COVENTRY: HULL:
G.Hancock 2'3 2 3 3 13(1) S.Ermolenko 1 3 2'3 0 0 9(1)
A.Jonsson Rider Replacement G.Stead 0 1 3 1 5
B.Andersen 2'2 1 3 2' 10(2) S.Parker 1 0 3 2 6
St.Robson 3 3 F 0 3 9 R.Morton 0 2 1 0 2 5
B.Hamill 2 3 2 1 8 J.Screen 3 2 3 2 1 11
Sc.Robson 3 1 2 0 6 P.Lee 2 0 0 2
S.Tacey 0 F 1 0 1'1 0 3(1) L.Dicken 1'1 1' 3(2)
HEAT DETAILS:
Ht 1:St.Robson, Hancock, Ermolenko, Stead, 61.4 5-1 5-1
Ht 2:Sc.Robson, Lee, Dicken, Tacey, 62.5 3-3 8-4
Ht 3:St.Robson, Andersen, Parker, Morton, 61.5 5-1 13-5
Ht 4:Screen, Hamill, Dicken, Tacey(f), 61.8 2-4 15-9
Ht 5:Ermolenko, Andersen, Stead, St.Robson(f), 63.7 2-4 17-13
Ht 6:Hancock, Screen, Tacey, Lee, 62.0 4-2 21-15
Ht 7:Hamill, Morton, Sc.Robson, Parker, 63.4 4-2 25-17
Ht 8:Stead, Sc.Robson, Morton, Tacey, 62.7 2-4 27-21
Ht 9:Screen, Ermolenko, Andersen, St.Robson, 63.4 1-5 28-26
Ht10:Parker, Hancock, Tacey, Morton, 62.9 3-3 31-29
Ht11:Ermolenko, Hamill, Stead, Sc.Robson, 63.7 2-4 33-33
Ht12:Andersen, Parker, Tacey, Lee, 64.3 4-2 37-35
Ht13:Hancock, Screen, Hamill, Ermolenko, 63.3 4-2 41-37
Ht14:St.Robson, Morton, Dicken, Tacey, 64.2 3-3 44-40
Ht15:Hancock, Andersen, Screen, Ermolenko, 95.0 5-1 49-41
BEES MADE RATHER HARD WORK of seeing off the Vikings in a very entertaining meeting, with the home side again surrendering a good lead in the middle stages of the meeting, but this time they recovered and posted a scoreline that was more reflective of the difference between the two sides on the night.
Yet if the Coventry fans had been told beforehand that Shaun Tacey would score just three points, with Bees using rider replacement for Andreas Jonsson, there wouldn't have been too many confident of victory. Taking that into consideration, it must be said that one of the main reasons for the win was the six points scored by Scott Robson, who looked a totally different rider on a new engine - and it was totally baffling that Tacey had seven rides for half the points of Robson, who still only rode four times.
Vikings, too, made some peculiar decisions, and definitely missed a great chance of a Golden Double in Heat 8 when Joe Screen would surely have sliced past Tacey and Robson. In the end, Screen didn't even take a normal tactical substitute ride.
The track was the best for some considerable time, although far too dusty with the water sprayer doing virtually nothing to dampen it down. Having said that, the track did provide some good racing, with passing on both inside and outside. Perhaps the best race actually came after the main match, as Greg Hancock gave Screen yards from the start of the Golden Helmet race, gradually reeled him in for a couple of laps, and then dived through on the inside at the start of lap three to retain his title.
Hancock was involved in most things that were good about the Coventry performance, and he and Stuart Robson got Bees off to a flyer with a 5-1 over Sam Ermolenko and Gary Stead in Heat 1. Both of these two Vikings improved later in the meeting, and Stead in particular deserved more than his five points.
Heat 2 produced a complete shock as Tacey was squeezed out at the start of a race he was expected to dominate, and it was Scott Robson who went charging into the lead. Tacey went inside Lee Dicken, but then overcooked the top bend trying to get inside guest Paul Lee, and Dicken had the run on him down the pits straight to re-claim third place. Robson it was, though, who won the race by some distance.
