Heat by Heat Results - July 1975

Halifax were edged out in a thriller at Owlerton, losing in a last heat decider.  The Dukes led early on, yet trailed by 6 points with only 4 heats remaining, before Graham Plant dragged them back into contention.  Plant recovered from a first race exclusion to score 8 points, and with Pusey hitting double figures, and France and Monk both competitive, Halifax looked like they could pull off a win, but Wyer made the gate in the final race, and guest Ray Wilson kept Cartwright at bay to secure the win for the Tigers.

The Knock-out Cup campaign continued with a 16 point win over Exeter.  Henny Kroeze was back in the team after his recent mechanical problems, and set the Shay alight with a 15 point maximum, including a sensational win over Mauger in heat 5.  Mauger was otherwise unbeaten, but received little support, although the Dukes let the Falcons claw back 2 points in the final heats, to leave the outcome in the balance.  Former Duke John Titman returned to the Shay for the first time since the end of the 1973 season, but struggled to score 2 points.

Halifax set down a marker to the rest of the title challengers with a stunning win on the road at Swindon - for whom Ashby and Kilby scored all but 5 of their points.  All-round scoring from Plant, Kroeze, Monk, Pusey and Cartwright, who were largely content to fill in the minor places where necessary, paid dividends, their 4 heat wins resulting in 5-1s. Gatenby's last place in heat 4 was the only time a Duke failed to score all night, with France and Monk's 3-3 in heat 11 securing a memorable win. 

The win at Swindon was followed up by another stunning away victory, this time at Brandon, as Halifax returned to the top of the table.  Graham Plant was unstoppable, surging to a 12 point maximum and with France and Pusey also in the points, the outcome always looked possible.  Plant and Monk stretched the lead to 6 points with only 3 heats left, and despite the Bees clawing back 2 points, a 4-2 from Plant and Pusey in heat 12 sealed a famous win.

16 points ahead from the first leg, the Dukes put on a master-class on how to defend a lead, as they progressed to the Cup quarter finals. Halifax would not let the Falcons get any sort of foothold in the tie, and when Monk and Plant's 5-1 in heat 7 drew them level, the job was almost done.  Eight points from Kroeze in the next 4 races saw the Dukes home, with the two 5-1s for the Falcons in the final two races being totally academic.  Mauger grabbed his inevitable maximum, but was unable to influence the outcome. The only negative was a back injury sustained by Cartwright in a first race fall.

Charlie Monk, mounted on his new Weslake-powered bike, dominated the Shay round of the Northern Riders Championship with a 15 point maximum.  Chris Pusey dropped his only points to Monk and, surprisingly, Gatenby in heat 1 as he finished second.  Graham Plant so nearly completed a Dukes 1-2-3, finishing a point behind Jimmy McMillan.  Ian Cartwright pulled out following his back injury at Exeter, whilst Henny Kroeze was booked to ride in a meeting in Belgium...

Halifax slipped to a 6 point defeat at the new Smallmead stadium, going down to a last heat decider.  Their efforts were hampered when Kroeze withdrew after his first ride suffering from concussion from his fall on the continent the previous day, and the Dukes were already without the injured Cartwright, with youngster Steve Finch stepping in.  France, Plant and Pusey kept the scores close - the Dukes were never more than 4 points behind - until Davis and Jansson hit the only 5-1 of the night to give the Racers the points.

Halifax soundly defeated the Poole Pirates to maintain their position at the top of the league, courtesy of another maximum for Charlie Monk.  The result was never in doubt, once Monk and Plant combined in heat 5, and with the Dukes back to full strength, with Kroeze and Cartwright back, they had too much for the Pirates, who were largely dependent on Simmons and Broadbelt.  Rick France was unbeaten after a first race loss to Simmons, and Plant stopped whilst well placed in heat 3.  All looked promising as the Dukes entered the last 3 months of the season...