Belle Vue Thrash Crisis Club Brummies

 

 

BELLE VUE  ACES      56 - 39  
BIRMINGHAM BRUMMIES 

Belle Vue picked up their first win in 11 matches Monday night, as they beat a weakened Birmingham Brummies side 56-39 in what could turn out to be a mixed result for the Manchester outfit, with a meeting over the next couple of days to take place over the future of the Birmingham side. Ironically the Aces last victory in the league came against Birmingham, back on May 19^th.  

               

 

It was a fairly strange atmosphere at Kirkmanshulme lane, as the Brummies who have struggled with thing both on and track this season are a real club in deep turmoil.

   Birmingham have been dogged with problems over promoters changing, riders signing and then messing them around, previous owners not being paid and running up debts and also a big factor crowds has seen low crowds at Perry Bar this year too.

 

 

The visitors main threat in their side was posed in Ben Barker and saw him lead the opening race of the meeting as he led from start to almost finish, till a mistake on the final bend let Belle Vue`s GP star Matej Zagar roar up the inside going to the line and nipped ahead of the Cornishman to take the race win.

   In the reserves race it saw a guest for the hosts, as they drafted in a Belle Vue connection through Charles Wright, whose is the brother of ex Ace James and saw Wright and Lee Payne pass either side of Simon Lambert down the back straight to see them storm to victory and take a 5-1 maximum heat advantage.

 

 

Barker then made up for his earlier slip up in opening race, as he took the race win in heat 3 before Droylsden native Jason Garrity who came in as guest for the Brummies, saw him touch the tapes and that led to Charles Wright breaking them as he ploughed through them. 

   This saw the referee excluded Garrity for a tape offence, but saw him go off from 15 metres back. Even the speed Garrity generated couldn't stop Wright and Richie Worrall scoring a 5-1for the Aces as it helped move them further ahead at 17-7.

 

 

That lead was increased further when Zagar and Craig Cook made the gate together and saw them team ride round for a maximum heat win to see them 22-8  ahead after just 5 races gone.

   Birmingham then put the double point’s helmet colour on Ben Barker in the next race, as he partnered Danny King and was arguably their strongest pairing in the team.

    Things didn`t go as they planned and could only manage a 5-3 from the race with newly installed Captain to the Aces in Scott Nicholls showing his experience to hold off his former Coventry team mate in Barker and in doing so, took the race win and limit the damage.

 

 

 

Italian rider Nico Covatti for the Brummies saw him pick up a race win to see him become the second Birmingham rider to claim a race win in the match as he took heat 7, when the rider swooped around the outside line and passed Michael Palm Toft by the boards to see move in to the first place and saw him take the race win.

    That was cancelled out well and truly when the home side picked up a couple of heat advantages in the next two races, to see Belle Vue lead 37-19 after 9 races gone.

Heat 10 then saw Birmingham roll the dice one last time to try and crawl their way back into the meeting, as they put the tactical substitution on Danny King and saw him and his team mate Ben Barker score a bit 7-2 heat victory despite the pressure by Matej Zagar trying his hardest to try and get by King. That heat win saw the large Brummies contingent that had made the trip up the M6 for the meeting celebrate their second heat win of the night.

 

 

Covatti then made it two wins in a row for himself, as he rode to another race win as the Brummies rider got the better of Craig Cook and had team mate Jason Garrity beat Scott Nicholls into third place for another heat win as they secured a 4-2.

    Belle Vue then struck back in heat 12 as Michael Palm-Toft and Charles Wright got a 5-1 for the home side with Zagar and Cook copying the feat in heat 13, as they too got a maximum heat win to make it 51-32 after a re run which saw Covatti take a heavy fall on the second bend in the original race. That saw the Aces take the match and all points on offer too.

 

 

Birmingham then got some pride back in the penultimate race of the night, as Nico Covatti dusted himself off from his heavy fall in the last heat, to come out and pick up his third race victory of the night, whilst Simon Starke his team mate in the race saw him win the battle for third place to see a 4-2 heat advantage for the Second city club.

   The final race saw Richie Worrall and Craig Cook for the Aces face the competition of Ben Barker and Nico Covatti and saw a share of the points in the race, as Cook took the chequered flag to see him finish the night with 11+2 ahead of the Brum duo of Barker and Covatti to see the home side celebrate victory.

    After the meeting, the Aces riders did their now traditional walk through the crowd back to the pits thanking the crowd. Belle Vue included Birmingham riders to come round and thank their fans, to which many stayed behind and saw hugs, kisses and thank you`s to the Birmingham riders if this was to be their last meeting.

With the away fans getting photos and autographs from their riders, the Brummies fans certainly didn`t go quietly into the night and gave a rendition of the Brummies Warcry, perhaps for the last time with July 14^th being the deadline for new owners and to save the historic club from extinction.

Belle Vue ACES

1. Matej Zagar 3 2* 2 3 =10+2

2. Michael Palm Toft 1 2 0 3 =6

3. Scott Nicholls 2 3 2* 0 =7+1

4. Richie Worrall 3 0 3 2 f=8

5. Craig Cook 1* 3 2 2* 3 =11+2

6. Charles Wright (G) 3 2* 3 2* =10+2 Paid max

7. Lee Payne 2* 1* 1 0 =4+2

Birmingham BRUMMIES

1. Bartosz Zmarzlik R/R (BB 2 DK 1 JG 1 NC 0)

2. Jason Garrity (G) fexc 0 1 1 0 =2

3. Danny King 0 1 1* 0 6^ =8+1

4. Nico Covatti 0 3 3 fexc 3 1* =10

5. Ben Barker 2 3 4^ 1 1 2 =13

6. Simon Lambert 0 0 fexc =0

7. Paul Starke 1 1 2 1 1 =6