One of the best crowds of the season turned up at the Oak Tree Arena Tree Arena to witness the battle for the place in the Final of the Premier League Play Offs and for both teams the equation was a simple one. The ‘Case’s’ Somerset Rebels needed to win the encounter by 7-points or more, and they would be through to their third successive Play Off Final, anything less and the Ipswich Witches would be the team facing the Edinburgh Monarchs in the Final showdown. The Rebels faced the challenge still operating rider replacement for the injured Brady Kurtz, whilst the Witches were at full strength. However for both sides this was not to remain the situation for very long, as first Gino Manzares for the Witches and Pontus Aspgren for the Rebels were to withdraw following separate spectacular crashes, with Manzares taking a trip to hospital for his pains. On three previous visits the Witches had succumb to defeats of 40-points in the League Cup, 28-points in the league match, and 8-points in the KO Cup. It was the KO Cup tie, which had shown that the Witches could not be taken lightly in this renewal, and it was clear from the outset that they were up for the fight. In the opening heat it was the visiting pair of Rohan Tungate and Cameron Heeps who got the drop, but when Olly Allen went down in a tight first turn, the Rebels got a second chance. In the rerun the Rebels grabbed their reprieve with both hands, as Allen flew from the tapes to lead up, and Charles Wright accounted for the visitors around the opening turns. Tungate gave chase, keeping Wright up to his work for all four laps, but in truth the Stockport racer had it all under control, as the Rebels posted what could be seen as a fortuitous opening maximum advantage. The Witches again took the early advantage in Heat 2, with former Rebel Ritchie Hawkins hitting the front from the gate, only to see Todd Kurtz overhaul him before the turn. Paul Starke wasn’t far away, and gave chase, harrying Hawkins all the way. Half way through the race Starke began to slow, and at the same time Adam Ellis began to edge closer. On the final lap Starke was clearly in trouble, and as Ellis went by to share the points, the reason for the Rebels man’s demise became apparent, he had a puncture. The Rebels were back on it in the Heat 3 with Pontus Aspgren getting the better of a level break to hit the front as they reached the curve. Charles Wright was next up, and came barrelling around the outside to head affairs off the second turn. As the field approached the first turn on the next lap, Gino Manzares took a huge fall, smashing into the air fence, quickly followed by his machine, which landed on top of him. He was quickly attended by the medical staff, and the ambulance followed shortly afterwards. Following treatment on the track, Manzares was eventually able to regain his feet, and walk into the waiting ambulance. Excluded from the rerun, that was the last action he was to see. He was later withdrawn from the meeting and was taken to hospital to be checked over, complaining of head and shoulder pain. The rerun followed a similar pattern to the original start, with Aspgren again bolting from the gate, and Wright coming around the field in the opening turns to lead into the back straight. Once at the head of affairs the home duo had little problem in accounting for the lone Witch, Morten Risager, and on the final two laps, they pulled well clear of the Dane to record a second full house. It had been a dream start for the Rebels, 8-points up after only three heats, but the importance of the tie to both teams, and the ease in the way things could drastically change, was brought sharply into view over the next few heats. Heat 4 saw the visitors close the gap, taking a 2-4 advantage, which but for a small error could have been a full house. Adam Ellis and Richie Worrall hit the front from the tapes, with Nick Morris slowly away. Morris was soon in gear, and closed over the opening lap, but by this time the Witches pair were side-by-side and team riding Morris out of contention. Despite finding it hard to work an opening, Morris kept up the pressure and in the end his endeavours paid dividends, as Worrall made a mistake and ran wide off the final turn of the race. That was all the encouragement needed, and Morris quickly moved up his inside, just getting up on the line amid loud cheering from the home fans. That reaction showed just how important every point was, in this battle for the final. Heat 5 was to prove important for both sides, and for entirely different reasons. For the Witches it brought their deficit down to just 2-points, and inside the 6-point margin they