat four gave Ipswich a 6-4 to open up a three point lead.  Race five saw another heat shared before Ipswich moved further ahead in heat six with another 6-4.  Heats seven and eight saw shared heats.  Heat nine saw Fellgett and Knights come out for Ipswich to secure another 6-4, in fact this pairing have never lost a heat whether it be Combination or regional racing, an amazing feat to date.

Ipswich were now sitting comfortably on a seven point lead.  Heat ten was shared.  Heat eleven gave the away team their second successful heat when Holland and Hudson saw off Hill and Jacobs 7-3 and moved Sheffield back within touching distance of the home team.   Ipswich made sure of the points after Aiden Owen was excluded for cutting across the bend. Stant and Knights secured a 7-2 to take Ipswich over the finish line and to their fourth win of the season to sit on top of the division.  The last heat of a pulsating afternoon’s racing was shared.

Ipswich 78

Ashley Hill 19, Richie Felgett 14, Dan Knights 13, Matt Hill 10, Jordie Stant 6, Lauren Jacobs 4, Frazer Harris 2 plus 10 penalty points

Sheffield 60

Jake Read 16, Richard Hudson 10, Kyle Holland 9, Matt Parrott 7 Zac Smurfwaite 6, Aiden Owen 6, Ben Swanborough 6

Referee: Dave Hill (Suffolk)

Thank you to Ipswich for the match report.

Gavin Parr stunned the home crowd by taking heat one with a good win over Radek Handke (in a re-run after both a clashed first time out with Handke finishing on the floor),  and with Terry Kirkup taking third place the Vikings led 6-4. Heat 2 saw Kyle Holland execute a brilliant pass on Michael Parr, who then fell awkwardly and jarred his elbow, with Zach Smurthwaite joining Holland for a 7-3 and the Rockets led 11-9.

Handke got the better of Parr in heat 4 and with wins for Louis German in heat 5 and Aiden Owen in heat 6, both having to make good passes, the run of 6-4 advantages put Sheffield 34-26 ahead. The next three races are all drawn as the teams hit the interval with Sheffield holding a 49-41 lead.  The second half starts well for Sheffield with the younger legs of Owen and German proving too much for Ashie Patterson and Jim Graham as they record the Rockets second maximum score. Holland is having an excellent match and produces another burst of speed to make an inside pass on Jason Keith as they enter the last lap of heat 14, the resulting 6-4 has Sheffield 78-62 in front.

Heat 15 sees the Vikings score their second heat advantage as Mark Mulvey manages to prevent the passing attempts of Smurthwaite (inside) and German (outside) within a 5 metre run to the first bend of the last lap, Graham picking his way through the carnage for a Northumbria 6-4. Gavin Parr completes a brilliant 19 point haul with a win in heat 16, showing the sort of form that many Elite teams are looking for (next year there will be a queue of teams looking to sign this Geordie on a second claim).

Sheffield edge another maximum 7-3 in the penultimate heat as Holland again shows superior speed to go around the outside of Michael Parr. The final race sees Owen returning to the form that gave him a Young England call up as he follows Holland’s example and powers around the outside, this time picking of Keith, but the race is drawn and the final score is Rockets 99 Vikings 81.

SCORERS

SHEFFIELD  – Radek Handke 19, Aiden Owen 17, Kyle Holland 15, Zach Smurthwaite 13, Richard Hudson 12, Louis German 9, Luke Morton 7, Liam Webster 7.

NORTHUMBRIA – Gavin Parr 19, Jason Keith 16, Michael Parr 13, Mark Mulvey 10, Terry Kirkup 9, Jim Graham 5, Dan Redshaw 5, Ashie Patterson 4.

Sheffield went on the rampage in the Division Two match, as they raced to their biggest win of the season by 95-55, the Rockets youngsters just having too much track knowledge for the inexperienced Northumbrians.  The victory completes a quick fire double over the Vikings and propelled the Rockets into second place in the table.

Sheffield started strongly with 7-3 maximums in the opening three races as they boss the first bend action. The interval score is 52-28 in the Rockets favour, with the Vikings only cheer coming from deserved race wins for Dan Redshaw and Scott Latimer. The next four races are also 7-3 maximums for the home team as Niall Morton and Matt Parrott complete their rides to finish unbeaten by any opponent.

