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Exeter Falcons v Reading Racers
Premier Trophy (Group), 18 April 2005
County Ground, Exeter
| 1 | Mark Lemon | 3 | 3 | 3 | M | 2 | . | . | 11 | 0 |
| 2 | Lee Smethills | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2* | . | . | 8 | 1 |
| 4 | Antonin Svab | 3 | 3 | 1* | 3 | 3 | . | . | 13 | 1 |
| 5 | Seemond Stephens | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1* | . | 13 | 1 |
| 6 | Nick Simmons | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2* | 1 | 2* | . | 7 | 2 |
| 7 | Pavel Ondrasik | 0 | 1* | T | 2* | 0 | . | . | 3 | 2 |
| 1 | Andrew Appleton | 2 | 2 | 4^ | 1 | 0 | . | . | 9 | 0 |
| 2 | Chris Mills | 0 | 1* | 1 | R | . | . | . | 2 | 1 |
| 3 | Zdenek Simota | 2 | 1* | 0 | 1 | . | . | . | 4 | 1 |
| 4 | Richard Wolff | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | . | . | . | 4 | 0 |
| 5 | Matej Zagar | 3 | 2 | 3 | 6^ | 3 | . | . | 17 | 0 |
| 6 | Chris Johnson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | . | . | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | Mathieu Tresarrieu | 3 | F | Fx | . | . | . | . | 3 | 0 |
* = BP. ^ = TR . ! = TS (15m Handicap). # = TR (Points Not Doubled). & = TS (Points Not Doubled, 15m Handicap).
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Exeter were without Jernej Kolenko who, it seems, has gone home so they used R/R at number three. Reading, having redeclared their team, had new signing, Zdenek Simota, at number three with Andrew Appleton moving to number one so were at full strength. The teams exchanged 4-2s in the opening two heats then Exeter hit the front with a 4-2 in heat 3 to lead 10-8. Zdenek Simota took second place in his first ever ride for Reading but it was Toni Svab who won the heat with Lee Smethills in third place. Matej Zagar won heat 4 but Mathieu Tressarieu fell so the heat was shared. The score after the first four heats was 13-11. Zagar apart, Reading were finding it hard to produce race winners and Exeter took a 4-2 in heat 6, when Matej Zagar suffered his one and only defeat of the match finishing second to Mark Lemon, then a 5-1 in heat 8 from Smethills and Simmons who beat Chris Mills into third place. In this heat Tressarieu fell and Nick Simmons ran into him. The Reading rider suffered concussion and withdrew from the meeting. This heat win put the Falcons eight ahead and after another Zagar win in heat 9 Exeter struck with a 5-1 in heat 10 from Lemon and Smethills stretching the lead to 12 points at 36-24. In heat 11 Reading gave Andrew Appleton a TR and he finished second to Seemond Stephens with Nick Simmons third for a 4-4. Another 5-1 to Exeter in heat 12 from Svab and Ondrasik put Exeter 16 ahead before Reading played their second TR card giving the ride to Matej Zagar in heat 13. Zagar obliged with another win and this time he received some support from Andrew Appleton in third place for a 2-7 which reduced the gap to nine points at 47-36. Exeter responded with another 5-1 from Svab and Simmons before Zagar rounded things off by winning heat 15 for a share of the points to leave Reading with a 15 point deficit to pull back in the return match for the bonus point. Match Report by Merlin |