needed, but for the Rebels it saw the loss of an important player in this year’s side, as Pontus Aspgren took a huge crash, which would see him withdraw from the meeting with suspected concussion. As the tapes rose, Charles Wright and Cameron Heeps disputed the lead, with Wright getting the upper hand at the turn. Pontus Aspgren came charging around the wide line, as Heeps got back on terms down the back straight. As they entered the final turns of the lap, they were three abreast, but with both Rebels looking as though they would swallow up Heeps off the final bend, when suddenly Aspgren machine picked up the grip, rearing high into the air. It happened so quickly, the smooth Swede, who was at full gas, had no time to react, and the only thing he could do was try to get off, but before he was away from the machine he slammed into the safety fence on the home straight. After being treated on track, he was able to walk back to the pits under his own steam. However, like Manzares before him, this was the last action he was to seem, as he too was forced to withdraw. Heeps and Wright again made the gate in the rerun, but this time Heeps was in charge at the turn, clamping Wright hard to the kerb, allowing Rohan Tungate to storm around the outside to lead onto the back straight. Wright pressed Heeps all the way, and was all over him for three laps. Heeps rode a masterful race forcing Wright wide every time he got on terms, until the Witches had the ‘Full House’ in the bag The loss of Aspgren was a big blow for the Rebels, and thing also got decidedly worse in Heat 6, as the Witches posted a second successive maximum advantage against them. Olly Allen and Ritchie Worrall broke quickly, and headed into the turn together. Worrall moved Allen out wide in the turn, and gave Ritchie Hawkins the opportunity to drive underneath the pair. Todd Kurtz, who wasn’t too far off the pace in the early stages, was blocked out through the opening turns, and could not get back in contention. With both Witches at the front, Allen set about trying to find his way to the front, but every move he made was blocked by the Witches duo, and his huge efforts came to nothing as the Witches moved into a 2-point lead for the first time on the night. Heat 7 was notable for a couple of incidents from the Rebels point of view. Paul Starke arrived at the start, only for his bike to stop, and refuse to restart. He then returned to the pits, before he could return with his bike up and running, before the two minutes ran out. There was a lot of movement at the start, and as the tapes rose, Morten Risager hit the front, only for Dave Robinson to call the race back for an unsatisfactory start. In the rerun, Nick Morris jumped and hit the tapes, and started the second restart from the 15 metre mark. When the race finally got underway, Paul Starke made a lightning start, alongside Risager, who was first into the turn. Off the second bend, Starke cut back up the inside of Risager, hitting the front as they reached the third turn. Risager ran wide in the next, and from there Starke pulled well clear. Morris never got in the hunt, and the points were shared, but more importantly for the Rebels, Ipswich didn’t build on their lead. In the pits Olly Allen called a team meeting, which he later said was to tell the team to keep their heads up and keep fighting if they wanted the place in the final. Whatever words he put that message into obviously had the desired effect, as in the very next heat, the Rebels were to grab the lead back, with a maximum advantage of their own. The Witches camp’s fortunes started to change, with Adam Ellis unexpectedly pulling back from the tapes and moving to the pit gate, just as the two minutes ran out. The referee excluded him, and his place was taken by Ritchie Hawkins. Cameron Heeps gated quickly, leading up from Todd Kurtz. Behind them, Nick Morris had got the better of Ritchie Hawkins. Kurtz was at full steam as he charged into the lead, passing Heeps as they ran into the turn. Morris was next on the scene, pressing Heeps all the while. As Heeps cut back inside to challenge Kurtz off the penultimate bend, Morris was closing up. With Kurtz now in control, Morris got his nose in front of Heeps as the second lap was coming to a close, only to see Heeps re-pass almost immediately. Morris was never far away, but didn’t seem able to find an opening, until the final turn. Out of the blue, Morris conjured up a run on Heeps, and charged up his inside off the last bend, getting up on the line, amid a huge cheer from the Rebels supporters. Heat 9 was a relatively uneventful affair, and as such was it was probably appropriate that the