Post by Pieman on Sept 24, 2004 16:44:04 GMT
COVENTRY 44 WOLVES 45, ELITE LEAGUE B, THURSDAY 23RD SEPTEMBER
Buildbase Bees:
Andreas Jonsson 3 3 2 1 3 2 =14
Chris Harris 0 2 R 2* 0 =4+1
Stuart Robson 1* 1* 1* R 0 =3+3
Morten Risager 2 2 2 3 3 1* =13+1
Billy Janniro (2) (2) (3) (0) =(7)
Tomasz Piszcz 2 0 R =2
Sergey Darkin 0 0 3 3 2* =8+1
Parry’s International Wolves:
Mikael Max 2 0 2 1* =5+1
Daniel Nermark (1*) (3) (1) (1*) =(6+2)
Fredrik Lindgren 3 3 3 2* 2 0 =13+1
Sam Ermolenko 0 1 3 1* 0 =5+1
David Howe 1 2 3 2 3 =11
Chris Neath 1* 3 1* 1 R fx =6+2
Adam Skornicki 1 3 0 1 =5
Is it me, or has pantomime season started early? Wooden spoons, many races called as false starts, the meeting delayed for 45 minutes due to poor track preparation, engine problems, starting gate and green light failures…this was a truly crazy meeting. It looked towards the end as if Wolves were going to “do a Swindon” but fortunately they just pulled off the win, thanks to some superb riding from Freddie and David who made up for problems endured by Mikael and Sam.
Before the start of the meeting, the track was OK with plenty of dirt. When Wolves went into the changing rooms, the track was tyrepacked, and therefore left totally different to when the team had arrived. The Wolves riders, led by Sam, protested at this, and Mikael and Jonsson went out for a few laps to test the surface. When this proved unsatisfactory, the meeting was held up for 45 minutes while the track was bladed – when was the last time you saw dirt being removed from the Coventry race strip? At 8:30pm, the meeting finally got underway with Coventry taking gates one and three.
Heat 1 (re-run): Jonsson, Max, Neath, Harris, 58.5. 3-3, 3-3.
An unsatisfactory start was called on the first attempt, with Mikael and Bomber both being warned for moving at the tapes. AJ blasted away in the rerun to win by the length of a straight, with Mikael taking Chris for second on the last lap.
Heat 2: Neath, Piszcz, Skornicki, Darkin, 62.5. 2-4, 5-7.
Coventry led off until Darkin slowed dramatically, allowing Adam – who looked to have tailed off - into third starting the last lap. Chris then produced a fine move down the back straight to take the lead and the win.
Heat 3 (re-run): Lindgren, Risager, Robson, Ermolenko, 59.7. 3-3, 8-10.
Sam moved off early leading to another stoppage, while in the rerun Freddie led all the way despite locking up on the last lap. Sam fell away at the back.
Heat 4: Skornicki, Harris, Howe, Darkin, 61.2. 2-4, 10-14.
Adam made a surprise gate and led all the way Darkin almost hit the pit gate allowing David into second until he was taken by Bomber on the last lap.
Heat 5: Lindgren, Risager, Robson, Max, 59.9. 3-3, 13-17.
Mikael was shut out on the first turn and dropped to the back, while Freddie once again led all the way. Mikael suffered mechanical problems but held on to finish.
Heat 6: Jonsson, Howe, Neath, Harris (ret), 60.8. 3-3, 16-20.
Coventry held a 5-1 from the start until Bomber’s engine died, allowing Wolves to keep their advantage.
Heat 7 (re-run): Lindgren, Jonsson, Ermolenko, Piszcz, 59.5. 2-4, 18-24.
Yet again an unsatisfactory start was called, while in the rerun Wolves gated (no stoppage this time!) with Freddie using a wider line than before to beat AJ – great stuff!
Heat 8 (re-run): Darkin, Harris, Neath, Skornicki, 61.0. 5-1, 23-25.
Unsatisfactory start called AGAIN, with Darkin leading all the way in the rerun. Bomber rode well to take Adam and Chris late on for second – oops!
