REDCAR pulled off a breathtaking, barely believable 47-43 win over the Berwick Bandits in another thrilling Cab Direct Championship last heat decider at the ECCO Arena. Charles Wright hit 12+1 for the “Agilia” Bears with Jason Edwards hitting 12 whilst Jye Etheridge struck an impressive 11+1 for the beaten Bandits.
The Bears headed into heat 15 with a 43-41 lead but after Charles Wright was excluded for touching the tapes, he was replaced by Jody Scott. Jason Edwards then took a heavy fall on the first bend in the re-run and it was looking like an uphill task for the hosts. However, Edwards dusted himself down for the re-run, gated and remarkably held off Peter Kildemand for the win, and with Scott 3rd, the home fans went wild.
Bears boss Gavin Parr praised the togetherness of his septet after another ECCO Arena thriller. Parr said, ” Hats off to the boys for all sticking together and getting the job done. Berwick were always going to provide a sterner test than they did last time and at times, we had to dig deeper than we have had to do before this season.”
Heat one began terribly for the hosts as Peter Kildemand won with ease, and with Etheridge 2nd, the visiting Bandits had the perfect start. The reserves race saw Reid Battye hit the deck on the opening bends, with all four invited back for a re-run. The re-run saw Scott win, but with Bears guest Ryan Ingram 4th, the early four point gap remained.
However, heat 3 saw that lead evaporate as Edwards won convincingly, and with Jake Mulford 2nd, Redcar began to bite back. Nevertheless, Berwick re-established their four point lead in heat 4 as Battye took an impressive win, and with Nick Morris taking care of Jake Allen, Berwick sensed an opportunity to capitalise.
Etheridge took another impressive win in heat 5, but with Edwards battling past Kildemand and just doing enough to hold off the Dane, he prevented a 5-1 but the Bandits stretched their lead to six points at the ECCO Arena.
After Wright won a shared heat 6, he was straight back out in heat 7 as a tactical substitute with Jake Allen as Redcar looked to turn the tide. The decision proved to be the correct one by Parr as Wright won, and with Allen 2nd, Redcar were back within two points of the Bandits.
However, the theme of the meeting continued in heat 8 as Berwick hit back, but not without controversy. The original running of the race saw Scott gate, lift and then the Brit tangled with Battye and came down. Most inside the ECCO Arena expected to see all four back, but despite Scott losing his steel shoe in the tangle, he was excluded.
The restaging saw both Bandits gate, and with Simon Lambert unable to land a blow, Berwick were back to a six point lead on Teesside. After Edwards passed Morris to win a shared heat 9, Scott responded to his heat 8 setback to join Wright at the front in heat 10, and with Victor Palovaara and Battye unable to mount a challenge, Redcar were again within two points of the visitors.
Despite the hosts hitting back again, they were afforded no respite from Berwick as Kildemand passed Allen to win heat 11 and with Ingram 4th behind Etheridge, the Bandits were four ahead with four races remaining.
Heat 12 saw Mulford return to the fore with a comfortable win, and with Scott riding the boards, he built up enough speed to pass Jack Smith on lap four to get the paid win, much to the delight of the Bears supporters, and suddenly we had a level meeting.
After Wright took care of Kildemand to win a shared heat 13, we had more drama in heat 14. As the tapes rose, both Ingram and Edwards hit the front, only for the red lights to go on (for a tapes issue) as the riders entered turn 3, much to the disgust of the Redcar fans. The re-run saw Ingram pop out of the start for the win, and with Edwards overhauling Battye for 3rd, Redcar had a narrow two point lead with one heat remaining.
Nails were being bitten in the crowd from both sets of supporters, and as the tapes rose, it seemed Morris had touched the tapes. However, upon looking at the video evidence, SCB referee Chris Gay correctly saw that Wright had touched first, and the Bears skipper was excluded. The re-run saw Morris leave Edwards no room, with the long time Bear colliding heavily with the fence. However, he was quickly up and all four men were invited back for a re-run.
The re-run saw the seventh last heat decider of the season at Redcar, and boy it was a classic! Edwards gated, and Wright’s replacement, Scott joined him. However, Kildemand wasn’t done and he tried every wide line of the ECCO Arena, and he passed Scott but Edwards held on to win, sending the home support into delirium as Redcar yet again pulled a big home win out of the fire!
Redcar Bears : 47
1. Charles Wright = 12+1
2. Simon Lambert = 1
3. Jake Mulford = 5+1
4. Jason Edwards = 12
5. Jake Allen = 6
6. Ryan Ingram = 3
7. Jody Scott = 8+2
Berwick Bandits = 43
1. Peter Kildemand = 11
2. Jye Etheridge = 11+1
3. Victor Palovaara = 1
4. Jordan Jenkins – R/R
5. Nick Morris = 7+2
6. Jack Smith = 4+3
7. Reid Battye = 9+1