To their credit the Vikings never give up and are rewarded over the last three races. First comes an impressive win by Dan Wharrier in race 13 over Ellie Sullivan/James Bunting. Latimer follows his earlier win by splitting the Vicky Brown/Mick Knowles pairing in heat 14, the GB womens  captain completing a very assured maximum score.  Then the Vikings get their only heat advantage in the last race as Redshaw and Andy Amos-Adams take a 6-4 over Sullivan and Ed Morton, the Rockets riders having every passing attempt thwarted by the Vikings steely reserve.

SCORERS

SHEFFIELD  – Vicky Brown 16, Ellie Sullivan 16, James Bunting 15, Mick Knowles 14, Matt Parrott 13, Niall Morton 12, Ed Morton 6, Rob Mawhood 3.

NORTHUMBRIA – Scott Latimer 10, Dan Redshaw 10, Dan Wharrier 9, Andy Amos-Adams 6, Andy Knowles 6, Christine Amos-Adams 5, Glen Parr 5, Neil Magee 4.

Sheffield also won the Division Three match by 36-0, with the Vikings unable to bring any Under 12’s to compete.  James Bunting lost for the first time this year, when he was unable to overcome the one lap handicap given to him in race three.

Sheffield Scorers – James Bunting 14, Jack Brownell 13, Joe Brownell 9

Terry Kirkup took race two, confidently holding back Sheffield’s young guns of Zach Smurthwaite and Kyle Holland. Race 4 saw the sequence of shared heats broken as the Vikings edged into a 21-19 lead from a Parr/Daniel Wharrier 6-4. The new Viking making a good inside pass on Rob Mawhood. Mick Knowles then got Sheffield’s only race winner in the opening nine races by taking heat 5, the veteran showing the young Rockets how to ride the track. Two more drawn heats followed as Sheffield had no answer to the excellence of Parr and Jason Keith.

Again the sequence of drawn heats was broken by the Vikings, this time in sensational style. Terry Kirkup and Fred Mitchell showed their experience to easily take a 7-3 over Webster and Micholayczck (who both resembled Bambi on Ice).  Holland was then unlucky to fall in heat 9, the resulting 6-4 taking the Vikings into a half time lead by 49-41. Several of the Rockets riders were struggling to come to terms with the Northumbria track, but this was more from application than the track itself.  Knowles and Smurthwaite scored Sheffield’s first seven pointer in race 10, to reduce the deficit to three points at 48-51, with the race awarded after a fall for Wharrier.

The match was still finely balance at 61-58 after 12 races, but the next two races saw the pendulum swing in the Vikings favour. Webster was down again in heat 13 as the Vikings took the race 6-4. Then a second 7-3 for the Vikings came courtesy of great team riding from Jim Graham. Graham got Wharrier to the front and held out Knowles and Matt Parrott for three laps. Parrott made an inside pass on turn two of the last lap but carried too much speed through the corner and ended up on the outside edge, this allowing Graham to execute a perfect switchback to follow his partner home. The maximum seven points now giving the Vikings a 74-65 lead. Sheffield looked out of contention but surprisingly took a 7-3 in the very next race as Richard Hudson assisted Mawhood to the front.

Smurthwaite had to pull out an excellent race to defeat Keith in heat 16, the Viking’s only loss, but with Webster again all at sea at the back the drawn race still had the Northumbria up by five points.  Parr duly completed his maximum in heat 17, dumping Hudson on the floor on the first corner, and with Graham in third spot the 6-4 gave the Vikings the League points. Kirkup completed a fine afternoons racing by winning the last race, with Scott Latimer taking third for another 6-4 and nine point winning margin.

SCORERS

NORTHUMBRIA VIKINGS – Gavin Parr 20, Jason Keith 19, Terry Kirkup 14, Daneil Wharrier 10, Jim Graham 9, Fred Mitchell 8, Dan Redshaw 8, Scott Latimer 6.

SHEFFIELD CRA ROCKETS – Zach Smurthwaite 14, Richard Hudson 13, Kyle Holland 12, Mick Knowles 12, Rob Mawhood 11, Matt Parrott 9, Liam Webster 9, Karol Micholayczyk 5.

Sheffield then bounced back to take the Division Two match with a fine 84-65 victory, with a side strengthened by the inclusion of four riders from the first team match. The win taking the Rockets above the Vikings into third place in the League.  The match started with a drawn heat as Norman Carson and Glen Parr relegated Ellie Sullivan to last place. The Vikings then took the lead as Andy Amos-Adams won heat two, but an expected seven pointer did not arrive, as Billie Owen was able to withstand the efforts of Andy Knowles.

