The meeting started with the rain coming down and it was clear right from the start that gating was going to be crucial. When the tapes went up for the opening race it was the visiting no 1 Kevin Wolbert who reacted quickest with Shane Parker coming round the outside on the opening bends to slot into second place. Theo Pijper was surprisingly at the rear but cut inside Kalle Katajisto on lap 1 bend 3 into third place. Katajisto dropped off the pace relatively soon after that and by the third lap the heat was well spread.
Heat 2 and Theo Pijper was quickest out of the gate followed by Howarth then Bellego. The heat quickly spread and that was also to be the finishing order.
A rare gate from Richard Sweetman saw him lead out of the opening bends of heat 3 with partner Nick Morris slotting in behind him. The two Glasgow riders traded places as they entered the second lap for some reason with Sweetman then coming back into the lead off the inside of bend 2 but they had already put a decent distance between themselves and Andrew Tully in third place and went on to record a 5-1.
Craig Cook was quickest to react for the visitors when the tapes went up in heat 4 but he reared badly which allowed James Grieves and Theo Pijper to slip through easily into first and second spots respectively going into the opening bend. It was still raining and the track surface was a little greasy but James and Theo rode cleverly to give Tigers the second 5-1 of the afternoon. Kyle Howarth gave up at the rear on the final lap and just pulled into the pits.
The rain was finally starting to abate and with Edinburgh already 10 points down they brought Kevin Wolbert out on a tactical ride in heat 5. An electric gater, Wolbert showed everyone a clean pair of heels as he headed into the opening bends in the lead and never looked in a ny danger of being caught. The visitors had actually been briefly in a 1-8 with Katajisto also outgating the glasgow riders but Morris and Sweetman both came through easily on the opening bends to fill the minor placing's.
It was clear it was going to be a gating contest all afternoon thanks to the weather and neither Shane Parker or David Bellego who teamed up for the Tigers in heat 6 are renowned for their gating. It was to be Monarchs reserve Kyle Howarth who was to hit the front and go on to take the flag despite early challenges from Shane Parker. David Bellego got the better of Craig Cook on the opening bends to come through into third and the heat was shared with Cook giving up whilst off the pace on lap 3 bend 4.
David Bellego may have gated at the rear in heat 7 but he came round the outside into second place on the opening bends, in behind team mate James Grieves. James quickly pulled clear and by the end of lap two the heat was, as with previous heats, well spread although David kept a close eye on Andrew Tully behind him. Katajisto gave up at the back on lap 3 and the Tigers coaster to another 5-1.
An engine failure was to prevent Glasgow making it another pattern of two 5-1's on the trot however. After a level gate, rider replacement Nick Morris and Theo Pijper came out of bend 2 ahead and although Howarth challenged on the opening bends the Tigers pairing were quickly well clear. Just when it looked like Tigers were coming home for another 5-1, Theo's bike blew with a cloud of smoke, leaving Nick to head the Monarchs home for a share of the spoils.
Edinburgh were to suffer similar misfortune in heat 9. The rain had now stopped and after track grading it was the visiting pairing of Cook and Howarth who were quickest to react when the tapes went up. Nick challenged Howarth on the inside lap 1 bend 3 but the Edinburgh reserve held, For a couple of laps Nick was challenging Howarth but after finding extra grip lap 3 bend 2 Howarth managed to pull a couple of bike lengths clear. Edinburgh looked set for a 5-1 when, coming out of the final bend, Cooks bike went. Howarth came through to claim the win with Nick through into second place and Sweetman third although only just - had Cook not just given up when his bike did and instead made an attempt to keep his machine traveling with the momentum Richard would probably have ended up pointless.
Shane looked as if he got a bit of a flier in heat 10 and as if he expected to be called back. The hesitation allowed Tully to come through into the lead. Coming into lap 2, Shane got very close to passing outside Tully then followed that by almost getting inside him lap 2 bend 2 but Tully held. Shane stayed in touch until lap 3 when Tully pulled a little clear and again a race was to finish as it came out of the opening bends.
