Throwback Thursday: Premier League Champions!

Mar 5th, 2020
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Final 06 Heat 6 Auty Toft 5-1

EACH Thursday we will look back at a memorable meeting at the Eddie Wright Raceway featuring club legend Josh Auty.

This week we feature the most special night in the history of Scunthorpe Speedway – the night we became Premier League Champions in 2012.

Josh played a huge part in our victory. He had won a crucial tactical ride in the first leg at Somerset, scored paid 12 in the second leg at Scunthorpe, and was involved in the nail-biting last race 3-3 that secured the title.

Please come along to the Josh Auty testimonial at the Eddie Wright Raceway on Sunday, March 22nd at 3pm.

SCORPIONS 2012 PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS AFTER THRILLER
SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 48 SOMERSET REBELS 42 (SCORPIONS WIN ON AGGREGATE 92-91)
MONDAY, OCTOBER 29TH, 2012
Report: Richard Hollingsworth & Rob Peasley
Photos: Alex Summerfield

THE HENDERSON INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions clinched the Premier League title last night in the very last race of a tense encounter at the Scorpions’ Eddie Wright Raceway.

With the Scorpions unable to extend the lead they held for most of the meeting, a six-point lead on the night going into the last race meant they were ahead on aggregate by just one solitary point. With Somerset’s Jesper B. Monberg racing away it left the Scorpions pair of Josh Auty and Nick Morris to fend off a strong challenge from former Scorpions skipper Richard Hall for four laps. Hall tried everything to get past, but the Scorpions duo just managed to keep him at bay and clinch the league title.

The meeting started well for the Scorpions with Josh Auty winning heat 1 before the reserve pairing of Michael Palm Toft and Gary Irving recorded a 5-1 in heat 2. However, there was a shock in heat 3 when Ashley Birks and Jason Bunyan conceded a 5-1. Birks recovered with a heat win before Auty and Toft claimed a 5-1 in heat 6 to, once again, give the Scorpions a four-point lead on the night.

The lead was extended to six in heat 7 with a 4-2 from Gary Irving and Nick Morris but it could have been more if the race hadn’t have been awarded when Lewis Kerr fell. Worse followed in heat eight when Ashley Birks was hit by Kyle Newman and a likely heat advantage became a 3-3 in the re-run.

Worse than the loss of a heat advantage was the loss of Birks. An injury sustained in heat 8 meant he wasn’t able to take his programmed ride in heat 9 and the Rebels claimed a 5-1 against the Scorpions’ reserves. It cut the gap to two points but consecutive 4-2s extended the lead back to six and restored a one-point aggregate lead with four races to go.

Heat 12 saw the Scorpions squander a 2-4 when Toft crashed out but Mick Morris and Josh Auty recorded a 4-2 in heat 13 to see the Scorpions claim the aggregate lead once more. With Ashley Birks surprisingly fit to ride again he looked to be on a 3-3 with Toft but he tried to round Kyle Newman and fell heavily. In the re-run, the Scorpions had a stroke of luck when Newman hit the tapes and had to go from the 15-metre mark. The advantage was enough for Toft who won the race with ease.

It all meant the Scorpions needed a 3-3 in the deciding race but when Monberg got away it became a real three-way battle for the minor placings. Although it was touch and go at times Nick Morris and Josh Auty kept Richard Hall at bay for four laps to ensure the Scorpions won the league title by the narrowest of margins – just one race point.

The end of the race signalled the start of some wild celebrations before the league championship trophy was presented to captain Ashley Birks.

After the meeting an emotional Richard Hollingsworth (Scorpions’ Team Manager) explained: “It is a dream come true and the culmination of eight and a half years hard work. It was just so dramatic though. We had drama with the rain earlier in the day and the track staff just worked wonders this afternoon to give us a race-track. Then for it to go down to the last lap of the last race was more than nerves could take. I was okay until Ashley crashed in heat 14. I was confident we would win but from that point I knew that one engine failure could decide the league title.

“You have to take your hat off to the Rebels for putting up a great fight and you have to feel for them because they must be hurting having come so close.

“However, we do have a special team. We’ve had problems thrown at us all season long and they continued tonight but as always we dug deep, battled on and came through in the end. I’m so very proud of the riders and delighted for everyone involved with the club. Premier League Champions! It certainly sounds very nice indeed.”