Sheffield hit back immediately with a seven pointer from Richard Hudson and James Bunting (who scored a full house here last year). Matt Parrott won heat 4 and had to be at his best to hold over the charging Ashie Patterson. Andy Amos-Adams then took a crashing fall as he attempted an inside pass on Sullivan. The young Rockette closing the door with firmness, leaving the Viking in a heap and unable to complete the race. His exclusion giving the Rockets a 26-23 lead. Carson dented Buntings maximum in heat 6, keeping the youngster in third place. Christine Amos-Adams, on her newly sprayed pink panther bike, then executed a good pass on Owen to draw heat 7 and leave the scores 32-37.

The Vikings had been holding on but Sheffield put the match out of reach with three seven pointers in the next five races, with Sullivan and Bunting to the fore. Carson and Parr got a consolation 7-3 for the Vikings in heat 13 over Billie Owen and eight year old Jack Brownell.  Although the League points were already Sheffield’s the efforts of Zach Smurthwaite and Ashie Patterson in race 14 deserve a mention. Smurthwaite, who had enjoyed an excellent first team match, made a good pass to get in front of the veteran Viking. But not to be outdone Patterson kept probing and finally got back in front entering the final corner.

For Sheffield the match fittingly ended with another seven pointer from Bunting and Sullivan.  So ended another two sportingly ridden matches between these two teams. A quick re-match follows with Northumbria visiting Sheffield next weekend, when both teams are expected to be at full strength.

SCORERS

NORTHUMBRIA VIKINGS – Glenn Parr 11, Norman Carson 10, Dan Redshaw 9, Andy Amos-Adams 8, Ashie Patterson 8, Keith Oldham 7, Christine Amos-Adams 6, Andy Knowles 6.

SHEFFIELD CRA ROCKETS  – James Bunting 18, Richard Hudson 15, Ellie Sullivan 15, Matt Parrott 11, Billie Owen 9, Kyle Holland 6, Zach Smurthwaite 6, Jack Brownell  4.

The Division Three match had Northumbria giving a debut to Devon Amos-Adams. However it was James Bunting, with a maximum score, who led the Rockets to a 36-14 victory. This newly conceived competition, the brainchild of Hull’s Andy Schofield, is giving some much needed track time to Under 12 riders against riders of their own age group. This match proved the point with the races between Viking Isaac Ferry and Rocket Jack Brownell particularly exciting. Each time they met Ferry made the start and Brownell had to show his knowledgeable track craft to perform passing manoeuvres to get in front.

SCORERS  – James Bunting (Sheffield) 16, Jack Brownell (Sheffield)  13, Isaac Ferry (Northumbria) 10,  Joe Brownell (Sheffield)  7, Devon Amos-Adams (Northumbria) 4 .

A brilliant move by Aiden Owen on Darren Kent and Adam Watson brought him through to join Radek Handke for the Rockets third 7-3 race win in heat 5 as Sheffield increased their lead to 31-19. Heat 6 saw Liam Webster collide with team-mate Ellie Sullivan on turn three of the first lap, with Laura Watson negotiating the melee to join Idziorek for the visitors first race advantage by 6-4. Adam Watson led heat 7 briefly only for Owen and Niall Morton to find a way past for another Sheffield 7-3.

Handke won heat 8 with Holland relegating Kent to a surprising last place as the Rockets picked up a 6-4 to lead by 48-32 at the interval.  Heat 9 was drawn as Laura Watson shot from the tapes to hold off Sullivan and Knowles.  Then came what is likely to be the race of the season at the Graves. Idziorek lined up on grid one but was trapped around the first turn by Handke, who was joined by Gamble for a Rockets 7-3 position. The young Pole then gathered himself and powered around Gamble on lap two, but was easily 15 metres behind Handke. Idziorek kept the speed on and made a deserved pass on the inside coming out of the last corner to win by wheel on the finish line. This was quite simply breathtaking speedway racing.

Kent and Idziorek won the next two races, but the heat scores were 5-5 and Sheffield still had a sixteen point lead by 68-52. Sheffield confirmed the match points in heat 13 with their fifth 7-3 race win from the Gamble/Webster pairing.  The only match exclusion came in heat 14 as Jake Wood took Hollands front wheel away as the Sheffield racer tried to pass on the exit of turn two on lap three. Heckmondwike finished the match with their only maximum 7-3 heat win as Kent and Idziorek out paced Owen and Sullivan. The depth of the Sheffield squad was emphasized when the match stats indicated the Rockets had provided only seven race winners to Heckmondwike’s eight, but by contrast Sheffield had only two last places in the 15 heats.

