Again, the Tigers battled hard as a team to get the result and were well supported by guest Matthew Wethers who again put in a good shift for the Tigers.
There had been debate beforehand about the inclusion of Craig Cook in the Berwick team for the out of form Charlie Gjedde but it was quickly forgotten in the opening heat when, despite being outgated, Joe Screen and Theo Pijper quickly dispatched him to the rear when he left room on the opening bends for them to come up the inside. Kozza Smith however was well clear and the heat was shared.
There was a shared result in heat 2 as well, Jade Mudgway using home track knowledge and a wide outside line to come out of the opening bends ahead and despite pressure in the early stages he went on to record the win. There was a battle at the rear with Rajkowski and Sike, Michal coming out on top.
Glasgow edged ahead for the first time in the meeting in heat 3, guest Matthew Wethers winning from the gate with Theo comfortably ahead of debutante Alex Edberg in third place and were to increase their lead in heat 4. Grieves and Morris both gated well, Nick again riding what is becoming an almost trademark hard opening bend to make sure that the Bandits were left trailing. Mudgway appeared to hamper his team mate a little in the early stages but Complin eventually passed him at the start of the third lap and was quickly pressing Nick. Coming off the final bend of the race, Complin found the drive he needed to pass but Tigers still had another heat advantage.
The next few heats were to be from the gate, heats 5 and 7 being shared but heat 6 saw berwick tie up the scores when Kozza Smith and Craig Cook combined to outgate James grieves and Michal Rajkowski for a 5-1.
Heat 8 was also shared but there was a bit more action in this one, albeit at the rear. Kozza Smith beat Theo Pijper to the opening bend up front and that was that. At the rear, Nick had made a poor start but quickly battled through into third past Mudgway entering the back straight. Mudgway did not give up however and although there as to be no passing it was a very entertaining battle between the two as Nick held off everything Mudgway could throw at him.
It looked as if Tigers fortunes were looking up in heat 9 when James Grieves and Michal Rajkowski gated on a 5-1 and were looking comfortable when the bad luck hit, Michal suffering a puncture and having to pull out of the race. James was left well clear to claim the win, Michal accidentally slightly impeding the berwick pairing as he slowed up.
If Tigers thought heat 9 was bad luck it was to get worse for them in heat 10 when an error from Nick Morris saw him high side, landing heavily on track and resulting as we now know in a broken collar bone. Remarkably, he managed to clear the track and allow the race to continue, Matthew Wethers comfortably beating Craig Cook for the win to leave the scores tied.
Glasgow gated again on a 5-1 in heat 11, Joe Screen settling in to team ride with Theo Pijper but Lee Complin was all over the back of them in determined fashion in the latter stages. On the final lap, Joe was pressed into passing Theo before the tenacious Complin managed to do the same off the final bends to split the Tigers pair.
Glasgow's 2 point lead was maintained in heat 12 although James Grieves had to be very alert to hold off the attentions of Berwick's new signing Edberg who was showing signs of adapting to Shielfield very quickly and looks as if he could be a very promising signing for the Bandits. At the rear, Jade Mudgway beat a sluggish looking Michal Rajkowski to claim third place.
However Berwick pulled things back level in heat 13. Most of the action was on the opening bends with Screen and Complin gating more or less side by side. Joe did his best to hold off Complin but the home rider used the outside grip to sweep round into a lead he was never in danger of losing. With the home sides guest Craig Cook managing third place, the overall score was once again tied.
Heat 14 saw Tigers fall behind for the first time in the meeting. Again more or less from the gate, Franc outgated Matthew Wethers whilst Sike was able to take advantage of a wobble from Rajkowski coming out of bend 2 to claim third place.
It looked as if the win was now beyond Glasgow and the visiting fans were surprised at the time that Joe Screen was not named in heat 15 - although of course again we now know this was due to injury. Instead James grieves and Matthew Wethers carried the Tigers hopes. Glasgow did get a break when the initial running for heat 15 was called back as unsatisfactory with the home side on a 5-1. The second chance was grabbed with both hands, James and Matthew both making exceptional starts in the re run and looking very comfortable as they secured an away win for the Tigers.
There is no doubt that the win was a costly one, losing Joe Screen to injury is a major blow although hopefully he will not be out for long. However, as lowest average reserve, Nick is almost irreplaceable in the Tigers line up as only National League riders can be called on to deputise for him. Glasgow will be relying heavily on the other reserve, currently Michal but possibly Theo in the next few meetings.
Again Tigers pulled together as a team last night against all the odds and guest Matthew Wethers was an excellent temporary Tiger once again.
