2008 BRITISH WOMEN'S INDIVIDUAL FINAL

AMY CROUCH - CYCLE SPEEDWAY'S NEW GOLDEN GIRL - posted 23 August 2008

Amy Crouch is the new golden girl of British cycle speedway.  The 15 year old from Leicester produced a  glittering performance at Poole this afternoon to win the women's national championship in convincing style.  Popular Amy raced to a brilliant 20 point maximum which not only secured her the women's title but also the under-16 crown as well.

It was a dream come true for Amy.  "I am so excited, I can't tell you" she told spokesman-online minutes after her victory.  "When I beat Jessica (Lamb) and Lucy (Whitehead) from the outside grid in race 16, I knew the title was there for the taking.  I must confess I hoped to win the under-16s but to win the women's title as well is unbelievable.  It's amazing" she said modestly.

The meeting got off to a sensational start when one of the pre-tournament favourites, Lucy Whitehead. was relegated to third in her opening ride.  The 2006 champion was caught off guard as Ipswich's Lauren Jacobs swept inside her on the back straight, bringing through Laura Dale in the process. A third from her opening race was not the start Lucy or the crowd was expecting.

A second win in heat eight gave determined Jacobs a deserved share of the lead alongside Jess Lamb and Amy Crouch on eight points.  Already there was daylight between them and the rest of the field, Michelle Whitehead, Rachel Edge, Laura Dale and Lucy Whitehead already slipping back on six points apiece.

Defending champion Lamb scored a crucial win over Jacobs in heat nine, outgunning Lauren from the tapes and powering her way round the first turn to victory.  Meanwhile Crouch would not be shaken off and easily accounted for one of her closest rivals Rachel Edge in heat 11.

Heat 14 decided the title.  With Lucy Whitehead (grid two) and Jess Lamb (grid three) inside her in, it looked a tough call for Crouch.  Undaunted she made an explosive start from grid four, hammering round the first bend and  leaving her rivals in her wake.  Unexpectedly defending champion Lamb found herself caught up in traffic.  By the time she passed Michelle Whitehead, Crouch and Lucy Whitehead were away - the moment and the title had gone.

Suddenly the smart money was on Crouch.  She had to win her last race to secure the title but was made to fight every inch of the way by gutsy Jacobs who pushed her all the way.  But win it she did.  As she crossed the finish line Crouch punched the air in celebration to seal a remarkable double success.

Jess Lamb beat Lauren Jacobs in  a tie-break for the silver medal after both riders finished on 18 points. Second was not the pace Lamb wanted to be.  She took defeat in the same way she greeted victory, graciously and professionally but deep down inside, she'll be 'guttered' not to have retained the title in front of her home crowd.

Jacobs on the other had must be thrilled with her performance.  She really is a class act, aggressive yet at the same time cool and calm under pressure.  There was almost some serenity to her racing.  Sadly she couldn't hold either Crouch or Lamb from the gate, so bronze behind the big two was just about right.

Elsewhere Lucy Whitehead will be bitterly disappointed not to be in the medals, let alone regain the title she won two years ago.  The immensely popular Leicester rider never recovered from her opening ride and simply couldn't match team-mate Crouch from the gate in heat 16.  Somehow, and this is not meant unkindly, she seemed unusually off the pace.  Then again her opponents are getting better and better all the time and the gap between Lucy and the rest is not as wide as it was in 2006.

One rider who really impressed was Ipswich's Laura Dale.  She was always in the mix, putting together a  portfolio of a win and four seconds.  She executed a wonderful pass on Michelle Whitehead in heat 11 which sealed the under-16s silver medal, Whitehead going on to take the bronze.  Remarkably Horspath's Rachel Edge's score was identical, both riders finishing on 16 points.

But in the final analysis there was no doubting the winner.  Powerful from the gate and able to win the big points when it really mattered, there is no disputing that Amy Crouch was the best rider on the day.  Move over Lucy and Jess - cycle speedway has a new golden girl.

2008 British Women's Individual Championship - Final

Amy Crouch (Leicester) 20, Jessica Lamb (Poole) 18, Lauren Jacobs (Ipwich) 18, Lucy Whitehead (Leicester) 17, Rachel Edge (Horspath) 16, Laura Dale (Ipswich) 16, Charlie-Jane Herbert (Exeter) 12, Tiffany Collins (Hethersett) 12, Michelle Whitehead (Leicester) 12, Rosie Woollard 11, Natalie Timms (Wednesfield) 10,  Carly Grimes (Hethersett) 9, Jenna Whitehead (Leicester) 9, Laura Watson (Astley & Tyldesley) 7, Rebecca Davies (Newport) 7
Non-Starter - Charlie Ellitts (Wednesfield)
Under-16 Girls
1st Amy Crouch (Leicester) 2nd Laura Dale (Ipswich), 3rd Michelle Whitehead (Leicester)
Referee:  Rob Absalom (Gwent)

Top three in the under-16 girls - Laura Dale, Amy Crouch and Michelle Whitehead

Editor's Note - Our apologies for not lining up these photographs correctly.  There appears to be a fault in the page formatting but we thought it worth including the unformatted pics in any event.  We'll try to put this right later