The Wightlink Warriors were unable to match a dominant Cradley Heathens side on Tuesday evening (29th July), going down 33-57 in the first leg of the Vince Mapley Trophy at Smallbrook Stadium.
Despite dodging the wet weather and attracting a strong crowd, the Warriors were weakened by the absence of skipper Arran Butcher (broken arm) and top scorer Ben Morley, who was unavailable due to work commitments. Cradley also had riders missing but proved too strong across the heats.
Heat one ended level, but the visitors soon took control, with former Warrior Danno Verge and teammate Charlie Wood opening up a 10-20 lead after five heats. Although the Warriors fought back with a strong 5-1 from Darryl Ritchings and Henning Loof, Cradley responded with successive 1-5s that put them firmly in charge.
Ritchings, who delivered an outstanding six-ride maximum of 18 points, was the standout for the home side. Support came from Morgan Freeman (5), Loof (4+1) and Charlie Southwick (4), but Cradley’s Ryan Ingram (13+3), Wood (12+3), Parker (13+1) and Verge (10+1) consistently piled on the pressure.
Promoter Barry Bishop praised the effort of his team and the event despite the defeat. He has said:
“Despite the weather at the start of the meeting all of the riders put on a great show for the fans – I was particularly proud of the youngsters before the meeting who went out in rain – what an induction.
“The Heathens were just too strong for the Warriors on the night and deserved their win. We did have some bright moments with Darryl unbeaten, Southwick finding form towards the end and young Freeman getting amongst it. Hopefully when Ben and Arran return for the second leg the result will be a different story.”
In the Flat Trackers Summer Championship, Jack Nobel went unbeaten in four rides to take victory, with Anthony Brown finishing second.
The Warriors return to action next Tuesday (5th August) at Smallbrook for a 3-team event against Weymouth and Cradley, honouring former team manager Steve Piper, who sadly passed away during the winter. The main event starts at 19:00.
