Kent’s heat leader teen, Jack Thomas had the best meeting of his burgeoning career at Birmingham’s Perry Barr on Wednesday evening – emerging triumphant by beating all comers to take victory in the GB Under 21 Semi-Final.

Joining his new team mate as a first- time qualifier for the national championship at the prestigious under 21 level to be held at Berwick in two weeks’ time was Taylor Hampshire; and Anders Rowe was close to making it a treble for the SLYDE Kings – the 15-year-old doing well enough on his U-21 debut to clinch the reserve slot on 1st. May.

One week short of his 19th. birthday, the rider from Norfolk was drawn in the number one berth but few would have predicted he could end up first in qualifying and stand on the much-coveted top step of the rostrum after 20 action packed heats. But Thomas got off to a super-charged start by storming past his team mate Hampshire in the opening heat – looking fast and supremely confident. Hampshire though had an early set back losing the second place to home rider, the youngest in the field Leon Flint.

Most experts predicted that the rostrum positions were likely to be a scrap between Wolves’ Nathan Greaves (a perennial qualifier for the U-21 Final in recent years and the only exclusively Premiership based rider in the field); multi-youth champion Kyle Bickley; and former Birmingham rider Jack Smith. Sure enough these three were up there with Thomas after the first round of races – Greaves having gained a win over Smith when he met the Belle Vue Colt in heat four.

Thomas was up against the fourth Kent man in the fields in heat five and whilst Spooner was having difficulty adapting to the pace at this exalted level, Thomas was supreme in taking race win two.
Next up for Jack the Lad was heat nine – pitched against namesake Smith, it was to be Thomas’ only reverse all evening . So after three rides each Thomas, Smith and other surprise packet Joe Lawlor (also of Belle Vue Colts) were on eight with Greaves unbeaten on nine.

Meanwhile Hampshire (returning to the track he called home for most of the 2017 campaign ) was putting himself firmly in contention for the top seven placing needed to make it through to the Final with a splendid pass on the final bend of Lakeside’s experienced Alfie Bowtell to take a race victory in heat 10.

The big one for Thomas was three races later and it certainly wasn’t going to be unlucky 13 for Jack as in the race of the night he took the unbeaten Greaves on and passed the Wolves man on the back straight of lap two going on to take the chequered flag. That win meant that whatever Greaves did in his final race Thomas would take meeting victory by winning his final race.

Before that attention of the travelling Kent fans turned to the others from the 2018 squad in the field. Spooner made his evening (always going to b e chiefly a learning experience) a lot more satisfying by taking a second place in heat 12. Hampshire’s second place in heat 14 and Rowe’s in heat 16 (beaten after leading by former Kings’ team mate Bradley Andrews) kept both in contention for those oh-so valuable top seven finishing positions.

But all attention was on heart 17 with Thomas facing Lawlor and Bickley with Andrews in there for good measure. There was no need for concern though with Thomas storming home on his super-fast equipment to mean he finished on an unbeatable 14. Greaves would not be able to overhaul Thomas because on the head to head Jack has held sway but that became academic in any case when Bowtell lowered the colours of the former Cradley man in heat c20.

By then Hampshire had clinched his spot at Berwick with another second (behind Smith in heat 18) while Rowe finally got the race win his terrific efforts deserved by beating the highly rated Flint in the next race. That meant Rowe will also go to Berwick – as meeting reserve.

So it was the bubbly for Thomas who was equally effervescent as he reflected on the night of his life.

“I’m totally chuffed with winning the under21 semis tonight – now to focus and look at the final in Berwick I’m buzzing and can’t wait!”

Before that Thomas will be celebrating his birthday back at Perry Barr on the 25th. when the Kent SLYDE Kings take on the Brummies in the first leg of the delayed Easter Cup. After the showings of the Kings at Perry Barr there this Wednesday they’ll be much optimism going into that fixture.

1. Jack Thomas (Kent SLYDE Kings) 3 3 2 3 3 14 WINNER [Q]
2. Taylor Hampshire (Kent SLYDE Kings) 1 1 3 2 2 9 [Q]
3. Leon Flint (Birmingham) 2 3 1 0 2 8
4. Kean Dicken (Belle Vue Colts) 0 0 1 0 0 1
5. Alfie Bowtell (Lakeside) F 2 2 3 3 10 [Q]
6. Anders Rowe (Kent SLYDE Kings) 2 0 1 2 3 8 {Q/R]
7. Ben Woodhull (Belle Vue Colts) 1 1 F Inj. – withdrawn 2
8. Kyle Bickley (Belle Vue Colts) 3 2 2 1 1 9 [Q]
9. Callum Walker (Birmingham) 2 1 R 1 1 5
10. Joe Lawlor (Belle Vue Colts) 3 2 3 1 2 11 [Q]
11. Layne Cupitt (Birmingham) F Fx 0 3 1 4
12. Kieran Douglas (Buxton) 1 1 1 0 0 3
13. Alex Spooner (Kent SLYDE Kings) 0 0 2 R 1 3
14. Nathan Greaves (Wolverhampton) 3 3 3 2 2 13 SECOND [Q]
15. Bradley Andrews (Plymouth) 1 2 0 3 0 6
16. Jack Smith (Belle Vue Colts) 2 3 3 2 3 13 THIRD [Q]
Reserve: William O’Keefe 1 1
Reserve: Stephen Whitehouse 0 0

1. Thomas, Flint, Hampshire, Dicken 61.03
2. Bickley, Rowe, Woodhull, Bowtell (fell) 63.27
3. Lawlor, Walker, Douglas, Cupitt (fell) 61.32
4. Greaves, Smith, Andrews, Spooner 60.47
5. Thomas, Bowtell, Walker, Spooner 62.28
6. Greaves, Lawlor, Hampshire, Rowe 62.57
7 (rerun) Flint, Andrews, Woodhull, Cupitt (fell -exc) 64.56
8. Smith, Bickley, Douglas, Dicken 62.25
9: Smith, Thomas, Rowe, Cupitt 61.97
10. Hampshire, Bowtell, Douglas, Andrews (fell rem.) 62.83
11. Greaves, Bickley, Flint, Walker (Ret.) 62.4
12. Lawlor, Spooner, Dicken, Woodhull (fell) 64.94
13. Thomas, Greaves, O’Keefe, Douglas 62.84
14. Cupitt, Hampshire, Bickley, Spooner (EF) 63.06
15. (rerun) Bowtell, Smith, Lawlor, Flint (pushed home) 63.11
16. Andrews, Rowe, Walker, Dicken 63.94
17. (rerun) Thomas, Lawlor, Bickley, Andrews 62.25
18. Smith, Hampshire, Walker, Whitehouse 63.16
19. Rowe, Flint, Spooner, Douglas 62.63
20. Bowtell, Greaves, Cupitt, Dicken 62.97