MATCH REPORT: Manchester League Round 6
Bury staged the final Round 6 of the Manchester League Grand Prix series, on Wednesday evening. Temperatures were a welcome lower than the previous two days heatwave, with light rain falling during the Senior match.
The Division 2 match was raced first, and it was another close encounter between Astley & Tyldesley and Bury. This time Bury took the win, 68-67, with falls costing A&T dearly on the night. Despite this, A&T took the overall Division 2 title to regain the trophy they last won in 2019. Bury’s Bobby Dunphy raced unbeaten at u-10s level, to clinch the overall Grand Prix series. Bury’s Jayden Hancock completed an amazing first season, by winning every race in the u-13s section, to win that GP series. Bury’s Tom Dunphy and A&T’s Duncan Whalley both scored 14 apiece in the u-16s group, with Duncan securing the overall GP series win.
Manchester League Division 2 result (top 5 scorers only count to teams’ totals)
Bury 68 Astley & Tyldesley 67
U-10s: Bobby Dunphy (Bury) 16, Nahom Tumizghy (A&T) 15, Levi Edwards (A&T) 14, George Keeble (Bury) 12, Josh Pilkington (A&T) 12, Alex Lawless (A&T) 10, Harry Dunford (Bury) 10, Alex Lees (Bury) 8, Charlie Dunford (Bury) 7.
U-13s: Jayden Hancock (Bury) 16, Oscar Belt (A&T) 12, Chloe Bassett (A&T) 8.
U-16s: Tom Dunphy (Bury) 14, Duncan Whalley (A&T) 14, Caspar Ellis (A&T) 8.
Referee – Gary Hollingsworth.
There was a good turn out of 14 riders for the Division 1 match, and another very competitive match took place. Bury again edged out A&T, this time to win the Division 1 match 54-53, with Stockport third on 24. Second place on the night however, was sufficient for A&T to retain their Division 1 title. A&T’s Reece Pollitt raced to a fine 16 points maximum score, to clinch the overall Senior Grand Prix title. A&T’s Steve Harris was the overall winner of the Veterans GP series, with Laura Watson winning the Women’s series.
Manchester League Division 1 result (top 5 scorers only count to teams’ totals)
Bury 54 Astley & Tyldesley 53 Stockport 24
Seniors: Reece Pollitt (A&T) 16, Mike Baldock (Bury) 14, Ben Higham (Stockport) 13, Harry Radford (Bury) 13, Kaysar Mohammadi (Bury) 12, Adam Watson (Independent) 12, Joel Partington (A&T) 11, Steve Harris (A&T) 11, Terry Norman (Stockport) 11, Duncan Whalley (A&T) 9, Eryk Motala (Bury) 9, Laura Watson (Independent) 7, Mark Radford (Bury) 6, Caspar Ellis (A&T) 6.
Referee – Gary Hollingsworth.
Final Manchester League standings
Division 1: A&T 15, Bury 11.5, Stockport 6.5.
Division 2: A&T 10, Bury 8, Stockport 0.
U-10s GP: B. Dunphy 94, J. Pilkington 84, L. Edwards 73.
U-13s GP: J. Hancock 96, O. Belt 75, H. Belt 30.
U-16s GP: D. Whalley 94, T. Dunphy 75, C. Ellis 30.
Senior GP: R. Pollitt 91, S. Harris 74, M. Baldock 69.
Veterans GP: S. Harris 95, T. Norman 59, M. Radford 43.
Women’s GP: L. Watson 32.
The three Individual Championship nights will take place on Wednesdays in August.