British Under 21 Final - Dudley - 23/4/13

[topaz325 1,880]

Not at all. He declared his intention to ride for GB some time ago and as far as ii know he has a British Passport. Stop knocking the lad when he has just won the championship.

 

Just read he has a British Passport.

[FrankThePug 19]

 

Not at all. He declared his intention to ride for GB some time ago and as far as ii know he has a British Passport. Stop knocking the lad when he has just won the championship.

 

 

Wasn't knocking him at all I admit I could have phrased it better first time, but no I like Branford he's showed that you don't have to be riding full time to be champ and he even ridden himself into a NL team spot. And to be honest I was operating a anybody but Garrity policy for tonight

Edited April 23, 2013 by FrankThePug

[ciderman 100]

Well done to the young man, he has taken the steps to leave his family and try to make a name for himself as a BRITISH rider, He obviously has a lot of drive, I hope this opens some doors for him, he deserves a break after all the effort he has put in. Would have loved to know the odds on him winning!

 

Enjoy it Robert, you are British Under 21 Champion!!!

[Coventry_Bee 467]

Congratulations to Robert, hope he makes it into the Bees team in the future.

[luluthetiger 221]

Well done -- who knows, Rob could in a year or two be rivalling the success of another Aussie-raised Brit we are all delighted to claim these days!

 

He might have been a Coventry Blaze rider this morning, but I can see about half-a-dozen PL reserve berths being cleaned out for him tomorrow!

 

He last rode PL for Berwick -- would they have any first claim on him (although they might not be currently interested, of course)?

[NeilWatson 1,995]

He's a Coventry Storm rider!

[hackneyrocket 139]

Is it any wonder why speedway is in decline, how can a rider go through the card and be unbeaten in five rides and still end up third. only speedway could throw this up.

[Shadders 4,137]

What a terrible injustice. Garrity wins all of his heats with style, misses the gate in the final and has the trophy, rightfully his, snatched away. Anyone who thinks that this format isn't bolloc*s is a fool.

 

Special mention to James Sarjeant who looked decent tonight. Can't believe he's been overlooked when rubbish like Davey and Jake Anderson are getting PL team places.

[greyhoundp 990]

Well done to the 2013 British Under 21 Champion, Robert Branford, rode steadily and gated well during the qualifying Heats, got caught napping by Ash Morris in his 4th ride, but i think this gave him a kick up the backside, because in the Semi Final he was last around bends 1 & 2, but passed both Sarj & Ash between the narrowest of gaps, and went on to win, In the Final he gated and went, and left the others to fight out the minor places, Chopper you should be proud of him, Rob said himself he was a little bit shocked to win but he deserved it on the night.

Garrity was unbeatable in his qualifying races, but messed up at the start in the Final, Kyle only beaten by Jason was comfortably 2nd in qualifying, Ash was steady throughout, and had a hard first race fall which didnt help him, unluckiest rider on the night had to be Stefan Nielsen had E/Fs in his first three rides, and probably the luckiest was young matty bates, he had an horrendous looking 1st race fall, just missing the support post as he went over/through the air fence. An enjoyable meeting but the track didnt lend itself to much passing, the outside line just wasnt there, again well done to all the riders, and no serious injuries.

 

What a terrible injustice. Garrity wins all of his heats with style, misses the gate in the final and has the trophy, rightfully his, snatched away. Anyone who thinks that this format isn't bolloc*s is a fool.

 

Special mention to James Sarjeant who looked decent tonight. Can't believe he's been overlooked when rubbish like Davey and Jake Anderson are getting PL team places.

 

I have to say i agree with your sentiments, about the format Shadders, however Rob did what he had to in the Final, and won that race deservedly.

With regards PL places they are British, so for whatever reason the odds are stacked against them, its about time the powers that be, backed British riders, however you can see it in the workplace now, None Brits getting jobs, and offering to do overtime at ordinary rates, its no wonder bosses love em, Unions fought for the rights and wages over time, and now they are being eroded by Non Brits, who share 8 people in a 2 bedroom house, so therefore dont have the costs Brit families have, so can afford to work for these rates. jeez Shadders you set me off on a rant there.

[Soul Crew 87]

Enjoyable meeting especially after heat 12 when the racing improved, the final was a cracker although harsh on Garrity.

