Oxford oust Tigers

Middlesbrough suffered their first home defeat of the season as Oxford took a 49-41 success at the ECCO Arena. Jake Mulford hit 10 for the “Heat Floors” Tigers whilst the Oxford guest, William Cairns hit a stunning 14 for the visitors. 

The meeting was a fantastic spectacle for the WSRA National League with plenty of thrilling racing from the emerging talents in the sport with the star being the Chargers guest, William Cairns who showed his undoubted class in the early stages of his burgeoning career. 

Heat 1 saw Luke Killeen take the lead, with the Chargers looking set for a 4-2 until Jake Mulford fell which saw the race stopped and the Middlesbrough number 1 excluded from the re-run. The restaging saw Killeen take a comfortable win, and with Alex Spooner holding off early pressure from Kai Ward, the title chasing Chargers had the perfect start on Teesside. 

The reserves race saw Jacob Clouting touch the tapes with the Oxford reserve going off 15m in the re-run. The re-run saw William Hocaniuk take a superb tapes to flag win, and with Ben Rathbone in 3rd despite strong pressure from Clouting, the Tigers reduced the arrears to 2 points on home shale. 

The third race of a brilliant evening’s entertainment saw Middlesbrough’s Danny Phillips take an impressive win, but with Will Cairns passing Jamie Halder, the Tigers could not take the lead at the ECCO Arena. 

After a shared heat 4 won by Ben Trigger, heat 5 saw Killeen pass Phillips for the win, but with Oxford’s Alex Spooner falling whilst in 3rd, the Chargers could not hit the front as the meeting remained level on Teesside. 

Mulford took his first chequered flag of the evening with a tapes to flag success, but with Ward at the back, there was still no separating the sides. Oxford then hit the front with Cairns taking a stylish win, and with Matt Marson in 3rd, the Chargers had a slender lead. 

The visitors then extended their advantage with an important maximum advantage in heat 8 as Jacob Clouting and Senna Summers rode to a fairly comfortable 5-1 to give Oxford breathing space. However, the Tigers did hit back in heat 9 after a nasty spill for Max Perry (who led when he crashed) in the first staging of the race. The restaging saw Jamie Halder take the win, but with Clouting passing Phillips on lap 3, Middlesbrough had to settle for a 4-2 heat advantage. 

However, Oxford’s 6 point lead was re-established after the brilliant Cairns defeated Mulford for another heat win, and with Marson in 3rd, the visitors had the impetus heading into the last 5 heats. Oxford’s lead was extended to 8 points after another great race as Killeen and Trigger tussled for the lead in a closely contested race, but with Killeen coming out on top and Spooner in 3rd, the Chargers had full control on away shale. 

The Chargers lead was stretched to 10 points as Marson took his first win, and with Summers 3rd, Middlesbrough had a mountain to climb. Heat 13 saw Middlesbrough record a much needed heat advantage as Mulford took an impressive win, and with Trigger passing Perry for 3rd, the hosts still had a mathematical chance of forcing a super heat with 2 races remaining. 

However, Middlesbrough’s slim hopes were emphatically ended by Cairns in heat 14 as he took another masterful win, but with the Tigers packing into the minor placings, Oxford could not extend their lead. The final race saw Mulford and Trigger gate until Cairns passed Trigger on the backstraight of the opening lap and then snooped under Mulford on bend 3 to take another win on a night to remember for the 15 year old. 

Middlesbrough Tigers = 41 (75)

1. Jake Mulford = 10

2. Kai Ward = 1

3. Danny Phillips = 8

4. Jamie Halder = 6+2

5. Ben Trigger = 9+1

6. Ben Rathbone = 3

7. William Hocaniuk = 4

Oxford Chargers = 49 (104)

1. Luke Killeen = 11

2. Alex Spooner = 3+1

3. Matt Marson (G) = 5

4. William Cairns (G) = 14

5. Max Perry (G) = 4

6. Jacob Clouting = 6+1

7. Senna Summers = 6+2