Scorpions’ No 1 Josh Auty said: “We just couldn’t have scripted anything like that. One point in it; a last-heat decider. It hasn’t really sunk in yet.

“Collectively, as a team, I think we deserve it. Overall we’ve been very, very good this season, and it’s no less than we deserve to win the title.

“We have had a very young team, since David (Howe) has been out. Going into Heat 15, I did have one thought at the back of my mind, which was maybe lack of experience could cost us. But Nick (Morris) and myself pulled it out of the bag.

“We could hear Richard Hall – we knew where he was. Fortunately he didn’t come through.

“It’s fabulous for the fans. We did it for them, the sponsors and the promotion. We can’t thank the supporters enough for coming each week and cheering us on. This was for them… and it’s nothing more than they deserve as well.

“It’s awesome to win a league title in my first year back at Scunthorpe. We’ve known we could do it from the start of the season. Plans don’t always come to fruition, but fortunately for us, it all came together.

“Scunthorpe does have a special place in my heart. I started my career here and we won countless trophies (at National League level).

“To win the league again at senior level, while established as the club’s No 1, is a massive thing for me and makes it even more satisfying.”

HENDERSON INSURANCE SCUNTHORPE SCORPIONS 48
1. Josh Auty 3 2* 3 1 2 (11+1) (5)
2. David Howe R/R – scored 5+1 (4)
3. Jason Bunyan (Guest) 0 0 2 (2) (3)
4, Ashley Birks 1 3 1* FX (5+1) (4)
5. Nick Morris 2 1 1 3 3 1* (11+1) (6)
6. Michael Palm Toft 3 3 2 R 1 FX 3 (12) (7)
7. Gary Irving 0 2* 1* 3 1 (7+2) (5)
Team manager: Richard Hollingsworth

SOMERSET REBELS 42
1. Richard Hall (Guest) 1* 2 R 2 0 (5+1) (5)
2. Alex Davies 2 1* 3 2 (8+1) (4)
3. Jesper B Monberg 2* 2 0 3 3 (10+1) (5)
4. James Wright 3 TX 2 2 (7) (4)
5. Claus Vissing 3 1 3 0 (7) (4)
6. Kyle Newman 1 0 FX 2* 1 1* (5+2) (6)
7. Lewis Kerr (Guest) 0 0 FX (0) (3)
Team managers: Steve Bishop & Garry May

1: Irving takes the R/R ride. Irving & Auty seem to have the edge from the gate, but the race is quickly halted as an unsatisfactory start. In the re-run, it’s all change on the opening bend, as Auty, having missed the gate, comes out of the second bend in front, while Irving – after a good start – finds himself last. Irving changes under Hall on the fourth bend of lap 1 take third place. But just as it is looking settled as a 4-2 to the Scorpions, Hall bombs past Irving coming off the final bend, and the race is shared 3-3.
(Re-run) Auty (gate 3), Davies (2), Hall (4), Irving (1), 56.37 (3-3) (3-3) (Agg 47-52).

2: Toft & Irving from the gate and take a straight-forward 5-1. Once again, the all-round strength of the Scorpions looks set to pay dividends.
Toft (2), Irving (4), Newman (1), Kerr (3), 56.16 (5-1) (8-4) (Agg 52-53).

3: The Scorpions are brought back to earth with a bump. Birks makes a good start from the inside, but he’s beaten out of the second corner by Wright. Monberg thrusts inside Birks on the third bend, with Birks manfully chasing for the rest of the race, but Monberg holds him off. Bunyan trailing after a very slow start. A maximum for the Rebels – this isn’t going to be easy!
Wright (4), Monberg (2), Birks (1), Bunyan (3), 58.28 (1-5) (9-9) (Agg 53-58).

4: Irving fast away from the inside, but Vissing has too much momentum around the opening bends and moves into the lead. Morris then chasing Vissing in vain.
Vissing (4), Morris (3), Irving (1), Kerr (2), 57.78 (3-3) (12-12) (Agg 56-61).

5: Captain Birks makes it a hat-trick of wins from the outside gate. Meanwhile, Bunyan again has his lunch at the starting tapes. He chases Davies, gets level on the inside of Davies on the final bend, but the Australian holds on.
Birks (4), Hall (3), Davies (1), Bunyan (2), 58.52 (3-3) (15-15) (Agg 59-64).

