HAINES, Joseph (Joe) Keir
DATE OF BIRTH: 4 September 1991, Bolton, Greater Manchester.
BRITISH CAREER: (2006) Cleveland; (2007) Scunthorpe; (2008) Workington, Boston; (2009) Rye House, Wolverhampton; (2010) King’s Lynn, Wolverhampton, Redcar; (2011) Newport, Wolverhampton, Scunthorpe, Somerset, Newcastle.
MAJOR HONOURS: British Under-15 Champion: 2006; British Under-21 Champion: 2010.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 2007 [Scunthorpe]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2007 [Scunthorpe]; Conference Trophy winner: 2007 [Scunthorpe]; Four-Team Championship winner: 2008 [Workington]; Young Shield winner: 2008 [Workington]; Elite Shield winner: 2010, 2011 [Wolverhampton].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.37 (PL), 3.00 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: As well as lining-up for Rye House in 2009, Haines also filled the position as Wolverhampton’s No. 8 rider. Regrettably, the Bolton-born speedster sustained a broken hand in the World Under-21 Championship qualifying round at his home track, Hoddesdon, on 17 May.

The accident occurred in heat three, when Germany’s Kai Huckenbeck lost control in front of him on the third/fourth bend, leaving Haines to feel the effects of a nasty coming together with the safety fence. The Rockets continued to operate the rider replacement facility in his absence, whilst Wolverhampton replaced him in the No. 8 slot with Jesper Kristiansen in June.

Rye House received great news at the end of July, when Haines declared himself fit to return on 8 August. This followed the removal of his neck brace some weeks previously and subsequent physiotherapy, which had led to some successful practice laps in Poland.

The ambitious youngster went on to post a real-time average in excess of 7 points per match for the Rockets but, in November, it was revealed that he had opted to join King’s Lynn for the 2010 campaign. Later in the same month, Wolverhampton indicated that they would again utilise Haines’ services, this time in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity.

During the British close season, Haines enjoyed a racing trip Down Under, his exploits including a third place finish in the Queensland State Championship at North Brisbane on 12 December. And, having made a bright start to the season, the pinnacle of his career occurred at on Lakeside on 16 April, when he conjured a brilliant victory in the British Under-21 Championship, beating Tai Woffinden, Lewis Bridger and Kyle Hughes in the final.

Regrettably, just three days after his individual success, Haines crashed during heat twelve of Wolverhampton’s Elite League fixture against Eastbourne at Monmore Green, suffering a fracture to his shoulder and collarbone problems.

On 12 May, his return to the saddle in the British semi-final at King’s Lynn was curtailed when he pulled out of the event with just 2 points to his name. But, three days later, he brilliantly notched-up an 11-point tally to finish fourth and qualify from a World Under-21 Championship qualifying round at Gdańsk, Poland.

Haines was in the wars again on 23 May when, in heat three of King’s Lynn’s Knock-Out Cup tie at Glasgow, he sustained a knee injury after clashing with home rider Josh Grajczonek. Then, in July, there appeared to be a major question mark over the future of the reigning British Under-21 Champion, who was set for talks with parent club Wolverhampton after considering quitting the sport due to not enjoying his racing.

Happily, he decided to carry on racing after meeting with Chris Van Straaten. Nonetheless, he was subsequently released by King’s Lynn early in August, when Adam Roynon was drafted in as a replacement. At the time of his departure from the Norfolk club, he had scored 135 points from nineteen official matches for an average of 7.32.

Almost immediately, however, Haines was snapped-up by Redcar to replace the out-of-form Ben Wilson. He went on to make five appearances for the Cleveland club, which yielded 26 points and an average of 5.04.

With the addition of his earlier meetings for King’s Lynn, that gave him a seasonal tally of twenty-four matches at Premier League level, from which he had obtained 161 points and an overall average of 6.82. Meanwhile, for Wolverhampton, he made thirteen appearances, scoring 35 points to yield a 3.55 average.

Haines travelled Down Under during the British close season, but was detained in hospital after suffering multiple injuries during the Jack Young Cup meeting at Gillman, Adelaide, on 11 December. He crashed with the Swedish duo of Ricky Kling and Pontus Aspegren in heat two, and it was reported that he had sustained a broken shoulder in six places, a broken collarbone, seven broken ribs, a punctured lung and seven cracked vertebrae.

Good friend and Wolverhampton colleague Ty Proctor – with whom the Bolton-born rider was staying – accompanied Haines to the Royal Adelaide Hospital after withdrawing from the meeting to be with his team-mate.

