Rye House Rockets 65 Stoke Potters 30A STELLAR six-ride maximum from Andrew Silver stole the show as the Rockets brushed aside Stoke on August Bank Holiday Monday.

Rye House Rockets 65 Stoke Potters 30

A STELLAR six-ride maximum from Andrew Silver stole the show as the Rockets brushed aside Stoke on August Bank Holiday Monday.

The 42-year-old speedway rider rolled back the year with his first maximum of his comeback season - and his first as a Rocket since his original Rye House career ended some 24 years ago.

'Hi Ho' Silver was given excellent support by Rockets captain Chris Neath, who rode unbeaten across his final five rides, and triple race winner Tommy Allen.

At the other end of the age spectrum, teenager Joe Haines blasted the fastest recorded time at Rye House this season - a stunning 56.0 seconds - in the opening heat.

Mention should also be made of guests Ludvig Lindgren and Josh Auty.

The Swedish World U21 finalist added a further paid 10 to the 15 he secured in Saturday's match. It was a miserable night for Stoke through, with Rye House claiming 14 heat wins.

Behind lone race winner Jason Bunyan, Lee Complin and the largely unrewarded Robert Ksiezak, it was all too long a tail for the Potters, although the final one-sided result did hide a number of excellent races.

Most of them featured veteran Silver, who certainly had to work for his maximum.

The former League Riders champion had to come from the back against both Tom Madsen and Craig Branney to join partner Tommy Allen for the first of the Rockets' eight 5-1s in heat two.

He also featured in an enthralling sixth heat with Haines that saw them both overtake Robert Ksiezak, while it took a last-straight surge to see the veteran past Jesper Kristiansen for second place behind Haines in heat eight.

The tensest moment of the match, though, came in the final race which had Silver bidding to wrap up his maximum.

Alongside Neath, he made the gate at the first time of asking, only to be called back after Lee Complin had taken a third bend tumble.

Silver kept his cool in the re-run to secure the 5-1 with Neath, although visiting No.1 Jason Bunyan also won applause for somehow holding onto his machine to cross the finish line after losing control on the last bend.

Bunyan's bike wrestling proved a minor distraction from what Silver proudly called "my first maximum of the century".

Humour or not, it certainly was a case of Hi Ho Silver away!