It’s been a productive weekend for the Belle Vue Colts, but their latest 43-46 win at Buxton was hard-earned and again came down to the wire following a dominant display from the home team.
Track conditions proved challenging for both sides, and the home track advantage certainly came into play for the Hitmen who were swift to capitalise on the Cool Running Colts’ struggles.
But as is typical of the Mancunians, their determination not to leave empty-handed drove them to bounce back from a 10-point deficit after Heat 4 to narrow the gap to just 2 points after Heat 8.
And by the business end of the afternoon, with the scores drawn at 39 apiece, they forced their hosts into a last-heat decider after one rider from each team failed to finish in Heat 14.
Jack Smith and Tom Perry were the heroes of the hour with a final 5-1 to seal the deal, with Smith remarking: “It was a tough meeting but we pulled together and did what needed to be done.
“Track conditions were tricky. It was a lot more grippy than normal, but in places we could’ve made things easier for ourselves. I could’ve had a maximum if I hasn’t messed up my first ride.
“These meetings are the ones we need to be taking points from. We’re happy with three points, we would’ve liked more but the effort put in to ensure we got the overall win was exemplary.
“It’s been a very productive weekend for us. The lads did amazingly well at Plymouth and we’ve seen some huge positives come out of Buxton. We’ve just got to keep doing what we’re doing.”
Manchester will welcome two of the biggest events on the 2018 calendar to the NSS in the coming week, with the highly-anticipated inaugural Speedway of Nations landing first on June 5
Then, reigning British Champion Craig Cook will defend his crown on June 11 while 15 other British hopefuls, including Belle Vue’s Dan Bewley, look to strip him of his hard-earned title.
Words: Hayley Bromley,Images: Ian Charles
Tickets for the SON are available now at www.speedwaygp.com, while tickets for the British Final are now available at www.bellevueaces.co.