SCORERS

SHEFFIELD  – Aiden Owen 14, Niall Morton 13, Radek Handke 12, Kyle Holland 11 Liam Webster 10, Mick Knowles 9, Simon Gamble 8, Ellie Sullivan 7.

HECKMONDWIKE – Pawel Idziorek 20, Darren Kent 14, Laura Watson 10, Adam Watson 7, Jake Wood 7, Justin Naylor 5, Andy Morris 2.

With Heckmondwike unable to field any Under 12 riders Sheffield won the Division Three match by 28-0.  The Brownell brothers, Jack and Joe, putting on some entertaining racing as each scored 14 points.  Jack was given varying handicaps to overcome and all four races were decided on the last corner.

An impromptu individual event concluded the days racing with Idziorek taking first place after a run-off with Webster.  Vicky Brown, Luke Morton and Karol Micholayczyk gave performances that will give the Rockets team manager a headache as he has to pick the eight riders for the upcoming home and away encounters with Northumbria.

SCORERS – Pawle Idziorek 15, Liam Webster 15, Vicky Brown 14, Kyle Holland 14, Luke Morton 11, Ellie Sullivan 11, Adam Watson 11, Jake Wood 11, Niall Morton 10, Aiden Owen 10, Karol Micholayczyk 8, Rob Mawhood 7, Andy Morris 7.

Today we witnessed a match that had everything, excitement, passion,emotion, controversy and a grandstand finish. After the euphoria of the win against Horspath last time out, Sheffield knew that only another winwould do.  However with Adam Stephenson, Damien Zareeba and Jono Birks unavailable and Ryan Hoyland laid up with a stomach bug, it was a much changed side that took on a full strength Wednesfield.

Heat one and Wednesfield set their stall out with a Lee Aris win despitethe best efforts of the “Flying Scotsman” Mikey Hewittson as ChrisJewkes traps Pawel Idzisorek at the back and its 6-4 to the Aces. Thefollowing race brings a 5-5 with Andy Angell taking the win over BenMould.  Heat three and Wednesfield surge ahead with a well taken 7-3 from Paul Heard and Mark Griffiths after Matt Smith and Jamie Ball get themselves in a bit of tangle.

A share of the points in the next race from Hewittson and Radek Handke and the score is 23-17 to the visitors.  It’s heat five and Sheffield haven’t had a heat winner as yet.

Idzsiorek makes a turbo-charged gate of grid four and Handke looks after Wednesfield youngster Matt Haddock and the Stars post their first heat win of the day, 6-4. The following race goes the same way with Smith taking the win and Ball showing Craig Marchant the scenic route around the Graves track. Idzisorek battles for four laps to grab a vital third place on the line, Angell slams in his second win of the day, Jake Read pulls a classy move on Ricki Johnson, but the next three races to the interval are shared making the half time score Sheffield 44 Wednesfield 46.

After the break another shared heat before Wednesfield secure theirsecond 7-3 of the day from the impressive Paul Heard who now has three wins to his credit and a great ride from team mate Mark Griffiths. The next three heats are all shared despite tactical rides from Radek Handke and time is beginning to run out for Sheffield who are failing to make inroads into that six point lead that Wednesfield now hold.

Heat 15 and Sheffield are on the outside grids.  It’s now or never.  Angellmakes a superb pass on Johnson and gets team partner Handke through and the Stars register their first maximum of the match.  Three races to go and once more there is only two points between the teams. A shared heat 16 and the suspense is building with two races left.

Heat 17 Hewittson and Chambers for Sheffield, Mould and Griffiths for Wednesfield. Mould takes the lead with Hewittson in pursuit.  The riders come into the third bend and Hewittson dives up the inside of Mould and promptly goes down.  Referee Albert Bentley immediately points at Mould and excludes him for legging … cue fireworks.

Mould slides off his bike next to referee Bentley and literally hurls

his machine at the match official followed by various expletives and

then throws his helmet for good measure.  The pits erupt with shouts ofdespair and jubilation as the red card comes out and the Stars are

propelled into the lead with an extra four points courtesy of Mould’s match ban. After some minuets heat 17 is finally re-run and Mark Griffiths takes the win but the minor places give Sheffield a 5-4 heat advantage.