Heat 9: Howe, Risager, Robson (f.rem), Neath (ret), 60.3. 3-3, 26-28.
Robbo spun off on the first turn but quickly remounted, while Chris surprised many by taking second until his machine died (too cold perhaps?) on lap three.
Heat 10: Ermolenko, Lindgren, Jonsson, Harris, 60.8. 1-5, 27-33.
Yes, the above result is correct! Sam actually had an awful ride in this one, but Freddie brilliantly held out AJ to allow an all-over-the-place Sam to take the win – incredible stuff!
(Thanks to the rest of the forum for info on this one, as my phone rang at the worst possible moment and I had to leave the terraces. Typical!)
Heat 11: Risager, Max, Ermolenko (f.rem), Piszcz (f.rem, lapped), 59.8. 3-3, 30-26.
Piszcz slid off on turn one in a similar manner to Robbo in heat nine, remounting only to have to pull off on the final lap to avoid being lapped. By this stage Sam had also fallen and remounted, while Risager beat Mikael to the line. Mikael was now our lowest scorer!
Heat 12 (re-run): Darkin, Lindgren, Robson (ret), Neath (f.excl), 60.8. 3-2, 33-38.
Chris fell on turn three of the first attempt, with the race being stopped and Chris excluded. Chris walked of the track, but suffered a pulled arm muscle and withdrew from the meeting. The rerun saw Robbo lead as far as turn two, where he suffered a snapped conrod and retired. Darkin stayed ahead to spoil Freddie’s hopes of a maximum.
Heat 13 (re-run): Jonsson, Howe, Max, Robson, 58.4. 3-3, 36-41.
The comedy of errors continued as the tapes failed to go up due to an electrical fault (maybe it was the red light button being over-used?). Forum member Lozza quipped that the tapes were just like Coventry’s team – stuck at the bottom! After a considerable delay the meeting resumed with AJ leading all the way, while Mikael held out Robbo for third.
Heat 14: Risager, Darkin, Skornicki, Ermolenko, 59.9. 5-1, 41-42.
Oh no! The Bees pair gated and led all the way, while Sam ran wide and clipped the fence on turn two to fall to the back. It was quickly made clear on the terraces that anyone mentioning Swindon or Belle Vue before heat 15 would be hit with wooden spoons!
Heat 15: Howe, Jonsson, Risager, Lindgren, 60.5. 3-3, 44-45.
Thankfully, David saved the Wolves from a third last heat defeat despite AJ trying up the inside all the way. Cue wild celebrations and much wooden spoon-waving – the spoons were handed to the riders on the victory parade!
Five Star Ratings:
Weather: *** Dry but very cold.
Track conditions: * Responsible for most of the problems on the night.
Attendance: ** A shrew of a crowd by Coventry standards, with as many Wolves fans present as Bees fans.
Wolves Performance: **** Some determined riding from most of our side, but some looked a little lacklustre.
Entertainment value: ***** The racing may not have been brilliant all the way through, but the Coventry fans could scarcely believe the amount of noise from the Wolves supporters, and the wooden spoon idea was a great laugh!
Man of the Match: With two victories over Andreas Jonsson and a maximum at one point a possibility, it’s got to be Fredrik Lindgren.
Referee (Graham Flint): ** Continually called back heats for unsatisfactory starts, and didn’t seem to know what to do when the tapes malfunctioned.
Rider ratings:
Mikael Max: ** Lacked aggression once again – perhaps his mind was on the pig racing the next night?
Fredrik Lindgren: ***** One of his finest performances in Britain so far.
Sam Ermolenko: *** Looked slow for most of the night, struggling to cope with the track, but Heat 10 made up for it.
David Howe: **** A good all-round performance, capped by winning the match in heat 15.
Chris Neath: *** Battled against the conditions well – a shame about his arm injury at the end.
Adam Skornicki: *** Some fast gating was frequently negated by the referee.
A great night was enjoyed by all at Brandon – well done to the Coventry riders for taking all wooden spoon jokes in good spirits. The reserve situation, however, does look dodgy for next Monday, with Magnus (broken thumb), Simon (PLRC injuries) and Chris (arm) all possible doubts. Hopefully we will be able to field a full side and proceed to the playoff final once again.
