Battling Bandits beat Bears
Berwick ensured Redcar could not get their first Cab Direct Championship win of the season as they took a 43-47 success at the ECCO Arena. Charles Wright continued his blistering form with 12 whilst Drew Kemp hit 11 for the visitors.
The meeting started with a first bend crash as Tom Brennan hit the deck, with the British starlet rising to his feet after some medical attention. The re-run saw Wright take a comfortable win, but with Jonas Knudsen at the back, the Bears could not take an early lead.
Heat 2 saw Jake Mulford make a storming start to take a comfortable win, and with Ben Trigger also at the front, the Bears looked set for a maximum heat advantage until the Bandits flying reserve, Bastian Borke passed Trigger to limit the damage to a 4-2 for Redcar, but the Bears did take a slender 2 point lead on home shale.
Nevertheless, the Bandits hit back immediately to turn a 2 point deficit into a 2 point lead as their middle order pairing of Drew Kemp and Jye Etheridge led comfortably to send Berwick ahead. Heat 4 saw a stroke of luck for the Bears as the Bandits looked set for a 5-1 until a visibly frustrated Bastian Borke shed a chain which allowed Ben Barker and Ben Trigger through for a 3-3 with Rory Schlein taking an impressive tapes to flag win.
After grading, the Bears hit back with a brilliant 5-1 as Jason Edwards gated for a superb win, and with Connor Bailey passing ex-Bear Danyon Hume, the Bears put their noses in front. After Wright took a win in a shared heat 6, the Bandits levelled the match as Etheridge passed Barker for the win, and with Kemp in 3rd ahead of Mulford, the visitors kept the Bears in check.
However, the Bears retook the lead in heat 8 as Knudsen trapped for the win, and with Trigger 3rd ahead of a battling Hume, Redcar had another 2 point advantage on Teesside. Heat 9 saw a brilliant race as Edwards led for the majority of the race until Schlein passed the Bears asset around the outside on lap 3 to win, but with Freddy Hodder at the back, Redcar’s lead remained intact.
Heat 10 saw Wright pass both Bandits on lap 1 to take the win, but with Knudsen at the back, Berwick ensured that they remained within striking distance of the “Agilia” Bears. Heat 11 looked set for another shared race until Hume clipped Mulford’s back wheel with the referee electing to re-run the race despite Brennan holding a clear lead at the time of the stoppage. Nevertheless, Brennan repeated the trick to hold off Barker in the early stages for the win, with the Bears still holding that slender 2 point lead.
The visitors then struck a huge blow in heat 12 as both Bandits (Etheridge & Borke) passed Connor Bailey to take a big 5-1 to put Berwick in command of the meeting in the latter stages. Heat 13 saw a classic race as Barker made a dream start with Wright chasing the dirt on the outside to join his partner. However, Wright (who looked quicker than Barker) clipped the fence and bent his footrest which sent him to the back, and despite the skipper’s best efforts, he was unable to put himself in a points scoring position which put a dent in Redcar’s hopes of a home win.
The Bandits secured the victory in heat 14 as Kemp won whilst his partner, Borke rode inside and out to keep Jason Edwards behind to secure a big away win for the Bandits. Heat 15 saw Wright return to winning ways, with Barker just holding off Etheridge for 3rd which gave the Bears a consolation heat 15 advantage.
Redcar Bears = 43
1. Charles Wright = 12
2. Jonas Knudsen = 3
3. Connor Bailey = 5+2
4. Jason Edwards = 7
5. Ben Barker (G) = 9+1
6. Jake Mulford = 5
7. Ben Trigger = 3+1
Berwick Bandits = 47
1. Tom Brennan (G) = 6+1
2. Danyon Hume = 2+1
3. Jye Etheridge = 8+3
4. Drew Kemp = 11
5. Rory Schlein = 10
6. Freddy Hodder = 1+1
7. Bastian Borke = 9+1