Sussex speedway squad Eastbourne Eagles kept their own Elite League play off hopes bubbling nicely whilst temporarily putting on hold those of bitter local rivals the Lakeside Hammers at Arlington stadium on Saturday night. A thrilling fifteen heats of speedway saw the Eagles overturn an early four point decifit amassed by the visitors by the end of heat three to craft a 10-point lead of their own (35-25) by the end of race ten.
However the curse of the tactical ride was also destined to play it’s part, a Hammers 8-1 in the eleventh slicing the home lead to just 3-points with four races left to run and there were a tense few moments to follow before Cameron Woodward and Si mon Gustafsson all but made sure of the points with a 4-2 that opened up a 5-point lead (46-41) in the penultimate race.
It had earlier proved a different story however and as the tapes rose on heat one it was Andreas Jonsson who was fastest away leaving both Lewis Bridger and Scott Nicholls trailing in his wake. Nicholls found a way past his partner on the run in to lap two but although he gave good chase there was to be no catching the Swede who duly romped home, the race points remaining shared with Robert Mear (taking the rider replacement ride for the absent Leigh Lanham) bringing up the rear.
Heat two and the Eagles looked set to nose ahead as Simon Gustafsson and James Brundle led Hammers Ricky Kling into the first bend. However, Kling, who often shines on his visits to Arlington was about to do so once again. He fought his way through on the inside of Brundle down the back straight and then cut inside of his fellow countryman to hit the front before the riders reached lap two.=2 0With Mear trailing the field once again however, the scores remained shared at 6-points apiece, the first race 3-3 being replicated.
While Eastbourne might have threatened to go ahead, indeed it was the Hammers who broke the deadlock and they did so in style, Adam Shields and Jonas Davidsson launching themselves from the start to wrap up the 5-1 ahead of Cameron Woodward. Eagles might have hoped for a different outcome, skipper Lee Richardson taking a tumble at the first turn and he clearly seemed to anticipate that a restart would be called. The stoppage wasn’t forthcoming however, referee Mick Posselwhite seeing no impropriety and the race continued with the Hammers duo earning their side an overall 11-7 lead.
Eagle hearts dropped as Joonas Kylmakorpi and Ricky Kling were first from the start in the fourth but Edward Kennett rode a quite superb outside line to take the lead around bends one and two. That was pretty much how it remained though Kennett hand to withstand a last gasp challenge from Kling to hold onto the 3-points, Kylmakorpi comfortably containing Brundle for a third share of the spoils and a current 14-10 scoreline in favour of the visitors.
Eastbourne halved that margin in the next however, Richardson making up for his earlier disappointment with a scorching ride to fend off heat one winner Jonsson. A wholly untidy start seemed destined to cost them dearly though, Woodward having to work hard to fight his way past Mear in the mid part of the race, nevertheless the result went the way of the Eagles by a 4-2 margin, one that closed the gap to just 2-points, 16-14.
A further 4-2, one of five consecutive to the Sussex side heading into the interval, drew the Eagles level at 18-points apiece by the end of heat 6. This one saw Nicholls take up the charge, a comfortable victory ahead of the duelling Kylmakorpi and Bridger. A thrilling race ensued but one that went the way of the Lakeside man; however his efforts alone could not prevent the home side wiping away the Hammers advantage.
Better was to follow, Kennett producing a further dominant ride, this one eclipsing the challenge posed by Shields. With the impressive Gustafsson also fighting his way past fellow countryman and recent World Cup competitor Davidsson, the third successive 4-2 saw the Eagles lead for the first time, 22-20.
It was now Lakeside playing catch up but a moment’s misfortune saw them fall even further behind. Bridger was a comfortable winner of heat eight ahead of Kylmakorpi as things transpired, but Kling was denied a likely second place by an engine failure on the final bend, one that allowed Gustafsson (who had been giving good chase to the Finn) to romp through and claim third place, the 4-2 and an overall 26-22 lead.
Four-points then became six and Richardson appeared supercharged as he blasted through on Kylmakorpi’s inside down the back s traight of lap one. Woodward also applied firm pressure on the former Eagle but to no avail, however with Eastbourne securing their fifth 4-2 on the spin, this saw them in a far healthier position than had earlier occupied.
Nicholls and Bridger produced a fine display of team riding to fend off Shields challenge in heat 10 and the resultant 5-1 duly saw the Eagles lead hit double figures, the scores now standing at 35-25 but of course this opened up the opportunity for the Hammers to introduce tactical changes and consequently the match was about to be turned on it’s head once again.
Jonsson was nominated to take the tactical ride but although he initially occupied last place, Gustafsson holding the lead, the mighty Swede worked his way through the field to join partner Kling at the front of the field for an all important 8-1 ahead of Kennett and one that wiped away 7-points and much of the hard work done by the Eagles, the score at 36-33 now having a far less dominant appearance.
Richardson produced another superb effort to overcome both Kling and Shields in heat 12 and keep the home lead intact, the scores now moving to 39-36 with only three races left on the card.