 

Wish someone could help Tom Perry improve his gating, never gonna kick on otherwise.

 

And what was it with fans being harassed by BSPA officials to show your ticket as soon as you went through the turnstile ffs?!

[Fourentee 989]

Hardly harassed to be asked politely by a smiling official, Mr S.

Congratulations to Robert Branford, whose style I've always liked. Commiserations to Jason Garrity, who looked the class of the field and has managed to rub off his rough edges without losing his dynamic racing style. For those who have had a go at him in the past (including this poster), he raced superbly and handled his disappointment graciously in the post-match rostrum interview. Well done also to Kyle Howarth, another who looked a likely winner and was excellent throughout, and to Ashley Morris for picking himself up and reaching the final after being wiped out in his first race.

Finally, Matt Williamson, of whom I know nothing other than the programme note which said he took the sport up seriously only last winter. This level of meeting has clearly come way too soon for him and with Monmore a tough track for the first-timer, I was expecting an F-X-0-1-R kind of card. But he rode sensibly and within his limits, varied his lines, completed all five races and never looked like coming off. A big well done there.

[chopper 88]

Some good observations there Greyhoundp, he did say that he realised he had to get out into the dirt and out of points scoring mode and into winning races mode after being passed.Being from the old school im not sure about the final format either but I guess it can work for you sometimes if you have a fall or e/f, but knowing Jason and how well him and Robert get on im sure he was the first person over to congratulate him.I think most of the young guys have an enormous amount of respect for each other and what they do.Sad to have missed it but hopefully some video footage is available.Thanks for all your good wishes.Chopper

[Main Man 222]

Chopper --- the boy did you proud!!

[Shadders 4,137]

I have to say i agree with your sentiments, about the format Shadders, however Rob did what he had to in the Final, and won that race deservedly.

With regards PL places they are British, so for whatever reason the odds are stacked against them, its about time the powers that be, backed British riders, however you can see it in the workplace now, None Brits getting jobs, and offering to do overtime at ordinary rates, its no wonder bosses love em, Unions fought for the rights and wages over time, and now they are being eroded by Non Brits, who share 8 people in a 2 bedroom house, so therefore dont have the costs Brit families have, so can afford to work for these rates. jeez Shadders you set me off on a rant there.

Sorry to have raised your blood pressure greyhound!

I made my original post while waiting for a coffee at Watford Gap Services, so completely forgot to congratulate Robert Branford on winning the title, deserved or not.

 

A few other observations:

Poor Stefan Nielsen had a torrid evening that started when he opened the programme to see Simon Nielsens photograph in the rider biogs. Didn't get any better when he had a coming together with Shane Hazelden on the parade lap! Talking of Shane, I was told that this was his first meeting of the season. Can anyone confirm this?

It was pretty obvious that there was a huge gap in class and experience, as there usually is in these U21 competitions. At the top of the scale you have Kyle Howarth, already getting Elite League rides with Poole, and at the bottom you have Matt Williamson, with very little speedway experience.Most races you could predict the outcome of fairly comfortably with the likes of PL stars Tom Perry, Jason Garrity et al sprinkled through the field.

Still, mostly entertaining, even though some of the guys were struggling to find passing lines on that tight track. The lack of falls and no serious injuries made it less of an ordeal than I was expecting.

Special mention to Ben Morely who faces an expensive repair bill after his engine blew at the gate in heat 12.

[Presenter 144]

Some good observations there Greyhoundp, he did say that he realised he had to get out into the dirt and out of points scoring mode and into winning races mode after being passed.Being from the old school im not sure about the final format either but I guess it can work for you sometimes if you have a fall or e/f, but knowing Jason and how well him and Robert get on im sure he was the first person over to congratulate him.I think most of the young guys have an enormous amount of respect for each other and what they do.Sad to have missed it but hopefully some video footage is available.Thanks for all your good wishes.Chopper

 

Once again for 2013 Re-Run Productions will be filming all the SGB Shared Events (we really need another event in the series as Super Se7en had such a good ring about it! - include the NLRC perhaps?)

 

Some cracking action last night and well done to all the riders for a great meeting, the Grand Final in particular was a brilliant heat of speedway.

 

To order your meeting DVD, visit the website www.rerunproductions.co.uk.