BELLE Vue bounced back from a hotly contested match against the Oxford Chargers at Sandy Lane, just missing out 49-40 after a brilliant resurgence in the latter half of the afternoon.
A difficult start for the Cool Running colts saw them fall behind by 14 points in the first half of the meeting, leaving a huge mountain to climb in the races ahead.
But what the Chargers didn’t, perhaps, anticipate was their rivals’ fierce tenacity as they set to work pulling back the deficit they had dealt on them.
Brilliant performances from Matt Marson and newly-crowned British U-21 Champion Sam Hagon inspired the Mancunians to put pressure on the Oxford boys.
And, as Heat 15 approached, they continued to chip away at the gap and put themselves in a great position for the return leg in August.
Team boss Steve Williams said: “While there are plenty of positives to take from today, we can’t escape the fact that we let the first half of the meeting get away from us.
“We were outscored at reserve, there’s no hiding that fact but at the same time it wasn’t for lack of trying on the boys’ parts; they remained determined the entire night.
“And we couldn’t be prouder of the way they bounced back after being 14 points down. They could’ve easily let their heads drop but they didn’t, they got on with the job.
“The half way stage was the point where everyone seemed to click. Our guest riders did a fabulous job, we got far more involved with the action and they did the club proud.”
“It sets us up for a great return leg at the National Speedway Stadium. The points are very much up for grabs and we look forward to welcoming the Chargers to Manchester.”
The Belle Vue ‘Cool Running’ Colts return to the National Speedway Stadium on Monday, June 17 for the exciting conclusion to their contest with the Middlesbrough Tigers, tapes up at 7:30pm.
Meeting tickets, race day programmes and south stand parking are now available to pre-book online at bellevue-speedway.com/events.
RESULT – OXFORD V BELLE VUE – SUNDAY, JUNE 16 @ 3PM [NDL]
Oxford Chargers 49: Jody Scott 10+2, Luke Killeen 10, Ashton Vale 8+1, Jason Garrad 8, Jacob Clouting 7+1, Senna Summers 5+2, Max Broadhurst 1
Belle Vue ‘Cool Running’ Colts 40: Sam Hagon 14, Matt Marson 8+1, Mickie Simpson 7+1, Freddy Hodder 5, Eli Meadows 4+1, Chad Wirtzfeld 2, Jack Shimelt 0
Image: ©Belle Vue Speedway