Conference Trophy Semi Final 2nd Leg

WEYMOUTH DOONAN WILDCATS 46

PLYMOUTH DEVILS 45

(102-81 win on aggregate)

MIGHTY Midget' Jon Armstrong produced a stunning overtaking manoeuvre on the final bend of a dramatic last-heat decider at the Wessex Stadium on Saturday night as the Weymouth Doonan Wildcats pulled off the most incredible of comebacks against the Plymouth Devils.

The hosts trailed 21-8 after heat five and looked down and out but they then rallied to snatch victory in what turned out to be an eventful night at Radipole Lane.

Wildcats chairman Phil Bartlett was hugely proud of his men after the clash but although Weymouth won the battle it was Plymouth who came out on top in the war and progressed through to the Conference Trophy final courtesy of their first leg dominance.

Bartlett, who brought in Matt Bates for the injured Kyle Newman, said: " I am proud of the way we came back. In the first quarter of the meeting Plymouth looked the stronger team but the lads rallied and in the end we managed to win it in the last race.

"I think that shows just what we are capable of and it is a good sign for the future.

"A lot went on tonight but meetings between us and Plymouth are always eventful because both teams want to win so much.

"It was just a shame we did not do so well down at their place but their track was poor and that is why I have made an official complaint to the authorities so hopefully something will be sorted out about that soon."

The Wildcats lost 57-35 at the St Boniface Arena the previous night and they knew they had to blast out of the blocks to stand any chance of reeling the Devils back in.

Unfortunately things did not go according to plan as Seemond Stevens and Kyle Hughes recorded a 4-2 for the visitors in heat one, a race that saw Armstrong trail home in fourth much to the amazement of the home fans.

Plymouth added another two points to their tally in the following race with a win for Paul Starke, who took Tim Webster on the inside on the final lap after the Wildcat had led for the majority of the race.

And then to make matters worse for the hosts they had Luke Priest excluded in heat three after he hit the dust on turn two.

Nikki Glanz cut across the Wildcat giving him no place to go but because there was no contact referee Jim McGregor decided Priest was the primary cause of the stoppage, much to the home rider's disgust.

Glanz captured victory in the re-run ahead of Karl Mason to compound that contentious decision and when Starke grabbed his second victory in a 5-1 in the next the Wildcats looked on course for a battering.

Bartlett and team manager Jem Dicken quickly grabbed their men and tried to lift their spirits but their pride was dented further in heat five with Priest falling twice and being excluded for the second time in the meeting. That handed Stevens and Hughes a maximum ahead of Mason.

In a desperate bid to give his side a much-needed boost Dicken then handed a tactical ride to Armstrong in the next but once again things went against them.

The Wildcats number one was pushing hard to get past second-placed Tom Brown who was testing front runner Brendan Johnson when the pressure of the situation finally told on the fourth bend of lap two.

Johnson's front wheel lifted causing him to be thrown from his bike and his machine flew into the air and collided with Brown who was catapulted into the fence.

It was a horrendous collision but thankfully after several minutes lying on the dirt where he was attended to by medical staff the Devil was able to pick himself up and make his way back to the pit lane.

Despite being shaken up Brown did take his place in the re-run but cruised round to take third as Armstrong gained six points for the Wildcats.

More controversy followed in heat seven when Herne was fined £50 for delaying the start and Glanz was excluded for a tapes offence.

Glanz decided to go off 15 metres in the re-run, which saw the home side finally show some promise in the form of a 5-1 for Herne and Webster.

But the resurgence did not last long as in heat eight Webster, taking the place of Bates, lifted and lost control in turn two of lap one causing all four riders to hit the dirt.

For the second time in the meeting several people, including riders from the pit lane, rushed on to the track and that caused McGregor to instantly call both Bartlett and his Plymouth counterpart Mike Bowden to the referee's box for a private showdown. The official was clearly upset at the general behaviour of both sides and made his feelings known.

Starke was taken to the pit lane in an ambulance and was replaced in the re-run by Jamie Pickard, who then also fell allowing Johnson to take the win ahead of Hughes, who went off 15 metres after breaking the two-minute time allowance. Starke was later withdrawn from the evening's racing.

The Wildcats were now only five points adrift in the meeting but another time penalty in heat nine saw Mason excluded and replaced by Webster.

Priest looked in command of the race in the opening two laps but Brown came round the outside of the Wildcat to sneak a fine victory in a 4-2 for the Devils.

Armstrong and Johnson cut the deficit to back down to five in the following race before three shared heats followed as the tension continued to grow around the circuit.

Having had very little luck over the course of the meeting the Wildcats then received a gift in heat 14 when it was announced Hopwood was a non-starter, allowing Mason and Webster to capture a 5-1 to reduce the arrears to one point going into race 15.

Plymouth declared Glanz and Pickard as their two riders for the last-heat decider and then tried to switch the latter with Hughes but McGregor was having none of it.

Glanz looked like he was going to take the heat after the first two laps but Armstrong then came up the inside in a spectacular overtaking manoeuvre on the final bend of the final lap to take it on the line and give the Wildcats victory.

The hosts celebrated and their fans went wild but it was Plymouth who progressed through to the final where they will no doubt prove hard to beat.

Heat Details

Ht1: Stevens, Johnson, Hughes, Armstrong 53.5, 2-4

Ht2: Starke, Webster, Pickard, Bates (fell, remounted) 53.4, 4-8

Ht3: Glanz, Mason, Hopwood (fell, retired), Priest (fell, excluded), 53.3, 6-11

Ht4: Starke, Brown, Herne, Bates (fell, retired) 53.1, 7-16

Ht5: Stevens, Hughes, Mason, Priest (fell, excluded) awarded 8-21

Ht6: Armstrong (tactical), Pickard, Brown, Johnson (fell, excluded) 53.1, 14-24

Ht7: Herne, Webster, Hopwood, Glanz (tapes, 15m) 53.2, 19-25

Ht8: Johnson, Hughes (time allowance, 15m), Pickard (fell, excluded) Webster (fell, excluded) 54.2, 22-27

Ht9: Brown, Priest, Pickard, Webster (retired) 54.4, 24-31

Ht10: Armstrong, Glanz, Johnson, Hopwood 52.9, 28-33

Ht11: Stevens, Herne, Webster, Hughes 54.4, 31-36

Ht12: Priest, Glanz, Pickard, Bates (retired) 54.7, 34-39

Ht13: Brown, Armstrong, Herne, Stevens 53.8, 37-42

Ht14: Mason, Webster, Pickard, Hopwood (non-starter) 54.8, 42-43

Ht15: Armstrong, Glanz, Mason, Pickard 54.2, 46-45