Post by Lawt on Apr 18, 2006 15:49:14 GMT
Wolves 53 Coventry 40, 17th April 2006, Elite League A
WOLVERHAMPTON:
1. Peter Karlsson 3..3..3..3..3.. 15
2. Rider Replacement 0..1..2..2’.. 5+1
3. Ronnie Correy 1..0..2..1'..3.. 7+1
4. Fredrik Lindgren 3..2..2..2.. 9
5. Billy Hamill 2..3..3..2'.0.. 10+1
6. William Lawson 0..3..1..0..2'.2'.1'.. 9+3
7. Christian Hefenbrock 2'.0..0..1.. 3+1
COVENTRY:
1. Chris Harris 2..3..F..1.. 6
2. Billy Janniro 1'.1..3..2.. 7+1
3. Morten Risager 0..1'.0.. 1+1
4. Rory Schlein 2..2..1..6..1'.. 12+1
5. Scott Nicholls 3..2..3..1..0..2.. 11
6. Troy Batchelor 0..0..0.. 0
7. Oliver Allen 1..1..1..0..0.. 3
This match always looked like it could cause us a little worry and I think most fans would have settled for a win on the night, and the two league points, if offered to them before the meeting started. But then once the bonus point came within reach of course our thinking changed.
Magnus’ absence from the side seemed before the meeting to make Wolves stronger and as things turned out it was to our benefit with William Lawson turning in a brilliant performance as his main replacement. For the Bees there was Bachelor in the team to replace Smolinski but otherwise they were the same team that had embarrassed us on Friday.
Peter Karlsson won the toss and chose gates 1 and 3 for heat 1.
Heat 1: PK, Harris, Janniro, Lawson 3-3
Peter made a good start and rode a very tight inside line on the first turn to lead and went on to win the race with ease. William Lawson showed a hint of things to come as he passed Harris up the back straight on the first lap but Harris went round him and also later passed Janniro. Lawson continued to challenge and was never off the race pace.
Heat 2: Lawson, Hefenbrock, Allen, Batchelor 5-1, 8-4
First attempt was stopped after Christian was deemed to have moved at the start. At the second time of asking the Bees duo both took Chris very wide which allowed William Lawson, who had already tried out the track for size, to power past the lot of them up the inside of the back straight. Christian then passed both of the opposition on the inside of the first bend of the next lap. William’s time was 0.5 sec faster than PK’s in heat 1!
Heat 3: Lindgren, Schlein, Correy, Risager 4-2, 12-6
Freddie gated well and held the inside line to lead and Ronnie cut back underneath Risager to take third place.
Heat 4: Nicholls, Hamill, Allen, Hefenbrock 2-4, 14-10
Great gate from Billy to lead for a lap but Nicholls was lightning fast and came in hard to the first bend of the next lap and took Billy soooooooo wide that he had to power down allowing Allen through the gap. Billy picked him off quickly but was too far back to catch the speedy Nicholls. Interesting to see Nicholls apologise for his move by raising his left hand to Billy as he left him high and dry.
Heat 5: Harris, Lindgren, Janniro, Correy 2-4, 16-14
Easy win for Harris from the start. Freddie missed the gate and had to pass Janniro by taking the long way round the fourth bend of lap 1. Ronnie tried hard but couldn’t find a way past Janniro who stuck to the inside where he knew that Ronnie would be most comfortable passing.
Heat 6: PK, Nicholls, Lawson, Batchelor 4-2, 20-16
PK made the better start and took the line that Nicholls would have chosen on the edge of the dirt. Nicholls kept him honest for the whole race but PK had it covered. William passed Lawson on the inside when the Bee went too wide on the second bend.
Heat 7: Hamill, Schlein, Risager, Lawson 3-3, 23-19
Incredible start from Billy Hamill to lead and win. William gave it every effort but the Coventry pair rode for the shared heat and kept him out.