With one race to go its now Sheffield 84 Wednesfield 81 taking into account the four point match ban deduction.  With Angell and Ball finishing on the inside grids, Sheffield know anything but a 7-3 maximum against them will see them home and dry. Angell makes the gate with Jewkes and Heard in hot pursuit, Jamie Ball slipping at the start as the rain begins to fall.

Heard passes Angell and begins to slow the race down.  Referee Bentley warns him.  Jewkes has now closed up and as they enter the infamous third bend, Heard slows Angell again causing him to fall as Jewkes sweeps past. Referee Bentley has no hesitation in excluding Heard and a number of supporters don tin helmets waiting for the Hiroshima sized explosion from the Wednesfield side of pits.

Despite numerous protests, the decision is made and stands and the re-run is a formality with Angell taking the win and Ball happy to take third, credit to Chris Jewkes who battled on to the end. As the dust settles Wednesfield must be wondering how they managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, a moment of madness, scuppering all the hard work. As for Sheffield it’s never over to till the “fat lady sings” and I maybe I was mistaken but I think that was the theme from the “Great Escape” I heard her humming!!

Sheffield 90

Andy Angell 18, Pawel Idzisorek 15, Radke Handke 14, Matt Smith 13,Jamie Ball 9, Mikey Hewittson 8,  Jake Read 8, Dan Chambers 5

Wednesfield 84 (includes four point deduction for red card)

Lee Aris 18, Paul Heard 16, Ben Mould 13, Mark Griffiths 12, Craig

Marchant 11, Chris Jewkes 11, Ricki Johnson 4, Matt Haddock 3

I love the safety fence and the old brown Austin Van in the background. I remember the old start marshalls white coats, one size fits all.

Sheffield have fielded the same top six riders for their opening two Elite League fixtures, and it’s highly likely manager Shaun Hudson will consistently use the same pairings throughout the entire season, with only the reserve berths being rotated. This approach to team selection will give the Sheffield side a really strong backbone.  Horspath have shown over recent years that continuity is the key to success at the very top end of the sport.

Jono Birks and Damien Zaremba rode at reserve when the Hammers where in town, and it’s difficult to call as to whether they will feature this weekend. Birks’s commitments are dictated by the motorised version of the sport, so Polish flyer Radek Handke could make his first start of the season this weekend should Birks not be available.

Wednesfield  put their opening day defeat behind them with a solid performance against Ipswich last time out. Paul Heard continues to look a man on a mission and Ben Mould raced unbeaten against the Eagles.  With the class of Lee Aris  these three riders should prove a real handful for Sheffield on Sunday. With Craig Marchant, Chris Jewkes and the evergreen Mark Griffiths to accompany their attack, the Aces will fancy their chances of inflicting the South Yorkshire side’s first defeat of the season.

What could hold the key to Wednesfield’s success on Sunday is how youngsters Ricki Johnson and Matt Haddock score.  It will be interesting to see where these two riders are deployed in the Aces’ line up by management duo Roger Ellis and Wayne Aris as they do like to utilise a tactical reserve or two.

If the 18 heats were not enough on Sunday, spectators can look forward to the Elite League match race title being defended for the third time this season by Paul Heard.  A certain Andy Angell will be chomping at the bit to take on the current British and European number two.

Well it wasn’t pretty at times but at the end of the day it was job done and a notable scalp taken. A strong wind blew throughout the match which turned the track surface into a dust bowl despite the continuous watering before the meeting began. Horspath turned up minus Sean Rudman and Matty Symtrac which wasn’t the best of starts, however the way Sheffield were throwing points away in the first half of the meeting it seemed to matter very little.

The match started well enough for the Stars, a Matt Smith/Jamie Ball 6-4 over Lewis Bates & Errol Thaw then a shared heat with Ryan Hoyland taking the win but the impressive Jack Harrold and Mark Boaler relegating Andy Angell to the back. Heat 3 then went decidedly pear shaped as Adam Stephenson got his marching orders for a tapes offence and Pawel Idiszorek found the Nowacki/Carmichael partnership to hot to handle.
When Horspath took a 6-4 in the next heat the alarm bells began to ring and the Sheffield side looked ill at ease and seemed to be making a series of basic errors. Heat 5 up pops the unflappable Jono Birks with the equally relaxed Jamie Ball who promptly stop the rot with 7-3 maximum,seemingly without breaking into a sweat. The euphoria was short lived though as Horspath hit back with maximum of there own in the very next heat and it was back to square 1.