points were shared. Richie Worrall bolted from the gates to lead up and win unchallenged. Behind him the Rebels pairing of Charles Wright and Paul Starke packed the places, and easily held off Adam Ellis, despite that latter closing towards the end of the race. From this point on the Rebels produced a stunning performance, almost totally dominating the last third of the match. However that is not a fair reflection of the effort put in by the visitors, who fully played their part, often disputing the early stages of the races, and not giving the Rebels an easy ride. Heat 10 was virtually all Rebels though, with Todd Kurtz leading up from his skipper, who then stormed around the opening curves to lead onto the back straight. Ritchie Hawkins is obviously no stranger to the Oak Tree Arena circuit, having spent a couple successful years there. He used that knowledge to close up on Kurtz, and was on terms, and throwing in his challenge at the third turn. Kurtz didn’t buckle, and fought off the determined Hawkins, to hold a comfortable lead over the Witches captain for most of the remainder of the race. Hawkins wasn’t done though, and in the later stages, closed up again, pressuring Kurtz around the final two bends, only to see the Cowra man hold his form, and take the maximum advantage behind Allen. Heat 11 had to be rerun, following a call back from Dave Robinson after a lot of movement at the start, with Rohan Tungate being the main culprit. In the second running the Witches again had a rider in the early mix, as Cameron Heeps led up alongside Nick Morris, but it was Morris, on his inside, who hit the front at the turn, running to the fence in the process. Todd Kurtz was close up from the start, and sailed around the outside of Heeps through the opening turns. Once in the vanguard with Morris they were fairly comfortable for most of the race. Tungate recovered and took up the chase, closing down Kurtz over the final two laps. He pressed inside an out, but Kurtz had it all under control, and even had a final trick up his sleeve to ensure that Tungate would not steal the place. As they ran to the first bend on the final lap, with Tungate having been pressing around the outside, Kurtz moved wide, allowing Tungate a look up the inside. Not needing a second invitation Tungate headed for the gap, only to see Kurtz cleverly slam the door shut in his face, killing the Kurri Kurri born rider’s momentum stone dead, and ensuring that the Rebels would take the full quota. With the Rebels now exerting control on the match, any chances the Witches had of progressing were fast disappearing, and they only had one more opportunity to rescue their future participation in the Play Offs. That came in the form of Morten Risager in Heat 12, who came to the tapes wearing the ‘Black & White’ to signify the use of a tactical ride. The Witches chances appeared to have suffered a mortal blow, when Risager was slowly away. At the front, Ritchie Hawkins disputed the early running, to at least give the visitors a mathematical opportunity to go forward, but even that dissolved when Todd Kurtz, taking his third ride on the bounce, charged by him and took up the lead. Charles Wright was another to make a sluggish start, but was soon in front of Risager, and pursuing Hawkins. He made his challenge through bends one and two of the second lap, but was held by Hawkins. He came back for more, cutting back up the inside, and completed his pass down the back straight and into the third turn. Hawkins had not given up, and was pressing hard, when he went down in the first turn of lap three, and the race was stopped. The restart, with the exclusion of Hawkins, saw both Rebels trap out in front, to lead to the turn. Despite Risager getting a better start, and never being too far away, the truth was that Kurtz and Wright had it all under control, and held there lead with something in hand. The resulting maximum advantage had put the Rebels 14-points to the good, and barring a major slip up they had virtually guaranteed a place in the final. The confirmation of that came in the very next heat, as a further ‘Full House’ put the issue beyond doubt. Once again though, the Witches provided some early opposition, as Rohan Tungate disputed the early lead with Olly Allen, before Allen hit the front on the run to the turn. Once at the front Allen headed for the hills, as Nick Morris came careering around the outside of Tungate to grab second place onto the back straight. Tungate hit back as they closed the next lap, getting his nose in front of Morris off the final bend. Morris had his measure and snuffed out the threat, as he immediately his back on the run the