Mildenhall 64 Stoke 29

Following an indifferent period the Fen Tigers stormed back into form with a performance that left visitors Stoke reeling from Heat One through to Heat 15.

The record books were rewritten as Connor Coles scored the clubs five hundredth maximum and extended the family history by following Grandad Bob and Father Michael as maximum scorers for the Fen Tigers. Five Hundred soon became five hundred and one as Captain Danny Halsey recorded an immaculate five ride maximum of his own. Man of the Match though was undoubtedly young reserve Connor Mountain. Following an unfortunate crash for guest reserve Sam Woods who was unable to avoid Michael Neale who fell in front of him, Mountain was called upon to take the full seven rides, and responded in magnificent fashion with a paid seventeen points! The youngster clearly on a high then went on to ride for the Milton Keynes Knights in an MDL match following the conclusion of the Fen Tigers meeting.

Only guest Max Clegg and Jon Armstrong offered any resistance with Clegg scoring two heat wins including a 6 point Tactical ride and Mildenhall legend and crowd favourite Armstrong also recording two heat wins. They lacked in support though as the other five ‘Potters’ only managed a paltry nine points between them. A total of ten 5-1’s emphasized the Fen Tigers all round superiority as they racked up their highest total of the 2014 season to date. The return of Josh Bates also played a big part on and off the track as the pressure was taken off the top two by his return and with rider replacement no longer required the pressure was also removed on the more inexperienced bottom end of the side.

Following the meeting Club Chairman Kevin Jolly had a smile as wide as the River Lark -

“This is why I have been so frustrated recently with the lads, this is what they are capable of, and if Cradley had been here today with us on this form I am positive we would have beaten them. Stoke are a good side but for once we were fast out of the starting blocks, we hit them hard and early, and they were worrying about Tactical rides whilst we just went about the business of racking up a big score.

Having Josh (Bates) back was a massive boost, he is so quick and when he rides like he did today you can see why we could never cover his absence with Rider Replacement. The two Connors have been the highlight of the season for me, both are improving with racing and showing us so much potential. Connor (Coles) fully deserved his maximum and his ride to hold off a charging Jon Armstrong on a Tactical Ride was brilliant. As for Connor Mountain, what can you say, such an old head on young shoulders, he takes everything in his stride doesn’t get phased and Is a joy to work with. His team riding in Heat Fourteen when Brendan (Johnson) got a little out of shape showed maturity beyond his years. The only down on the day was poor Sam Woods injury, he was going well in his first ride when an unfortunate incident put him out, hopefully it is not too serious and he will soon be back on a bike. We have two difficult fixtures away this week, especially on Saturday without our top three, but we will give it our best as usual and then look to put on a similar performance to today next Sunday against Leicester and secure our place in the National Trophy Final. After today I feel our season is alive again!”

Mildenhall 64 - Halsey 15 (5 Rides), Mountain 13+4 (7), Bates 10 (4), Coles 9+3 (4), Johnson 6+2 (4) and Woods 2+1 (1)

Stoke 29 - Clegg 10 (5 Rides incl 6 point TR), Armstrong 10 (5 incl 1 point TR), Widman 3 (4), Hopwood 3 (4), Payne 2 (4), Kirby 1 (4) and Neale 0 (4)