With the visitors now 5 points up, a tactical ride for Birks who was in the number 8 position was called for and the resulting 6-4 from Ball & Birks over Nowacki and Carmichael narrowed the gap, a storming ride from Jamie Ball the only rider to beat World Champion Nowacki all day. Two more shared heats and the interval arrived with Horspath on 46 to Sheffield’s 43. What ever was said in the half time team talk obviously had the desired effect because suddenly Sheffield started to race like a team, a Ryan Hoyland tape exclusion although less then ideal was only a minor blip as Carmichael was excluded for a racing incident which left Angell sprawled on the track, the resulting rerun saw Nowacki execute a fine pass to take a 4-3 heat advantage. A tactical ride for Birks in heat 13 saw him and Stephenson post a fine maximum 7-3 over Thaw & Bates which tied the score at 63-63. A tactical heat 14 saw a share of the points as Hoyland & Zareba were happy to keep Richard Harrison at the back knowing Angell and Birks were next up.

Hopes of a Sheffield 7-3 suddenly looked unlikely as Birks missed his pedal at the start and trailed into the first bend in fourth place, Angell was away  for the win and Birks passed Munden to set up a 6-4 which became a 6-3 as Munden was promptly excluded for a remark he made to referee Bob Prince. This seemed to be the catalyst for Horspath to self destruct as Thaw was excluded in the next heat which gave another heat advantage to Sheffield after the third rerun of heat 16. A shared heat 17 with Zareeba coming in for an off colour Matt Smith meant Sheffield could not lose the match, a Horspath 7-3 in the final race would be a draw. Angell & Idsizorek for Sheffield, Bates & Nowacki for Horspath. Bates makes the gate followed by Angell with Nowacki in third, Idsizorek buzzing around Nowacki back wheel. In a majestic move Angell sweeps around Bates to take the lead, Nowacki moves past his partner to give chase to Angell. A big last bend from Nowacki see him get on the inside of Angell, however Angell is past caring as he knows second place will give his team the win, he punches the air in delight as he crosses the line and Sheffield win by 2.

For the visitors Jack Harrold and Mark Boaler were in fine form and Lukas Nowacki was a class act. Sheffield Jamie Ball was simply outstanding, Andy Angell  reliable as ever and super sub Jono Birks was err……………Jono Birks! The rest of the Sheffield lads pulled together when it mattered, as for Horspath they will be hoping for a swift return of there missing riders.

Sheffield
Jamie Ball 16+1, Andy Angell 15, Jono Birks 14+1, Adam Stephenson 11+2, Ryan Hoyland 11, Damien Zareeba 8+2, Pawel Idziorek 7, Matt Smith 6. Aiden Owen, Jake Read DNR

Horspath
Lukas Nowacki 19, Jack Harrold 17+1, Mark Boaler 14+3, Lewis Bates 9+1, Mark Carmichael 8+1, Errol Thaw 8, Simon Munden 8, Richard Harrison 3. Zac Payne, Jordan Richardson DNR

Combination Match Result

Sheffield 64 +13 penalty pts 77 Horspath 66

With Horspath giving away 13 penalty points as Simon Munden & Richard Harrison doubled up it was always an uphill battle, Sheffield fielded a separate 8 riders knowing that a share of the heats was all that was needed. Having said  that it was a very entertaining Combination fixture with some great battles between the riders.

For Sheffield Richard Hudson powered his way to a 16pt maximum, lowering the colours of both Harrison & Munden in the process. He received great support from Zach Smurthwaite who is becoming a very powerful gater, Jake Read, Aiden Owen & Matt Parrott all contributed to some fine racing and were always in the thick of the action.

Spare a thought for Kyle Holland whose all action style brought him little reward today. he featured in some great races but ended up on the deck or in the fence, sometimes being helped there by one of his opponents!

Simon Munden scored well and received solid support from Wayne Clarke, Richard Harrison & Zac Payne however as mentioned earlier those penalty points were the killer.

Sheffield
Richard Hudson 16, Jake Read 12+1, Zach Smurthwaite 12, Aiden Owen 9+2, Matt Parrott 7+1, Kyle Holland 5, Mick Knowles 2, Vicki Brown 1

Horspath
Simon Munden 13, Zac Payne 13, Wayne Clarke 12+2, Jordan Richardson 11+3, Richard Harrison 11+1, George Horsley 6