Already depleted and facing a difficult situation, with the absence of Paul Fry with a family bereavement, the Somerset outfit were further hampered. | "At this stage we are not sure whether we will sign a temporary replacement or run with the rider replacement facility." | | Rebels co-promoter Jo Lawson |
They lost Pavel Ondrašík in heat three with a wrist injury, and with Simon Walker still suffering with the sickness he endured the previous evening, the Rebels now faced an almost impossible task to take the aggregate win. Ondrašík was in as a replacement for Fry and became the meat in the sandwich between the Rockets' pair of Kennett and Allen. He took a fairly innocuous-looking fall, but was down for a long time before returning to the pits for further examination. It looks likely that the Czech rider will be out of action for at least a month. "At this stage we are not sure whether we will sign a temporary replacement or run with the rider replacement facility," said Rebels co-promoter Jo Lawson. "A decision will be made in the next few days in this respect." It was his last participation in the match, and with Walker's illness, the Rebels were reduced to only four fully fit riders. The night had started on a high note, with skipper Magnus Zetterstrom taking the first heat, beating his Rye House counterpart Stuart Robson in the fastest time of the night. That was the only time the Rebels led in the match. Four 5-1s off the reel followed for the home team, with the visitors being unfortunate in heat three. As Ondrašík hit the deck, his partner, Jamie Smith, had made a blinding start, and was on his way to a victory as the red lights came on. In the re-run the inevitable happened, with the home pairing making a much better start, and squeezing out Smith at the first turn. In heat five Magnus Zetterstrom was sent out on a tactical to rescue some points, but a slow start saw him in last place behind the Kennett/Allen pairing, with nowhere to go. Despite making up a place at the end of lap one, try as he might he couldn't close the gap enough to launch a serious challenge, and third place behind the home pair only yielded one point under this year's rules. By heat six the Rockets had reduced the aggregate deficit to only one point, leading on the night 22-8. The next three heats saw a revival for the Rebels, reducing the lead to 10 points. This spell included a tight win for Glenn Cunningham, holding off the hard charging Stuart Robson at the line, and a superb win for Smith over 'Mr Rye', Chris Neath. Neath made a terrific start, but was passed up the inside of the first bend by Smith. He then had to re-pass Glenn Cunningham, who passed him up the inside of the back straight. Once back in second spot, Neath set off after Jamie Smith. Despite his great knowledge of the Hoddesdon circuit, Neath couldn't find a way past the Peterborough-based rider, who is displaying a much calmer and mature approach to his racing this year. The respite was only temporary as the Rockets got back into top gear, taking the next five heat advantages, including three more 5-1s. It was Jamie Smith who again halted the flow with another super win, this time carrying the black and white tactical colours. With this leg of the tie now beyond rescue, his partner Ben Barker needed to finish in second spot to give the Rebels a chance of levelling the aggregate points, but it was not to be, with the home pair filling the minor places to give the Rockets the overall win. The stars of the night were undoubtedly Edward Kennett, for the home side, and Jamie Smith for the visitors, and both were rewarded with a berth in the nominated heat. As it panned out, both ended the evening on the same number of points, 15. However their routes to their respective totals took a vastly different course, with Kennett producing a full five-ride maximum, and Smith taking the workmanlike route, including a tactical win. Their nights were summed up in the final heat, with Smith getting the better of a three-man dogfight around the first two bends to lead down the back straight followed by Kennett. The 'Young Guns' then slugged it out for the whole race, with Kennett trying every line he could think of. Just when the calm and collected Smith looked like he had seen off the current British U21 Champion, the Hastings-born youngster produced a stunning run around the boards to squeeze through the narrowest of gaps to lead right on the line. It was a fitting end for the two riders, who had put everything into their night's work, and produced two different, but equally meritorious performances. A trip to the home of the current Premier League Champions has always proved to be a difficult task. On another night, with a full-strength visiting team, the result may have been different, but for the Somerset Rebels this visit turned into a tough night, in more ways than one in the 'House of Pain'. | 