Heat 8: Janniro, Correy, Allen, Hefenbrock 2-4, 25-23
Janniro and Allen gated and looked like securing a 1-5 until Ronnie saw a gap on the inside at the start of lap three. He drove underneath Allen and split the pairing. Christian took a couple of very wide lines which lost him a lot of ground.
Heat 9: Nicholls, Lindgren, Correy, Batchelor 3-3, 28-26
Heat was stopped because Nicholls moved at the start and was warned. In the restart Nicholls gated well but was chased all the way by Freddie Lindgren who caught him and actually gave him a little nudge on the last bend of the third lap but couldn’t quite get enough drive to get past.
Heat 10: PK, Lawson, Schlein, Risager 5-1, 33-27
Peter Karlsson made the gate and cleared off for a fine win. William Lawson however was last as he entered the back straight but then he wound open the throttle and made a superb outside pass around Risager and then a brilliant switch to the inside of the first bend of lap 3 to pass Schlein in breathtaking fashion. What a ride!
Heat 11: Hamill, Janniro, Hefenbrock, Harris (fell) 4-2, 37-29
The race should have been stopped as Harris fell after all four of them bunched up in the first turn. The referee saw it differently and allowed things to continue so Harris got up and rode on (fair play to him). Janniro tried to pass Billy up the inside of the back straight but Hamill just rode a quick outside of the top turns and went on for the win. Christian took a couple of laps to make up the ground to Janniro but was too late to challenge.
Heat 12: Correy, Lawson, Nicholls (TS), Allen 5-1, 42-30
A classis race! Nicholls was introduced on a Tactical Substitute basis and started from 15m back. Ronnie led from the start with Allen in second place. On the second bend of the second lap William passed Allen on the inside at the same time as Nicholls blasted round him on the outside! Nicholls caught Ronnie but the little superstar moved out and rode Nicholl’s preferred line until on the first bend of the last lap Nicholls was just about to make his move but the Rocket laid his machine over Nicholls and just turned it really tightly and forced him to lock up or crash. A very controlled and brave move from Ronnie which also allowed William to take advantage of a slowed down Nicholls and move into second place for a sensational, roof-raising 5-1 for the Wolves.
Heat 13: PK, Hamill, Harris (TR), Nicholls 5-1, 47-31
Harris arrived at the start with the black and white helmet cover showing that he was the second tactical move on the bounce. Nicholls gated first and led through the first bend but PK got the drive on the inside and passed him just as Billy Hamill squeezed through the tiniest of gaps on the outside to make a Nicholls sandwich up the back straight. The total determination shown by both Wolves riders in this race was amazing and led to a well deserved 5-1. Another tactical move foiled!
Heat 14: Schlein (TR), Lindgren, Lawson, Allen 3-6, 50-37
Yet another tactical ploy by the Bees but this time it paid off as Schlein made a good start and made too much ground for Freddie, on his second bike by now, to catch him despite all his efforts. William Lawson rode Billy Hamill’s machine to beat Oliver Allen. All square for the bonus point at this stage!
Heat 15: PK, Nicholls, Schlein, Hamill 3-3, 53-40
PK emerged in the lead from a hard fought turn one but unfortunately Billy was at the back. The Coventry pair team rode to keep him at bay and force a run-off for the aggregate bonus point.
Bonus Point Run-Off:
Peter gated well but ran too wide in the first turn and allowed Nicholls through the inside. PK then had an excellent run up the back straight with loads of speed and cut tight into bend 4 to emerge in the lead but Nicholls took a tight line into the first turn of the next lap and passed Peter to go on a win the vital heat. PK gave it everything but to no avail.
The meeting had absolutely everything, except the cherry on the top of the cake (the bonus point). The racing was of the highest quality with all Wolves riders contributing to what is an excellent home victory against a difficult team. So why did I feel like we had lost for a few moments after the run-off? We thwarted two out of the three tactical moves employed by Coventry and Peter Adams’ use of our rider replacement facility was excellent and could not have been planned in that way before the meeting started. The track allowed for close and exciting racing – and overtaking - that the Sky audience must have lapped up.