See you at the Green
Pieman.
Buildbase Bees:
Andreas Jonsson 3 3 2 1 3 2 =14
Chris Harris 0 2 R 2* 0 =4+1
Stuart Robson 1* 1* 1* R 0 =3+3
Morten Risager 2 2 2 3 3 1* =13+1
Billy Janniro (2) (2) (3) (0) =(7)
Tomasz Piszcz 2 0 R =2
Sergey Darkin 0 0 3 3 2* =8+1
Parry’s International Wolves:
Mikael Max 2 0 2 1* =5+1
Daniel Nermark (1*) (3) (1) (1*) =(6+2)
Fredrik Lindgren 3 3 3 2* 2 0 =13+1
Sam Ermolenko 0 1 3 1* 0 =5+1
David Howe 1 2 3 2 3 =11
Chris Neath 1* 3 1* 1 R fx =6+2
Adam Skornicki 1 3 0 1 =5
Is it me, or has pantomime season started early? Wooden spoons, many races called as false starts, the meeting delayed for 45 minutes due to poor track preparation, engine problems, starting gate and green light failures…this was a truly crazy meeting. It looked towards the end as if Wolves were going to “do a Swindon” but fortunately they just pulled off the win, thanks to some superb riding from Freddie and David who made up for problems endured by Mikael and Sam.
Before the start of the meeting, the track was OK with plenty of dirt. When Wolves went into the changing rooms, the track was tyrepacked, and therefore left totally different to when the team had arrived. The Wolves riders, led by Sam, protested at this, and Mikael and Jonsson went out for a few laps to test the surface. When this proved unsatisfactory, the meeting was held up for 45 minutes while the track was bladed – when was the last time you saw dirt being removed from the Coventry race strip? At 8:30pm, the meeting finally got underway with Coventry taking gates one and three.
Heat 1 (re-run): Jonsson, Max, Neath, Harris, 58.5. 3-3, 3-3.
An unsatisfactory start was called on the first attempt, with Mikael and Bomber both being warned for moving at the tapes. AJ blasted away in the rerun to win by the length of a straight, with Mikael taking Chris for second on the last lap.
Heat 2: Neath, Piszcz, Skornicki, Darkin, 62.5. 2-4, 5-7.
Coventry led off until Darkin slowed dramatically, allowing Adam – who looked to have tailed off - into third starting the last lap. Chris then produced a fine move down the back straight to take the lead and the win.
Heat 3 (re-run): Lindgren, Risager, Robson, Ermolenko, 59.7. 3-3, 8-10.
Sam moved off early leading to another stoppage, while in the rerun Freddie led all the way despite locking up on the last lap. Sam fell away at the back.
Heat 4: Skornicki, Harris, Howe, Darkin, 61.2. 2-4, 10-14.
Adam made a surprise gate and led all the way Darkin almost hit the pit gate allowing David into second until he was taken by Bomber on the last lap.
Heat 5: Lindgren, Risager, Robson, Max, 59.9. 3-3, 13-17.
Mikael was shut out on the first turn and dropped to the back, while Freddie once again led all the way. Mikael suffered mechanical problems but held on to finish.
Heat 6: Jonsson, Howe, Neath, Harris (ret), 60.8. 3-3, 16-20.
Coventry held a 5-1 from the start until Bomber’s engine died, allowing Wolves to keep their advantage.
Heat 7 (re-run): Lindgren, Jonsson, Ermolenko, Piszcz, 59.5. 2-4, 18-24.
Yet again an unsatisfactory start was called, while in the rerun Wolves gated (no stoppage this time!) with Freddie using a wider line than before to beat AJ – great stuff!
Heat 8 (re-run): Darkin, Harris, Neath, Skornicki, 61.0. 5-1, 23-25.
Unsatisfactory start called AGAIN, with Darkin leading all the way in the rerun. Bomber rode well to take Adam and Chris late on for second – oops!
Heat 9: Howe, Risager, Robson (f.rem), Neath (ret), 60.3. 3-3, 26-28.
