MATCH REPORTS

INTERNATIONAL SPECIAL - GREAT BRITAIN V POLAND SERIES

LAST RACE DRAMA AS POLAND SNATCH SERIES – posted 28 July 2013

 

With the test series level at one apiece, the stage was set perfectly at Harbourside Park for a showpiece decider.  Although the good old British weather did its best to intervene, the match went right down to a dramatic last heat decider in which Poland snatched what had earlier seemed to be an unlikely victory.

 

Despite continuous rain and challenging track conditions, the early exchanges were fast and furious with GB getting off to the best possible start with an impressive 7-3 from Reed/Carmichael. A heat two win for Gluchowski confirmed his form shown throughout the series with Timms and Harris filling in the minor places. While Nowacki was leading heat three, partner Grabowski was literally ambushed by the strong looking Boaler/Heard pairing for a share of the spoils.

 

Torun youngster Boziawicz was the surprise winner of heat four while partner Szymanski had a battle royal with Carmichael before receiving his marching orders on the last bend for excessive force. Sheffield Star Idziroek showed good form to win heat five before the GB lead was extended to seven points in heat six with a 6-4 which saw Heard outpace Gluchowski. 

 

A drawn heat seven saw Reed/Carmichael sit in behind Nowacki to maintain their advantage after Grabowski was once again on the receiving end of some robust stuff!  Poland reduced the deficit to four points in heat eight after an expensive tapes exclusion to Chris Timms who was lining up up from grid one leaving partner Harris no option but to sit for three points.

 

The four point gap was maintained into the interval as Gluchowski sped away from the tapes only for partner Szymanski to once again lose out in the tough physical battle for minor places to arch exponent Boaler who sat in behind Hollebon. With the steady rain showing no signs of easing, both team were glad of an extended break giving them time to reflect on the 46-42 scoreline.

 

Heat 10 saw the GB team’s most impressive rider Heard pick up another win ahead of lively Polish reserves Szymanski and Idziorek before Poland narrowed the deficit to two points with a 6-4 from Nowacki/Grabowski over Timms and Harris. GB nerves were steadied in a classic heat 12 when their top pairing Reed/Carmichael picked up another 7-3 after an exciting tussle with Gluchowski, a race which encapsulated all that is best in top class international racing.

 

GB sought to build on their eight point advantage with Heard/Boaler lining up in heat 13 but Poland substituted Idziorek for Boziawicz and the Sheffield surprise packet and most people's man of the match, pulled off an impressive win to maintain the difference. Out again in heat 14, things looked even better for the Poles as Idziorek once again leading with partner Nowacki right behind him until Timms clashed with the World champion, allowing team partner Hollebon through for a damage limiting 6-4 reversal as the scoreline moved on the 71-67.

 

Grabowski and Szymanski had been on the receiving end of some tough stuff up to this point but bounced back to deliver a 6-4 in heat 15 and the margin was back to two points. Dependable Reed collected the four points in heat 16 but a double substitution by Poland who tracked their two reserves Idziorek and Szymanski paid off as they outpaced Boaler for an important 5-5 off outside gates.

 

Heat 17 was a massive race in the context off the match as it lined up with Grabowski on gate one, Timms on two, Gluchowski on three and Carmichael on four.  The two Poles shot from the tapes and once in front, the heavy track conditions allowed the GB pairing little opportunity to do anything about it.  With the match turned on its head and Poland leading for the first time, 83-85 it was all down to a nerve tingling last heat decider.

 

With the advantage of inside grids, GB lined up with Heard and Harris while Poland tracked Nowacki and Paradinski. On the exit of the first bend, Heard held the lead from Nowacki while Harris was ahead of Paradinski and a drawn series looked to be on the cards until a dramatic lap three when Paradinski launched a do-or-die challenge on Harris. Both riders came to grief and suddenly all eyes were on referee Mike Legge who adjudged the GB skipper the guilty party and suddenly the Poles were in heaven!

 

Marcin Paradindski receives the acclaim of his team mates after his heat 18 pass on Steve Harris which won the match for Poland.

Credit to both sides for making a great match in such adverse conditions with GB manager Dave Murphy undoubtedly pointing to the absence of Gavin Wheeler as a key factor in the outcome. Poland on the other hand were boosted by the late inclusion of Lukasz Nowacki who was able to finish work in time to make it to the track with minutes to spare. As with the first two matches, racing was top class and very sportingly contested - a credit to both sets of riders.

