Kent SLYDE Kings missed out on a chance to go move up into the top two in the Travel Plus National League on Monday at Central Park – going down to defeat by current league toppers Birmingham.

The Brummies increasing their chances of finishing top of the division (as they did last term) by inflicting a first home TPNL defeat of the season on the hosts.

The manner of the eventual victory, though, left a nasty taste in the mouth – when tactics replaced racing as the match reached a climax which ultimately was prematurely cut short: the dreaded ‘curfew’ denying the SLYDE Kings (and the public) the last heat decider which such a keenly contested battle demanded.

Ultimately though, the home side will rue the shocking start to proceedings from their perspective, which meant they were nearly always playing ‘catch-up’.

On an evening when the two minutes exclusion lights were left, like as not, needing new bulbs, their first use was in both of the opening heats to penalise home riders – with Luke Bowen in heat one and then Jack Thomas in the next race failing to make it to the tapes in time and incurring a 15 metres handicap in both cases.

Bowen did look to have salvaged something at least as he literally flew around the last two laps in the opening stanza and seemed to have reached at least parity with his counterpart in the Brummies side, Zach Watjknecht on the line.  Not so, said the referee Mr. Carrington and a tremendous effort by the returning SLYDE Kings’ skipper had been all in vain.

When the next heat was another maximum reverse and then the hugely improved Tom Bacon held James Shanes at bay to record the second of an eventual four heat wins (claiming the scalps of all three of the home side’s top riders), the margin of early deficit was a shocking ten points.

In three incredibly close encounters between these two sides so far in 2016, not once over 45 heats had a margin bigger than six been seen – would this early breakaway by the visitors break the spirit this time of the SLYDE Kings?

Not at all and incredibly within three heats the scores were level at 18-18! Danny Ayres made in 11 wins from 11 rides against these opponents with Thomas coming from behind to show the highly rated Jack Parkinson-Blackburn his back wheel; and then a magnificent last bend by Shanes to take his rival Wajtknecht from behind on the line set up Bowen and Luke Clifton to draw it all level in heat 6.

Two fallers for the Brummies in these races – Richings who failed to rise from the track leading not to a rerun but an awarded result; and Jack Smith left feeling aggrieved when he fell under pressure by Bowen.  Smith had upset some in the crowd by the way he came together with Danno Verge heading towards the first bend of heat two and some histrionics after his own fall cemented him as the man the home crowd loved to hate.

Sadly though for the hosts, the effort of quickly pulling back that ten points deficit was as speedily undone – falling prey to two further quick fire 1-5 reverses in heats 7 & 8: suddenly it was playing catch up time again.

Actually by heat 13 indeed the scores were level again at 39-39 all, but by this point a different tactic seemed at play with the ever approaching curfew of 8.30pm being used as a stick to beat the hosts with.  Ritchings had been ineffective all meeting and had taken a knock from his earlier fall.  Rather than directly replacing him though in heat 13, the two minutes allowance was simply exceeded before Parkinson-Blackburn then took every second of the next 120 seconds allowance before getting to the tapes.

This had followed a similar set of circumstances in the previous heat: the impressive Smith hadn’t had any problems starting or indeed racing up to this juncture but unaccountably didn’t make it out of the pits.  It seemed he was being saved for heat 14 but the upshot of the delay caused by exclusion and Parkinson-Blackburn replacing his namesake, was that valuable time was lost as the witching hour approached.

Level at 39 each and the clock showing there was not a realistic chance of heat 15 being staged, it was down to David Mason (who’d rolled back the years with some really determined riding all meeting) and Thomas needing to stop a heat advantage against them to keep the final match result level at least.

Sadly it wasn’t to be: Mason split the Brummies paring of Danyon Hume and race winner Smith – but the latter’s conduct in gesturing to the crowd in a wholly unacceptable manner and for a protracted period of time on a lap of (dis)honour, showed that he might be a talented racer, but he has a lot to learn about sportsmanship.

That concept indeed was the loser all round as the home side and more importantly a packed stadium of fans were denied the last heat decider such a contest demanded.

With points dropped ultimately in the race which matters (to a top four position come season’s end), the Sittingbourne-based side will be looking to get back on the victory trail during visits to south coast rivals Eastbourne Eagles (Saturday 23/7) and Isle of Wight Warriors (Tuesday 26/7) book-ending the visit of Stoke Potters next Monday (25/7).

 

Kent SLYDE Kings 41

L.Bowen          1♢        3          3          2*                                                         9+1

L.Clifton           0          2*         1          1                                                          4+1

J.Shanes         2          3          3          3                                                          11

D.Mason         0          1          2*         2                                                          5+1

D.Ayres           3          1          2          3                                                          9

D.Verge           1          0          0                                                                      1

J.Thomas        0♢        2*         0          0          0                                              2+1

 

Birmingham Brummies 43

Z.Wajtknecht               2*         2          1          1                                              6+1

T.Bacon                      3          3          0          3          3                                  12

D.Hume                      1          2*         X          2          1                                  6+1

Rider replacement – Tom Perry (“work commitments”)

D.Ritchings                 FX       1          1          M                                             2

J.Smith                        2*         X          3          2*         2          M         3          12+2

J.Parkinson-Blackburn           3          1          0          1*         0                      5+1

 

Heat details:

1. Bacon, Wajtknecht, Bowen♢, Clifton, 58.4 (1-5)
2. (re-run) Parkinson-Blackburn, Smith, Verge, Thomas♢, 59.8 (2-10)
3. Bacon, Shanes, Hume, Mason, 59.7 (4-14)
4. (awarded), Ayres, Thomas, Parkinson-Blackburn, Ritchings (f.exc), no time (9-15)
5. (re-run twice) Shanes, Wajtknecht, Mason, Bacon, 59.4 (13-17)
6. (re-run) Bowen, Clifton, Ritchings, Smith (f.exc), 59.6 (18-18)
7. Smith, Hume, Ayres, Verge, 59.1 (19-23)
8. (re-run) Bacon, Smith, Clifton, Thomas, 60.6 (20-28)
9. Shanes, Mason, Ritchings, Parkinson-Blackburn, 59.9 (25-29)
10. (re-run) Bowen, Smith, Clifton, Hume (f.exc), 60.9 (29-31)
11. (re-run) Bacon, Ayres, Wajtknecht, Verge, 59.9 (31-35)
12. Shanes, Hume, Parkinson-Blackburn, Thomas, Smith (exc.2mins) 59.6 (34-38)
13. Ayres, Bowen, Wajtknecht, Parkinson-Blackburn, Ritchings (exc.2mins) 59.9 (39-39)

14.Smith, Mason, Hume, Thomas, 59.2 (41-43)

Abandoned after 14 heats: curfew – result stands

Picture supplied by Elizabeth Leslie.