British Under 13 Individual Championship
posted 30/06/08
Newport played host once again this weekend to Cycle Speedway racers from all over the UK as it staged the British Under 13 Individual Championship at the Newport International Sports Village track. Riders from as far apart as Ipswich, Stockport and the Midlands competed in two semi-finals to qualify for the Final event, watched by a large crowd, in fine but windy weather, the day was packed with Cycle Speedway action.
Semi-Final 1
Semi-Final 1 saw several local youngsters, Jacob Soper, Adam Bennett and Khalid Mitha from Newport and Lewis Harvey and Ryan Ball Roberts from East Newport, fighting for a place in the final, and a chance to compete for the coveted white jersey of the British Champion. Ipswich’s Liam Overett dominated the race, qualifying for the Final after 5 unbeaten heats. East Newport’s Lewis Harvey also put on a very strong performance, dropping just one point on his way to qualifying. Ipswich’s Rosie Woolard and Exeter’s Charlie-Jane Herbert showed that Cycle Speedway is a sport that allows girls and boys to compete on an equal footing. At the end of 20 heats, with each rider completing 5 races, the qualifiers were: Liam Overett (Ipswich), Lewis Harvey (E Newport), Joe Avery (Exeter), Aaron Morgan (Poole), Adam Overett (Ipswich), Scott Grimes (Hethersett), Ashley Hill (Ipswich) and Ricki Johnson (Sandwell). Bradley Clark (Sandwell) qualified as reserve.
Scores:
Liam Overett (Ipswich) 20, Lewis Harvey (East Newport) 19, Joe Avery (Exeter )17, Aaron Morgan (Poole) 17, Adam Overett (Ipswich) 15, Scott Grimes (Hethersett) 14, Ashley Hill (Ipswich) 14, Ricki Johnson (Wednesfield) 14, Bradley Clarke (Sandwell) 13, Rosie Woolard (Ipswich) 12, Charlie-Jane Herbert (Exeter) 10, Logan Weeks (Weymouth) 9, Jacob Soper (Newport) 8, Ryan Ball Roberts (East Newport) 7, Adam Bennett (Newport) 6, Khalid Mitha (Newport) 5
Semi-Final 2
The second semi-final was dominated by Stockport’s Alistair Lam, who also qualified for the Final after 5 unbeaten heats. Strong performances were seen from Ipswich’s Richard Fellgate and South West Individual Championship leader Matthe Milden, from Weymouth. Matthew Haddock of Wednesfield showed some fine racing skills, reminding his competitors how he secured the British Under 10 Championship title in 2007. Local girl Rebecca Davies put on a brave fight on behalf of Newport CSC. At the end of this semi-final, the qualifiers were: Alistair Lam (Ipsich), Matthew Mildon (Weymouth), Richard Fellgate (Ipswich), Matthew Lush (Stockport), Matthew Haddock (Wednesfield), Jake Read (Stockport), Oliver Sidwick (Filton), Jack Lush (Stockport) after a run off for the final place in the final between Richard Hudson (Sheffield) and Jack Lush. Patrick Kruger (Colchester) qualified as reserve.
Scores:
Alistair Lam (Stockport) 20, Richard Fellgate (Ipswich) 17, Matthew Milden (Weymouth) 17, Matthew Lush (Stockport) 16, Matthew Haddock (Wednesfield) 15, Jake Read (Stockport) 14, Oliver Sidwick (Filton) 14, Richard Hudson (Sheffield) 13, Jack Lush (Stockport) 13, Patrick Kruger (Colchester) 12, Matthew Hill (Ipswich) 11, Rebecca Davies (Newport) 9, Harvey Grosvenor (Sandwell) 7, Brandon Weekes (Weymouth) 7, Matthew Trenchman (Exeter) 6
Final
The Final was full of excitement and tension, as the 16 riders fought it out for glory. Alistair Lam (Stockport), Aaron Morgan (Poole) and Matthew Milden (Weymouth) all opened strongly, setting the standard. Matthew Haddock (Wednesfield) picked up the pace in the second half winning three heats on the trot. Lewis Harvey (E Newport) saw his hopes dashed in his fourth heat when he lost his chain on the first heat, limping home to take a point for finishing. Matthew Milden kept the pressure up, and going into his last heat, was unbeaten. After the first corner, he had it all to do, as Exeter’s Joe Avery got into the lead. Pushing all the way, Matthew made a superb passing move to take the win in the heat, and victory over-all. The final result was: 1st Matthew Milden (Weymouth), 2nd Aaron Morgan (Poole), 3rd Matthew Haddock (Wednesfield).
All finalists were awarded a medal by twice Junior World Champion Annelise Heard, with the top 3 receiving trophies, and of course the White Jersey for the British Champion, Matthew Milden.
The crowd were treated to some great showmanship, as the three podium winners were paraded around the track in an open top car, to the strains of “We Are the Champions” echoing around the International Sports Village, a fitting end to a spectacular day of top level junior racing.
Scores:
Matthew Milden (Weymouth) 20, Aaron Morgan (Poole 18), Matthew Haddock (Wednesfield) 17, Alistair Lam (Stockport) 16, Liam Overett (Ipswich) 16, Jack Lush (Stockport) 15, Lewis Harvey (E Newport) 13, Richard Fellgate (Ipswich) 12, Scott Grimes (Hethersett) 12, Matthew Lush (Stockport) 11, Ollie Sidwick (Filton) 11, Joe Avery (Exeter) 11, Ashley Hill (Ipswich) 9, Adam Overett (Ipswich) 8, Ricky Johnson (Sandwell) 6, Jake Read (Stockport) 5
Newport Cycle Speedway Club is a Go Ride accredited club. We train on Tuesday an Thursday evenings at the track outside the velodrome in Newport International Sports Village. See our website, www.freewebs.com/newportcsc for further details.