6: Toft takes the R/R ride. Auty fast away from the inside, while Toft joins him after flying around Vissing on the second bend. The Scorpions pair are untroubled after that.
Toft (3), Auty (1), Vissing (2), Newman (4), 58.72 (5-1) (20-16) (Agg 64-65).

7: Irving takes reserve ride for Toft. Wright hits the tapes, and Kerr replaces him (thus using up Kerr’s third and final ride). In the re-run, Monberg (gate 1) is fastest from the tapes, but Irving is buzzing just behind him, and in his trademark move, cuts back to the inside on the fourth bend to move ahead of Monberg. Third-placed Morris moves in on Monberg, but then the trailed-off Kerr falls on the second bend of the third lap. With Morris right up with Monberg, the race is stopped. With the race far from settled, referee Dave Dowling has the discretion to order a re-run, even though Irving was just moving onto the final lap at the time of stoppage. However, it is awarded as a 4-2 to the Scorpions, to the consternation of the Scunthorpe camp, who felt they had a good chance of a 5-1 (although maybe Monberg would have got clear and won the re-run, who knows?). Scunny move ahead on aggregate by a solitary point.
(Re-run) Irving (4), Monberg (1), Morris (2), Kerr (3) (fell, excluded), Wright (3) (excluded, tape touching), awarded – no time (4-2) (24-18) (Agg 68-67).

8: Birks takes the R/R ride, Toft takes reserve ride for Irving, and Newman takes reserve ride for Kerr. Birks traps, with Newman and Toft in close attention. Newman almost under Birks on the second lap, before Toft propels himself under Newman after two laps – as the Scorpions move into a 5-1 position. But Newman (now third) finds unexpected drive on the second bend of the third lap and ploughs into the back of race-leader Birks. It looks nasty, but a battered Birks gets to his feet. With so much at stake, tempers flare briefly and there’s a bit of a fracas in the pits. Newman is excluded, while the referee orders a re-run, even though Davies was trailed off at the time of the stoppage. Birks is first away in the re-run, but clearly is feeling a bit second-hand, and Davies moves inside him on the third bend. Toft is then chasing Davies, but is unable to get through. A fortunate 3-3 to the Rebels, although had the ref awarded a 5-1, it would have been tactical ride territory in Heat 9.
(Re-run) Davies (3), Toft (2), Birks (4), Newman (1) (fell, excluded), 58.50 (3-3) (27-21) (Agg 71-70).

9: With Bunyan off form and Birks struggling for fitness, Scunthorpe team manager Richard Hollingsworth places both Scorpions reserves into the race. Toft makes a flying start from the outside, but fourth-placed Newman takes a fall on the opening bends. It’s a 4-2 to the Scorpions at the time of stoppage, with the ref allowing all four riders in the re-run. In the re-run, Vissing makes a better start, and he blocks Toft’s outside charge. Toft runs out of room and clouts the fence. Again, the referee allows all four riders back. At the third time of asking, it’s the Rebels who get away. Irving chases Newman, but to no avail. Toft pulls up, with his bike having been damaged in the fall. Are things slipping away from the Scorpions?
(Re-run twice) Vissing (1), Newman (3), Irving (2), Toft (4) (ret), 59.51 (1-5) (28-26) (Agg 72-75)

10: Morris takes the R/R ride. A closely contested first lap sees Wright briefly into the lead on the third turn, but Auty moves back inside him on the fourth bend, with Morris under Monberg into third at the same time. Morris starts to chase Wright, but he goes wide on the fourth bend of lap two and loses too much ground.
Auty (4), Wright (1), Morris (2), Monberg (3), 59.18 (4-2) (32-28) (Agg 75-76)

11: Morris gates ahead of the Somerset pair, but Hall’s bike grinds to a halt on the fourth bend of the opening lap. Toft inherits third, challenges Davies, but is unable to dislodge Davies from second place. The Scorpions edge back in front on aggregate by a point.
Morris (1), Davies (4), Toft (3), Hall (2) (ret), 59.56 (4-2) (36-30) (Agg 80-79)

12: Toft takes reserve ride for Irving. All very close on the opening lap. Bunyan briefly into the lead, only for Monberg to find a way back through. Newman also close on Toft, when Toft misjudges the first corner of the second lap, and takes a tumble. Toft excluded from the race. In the re-run, all settled from the gate, with Bunyan splitting the Somerset pair.
(Re-run) Monberg (4), Bunyan (1), Newman (2), Toft (3) (fell, excluded), 59.69 (2-4) (38-34) (Agg 82-83).