Weather: A pleasant, balmy evening with just a few gentle droplets of rain to keep the track surface nicely moisturised.
Track: Like this every week please! From the terraces it appeared to be the perfect surface for RACING! Top job.
Attendance: An almighty stoat of a crowd. Got to be the biggest for a couple of seasons.
Wolves Performance: Tremendous performance from our team to recover the ground lost on Good(!) Friday. The team atmosphere seemed to be very much in evidence with machinery being lent freely and praise being given to riders, by riders. This is the Wolves way of things and long may it continue.
Entertainment: Top class entertainment in virtually every race. Can’t ask for more.
Referee: Generally got it right.
Man of the Match: This is hard, and I have given it much thought. Peter Karlsson was sensational and on almost any other night he would have got the nod, but as we base our rider ratings on our expectations I will award the Man of the Match nomination to William Lawson for exceeding my expectations by such a long way.
Rider Ratings: (now on a scale of ten with 6 being the average expectation)
Peter Karlsson: 9 Simply sensational – a fantastic fifteen point maximum. Don’t mention the run-off!
Ronnie Correy: 7 Worth the admission money to see that ride against Scott Nicholls in heat 12. Thanks Ron.
Fredrik Lindgren: 7 He will be disappointed but 9 points is a great score against top opposition.
Billy Hamill: 8 Fantastic entertainment first and foremost, but he is also showing great teamsmanship in his support of other team members.
Christian Hefenbrock: 6 An off-night for Christian after his excellent ride in heat 2.
William Lawson: 9 I think he said in the post match interview that it was his best speedway match ever. He was inspirational, scored paid 12, and this was only his second meeting at Monmore Green! A fantastic nights racing and a well deserved Man of the Match award.
Eastbourne next Monday – you know what those meetings are usually like so don’t miss it. We only need to win by three points to get our first bonus point of 2006.
Very proud to be a Wolf,
Lawt
WOLVERHAMPTON:
1. Peter Karlsson 3..3..3..3..3.. 15
2. Rider Replacement 0..1..2..2’.. 5+1
3. Ronnie Correy 1..0..2..1'..3.. 7+1
4. Fredrik Lindgren 3..2..2..2.. 9
5. Billy Hamill 2..3..3..2'.0.. 10+1
6. William Lawson 0..3..1..0..2'.2'.1'.. 9+3
7. Christian Hefenbrock 2'.0..0..1.. 3+1
COVENTRY:
1. Chris Harris 2..3..F..1.. 6
2. Billy Janniro 1'.1..3..2.. 7+1
3. Morten Risager 0..1'.0.. 1+1
4. Rory Schlein 2..2..1..6..1'.. 12+1
5. Scott Nicholls 3..2..3..1..0..2.. 11
6. Troy Batchelor 0..0..0.. 0
7. Oliver Allen 1..1..1..0..0.. 3
This match always looked like it could cause us a little worry and I think most fans would have settled for a win on the night, and the two league points, if offered to them before the meeting started. But then once the bonus point came within reach of course our thinking changed.
Magnus’ absence from the side seemed before the meeting to make Wolves stronger and as things turned out it was to our benefit with William Lawson turning in a brilliant performance as his main replacement. For the Bees there was Bachelor in the team to replace Smolinski but otherwise they were the same team that had embarrassed us on Friday.
Peter Karlsson won the toss and chose gates 1 and 3 for heat 1.
Heat 1: PK, Harris, Janniro, Lawson 3-3
Peter made a good start and rode a very tight inside line on the first turn to lead and went on to win the race with ease. William Lawson showed a hint of things to come as he passed Harris up the back straight on the first lap but Harris went round him and also later passed Janniro. Lawson continued to challenge and was never off the race pace.
