Heat by Heat Results - August 1975

The visit to Newport on the first of August turned out to be the turning point of the season.  Already struggling through mechanical issues for Plant and France, Chris Pusey was ruled out after hitting the fence in heat 6.  With none of their heat leaders functioning, it was left to Henny Kroeze to try and stem the flow, but the match was over by heat 9.  And worse was to follow - Gatenby crashed in the second half and was hit by Cartwright, who was unable to avoid him.  The Dukes ended the night with three of their side in the local hospital...

A patched-up Dukes side clung on to defeat Coventry by two points to keep their title challenge alive.  Graham Plant and Charlie Monk were the stars of the show, as together with France, they provided the winners of the last 5 heats to see the Dukes home.  Monk's third place in heat nine proved crucial as they edged in front and held on.  With no Gatenby or Cartwright, there was a recall for Mike Hiftle, with John Jackson getting the call to fill in at reserve.

The depleted Dukes went down to a 14 point defeat at Poole, who were inspired by their World Finalist Malcom Simmons, who was unbeaten.  Halifax's top 3 of France, Plant and Monk were lacking support, with Kroeze struggling all night, and Jackson and Cusworth not able to contribute.  France and Plant took the Dukes into an unlikely lead in heat 5, but the match deteriorated from there, as Simmons, aided by Broadbelt, took control.

August was only a week old, but the Dukes fell to a third convincing away defeat as their injury crisis grew at Hackney.  Rick France hit the fence in heat 5 after tangling with Mike Broadbank, and took no further part after suffering a hip injury.  It was left to Plant, Kroeze and Monk to battle on, but already using rider replacement for Pusey, and forced to field local junior Chris Mackett, the Dukes were effectively a 3 man team.  Morton, Thomas and Etheridge were all unbeaten for the Hawks, as the Dukes effectively threw the towel in after heat 11.

The Dukes lifted the gloom with a win over Swindon thanks to guest Billy Sanders excellent paid 11 points.  Graham Plant continued his excellent recent run, whilst Kroeze played a team role, backing up Plant and Sanders in each heat.  But the talking point was young Andy Cusworth, who scored an incredible paid 11, including a 5-1 with Sanders in heat 10 to pull the Dukes clear.  The Robins were largely a 2 man team, with Ashby unbeaten and Bouchard top scoring from reserve.  Ashby's time in heat one was the fastest at the Shay since Eric Boocock set the track record a year earlier.

Halifax won at Plough Lane earlier in the season, but the battered Dukes were well beaten on their league return, with guest John Boulger leading the way with 11 points.  Charlie Monk failed to win a race in his 8 points, whilst Mick Newton, drafted in for Cartwright, chipped away with 5 points.  But Plant failed to arrive, leaving the Dukes with an impossible mountain to climb, and Kroeze had one of those nights where nothing he tried seemed to work.

The injury crisis deepened for the Dukes as both Graham Plant and the returning Ian Cartwright were ruled out after a heavy crash in heat 5 of the match against Sheffield.  Plant collected Tony Lomas, and both hit the fence, collecting the unfortunate Cartwright on the way.  Despite the efforts of the returning Pusey, Monk and Kroeze, Halifax ran out of steam as the Tigers put another dent in the Dukes fading title challenge.

The Dukes travelled to Oxford and were predictably heavily beaten, with Chris Pusey, guest Nigel Boocock, and Charlie Monk scoring all but 3 of their points.  The meeting was over quickly, as Halifax conceded four maximum heat losses and a 4-2 in the first 5 heats, before they steadied the ship, with the three main scorers winning the next 4 heats, and with Steve Finch grabbing a point in heat 9.  But with Kroeze having a nightmare, and Jackson and Hiftle not in contention, the end of the meeting couldn't come quickly enough.

The Shaytona individual meeting gave a break from league matches and hopefully a chance for injuries to heal.  Charlie Monk won his second individual meeting of the season, again with a 15 point maximum, with Chris Pusey, still not 100% fit, two point adrift.  Reading's John Davis was a surprise packet, coming third, whilst Rick France put himself in peril again by taking two heavy falls.

Halifax got back to winning ways with a morale-boosting victory over rivals Belle Vue in the annual £100 bank holiday fixture.  Double figure scores from Monk and the fired-up Pusey gave the Dukes the edge, with the pair linking up for a final race 5-1 to snatch victory.  After Halifax took a 5-1 lead in the first race, there was never more than 2 points between the sides, with the unbeaten Peter Collins, Chris Morton, and Pusey's brother Geoff in the points for the Aces.  Ian Cartwright returned after his latest absence, and was clearly tentative as he picked up a solitary point.

Halifax progressed to the semi-finals of the Inter-League Cup with a solid win over a disappointing Ipswich, for whom John Louis scored a maximum, but recent Dukes' guest Sanders had a meeting to forget.  Rick France cried off before the match, with a foot injury sutained suring the Belle Vue match, but with Henny Kroeze in the mood, the Dukes were not going to be denied.  Graham Plant led from the front, and Charlie Monk played the team role, backing up his partner on four occasions.  But Chris Pusey blew his engine in heat 9 and withdrew from his final outing.  Kroeze replaced Pusey, but was denied his maximum by Louis in the final heat.