 

Great Britain 87

Paul Heard 17, Thomas Reed 15, Mark Carmichael 14, Steve Harris 10, Mark Boaler 10, Neil Hollebon 9, Chris Timms 7, Leyton Glover 5

Poland 90

Pawel Idziorek 18, Lukasz Nowacki 17, Grzegorz Gluchowski 17, Bartek Grabowski 11, Marcin Paradinski 10, Arek Szymanski 7, Adam Boziawicz 7, Pawel Cegielski 3

Referee - Mike Legge (Dorset)

GB TAPES EXCLUSIONS PROVE COSTLY – posted 27 July 2013

 

Newport CSC played host to the second test between Great Britain and Poland, which resulted in a comfortable 96 to 82 win for an impressive Poland team although Team GB were confident of wrapping up the three match series after their win at Exeter on Thursday evening.

 

Two shared heats opened up proceedings but then two costly tape exclusions in heats three and four for GB’s Lee Aris and Chris Timms gave the Eastern Europeans an early advantage, a lead they kept throughout the meeting.

 

Poland increased their lead with heat advantages from Nowacki/Grabowski and Gluckowski/Szymanski pairings to lead by 12 points at the break.

 

The 150 strong crowd, which included Newport West Member of Parliament Paul Flynn, were being treated to some fast and furious racing on the super quick Welsh circuit.

 

The Poles increased their lead early in the second half and seemed to be heading for a big win, but heat 12 saw Heard and Carmichael combine brilliantly to get a maximum heat win to keep the home country in the hunt.  However Poland were not to be denied and their greater strength in depth was a factor in this win as were their 13 race winners.

 

The series is now one-apiece going in the final test at Poole tonight (Saturday).

 

Mrs Andrea Staggemeier, manager of Analytic Intelligence Architecture who sponsored the meeting, presented the trophies after the racing and said how much she enjoyed the evening.

POLAND LEVEL TEST SERIES – posted 27 July 2013

 

Poland hit back in style at Newport last night to inflict a crushing defeat on Team GB and set up a tense Saturday evening series finale at Poole.

 

The meeting started  with heat wins from Poland's Paradzinski and Gluchowski  as the teams shared points in what was expected to a close encounter after the drama of Thursday evening's titanic tussle at Exeter.
 

However heats three and four were about to have a major impact on the outcome of the match.

 

Lee Aris and Chris Jewkes (pictured in action above) lined up with outside grids against the formidable Nowacki/Grabowski combination.  As the pressure and expectation built, it was Aris who moved and was excluded by Welsh referee Colin Simmons.

 

Despite Jewkes efforts, it was Poland who sped to a 7-2 heat win.  Worse was to follow a heat later when Heard and Timms lined up with the expectation of hitting back with maximum points for Great Britain.  This time it was Timms, who was distracted and moved to earn Team GB a second exclusion and, although Heard duly won the race, the Poles had now taken a six point lead.

 

The devastation was apparent in the GB camp and appeared to have a negative affect on their spirit, from which they seemed unable to recover.

 

At this point it was clear that Poland's confidence was growing whilst GB had only managed two race winners in the first eight heats.  The British needed to re-group at the interval to plan a second-half approach but the pre-interval heat nine saw Nowacki and Grabowski romp away to another maximum score over Timms and Jewkes and suddenly the deficit was 12 points.

 

So what had happened after the previous nights euphoria? The reasonably sized crowd at Newport seemed muted and there was no repeat of the noisy and encouraging support that was so evident at Exeter.  Team GB just didn't look as hungry for success as was so evident on Thursday.

Paul Heard and Mark Boaler had come into the squad and contributed well, demonstrating their value to the team with Boaler trying everything possible to 'make things happen' for his partners and Heard always looking a threat.

 

The last spark of hope for GB saw Aris and Timms looking to be on the verge of a 7-3 race win as they sped out of the first bend in heat 10 (pictured above), but by the next bend the Poles emerged in first and third places and went on to extend their lead.

 

Team GB restored some pride, in the race of the night, when Heard made a remarkable pass on the previously unbeaten Gluchowski and was joined by Carmichael take maximum points in heat 12.

 

The Nowacki/Grabowski partnership (pictured above) continued to inflict damage, as Poland coasted to victory but Team GB gave late sign of what's needed to clinch the series when Aris and Boaler also stormed to an impressive maximum over Paradzinski and Nowacki in the final race.

