Heat by Heat Results - May 1981

The injury-hit Dukes suffered a thrashing at home to the Coventry Bees, who were on their way to winning the League Cup North section. Double figure scores from Olsen, Knudsen, Busk and Shirra condemned Halifax to a shocking 32 point loss. Again, the 3 senior Dukes bore the brunt of the scoring, but could only manage 4 heat wins. Baker struggled throughout, and Ashton, still suffering both the physical and mechanical effects of his crash against the Aces, and Skretting failed to score a point.

Halifax travelled to Cradley for the Bank Holiday Monday fixture finally able to include Dave Trownson after permission was obtained to use the veteran NL rider on loan. And Trownson proved the star man for the Dukes, although his his 8 points were in vain. With Louis and Cartwright both having mechanical issues, the Dukes were swept aside, with both Penhall and Gundersen claiming easy 15 point maximums, backed up by Alan Grahame and Phil Collins. Again, the bottom end of the Dukes team struggled throughout.

The Dukes travelled to Peterborough in the preliminary round of the Knock-Out Cup - and were the victim of a giant-killing. Whilst Louis stormed to an immaculate 18 point maximum, and was backed by 14 from Cartwright, the home side kept packing the minor places to keep it close. A shock 5-1 from the Panthers' reserves in heat 15 edged the home side in front, and then Hines and Greer shut out Cartwright, in what many thought should have been declared an unsatisfactory start, for a famous win. Wyer rode on borrowed machinery after seizing his engine at the start of heat 2, and Martin Dixon guested for the Dukes in place of Trownson, riding for Edinburgh.

Nothing short of miraculously, Carter returned to action after only 6 weeks out - and looked like he had never been away, scoring 17 magnificent points, beaten only by Penhall in heat 4. His efforts were in vain however, as with only Cartwright giving solid backing, and Louis having an off-night, the Heathens comfortably took the points on a wet night at The Shay. Aside from Carter and Cartwright, the remaining Dukes could only contribute 10 points between them, with contributions from guest Kelly Moran, and John McNeill at reserve proving vital for the Heathens.

The Dukes blew a huge chance for an away victory, squandering an early 10 point lead. Again, it was a top-heavy effort from the visitors, with Carter and Cartwright receiving little support, particularly as the match progressed. Wyer was unbeaten in his first 2 races, but then ran 3 last places in his remaining 4 heats. Another bad night for Louis, including a rare fall, and low returns from Trownson, Baker and Skretting (who was now being threatened with the axe) resulted in the Dukes dropping to the foot of the League Cup table, with only a visit to Coventry still to come...

Halifax had hoped to fit the re-arranged Hackney match into a free Saturday, but with the Hawks committed to a fixture at King's Lynn, the Dukes' supporters were able to take in a challenge match, as the Dukes took on a "Stars of Speedway" select side. The home side were comfortable winners, with Pendlebury making a winning return to action. Andy Grahame was the pick of the visitors, being the only rider to beat Carter, Cartwright and Louis. Trond Skretting won his first race as a Duke in heat 2, but contributed little else, and the decision to release him was made after the end of the meeting.

In the end, this was top versus bottom. The Bees clinched first place in the League Cup North, and a place in the final against King's Lynn, with a strong performance, their top 6 riders scoring at least 8 points each! For the Dukes, only Carter could manage that - although 4 wins, punctuated by two 5-1 defeats, highlighted the difference in the camps. Wyer won 2 races, but again had bike troubles, and Louis, Cartwright and Trownson all struggled. Ian Westwell replaced Skretting at the foot of the team, but could only register 1 point, coming last in a 3-man finish. The Dukes finished in last place in the League Cup, after a promising start to the season.

A move to British League fixtures was hopefully the thing to kick the Dukes season off properly. But 1980 Champions Reading had other ideas. Remarkably, the first 8 races were all shared, with the Racers often filling in the minor places - although the Dukes got the wins in 7 of those, the lack of depth was proving vital. Andersson and Pyeatt broke the pattern in heat 9, with Pendlebury out of sorts. And when Davis and Pullen repeated the score over Louis and Baker 2 heats later, Halifax were in trouble. Needing a 5-1 to draw, Louis and Cartwright could not find a way past Davis, and the points had gone. Kelly Moran guested for Schwartz, away on Long-Track duty - his second guest appearance in a few weeks.

Halifax's final action of May saw a trip to King's Lynn - where they were predictably beaten. Louis and Carter both scored double figures, although both suffered engine failures. The remaining 5 Dukes struggled though, only collecting 11 points between them. Again, it was the second half of the meeting which proved the Dukes' undoing - only 4 points adrift after 7 races, the Stars eased away with a 5-1 from Taylor and Featherby followed by solid scoring and no last places! The Dukes provided 11 last places out of the 13 races. Cartwright came to grief in heat 12 with the meeting already over.