Heat by Heat Results - July 1981

Whilst Britain was gripped by inner-city riots, Halifax travelled to South London to take on the Dons. A spirited performance saw the Dukes lose by 10 points, although they were competitive throughout. Carter reeled off 4 straight wins after a poor first ride, and with Louis, Cartwright and Baker involved in the thick of the action, the home side never ran away with things. Wyer had another one of those nights - excluded for tape-breaking first time out, and then failing to beat a home rider until he beat Rembas last time out. Pyszny finally made his long-awaited return, but was off the pace. Billy Burton again deputised for the injured Pendlebury.

A comfortable home win against Ipswich, made even more satisfying due to the contributions of all seven Dukes! With Pyszny making his home return, and Trownson covering for Pendlebury, Halifax were solid throughout, and with Wyer returning to his old self at reserve, the result was never in doubt. Carter and Pyszny got things off to the perfect start, beating Sigalos in heat 1, and the Dukes opened a 10 point lead after only 7 races. American John Cook was the only consistent threat for the Witches, but Mike Lanham, a 15 point scorer in the British Quarter final just over a year ago, failed to score in 4 outings.

Swindon's heat-leader trio of British Champion Bastable, Crump & Gresham proved ultimately too strong for a spirited Dukes side. Halifax kept it close from the start, but a pair of 5-1s in heats 7 and 12 proved critical. Carter was superb for 14 points, beaten only by Crump, and Dave Trownson scored paid 9 points from reserve, but with Louis and Cartwright failing to win a heat, the Dukes lacked the firepower to take the win. Wyer improved as the match wore on, whilst Baker struggled on a new track to him.

Despite the best efforts of Louis and Carter, the Dukes had little else to offer at Brandon, as the Bees won comfortably. A 4-2 for Carter and Pyszny looked to give the Dukes early hope, but little went right after that. The Bees moved 12 ahead in heat 8, and although Halifax's top two reduced the deficit in heat 9, Cartwright's engine failure a race later nullified Louis' tactical sub ride. With 5 Dukes contributing a mere 10 points between them, the outcome was inevitable. Knudsen was unbeaten by a Duke, with Ole Olsen only headed by Carter in heat one. Craig Pendlebury made his return after his latest injury lay-off.

Some friendly banter between promotions resulted in the Cock of the North Challenge between the 2 Yorkshire rivals. With Carter and Louis away in Denmark for the Inter-continental final, Billy Sanders of Hull was called in to deputise - but he had a night to forget. A point first time out was followed by motor problems, and he withdrew from the rest of the meeting. Star of the show for Halifax was Pyszny who scored double figures for the second (and ultimately, final) time for the Dukes. Steve Baker also had a good return, but Shawn Moran was unbeaten for the Tigers, who took a 12 point lead.

With the top stars away in Denmark, the Dukes open-date was filled with a 4 Team Tournament including the Aces, Tigers and Vikings. Remarkably, it was Sheffield who edged the win, thanks to their solid top 3 of Wilson, Moran and Dave Morton. After his heroics of 2 nights before, Pyszny had a night to forget, and his failure to register more than a point proved the difference, as the Dukes came up 2 points short. In addition to Carter and Louis being away on ICF duty, the Aces and VIkings were also lacking their top stars, and they were both also-rans.

Halifax travelled to east London for the match with Hackney, but were left frustrated by the weather. Despite an already damp track the meeting went ahead, but rain continued to fall. The Dukes were in a good position, as heat advantages from Carter and Wyer had cancelled out two retirements from Pendlebury. Bo Petersen fell awkwardly in heat 5, giving the Dukes chance to pull level, which they did, but the referee called a halt to proceedings with racing becoming more difficult.