BUXTON ‘Ductair’ Bulls put in their best away performance of the season despite losing 49-41 to the King’s Lynn Young Stars at the Adrian Flux Arena on Wednesday night in the WRSA National Development League.
The Bulls went behind in the opening heat as home skipper Simon Lambert got the better of Alfie Bowtell, with Stene Pijper taking third place for a Young Stars 4-2.
The Bulls reacted brightly though and in heat three took the lead with a maximum 5-1 heat advantage from Luke Harris and Arran Butcher over Kyran Lyden, and they extended their lead further with a 4-2 from Bowtell and Jack Shimelt over Mickie Simpson to lead 17-13 after five heats.
The home side gained a couple of 4-2’s in heat six from Lambert and Pijper over Bulls skipper Jack Smith and then in heat eight as Seth Norman and Pijper got the better of Roberts to level the scores at 24-24.
The Bulls fell behind in heat nine with Ryan Ashcroft being disqualified for exceeding the two-minute time allowance; team manager Laurence Rogers brought Roberts in to replace him, and he was then subsequently disqualified after falling. In the rerun, Simpson got the better of Smith with Lyden taking third for a Stars 4-2, giving them a 28-26 lead.
A second 4-2 on the bounce extended the home side’s lead to four points as Lambert took his third victory of the night ahead of Harris, with Pijper taking third place after Butcher had retired from the race due to an engine failure at the starting gate.
Jack Roberts came in to replace Jack Shimelt in heat eleven, and the team managers’ switch paid dividends as Roberts and Bowtell combined for a 5-1 for the Bulls over Sam Woods after the previously unbeaten Jake Mulford retired from the heat due to an engine failure while leading the race, levelling the scores 33-33 with just four races remaining.
The home side were quick to respond as Norman and Simpson struck back with a maximum 5-1, and this was followed up by Lambert and Mulford in heat thirteen over Bowtell to give the home side a 43-35 lead with two heats remaining.
Bulls pairing Roberts and Butcher reduced the Stars’ lead to just four points with a 5-1 over Woods, leaving Buxton requiring the maximum heat win in the final race to gain a draw.
The Young Stars finished the meeting with a 5-1 from Lambert, who completed a five-ride maximum, with Mulford following him home for a 5-1 to secure victory for the home side.
Team manager Laurence Rogers commented, “We are obviously disappointed to lose the meeting, but I feel we put on a really good performance and were in the meeting throughout, and we came really close to getting something out of the meeting, and I’m hopeful we can get the aggregate league point when we have the return at Hi-Edge later in the season.”
WSRA NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE
KING’S LYNN 49:
Simon Lambert 15, Jake Mulford 10+2, Seth Norman 8, Mickie Simpson 7+1, Stene Pijper 4, Sam Woods 3+1, Kyran Lyden 2
BUXTON 41:
Jack Roberts 12+1, Alfie Bowtell 9+1, Luke Harris 7+1, Arran Butcher 6+2, Jack Smith 6, Jack Shimelt 1, Ryan Ashcroft 0
