Brilliant Bears defeat Gladiators!
Redcar picked up their second league win of the season with a superb 43-47 away win over a dogged Plymouth side at the Plymouth Coliseum. Redcar were led superbly by Charles Wright who hit a scintillating 17 with the skipper ably supported by Jason Edwards (11) and Ben Trigger (7) who hit his best ever score in Bears colours. The Gladiators battled and were led impressively by Alfie Bowtell (13+2) and their guest Troy Batchelor who hit 12+1.
Redcar registered their first heat winner at the first attempt as the Bears inspirational skipper, Charles Wright took the win, but with Connor Bailey at the back, the “Agilia” Bears could not take the lead in the early stages. The hosts then hit the front in the reserves race as Joe Thompson took the chequered flag, and with Jacob Hook hanging on for 3rd ahead of Jake Mulford, the Bears were trailing at the Coliseum.
In damp Devonshire conditions, the Gladiators doubled their lead to 4 as the former Birmingham star, Alfie Bowtell took the win, but Jason Edwards denied the Gladiators a maximum as he held off the hard charging Kyle Newman for 2nd. However, problems struck for Plymouth on the opening lap of heat 4 as Ben Barker clipped the fence and was excluded. The re-run saw the Bears hit back in heat 4 as the former Plymouth reserve, Ben Trigger took an impressive win, and with Mulford in an unopposed 3rd, Redcar reduced the arrears to 2 points.
Redcar then turned the tables on their hosts to take a two point lead as Wright took his second heat win, and with Bailey in an impressive second, the Redcar travelling contingent had their first maximum heat advantage to celebrate. However, the Gladiators immediately hit back with a 5-1 of their own as the impressive Alfie Bowtell and the Gladiator’s guest, Troy Batchelor hit a maximum to send Plymouth into a narrow advantage.
The topsy turvy nature of the meeting continued in heat 7 as the ever improving Jason Edwards took the win, and with Dan Gilkes in 2nd, the “Agilia” Bears once again led. Heat 8 saw Bailey, (clearly revelling in the number 2 slot) win from the gate, and with Trigger picking up another vital point, the Bears extended their advantage to 4 points over their Cab Direct Championship rivals.
Ahead of heat 9, the Gladiators suffered a blow with Ben Barker having to withdraw from the remainder of the meeting on medical grounds. The ninth race of a tense evening’s speedway saw further problems for Plymouth as Redcar took their lead to 6 points as Wright won in his rider replacement outing, and with Mulford in a vital 3rd place, Redcar had daylight.
However, the daylight was short lived as Plymouth reduced the gap to 4 points as Batchelor won heat 10 ahead of Edwards, and with Bowtell in 3rd, the hosts sensed an opportunity. After a shared heat 11 won by the fantastic skipper, Wright, Redcar re-established their 6 point buffer with another 4-2 as Gilkes took a win on his former home track, and with Trigger once again picking up 3rd, Redcar edged towards victory.
Heat 13 saw Batchelor lower Wright’s colours for the first time, and with ex-Bear Newman keeping the Bears new signing Dan Gilkes at the back, Plymouth were within 4 of the Bears once again. With the pressure on, Jason Edwards rose to the occasion to take the win in a shared heat 14 to set up a last heat decider.
The final race saw Redcar’s inspirational skipper, Wright pass Batchelor in the early stages to take the win in a shared race to send the Redcar fans wild as the Bears picked up their second win on the bounce.
Plymouth Gladiators = 43
1. Troy Batchelor (G) = 12+1
2. Alfie Bowtell = 13+2
3. Dan Thompson – R/R
4. Kyle Newman = 8+1
5. Ben Barker = 0 Withdrawn
6. Joe Thompson = 6+1
7. Jacob Hook = 4
Redcar Bears = 47
1. Charles Wright = 17
2. Connor Bailey = 5+1
3. Dan Gilkes = 5+1
4. Jason Edwards = 11
5. Danny King – R/R
6. Ben Trigger = 7
7. Jake Mulford = 2