 

All eyes turn to Poole on Saturday as we await the final encounter which will determine the series winners.

 

Great Britain 82

Paul Heard 17, Mark Boaler 15, Mark Carmichael 13, Lee Aris 13, Neil Hollebon 7,  Chris Timms 7, Chris Jewkes 6, Jack Harrold 4

Poland 96

Grzegorz Gluchowski 18, Marcin Paradinski 17, Lukasz Nowacki 14, Bartek Grabowski 13, Pawel Izdiorek 11, Arek Szymanski 11, Matti Szymczak 6, Adam Boziawicz 6

Referee – Colin Simmons (Wales)

GREAT START FOR TEAM GB – posted 26 July 2013

 

Exeter hosted round one of the 2013 test series between Team GB and Poland on Thursday evening.  The largest crowd the Devon circuit has seen in years, accompanied with good weather and a top class line up, presented  the perfect recipe for a test series opener.

 

Former British champion Gavin Wheeler  (pictured below)got the ball rolling with a start-to-finish win in heat one with Thomas Reed entertaining the crowd as he successfully dived Marcin Paradzinski, only to open up a gap for Arek Symanski to sneak through and claim the three points. 

 

Poole's Greg Gluchowski grabbed Poland's first heat win in the second race of the day followed by Steve Harris and Chris Timms who rode impressively to make something out of his grid four by overtaking Adam Bozejewicz entering lap two.

 

Wheeler continued to show fine form in heat four when he gated over Paradzinski and reserve Mark Carmichael found a way past Matti Zymczak to give Team GB another heat advantage.

 

Leyton Glover made his international debut at senior level and with strong back-up from Elite League team mate Reed, he was able to ride a steady race behind Szymanski. 

 

Unfortunately the only blip of the event arose in the seventh race of the day. It started off fantastically with Wheeler clamping Bartek Grabowski on the back straight for Reed to come around, but then the Exeter star uncharacteristically slid off shortly after World champion Lukasz Nowacki had dived Wheeler.

 

If you are a regular in cycle speedway then you will know what to expect when Wheeler is on a rival's back wheel and Nowacki certainly knew what was on the menu!

 

Wheeler switched his line entering the third lap but there was simply no room for his front wheel.  Unfortunately for the Southampton based rider, the only way was down towards the deck! This didn't help Gavin for the remainder of the match and we await an update as to how the former British champion is coping with the sudden smash to his wrist area.

 

This was the first time that Poland had taken the lead but it didn't last long when Szymanski wasted a grid one and earned an exclusion for movement at the tapes. Gluchowski continued his impressive form by making it three wins out of three just before the interval to keep both teams within one point of each other as Great Britain led with 45 to Poland’s 44.

 

After both teams had taken their chance to regroup during the interval, Team GB took to the track knowing that if they continue as they had started, then they could make the next two rounds of the test series a whole lot easier. 

Lee Aris did what he does best and ensured no one was going to get in his way as he gave Pawel Cegielski a good old thumping from the elbow coming out of grid two, to then let Carmichael around the outside. A good partnership between the two riders gave GB the best start to the second half, now leading by five points.

 

A couple more shared heats kept the score line close but sparks flew in the unlucky heat 13 for Poland when Paradzinski thundered up the inside of Aris down the back straight. Lee rightfully swung back across from the outside to defend his line but both riders went down after such impact, with Szymanski having no where to go but in to the pile and over the handle bars. Referee Robin Spicer stopped the race and deemed Paradzinski to be the cause of the stoppage. Aris went on to win the race with Arek defending second place from Chris Jewkes.

 

Nowacki tried to keep Poland in the mix with his first four pointer of the day in the next race but GB remained solid with Timms and Carmichael reuniting as a partnership from their Hammer days and securing the safe five points.

 

Paradzinski came back from his exclusion with the hunger to win heat sixteen when he blocked out the challenge from Reed. The Devon express couldn't gate him from four and when he found half a chance on the inside for a cutback, Paradzinski charged across to block out the challenge.

 

Chris Timms finished off his first match of the series cutting out any celebration of a maximum for Gluchowski when he held his own off grid one. Gluchowski, one of the fastest gaters in the sport, just couldn't find a way past Timms for the four laps and that enabled Chris to bow out of Exeter on a high, top scoring for the Brits.

