MATCH REPORT: A&T and Sheffield retain respective North & Scotland KO Cup titles

Both Sheffield Stars and Astley and Tyldesley retained their respective North & Scotland League KOCup titles with victories at Sheffield’s Graves Centre track.

Rain fell for most of the Junior Cup Final, with conditions proving a little greasy despite sterling workby the Sheffield track staff to remove standing water. Astley and Sheffield were level on 12 points after the first set of races, Sheffield unable to win any of their grid ones (each rider finished second). The second phase of four races (which took the match to half time) saw Astley’s White brothers, John and Frank both take race wins to remain unbeaten. Astley led by one point at this stage, with Sheffield second (despite still not having had a race winner). Hull held third place, following a good heat 7 race win for Spencer Glenton. The three man Bury team were fourth, with the unbeaten Tom Dunphy having scored 8 of their 12 points. Astley increased their lead by one more point, taking 14 points from their outside grids, race wins for Duncan Whaley and John White and well taken secondplaces for Oscar Belt and Josh Pilkington. Sheffield kept in touch with race wins for Jack Brownell and Lacey Ackroyd and a brilliant second place ride from Oliver Banyard in heat 12 as he got between theYoung England pair of John White and Tom Dunphy. Astley had grid one’s for the final four races,making no mistake to retain the Cup by winning three of the four races (John White completing a fine maximum score). Sheffield finished with a run of second places to claim runners up spot. Hull finished third while Bury were fourth as Tom Dunphy won his third race to finish having scored more than half the Bury final score.

The victorious Astley & Tyldesley Junior team. Photo from their Facebook page

Scores/Scorers

Astley and Tyldesley (52) – Oscar Belt 4, Duncan Whalley 14, Josh Pilkington 5, John White 16, Frank White 13.

Bury (23) – Owen Simcock 5, Tom Dunphy 14, Bobby Dunphy 4.

Hull (31) – Spencer Glenton 7, Kacey Bennett 4, Noah Lyon 12, Harry Gibson 6, Will Hollich 2.

Sheffield (46) – Joe Brownell 10, Jack Brownell 13, Oliver Banyard 11, Lacey Ackroyd 12.

Referee – Kyle Holland (Sheffield)

Conditions changed for the Senior Cup match with the sun now shining, the track dried out to give a good grippy surface. A strong Sheffield quintet provided nine race winners from their sixteen races to go on and complete a three peat of Senior Cup wins (would be four if the Covid restricted win 2021 had counted, when the Scottish teams were unable to enter). Sheffield had three winners in the first block of races, Leon Wild, Darius Pilas and Pawel Idziorek taking the chequered flag first, to lead on 15 points from Astley on 11. John White (Astley) and Kayden Davidson (Fife) winning the other two races. The next block of races saw Astley have two race winners (Terry Norman and John White – who defeated Pawel Idziorek in a re-run after both crashed heavily following a coming together entering turn three on the first lap). Sheffield extended their lead to six points on the back or race wins for Ed Morton and Pilas. Jack Lister (Hull) was the other race winner, riding through the pain an injury from a crash in Hull’s match at the Graves last week.Sheffield powered into a 14 point lead in the next batch of races with race wins for Idziorek, Wild (2)and Niall Morton. Bury closed the gap on second placed Astley following a race win for Reece Pollittand a good second for Mike Baldock. The teams entered the final block of races with Sheffield on 44,followed by Astley (30), Bury (28), Hull (26) and Fife (22).

Sheffield’s victory was confirmed when Ed Morton followed home Mike Baldock in heat 16 to givethe Stars an unassailable lead. The battle now was for second and third place. Kayden Davidson got his second race win in heat 17, and Emily Burgess second place putting Astley in the driving seat for runners up spot. That runners up spot confirmed with race wins for Terry Norman and John White in heats 18 and 20. Bury holding on to third place by just two points from Hull.

The victorious Sheffield team from the Senior KO Cup. Photo taken by Jess Banyard

Scores and scorers

Bury (37) – Reece Pollitt 12, Tom Dunphy 8, Mike Baldock 13, Owen Simcock 3, Bobby Dunphy 1.

Hull (35) – Spencer Glenton 9, Kacey Bennett 2, Rich Gibson 9, Jack Lister 12, Harry Gibson 3.

Sheffield (55) – Dariusz Pilas 10, Pawel Idziorek 14, Niall Morton 7, Ed Morton 10, Leon Wild 14

Astley & Tyldesley (43) – John White 15, Frank White 3, Emily Burgess 9, Terry Norman 11, Steve Harris 5.

Fife (29) – Kayden Davidson 13, Dougie Morgan 5, Calan Cuthbert 6, Jacob Falconer 5.

Referee – Rob Mawhood (Sheffield)