Defeat
on the Island
by AL, Posted 12/09/05
An under strength Glasgow side were well
beaten at Isle of Wight by an Islanders side that looked solid throughout.
Glasgow were always going to be up against it, missing
not only Adam Roynon but also Stefan Ekberg, but did contribute to
an entertaining meeting with Stancl and Parker providing the main
challenge.
Boyce won the opening heat from the front but Stancl
and Leverington held Doyle at the back to share the points. Doyle
was out again in heat 2 when he and partner Phillips got the Islanders
first 5-1 of the night with a comfortable win over the Glasgow pairing.
The opening two bends seemed to be causing problems,
Krister Marsh falling on the second bend twice in heat 3, his last
fall causing the race to be awarded. After an unsatisfactory start,
Stajanowski was first out of the trap in heat 4 with Parker giving
chase. Shane went round the home rider at the end of lap two but had
to work hard for the remainder of the race to claim the victory. At
the back, James Cockle worked hard to hold off Glenn Phillips and
claim third spot.
Heat 5 saw the second race win in a row for a Tiger
when Stancl shot from the gate but unfortunately Trent Leverington
was tailed off at the back and the heat was shared. Boyce did the
same in heat 6 but was pressed all the way by Parker in an entertaining
race.
After a tape malfunction, the Islanders were able
to claim an easy 5-1 in heat 7 before extending their lead to 10 points
with a 4-2 in the following heat.
As expected, Glasgow brought out Shane Parker as
a TR in heat 9. However, unfortunately the Island pairing of Marsh
and Ostergaard chose this heat to give a display of excellent team
riding and despite trying everything he could Shane was unable to
get past.
Another easy 5-1 for the Islanders followed in heat
10 and it was beginning to look as if an embarrassing defeat could
be on the cards. However a strange heat 11 was to go Glasgow's way
- eventually. Stancl came in as a TR. he was leading when Trent was
judged to have come off at the end of the first lap and was excluded.
His fall seemed to be heavily assisted by a nudge from Jason Doyle
but the referee unfortunately did not see it that way. The first re-run
saw Stancl leading again when the Islanders Stajanowski fell, again
on the fourth bend and was excluded leaving only two riders for the
third attempt. George held his nerve and came out for the third time
to lead and this time to complete the race.
It was a short lived respite however as Marsh and
Phillips recorded yet another easy 5-1 in the following heat. After
the interval, Shane Parker got the better of the battle of the Aussie's
beating Craig Boyce with Stancl getting third.
Again the fourth bend caused problems in heat 14,
this time with James Cockle coming down. Ostergaard won the re run
comfortably but full credit should be given to guest Matt Wright who
was unlucky not to claim second place from Jason Doyle. The final
heat provided Glasgow with a 5-1, Parker and Stancl winning from the
gate with Krister Marsh suffering an engine failure.
The result was never in doubt and in all honesty
heat 15 restored a bit of creditability to the score from a Glasgow
point of view. Guest Matt Wright tried hard all night and did better
than expected, especially riding in the main body of the team. Shane
and George rode well but the remainder of the team struggled against
an Islanders side that showed strength throughout.
The scorecard and heat details can be found here.
Tiger Performance Points:
| George Stancl |
*** |
rode well |
| Trent Leverington |
** |
a bit unlucky in heat 11 |
| Claus Kristensen |
* |
poor |
| Matthew Wright |
*** |
all things considered, a good performance |
| Shane Parker |
*** |
rode well |
| Luke Priest |
* |
not a good night |
| James Cockle |
** |
not one of his best |