 

Nowacki claimed the final win of event but Team GB, having already done enough, could relax and take huge pride from an impressive victory over the nation that defeated them two-one in the last international test series.

 

Great Britain 93

Chris Timms 17, Lee Aris 16, Mark Carmichael 13, Thomas Reed 12, Gavin Wheeler 11, Steve Harris 10, Chris Jewkes 9, Lee Glover 5

Poland 85

Grzegorz Gluchowski 19, Lukasz Nowacki 16, Bartek Grabowski 14, Arek Szymanski 12, Marcin Paradinski 11, Matti Szymczak 5, Pawel Cegielski 5, Adam Bozejewicz 3

Referee – Robin Spicer (Dorset)

 

TEAMWORK THE KEY AS GB LEAD SERIES – posted 26 July 2013

 

Team GB started off the series with victory over Poland, at Exeter, on a night of exciting racing and in front of a large crowd at the Devon circuit in what can only be described as a tremendous advert for cycle speedway.  

The crowd was estimated to be well in excess of 200 people and included representatives from the local Council, British Cycling, the local Polish community, the Exeter speedway supporters club plus several former Exeter Aces and Exmouth Arrows riders from yesteryear.

 

Whilst the riders dished up some of the best 'free' sporting entertainment on offer anywhere, the Exeter club excelled with its promotion of the event as the crowd were whipped into enthusiastic support for their team (whether British or Polish) with announcer Dan Winchester's enthusiastic commentary.

 

Racing was so furious that one race saw all four riders leave the track at various stages before referee Rob Spicer called a halt to proceedings and ordered a restart with all four riders, but only after spending several minutes explaining his expectations to the team managers and their riders.

 

Gavin Wheeler had looked sharp in winning his first two rides before he and Tom Reed surprisingly found themselves on the wrong end of a 7-3 heat win by Grabowski and Nowacki when, in trying to recover the situation, Wheeler took a nasty fall and suffered an injury which may keep him out of the third test at Poole on Saturday.

 

The first half was tense and close fought, with Poland holding a slender lead going into heat eight, before a tape exclusion for Arek Szymanski saw Team GB head into the interval with a one point advantage - this after Timms and Harris took a 6-3 heat win over Paradzinski.

 

The second half saw heat wins from Timms, Harris and Aris edge Team GB towards whilst great support rides from the ever reliable Chris Jewkes and the emerging talent of Welshman Mark Carmichael gave the British lads the edge over a Polish team that only achieved two bonus points, for team riding, compared the seven that Team GB amassed during the meeting.

 

As much as Jewkes was reliable, local star Tom Reed was exciting as he switched and swapped track positions in some epic battles with Paradzinski and Gluchowski.

 

Paradzinski suffered a disputed exclusion in heat 13, when he challenged up the inside of Lee Aris, This allowed GB to take an eight point lead and subsequently take control of the match for there onwards.

 

Both teams each had five riders showing the capability to take heat wins with Nowacki, Paradzinski, Grabowski, Szymanski and the impressive Gluchowski all leading the Polish assault, to ensure that Team GB can take nothing for granted going into the second Test at Newport on Friday.

 

Poole's Leyton Glover made a useful debut for GB and managed a good second place in the first of his three rides, whilst team manager Dave Murphy was full of praise for his team and the way the went about their business - "They all did their bit and it was a real team effort" he told Spokesman after the match.

 

Poland will bring in Pawel Idziorek for the matches at Newport and Poole, which should strengthen their team as they set about keeping the series alive with a much needed victory in South Wales.  The team GB response is to draft in Mark Boaler and Paul Heard along with debutants Neil Hollebon and Jack Harrold to replace Harris, Wheeler, Reed and Glover who are all rested for the second Test match.

 

It will take a lot to top the excitement and thrills dished up at the Devon circuit on Thursday, but Newport cycle speedway may just be the place to be on Friday evening at 7.30pm.

 

Meanwhile the words and sentiments echoing around Cofton Road at 9.30pm on Thursday July 25th were heard to include "I never realised it could be so exciting", "Why haven't we heard about or seen this before" and "I must come back again and bring my friends, as they wont believe me when I say how good it was,"

 

Well that's International Cycle Speedway at its best.  Organiser Dave Murphy believed in it and now a couple hundred other people in Devon probably share that view.