Heat 2: Lawson, Hefenbrock, Allen, Batchelor 5-1, 8-4
First attempt was stopped after Christian was deemed to have moved at the start. At the second time of asking the Bees duo both took Chris very wide which allowed William Lawson, who had already tried out the track for size, to power past the lot of them up the inside of the back straight. Christian then passed both of the opposition on the inside of the first bend of the next lap. William’s time was 0.5 sec faster than PK’s in heat 1!
Heat 3: Lindgren, Schlein, Correy, Risager 4-2, 12-6
Freddie gated well and held the inside line to lead and Ronnie cut back underneath Risager to take third place.
Heat 4: Nicholls, Hamill, Allen, Hefenbrock 2-4, 14-10
Great gate from Billy to lead for a lap but Nicholls was lightning fast and came in hard to the first bend of the next lap and took Billy soooooooo wide that he had to power down allowing Allen through the gap. Billy picked him off quickly but was too far back to catch the speedy Nicholls. Interesting to see Nicholls apologise for his move by raising his left hand to Billy as he left him high and dry.
Heat 5: Harris, Lindgren, Janniro, Correy 2-4, 16-14
Easy win for Harris from the start. Freddie missed the gate and had to pass Janniro by taking the long way round the fourth bend of lap 1. Ronnie tried hard but couldn’t find a way past Janniro who stuck to the inside where he knew that Ronnie would be most comfortable passing.
Heat 6: PK, Nicholls, Lawson, Batchelor 4-2, 20-16
PK made the better start and took the line that Nicholls would have chosen on the edge of the dirt. Nicholls kept him honest for the whole race but PK had it covered. William passed Lawson on the inside when the Bee went too wide on the second bend.
Heat 7: Hamill, Schlein, Risager, Lawson 3-3, 23-19
Incredible start from Billy Hamill to lead and win. William gave it every effort but the Coventry pair rode for the shared heat and kept him out.
Heat 8: Janniro, Correy, Allen, Hefenbrock 2-4, 25-23
Janniro and Allen gated and looked like securing a 1-5 until Ronnie saw a gap on the inside at the start of lap three. He drove underneath Allen and split the pairing. Christian took a couple of very wide lines which lost him a lot of ground.
Heat 9: Nicholls, Lindgren, Correy, Batchelor 3-3, 28-26
Heat was stopped because Nicholls moved at the start and was warned. In the restart Nicholls gated well but was chased all the way by Freddie Lindgren who caught him and actually gave him a little nudge on the last bend of the third lap but couldn’t quite get enough drive to get past.
Heat 10: PK, Lawson, Schlein, Risager 5-1, 33-27
Peter Karlsson made the gate and cleared off for a fine win. William Lawson however was last as he entered the back straight but then he wound open the throttle and made a superb outside pass around Risager and then a brilliant switch to the inside of the first bend of lap 3 to pass Schlein in breathtaking fashion. What a ride!
Heat 11: Hamill, Janniro, Hefenbrock, Harris (fell) 4-2, 37-29
The race should have been stopped as Harris fell after all four of them bunched up in the first turn. The referee saw it differently and allowed things to continue so Harris got up and rode on (fair play to him). Janniro tried to pass Billy up the inside of the back straight but Hamill just rode a quick outside of the top turns and went on for the win. Christian took a couple of laps to make up the ground to Janniro but was too late to challenge.
Heat 12: Correy, Lawson, Nicholls (TS), Allen 5-1, 42-30
A classis race! Nicholls was introduced on a Tactical Substitute basis and started from 15m back. Ronnie led from the start with Allen in second place. On the second bend of the second lap William passed Allen on the inside at the same time as Nicholls blasted round him on the outside! Nicholls caught Ronnie but the little superstar moved out and rode Nicholl’s preferred line until on the first bend of the last lap Nicholls was just about to make his move but the Rocket laid his machine over Nicholls and just turned it really tightly and forced him to lock up or crash. A very controlled and brave move from Ronnie which also allowed William to take advantage of a slowed down Nicholls and move into second place for a sensational, roof-raising 5-1 for the Wolves.