Jonsson was certainly on a roll, and his third victory in four outings also witnessed a second success over the hard chasing Nicholls. However with Kennett keeping the home fires burning, getting the better of Kylmakorpi, the second successive 3-3 again kept that 3-point margin intact, the scores now set at 42-39 with just two heats left to run.
Not for the first time in 2008 Woodward made certain of the match spoils for the Sussex battlers, his heat 14 win ahead of Davidsson and most importantly with Gustafsson taking third place at the expense of Kling, who never fully recovered from a momentary loss of control, this earned Eagles the 4-2 that ensured that they only needed to provide a finisher in the final race in order to wrap up the two Elite League points.
Indeed the last race produced the only restart of the evening, the Eastbourne pair seeming a little to eager to claim those all important points. A rerun with all four was ordered and as the tapes rose a second time, this occasion saw Jonsson make the better start and he led Nicholls with Shields and Richardson dicing for the odd point.
This was soon to change however, Nicholls exploiting a lapse of concentration by the Swede to draw level and then a hard challenge on the final bend of lap two saw him move through to open up a lead that he wasn’t destined to lose. Jonsson’s misfortune saw him drop back to third place and Richardson took up the chase. His race wasn’t set to end nearly so favourably however, his second tumble of the evening seeing him part company with his machine on the first bend of the final lap, the fall necessitating a race stoppage but one that was awarded to Nicholls, the closing 3-3 keeping the 5-point margin intact and one that sent th e Sussex faithful home happy, their team having just seen off the challenge of their great rivals and strong Elite League contenders, the Hammers courtesy of a 49-44 scoreline.
So as the dust settled and the supporters filed from the stadium, thoughts uppermost in the mind of all in attendance was the forthcoming Knockout Cup semi-final match up between the sides and if this sort of entertainment can be replicated then it promises to be a cracker.
Scorers :
Eagles : Scott Nicholls 13(5), Lee Richardson 9(5), Edward Kennett207+1(4), Lewis Bridger 7+1(4), Cameron Woodward 6(4), Simon Gustafsson 6(5), James Brundle 1+1(3). – 49
Hammers : Andreas Jonsson 15+1(5), Adam Shields 9+1(5), Ricky Kling 9+1(7), Joonas Kylmakorpi 7+1(5), Jonas Davidsson 4+1(4), Robert Mear 0(4), Rider Replacement for Leigh Lanham. – 44
EASTBOURNE 49
S. Nicholls 2 3 3 2 3A - 13
L.Bridger 1* 1 3 2* - 7+2
L.Richardson F 3 3 3 X/F - 9
C.Woodward ; 1 1 1 3 - 6
E. Kennett 3 3 0 1* - 7+1
S.Gustafsson 2 1 1 1 1 - 6
J. Brundle 1* 0 N 0 - 1+1
Team manager : Trevor Geer
LAKESIDE 44
A.Jonsson 3 2 6^ 3 1*A & nbsp; - 15+1
Rider Replacement (Leigh Lanham)
A.Shields 3 2 1 1* 2A - 9+1
J.Davidsson 2* 0 0 2 - 4+1
J.Kylmakorpi 1* 2 2 2 0 - 7+1
R.Kling 3 2 0 E/F N 2* 2 0 - 9+1
R.Mear 0 0 N 0 N 0 - 0
R.Mullins D.N.R.
Team manager : Jon Cook
Referee : Mick Posselwhite
HEAT DETAILS
1 Jonsson, Nicholls, Bridger, Mears (R/R), 56.1 &n bsp; (3-3)
2 Kling, Gustafsson, Mear, Brundle, 57.3 (6-6)
3 Shields, Davidsson, Woodward, Richardson (fell), 56.7 (7-11)
4 Kennett, Kling (res.repl.), Kylmakorpi, Brundle, 56.8 (10-14)
5 Richardson, Jonsson, Woodward, Mear (R/R), 56.5 (14-16)
6 Nicholls, Kylmakorpi, Bridger, Kling, 56.5 (18-18)
7 Kennett, Shields, Gustafsson, Davidsson, 57.0 (22-20)
8 Bridger, Kylmakorpi (R/R), Gustafsson (res. repl.), Kling (eng. Fail) 56.8 (26-22)
9 Richardson, Kylmakorpi, Woodward, Mear (res. repl.) 57.1 (30-24)
10 Nicholls, Bridger, Shields, Davidsson, 56.6 ; (35-25)
11 Jonsson^, Kling (R/R), Gustafsson, Kennett, 57.1 (36-33)
12 Richardson, Kling, Shields, Brundle, 56.6 (39-36)
13 Jonsson, Nicholls, Kennett, Kylmakorpi, 56.2 &nb sp; (42-39)
14 Woodward, Davidsson, Gustafsson, Kling (res. repl.), 57.5 (46-41)
15 (Restart – unsat / race awarded)
Nicholls, Jonsson, Shields, Richardson (exc. fell), No Time (49-44)
