Aggregate score: Somerset Rebels 95-89 Isle of Wight IslandersWith the Islanders always a force to be reckoned with on their home track, as Mildenhall found to their cost, the Rebels arrived at Smallbrook with a 10-point aggregate lead from Good Friday's fixture at the Oak Tree Arena. It was, however, the Rebels who struck the first blow. After two drawn heats, Tomas Suchanek and Emil Kramer streaked out of the gate in heat three to leave the home duo for dead to take a maximum heat win and Somerset into an early four-point lead. An unfortunate first bend fall for the Islanders' new Aussie signing, Cory Gathercole, in heat five saw his withdrawal from the meeting. This setback seemed to give the home side renewed vigour, as their top pairing of Chris Holder and Glen Phillips posted a 5-1 heat win of their own in heat six to bring the scores level. The Islanders then took the lead for the first time in the meeting with Jason Bunyan holding off a determined challenged from Somerset's Emil Kramer for the heat win. A superb ride by Simon Walker for Somerset, holding off the ever-pressing Glen Phillips in heat eight, kept the Rebels at just two points behind at the halfway stage. Heat 10 saw the Islanders double their advantage with Holder getting the better of Kramer, in another race of the highest quality. Magnus Zetterstrom ensured that Somerset remained in the match by taking his third heat-win in as many rides in the following race, but races were fast running out if the Rebels were to snatch a rare away win. Suddenly hopes were raised: Emil Kramer and Jordan Frampton rode a first turn of unbelievable proportion to storm either side of Isle of Wight's Andrew Bargh, who had headed the field from the tapes. They held on comfortably to their lead. The Somerset duo had, at one fell swoop, brought the score level again with just three heats remaining. Zetterstrom again showed his class in heat 13 to ease to his fourth win of the night and keep the scores all tied up with just two races left. The penultimate race saw the pendulum swing the way of the Isle of Wight as they took maximum points from the race, courtesy of Stojanowski and Bargh, to eke out a four-point advantage with just the final race to go. In Heat 15, the nominated race, Somerset elected to track the hitherto unbeaten Magnus Zetterstrom and the impressive Emil Kramer against the home duo of Chris Holder and Jason Bunyan. The Rebel duo needed nothing less than a maximum 5-1 heat win in order to come away with a draw from this thriller of a match. For once, however, Holder managed to match 'Zorro' from the tapes, and despite four laps of constant pressure from the Somerset skipper, Holder held on for not only the heat win, but to ensure the Islanders won the match by 47 points to 43, although the Rebels took the aggregate bonus point by six points. All in all this was a match that had everything - there was tension throughout, a nail-biting last-heat decider and racing of the highest quality. | 