Things were now very tight for the aggregate win to collect the Scottish Cup, Glasgow still a point down on aggregate and with one eye also on the weather, hoping the rain would stay at bay. When the tapes went up for heat 11, David Bellego made a good start but it was the fast gating Wolbert who came out ahead. James Grieves came through into second place on the inside line and tried to challenge. However it was not to be and another heat was to finish well spread.
David Bellego came in for Theo Pijper in heat 12 and it was David who came out of bend 2 ahead but Nick Morris made an uncharacteristically poor gate and was stuck at the rear. He tried hard to find a way through, particularly in the early stages, coming very close at the end of the opening lap but it wasn't to be. Tully kept the pressure on David Bellego out front but again young David proved well capable of handling it, taking the win. A last gasp attempt from Nick to claim third from Howarth on the line failed.
Heat 13 was to be special on a couple of counts. There was a lot of movement at the gate from Wolbert and he appeared to jump the start but Shane Parker powered through the opening bends to lead down the back straight. Wolbert had taken an inside line on bend 2 and James Grieves squeezed round the outside of him on a mid line out of bend 2 to sit in second behind Parker. Shane was quickly well clear and with his family watching from centre green he rode a flawless line to win comfortably what will be his last ever race in UK competitive speedway and to do it in Glasgow colours. James Grieves comfortably beat Wolbert for second place to give the Tigers the 5-1 that put them ahead on aggregate for the first time.
It was far from over however with Edinburgh bringing Craig Cook out on a tactical ride in a crucial heat 14. The Edinburgh pair gated well but David Bellego came strongly inside Howarth off bend 2 to split the Monarchs. Cook had a comfortable few bike lengths lead over Bellego and looked comfortable out front. Coming in to bend 3 lap 3 however, Cook suffered another engine failure, leaving David to take over at the front and go on to win.
After the heat finished, Kyle Howarth took umbrage with David Bellego for some reason, David just pulling away from him on the back straight to go on and take his applause for the win leaving Howarth to head back to the pits. Craig Cook was understandably frustrated after his engine failure and on return to the pits hurled his helmet some 30 to 40 feet across the away pits area. Unfortunately he took umbrage at John Jack then taking the helmet away to check for damage and had to be physically pulled away and restrained by Glasgow's pit marshall, as did his mechanic and another member of his team shortly after. It all calmed down shortly afterwards but may perhaps have got the adrenalin going in a negative way ahead of heat 15.
Glasgow lined up with James Grieves and Richard Sweetman in heat 15 knowing they only had to get a finisher to win the Scottish Cup with Edinburgh sending out Tully and Wolbert. James Grieves didn't make his best gate but powered round the outside to come out of the opening bends in the lead. Richard Sweetman had been sleeping at the gate and was at the rear. Wolbert in second place tried hard to keep the pressure on James but James still seemed reasonably comfortable. When Wolbert tried to go wide on the pits bend of the final lap, James cleverly covered it and looked set to take the chequered flag. However whether a rush of blood to the head, a bad error of judgment or just stupidity, Wolbert slammed into Grieves on the inside of the penultimate bend of the race sending James hurtling into the fence at speed. Quite why he saw that move as an option only the rider himself knows but James was lucky to escape relatively unscathed and the race was awarded with James declared the winner and as such also being named the winner of the Svein Kaasa Memorial Trophy.
Adrenalin flowing, James and Wolbert had heated words on the return to the pits, hands appeared to be raised from Wolbert's side of the pits initially and all of a sudden we had handbags in the away pits area - with people from both sides getting involved - which took a short while for the pits officials to calm down.
It was certainly far from a classic meeting, the rain before the start and during the early stages made sure of that, but Glasgow's determination to end the season on a high with another trophy was enough to see them through.
.
.