first turn of the next circuit. Despite chasing all the way Tungate never got in another blow as the Rebels sealed the deal with another 4-point advantage. It was now confirmed that the Rebels would face the Monarchs for the 2014 title, and even the remaining two races without a Rebels finisher could not see the Witches through. Even in defeat, the Witches were still fighting, and they took a final heat advantage in Heat 14. It was somehow appropriate that the heat win should go to Ritchie Hawkins, who had fought his heart out all night. He flew from the tapes to lead all the way. Todd Kurtz was next up, but he had to fight off early pressure from Adam Ellis before he could focus his attention on Hawkins, and by the time he had disposed of the Marmande born rider, Hawkins was in the wind. Ellis was not done and by the end of the lap he had regained second place. Paul Starke who had been at the back for the opening two laps came from nowhere, and around the final turns of Lap 3 he charged past, first Kurtz and then Ellis on the wide outside, to grab second place and stop the Witches hitting a maximum advantage. The nominated heat featured Olly Allen and Nick Morris for the home side and Adam Ellis and Richie Worrall for the Witches. It was Allen who led up, with Worrall in close attendance. Morris took third from Ellis in the early stages of the second lap, but could never get close to displacing Worrall from second, and likewise Worrall never got in a blow on the rapid Allen, giving the Rebels a 4-2 advantage in the final race. Having been put under severe scrutiny in the early stages, and having to cope with going behind by Heat 6, the Rebels had produced a typical fighting performance in the second half of the match to come through by 54-36. The Witches played a full part in this hard fought battle, scrapping to the very end, for every available point. Both sides suffered early setbacks in losing important riders from their team, but they both bit the bullet and coped admirably, with everyone pulling together for their respective teams. Richie Worrall top scored for the Witches, backed up by a hard fighting performance from skipper Ritchie Hawkins. For the Rebels every rider put in a shift, with skipper Olly Allen hitting 13-points from his rides, backed up by 10+2 from both Charles Wright and Nick Morris, and 6+1 from Paul Starke, but the undoubted star of the show was Todd Kurtz with superb 13+2 from a full seven ride slog. Referee Dave Robinson had Kurtz as his ‘Man of the Match’, but the official ’Rider of the Night’ award, nominated by match sponsors ‘Bikestyle’ of Clevedon, went to Nick Morris. The Rebels will now face a tough task against the Edinburgh Monarchs if they are to retain their crown and become Premier League Champions in successive seasons, but they will give it all they have got, and Edinburgh can count on a hard battle if they are to be crowned Champions. At this time the Monarchs are engaged in other Competitions, which means that no dates for the two legged Final can be confirmed, but as soon as they are available the y will be published on all ‘Case’s’ Somerset Rebels media feeds. Somerset Rebels = 54 1. Olly Allen - 3, 1, 3, 3, 3 = 13 2. Brady Kurtz - Rider Replacement 3. Charles Wright - 2, 3, 1, 2, 2 = 10+2 4. Pontus Aspgren - 2, Flx = 2+1 - WITHDRAWN 5. Nick Morris - 2, 0, 2, 3, 2, 1 = 10+2 6. Todd Kurtz - 3, 0, 3, 2, 2, 3, 0 = 13+2 7. Paul Starke - 0, 0, 3, 1, 2 = 6+1 Ipswich Witches = 36 1. Rohan Tungate - 1, 3, 1, 1 = 6 2. Cameron Heeps - 0, 2, 1, 0 = 3+1 3. Morten Risager - 1, 2, 0, 1! = 4 4. Gino Manzares - Flx - WITHDRAWN 5. Richie Worrall - 1, 3, 3, 0, 2 = 9 6. Ritchie Hawkins - 2, 2, 0, 1, Flx, 3 = 8+1 7. Adam Ellis - 1, 3, 1, X, 0, 1, 0 = 6+2 SCB Referee: Dave Robinson Heat Results Heat 01: Allen, Wright, Tungate, Heeps (5-1) (5-1) 57.00 Heat 02: Kurtz, Hawkins, Ellis, Starke (3-3) (8-4) 57.69 Heat 03: Wright, Aspgren, Risager (5-1) (13-5) 57.69 Heat 04: Ellis, Morris, Worrall, Starke (2-4) (15-9) 58.16 Heat 05: Tungate, Heeps, Wright (1-5) (16-14) 58.12 Heat 06: Worrall, Hawkins, Allen, Kurtz (1-5) (17-19) 58.62 Heat 07: Starke, Risager, Ellis, Morris (3-3) (20-22) 58.03 Heat 08: Kurtz, Morris, Heeps, Hawkins (5-1) (25-23) 58.03 Heat 09: Worrall, Wright, Starke, Ellis (3-3) (28-26) 58.13 Heat 11: Morris, Kurtz, Tungate, Heeps (5-1) (38-28) 58.43 Heat 12: Kurtz, Wright, RISAGER (5-1) (43-29) 58.96 Heat 13: Allen, Morris, Tungate, Worrall (5-1) (48-30) 58.47 Heat 14: Hawkins, Starke, Ellis, Kurtz (2-4) (50-34) 59.31 Heat 15: Allen, Worrall, Morris, Ellis (4-2) (54-36) 58.97
Posted on: Sat, 11 Oct 2014 12:24:08 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015