13: Morris gates, but Auty is last away. Auty fights inside Vissing on the third bend, before blasting around Hall after a lap. But Hall responds by charging around Auty on the second bend of lap 2 to regain second place. Auty in contention for the rest of the race, but Hall holds him off. The overall aggregate lead changes hands for the third time in three heats.
Morris (4), Hall (1), Auty (2), Vissing (3), 59.78 (4-2) (42-36) (Agg 86-85)

14: Newman takes reserve ride for Kerr. A surprise – Ashley Birks is ready to resume racing! With Birks having declared himself fit again, Scunthorpe team manager Richard Hollingsworth has a dilemma of who to use between Birks, Toft and Irving. In the end, he goes for Birks & Toft. Newman gets out in front, with Birks and Toft in second and third. But then – DISASTER! Birks gets a little too close to Newman on the fourth bend of lap 2, loses control and smashes into the fence. His bike bounces back across the track, but fortunately it is missed by the other riders. A sore and shaken Birks, who has given absolutely everything, is assisted from the track – he’s excluded from the re-run. The noisy Scunthorpe fans are suddenly very quiet – has the final just been lost? But then the pendulum swings the other way. Just as the riders are waiting for the green light for the re-run, Newman moves early… straight into the tapes. He’s already a replacement for Kerr, so the only option for the Rebels management is to place Newman off 15 metres for the second re-run. With only two riders at the tapes, Toft (gate 1) beats Wright to the first turn, and then pulls away to win by a large margin. The Scorpions remain one point in front going into the final race.
(Re-run twice) Toft (1), Wright (2), Newman (4) (penalised 15m for starting offence), Birks (3) (fell, excluded), (3-3) (45-39) (Agg 89-88)
Scunthorpe take gates 2 & 4 for Heat 15.

15: The maths are very simple – a shared race or a Scorpions heat advantage and Scunthorpe are league champions. A 4-2 or a 5-1 to Somerset and they snatch the title. Scunthorpe team manager Richard Hollingsworth has an easy choice in Auty and Morris. His Rebels counterpart Steve Bishop has a much tougher choice, with all his top five having been pretty much on a par. He plumps for Monberg and Hall, the latter no doubt picked because of his defeat of Auty in Heat 13. The tension is almost unbearable. Monberg gates, and for one dreadful moment, it looks like Hall might join him at the front. But Morris blocks his route around the outside down the back straight, and Hall momentarily drops ground to the Scorpions pair. Morris and Auty decide not to go for any heroics and settle for the 3-3. However, Hall is getting wider and wider and faster and faster riding what Rob Godfrey calls the ‘suicide line’ around the Eddie Wright Raceway. Both the Scorpions can hear Hall somewhere on their outside, getting closer and closer. On the second bend of the last lap, Hall seems to have the momentum to roar around the outside of both Scorpions. But Morris is having none of it, and moves over to stop Hall coming though. For one moment, it’s mightily close, but Hall does loses a little of his speed. From then on, it’s just a case that both Scorpions keeping going to the flag. They do, crossing the line almost together in second and third. THE SCORPIONS ARE THE PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS – BY A SINGLE POINT. Richard Hollingsworth leaps into the air in joy, while Rob Godfrey sinks to his knees, overcome by sheer emotion and relief. There are similar reactions on the terraces – some fans react by celebrating wildly, while others shed a tear or two. What an incredible end to the Premier League season.
Monberg (1), Auty (2), Morris (4), Hall (3), (3-3) (48-42) (Agg 92-91).

And then the celebrations and presentations begin. Rob Godfrey interviews both sets of riders on the centre green. TT racer John McGuinness is on hand to present the medals to the riders, and also hand the Premier League trophy to the winning captain, Ashley Birks. The champagne is soon flowing, and then, in a nice touch, the Scorpions head over to greet the jubilant fans. Forty years after the Scunthorpe Saints entered the 1972 National League (the equivalent of the Premier League), the club have finally won a trophy at this level – and what a trophy to win!

Final 21 Godfrey mic Auty

Final 22 Auty McGuinness

Final 26 Auty Birks trophy

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