Heat 13: PK, Hamill, Harris (TR), Nicholls 5-1, 47-31
Harris arrived at the start with the black and white helmet cover showing that he was the second tactical move on the bounce. Nicholls gated first and led through the first bend but PK got the drive on the inside and passed him just as Billy Hamill squeezed through the tiniest of gaps on the outside to make a Nicholls sandwich up the back straight. The total determination shown by both Wolves riders in this race was amazing and led to a well deserved 5-1. Another tactical move foiled!
Heat 14: Schlein (TR), Lindgren, Lawson, Allen 3-6, 50-37
Yet another tactical ploy by the Bees but this time it paid off as Schlein made a good start and made too much ground for Freddie, on his second bike by now, to catch him despite all his efforts. William Lawson rode Billy Hamill’s machine to beat Oliver Allen. All square for the bonus point at this stage!
Heat 15: PK, Nicholls, Schlein, Hamill 3-3, 53-40
PK emerged in the lead from a hard fought turn one but unfortunately Billy was at the back. The Coventry pair team rode to keep him at bay and force a run-off for the aggregate bonus point.
Bonus Point Run-Off:
Peter gated well but ran too wide in the first turn and allowed Nicholls through the inside. PK then had an excellent run up the back straight with loads of speed and cut tight into bend 4 to emerge in the lead but Nicholls took a tight line into the first turn of the next lap and passed Peter to go on a win the vital heat. PK gave it everything but to no avail.
The meeting had absolutely everything, except the cherry on the top of the cake (the bonus point). The racing was of the highest quality with all Wolves riders contributing to what is an excellent home victory against a difficult team. So why did I feel like we had lost for a few moments after the run-off? We thwarted two out of the three tactical moves employed by Coventry and Peter Adams’ use of our rider replacement facility was excellent and could not have been planned in that way before the meeting started. The track allowed for close and exciting racing – and overtaking - that the Sky audience must have lapped up.
Weather: A pleasant, balmy evening with just a few gentle droplets of rain to keep the track surface nicely moisturised.
Track: Like this every week please! From the terraces it appeared to be the perfect surface for RACING! Top job.
Attendance: An almighty stoat of a crowd. Got to be the biggest for a couple of seasons.
Wolves Performance: Tremendous performance from our team to recover the ground lost on Good(!) Friday. The team atmosphere seemed to be very much in evidence with machinery being lent freely and praise being given to riders, by riders. This is the Wolves way of things and long may it continue.
Entertainment: Top class entertainment in virtually every race. Can’t ask for more.
Referee: Generally got it right.
Man of the Match: This is hard, and I have given it much thought. Peter Karlsson was sensational and on almost any other night he would have got the nod, but as we base our rider ratings on our expectations I will award the Man of the Match nomination to William Lawson for exceeding my expectations by such a long way.
Rider Ratings: (now on a scale of ten with 6 being the average expectation)
Peter Karlsson: 9 Simply sensational – a fantastic fifteen point maximum. Don’t mention the run-off!
Ronnie Correy: 7 Worth the admission money to see that ride against Scott Nicholls in heat 12. Thanks Ron.
Fredrik Lindgren: 7 He will be disappointed but 9 points is a great score against top opposition.
Billy Hamill: 8 Fantastic entertainment first and foremost, but he is also showing great teamsmanship in his support of other team members.
Christian Hefenbrock: 6 An off-night for Christian after his excellent ride in heat 2.
William Lawson: 9 I think he said in the post match interview that it was his best speedway match ever. He was inspirational, scored paid 12, and this was only his second meeting at Monmore Green! A fantastic nights racing and a well deserved Man of the Match award.
Eastbourne next Monday – you know what those meetings are usually like so don’t miss it. We only need to win by three points to get our first bonus point of 2006.
Very proud to be a Wolf,
Lawt
;D