Robbo spun off on the first turn but quickly remounted, while Chris surprised many by taking second until his machine died (too cold perhaps?) on lap three.
Heat 10: Ermolenko, Lindgren, Jonsson, Harris, 60.8. 1-5, 27-33.
Yes, the above result is correct! Sam actually had an awful ride in this one, but Freddie brilliantly held out AJ to allow an all-over-the-place Sam to take the win – incredible stuff!
(Thanks to the rest of the forum for info on this one, as my phone rang at the worst possible moment and I had to leave the terraces. Typical!)
Heat 11: Risager, Max, Ermolenko (f.rem), Piszcz (f.rem, lapped), 59.8. 3-3, 30-26.
Piszcz slid off on turn one in a similar manner to Robbo in heat nine, remounting only to have to pull off on the final lap to avoid being lapped. By this stage Sam had also fallen and remounted, while Risager beat Mikael to the line. Mikael was now our lowest scorer!
Heat 12 (re-run): Darkin, Lindgren, Robson (ret), Neath (f.excl), 60.8. 3-2, 33-38.
Chris fell on turn three of the first attempt, with the race being stopped and Chris excluded. Chris walked of the track, but suffered a pulled arm muscle and withdrew from the meeting. The rerun saw Robbo lead as far as turn two, where he suffered a snapped conrod and retired. Darkin stayed ahead to spoil Freddie’s hopes of a maximum.
Heat 13 (re-run): Jonsson, Howe, Max, Robson, 58.4. 3-3, 36-41.
The comedy of errors continued as the tapes failed to go up due to an electrical fault (maybe it was the red light button being over-used?). Forum member Lozza quipped that the tapes were just like Coventry’s team – stuck at the bottom! After a considerable delay the meeting resumed with AJ leading all the way, while Mikael held out Robbo for third.
Heat 14: Risager, Darkin, Skornicki, Ermolenko, 59.9. 5-1, 41-42.
Oh no! The Bees pair gated and led all the way, while Sam ran wide and clipped the fence on turn two to fall to the back. It was quickly made clear on the terraces that anyone mentioning Swindon or Belle Vue before heat 15 would be hit with wooden spoons!
Heat 15: Howe, Jonsson, Risager, Lindgren, 60.5. 3-3, 44-45.
Thankfully, David saved the Wolves from a third last heat defeat despite AJ trying up the inside all the way. Cue wild celebrations and much wooden spoon-waving – the spoons were handed to the riders on the victory parade!
Five Star Ratings:
Weather: *** Dry but very cold.
Track conditions: * Responsible for most of the problems on the night.
Attendance: ** A shrew of a crowd by Coventry standards, with as many Wolves fans present as Bees fans.
Wolves Performance: **** Some determined riding from most of our side, but some looked a little lacklustre.
Entertainment value: ***** The racing may not have been brilliant all the way through, but the Coventry fans could scarcely believe the amount of noise from the Wolves supporters, and the wooden spoon idea was a great laugh!
Man of the Match: With two victories over Andreas Jonsson and a maximum at one point a possibility, it’s got to be Fredrik Lindgren.
Referee (Graham Flint): ** Continually called back heats for unsatisfactory starts, and didn’t seem to know what to do when the tapes malfunctioned.
Rider ratings:
Mikael Max: ** Lacked aggression once again – perhaps his mind was on the pig racing the next night?
Fredrik Lindgren: ***** One of his finest performances in Britain so far.
Sam Ermolenko: *** Looked slow for most of the night, struggling to cope with the track, but Heat 10 made up for it.
David Howe: **** A good all-round performance, capped by winning the match in heat 15.
Chris Neath: *** Battled against the conditions well – a shame about his arm injury at the end.
Adam Skornicki: *** Some fast gating was frequently negated by the referee.
A great night was enjoyed by all at Brandon – well done to the Coventry riders for taking all wooden spoon jokes in good spirits. The reserve situation, however, does look dodgy for next Monday, with Magnus (broken thumb), Simon (PLRC injuries) and Chris (arm) all possible doubts. Hopefully we will be able to field a full side and proceed to the playoff final once again.
See you at the Green
Pieman.
.