The Robsons continued to stamp their authority on the meeting with Stuart winning Heat 3 leaving everyone trailing, including Brian Andersen who nevertheless completed another Coventry 5-1 by seeing off Shane Parker, with Ray Morton well at the back. Bees had stormed into an eight point lead, but this was trimmed in the next two races. In Heat 4, Screen won the first-bend battle with Billy Hamill, and Tacey slid out of third place with a fall on Turn 3 to give Dicken a point. Then Heat 5 produced frantic action as the Vikings pairing gated ahead of Andersen, who first passed Stead and then tried to get on terms with Ermolenko. Stuart Robson's good start to the meeting ended when he came clattering down on the second lap, but as Andersen was delayed by Ermolenko, Stead very nearly got through into second place again.
Hancock was a clear winner of Heat 6 ahead of Screen, and Tacey finally got onto the scorechart with an inside move on Lee on Turn 3 to extend Bees' lead to six points, and then Heat 7 was spectacular. Hamill was the clear favourite for the race, but he was squeezed out at the start, and it was Morton who moved into the lead with, amazingly, Scott Robson neatly rounding Parker for second place and then applying pressure on the leader. On lap three Hamill got past Parker and clearly had the speed to win the race, but it looked like Robson could get in his way. Not so, because as Robson tried to force his way inside Morton at the start of the last lap, Hamill lived up to his Bullett nickname and came absolutely flying round the outside to pass both and win the race. The confusion had brought Parker back into the race he, Morton and Robson all flashed over the line together, with Morton getting second place and Robson third.
Morton was brought into Heat 8 to replace Dicken, when surely Screen as a Golden Double would have been a better option, but it was team-mate Stead who won the race by a mile with Scott Robson this time beating Morton with another good ride, and Tacey disappointingly at the rear. The 4-2 cut the gap to six points, and with Ermolenko joining Screen in Heat 9, Bees were beginning to look a little vulnerable. The experienced American gated and then rode a masterly race as he blocked Andersen on the inside on the second lap which allowed Screen to pass the pair of them on the outside to set up a Hull 5-1 leaving things delicately poised at 28-26.
Hancock's maximum hopes ended in Heat 10 when the inconsistent Parker made a brilliant gate and defied the Bees No.1 for the whole race. Although he went wide exiting Turn 4 on every occasion, he had plenty of speed and always managed to emerge just in front. The up-and-down nature of the match continued at the rear, with Tacey this time getting the better of Morton.
Heat 11 was re-started after an unsatisfactory start, but on both occasions Ermolenko got across from the outside to head Hamill for his third consecutive unbeaten ride, and Stead picked up another useful point, this time ahead of Scott Robson, to bring the Vikings level, and it looked like the match was going to be difficult to call from there.
There was more great action and another tight finish in Heat 12, with Andersen and Tacey gating on Parker, and Andersen controlling the race brilliantly to keep the thrusting Hull man back. Into the last bend, it looked like the job was done, but Tacey went much too wide, and that gave Parker a line inside him and round Andersen, who was stuck on the inside, and for a moment it looked like Parker had gone between them and through to a stunning win. In the end, the referee's verdict was that Andersen had just managed to get back through on the inside, with Parker relegating Tacey to third place.
Heat 13 was always going to be a good race, and so it proved with Screen making the start ahead of Coventry's American pairing. It was all change on Turns 3 and 4, however, with Hancock forcing his way inside Screen and Ermolenko moving past Hamill. Hamill battled back, however, and got back round the outside into third place - and that 4-2 put Bees four points up again, and in reasonable control.
Heat 14 looked extremely unpredictable, and there was amazement on the terraces when Scott Robson (6 points from 4 rides) was replaced by Tacey (3 from 6), and it must be said that the move failed totally with Tacey struggling at the back, well behind Morton and Dicken. Happily, well clear was Stuart Robson, although his bike didn't seem to be giving him an easy ride and twice he almost spun round completely on the third turn. The 3-3 meant another last-heat decider, and the result of Robson's win was that Hamill had been knocked out of Heat 15, with Robson and Andersen the candidates to partner Hancock.
Colin Pratt plumped for the experience of Andersen, and it turned out to be the right move as the Bees pair flew from the start and withstood a strong challenge from Screen on the first couple of laps before pulling out enough of a lead. Screen kept them going hard throughout, but with Ermolenko gradually slowing at the back, the Vikings chances evaporated and Bees claimed a much-needed win.
So a very mixed month of July comes to an end, and Bees are still in with a chance of all competitions, although the home defeat last week is going to make the League difficult. They're still very much in contention, however, and they now have a couple of weeks break to get everyone fully fit and machinery sorted, whilst the GP boys go for gold next Saturday - and on recent evidence it's Greg Hancock who has the best chance of providing Coventry with a GP winner at their home event.