Cradley Heathens crush Potters at home

It was a dramatic night, but the Motor Market Heathens prevailed to run out comfortable winners and start their first ever Trophy campaign in style.

The Potters took advantage of mechanical gremlins for Heathens skipper Adam Roynon, whose bike packed up while in second on the final lap to gift the visitors an opening 5-1.

But, as expected with their superior reserve duo, Cradley responded instantly as Drew Kemp and Jason Edwards stormed to a comfortable max of their own.

Plenty of drama shortly followed though with Stoke’s Adam Extance disqualified in the first attempt of heat three after making contact with Bradley Andrews, before Cradley’s Kyle Bickley tried to force too much of a move around Stoke veteran Tony Atkin in the rerun on the same bends three and four.

Jordan Jenkins came down for the hosts on the opening corners in the fourth but was given an extra opportunity by referee Darren Hartley.

That was before another rerun saw the stricken Shuttleworth leap to his feet to jump over team-mate William O’Keefe’s bike with some spectacular reactions after the Stoke No.7 slid off himself.

But at the third time of asking, Jenkins and Edwards combined for a second 5-1 of the night.

Former Heathen Danny Ayres made it two out of two with another quick start in the fifth before Roynon and Dwyer performed simultaneous moves up the inside of Shuttleworth and O’Keefe to move in front by three in the next.

That was one of four straight heat advantages to the Heathens before Roynon’s frustrating return to the team continued again with more bike problems on the start line.

He was replaced by Edwards in the restart, who produced a dogged, determined display to chop back to the inside under Extance on the run to the line.

The Heathens kicked on with four straight maximums before a 5-0 was awarded in the final race as Ayres again shed a chain, before Bickley miraculously walked away from a spectacular crash in the last as he tried to avoid Shuttleworth who’d locked up in front of him.

The Heathens head to Stoke for the return on Saturday (7pm) with the next action at Monmore on Monday, May 21 against Coventry (7.30).