Soon after his horror crash, Redcar Bears’ boss Brian Havelock revealed that he had signed the British Under-21 Champion for the 2011 season just days before his accident; the rider having done sufficiently well during his stint with the Cleveland club between August and the end of the previous campaign to earn a full term’s contract with the club.

On 22 December came the positive news that the doctors at the hospital in Adelaide had brought Haines around after he had been kept under heavy sedation over the previous week-and-a-half. They were pleased to inform everyone that that he was awake and could communicate with his family. However, he suffered a blow shortly afterwards when his damaged right lung, which had taken the full brunt of the crash, picked up an infection.

There was much better news in January, though, when Haines’ recuperation process gained momentum. Indeed, he made a rapid improvement and the rider even announced via Facebook that he had enjoyed a skid on a 125cc junior bike. Despite his progress, Redcar’s management was concerned that he might not be fit for the start of the season and, as such, ruled the British youngster out of their team plans.

On 4 April, Newport announced that they had signed Haines on a short-term contract following an injury sustained the previous week by Alex Davies in Mark Loram’s Farewell meeting at Poole. His acquisition meant that Mark Jones re-located to a reserve berth in the Welsh outfit’s riding order. Following that, he was also named as the No. 8 at Wolverhampton.

When Newport’s Robin Aspegren was also injured, a further re-shuffle at the Welsh club saw Haines lose his place after just two league appearances – through no fault of his own and purely because of averages – with the incoming replacements being Chris Słaboń and Anders Mellgren, although the signing of Słaboń was subsequently called off.

Haines lost his British Under-21 title at Lakeside on 15 April, when he was beaten into third place by winner Tai Woffinden and surprise runner-up Steve Worrall. But he subsequently returned to the Premier League scene after being snapped-up by Scunthorpe as a replacement for the injured Carl Wilkinson.

Given what he had been through Down Under during the British winter, it was understandable that Haines would struggle to rebuild his confidence and, having maintained only a 5-point average, the Scorpions took the decision to replace him with Michael Palm Toft at the end of June. However, he was quickly signed-up by Somerset as an injury replacement for Christian Hefenbrock. His stint in the Rebels’ line-up was to last until the German returned at the end of July.

In early August, Haines signed for his fourth Premier League club of the season when he linked with Newcastle as a replacement for the injured Jason King.

HALL, Richard James
DATE OF BIRTH: 23 August 1984, Northallerton, North Yorkshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2001) Newcastle; (2002) Newcastle, Newcastle II; (2003) Sheffield II, Coventry, Boston; (2004) Sheffield, Sheffield II, Boston; (2005) Sheffield, Eastbourne; (2006-07) Peterborough; (2008) Scunthorpe; (2009-10) Sheffield; (2011) Leicester, Scunthorpe.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 2006 [Peterborough]; Elite Shield winner: 2007 [Peterborough].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.77 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: At the age of 16, the Yorkshire-born racer first cut his teeth with Newcastle in 2001, when he made just a couple of appearances for the side that went on to win the Premier League Championship. He stayed for a second term and also represented the North-East club’s second side, the Gems, at Conference League level.

A switch to Sheffield followed in 2003, when he featured in the Tigers’ junior side and also enjoyed similar outings with Coventry and Boston. It wasn’t long before he was knocking on the door for a place in Sheffield’s senior team and his chance came a year later.

His progress – which was featured his trademark never-say-die, fence-scraping blasts around the boards – attracted interest from a number of Elite League clubs and, after spending three seasons with the Tigers, Hall made the step-up and signed for Peterborough in 2006.

What a season it turned out to be for the Panthers, as they finished at the top of the final league table – albeit on race-points difference – ahead of Reading, both sides having attained 64 points from their 40-match schedule. Fittingly, it was the Panthers and the then-nicknamed Bulldogs who both battled through to the Play-Off final, Peterborough getting there by virtue of defeating Coventry 52-40 at the East of England Showground on 25 September.

The first leg of the final took place seven days later at Reading on 2 October, when the Bulldogs were only able to claim a hard-fought 49-47 success. The Panthers clearly started the second leg at their pacy home circuit as favourites, but Reading fought like tigers to lead 41-31 after heat twelve. Just when it looked as if the Berkshire side were heading for the League Championship, Hans Andersen took victory in a tactical ride and, with Hall in third place, the resultant 7-2 reduced the Bulldogs’ advantage to 43-38.

Ryan Sullivan and Hall then combined for a 5-1, setting up an overwhelmingly tense last-heat decider as Reading clung desperately to a 44-43 lead. It wasn’t to be for the Bulldogs, however, as Sullivan and Andersen joined forces for a 5-1 over Greg Hancock, giving the Panthers the narrowest of aggregate successes by 95 points to 94.

The Yorkshireman was to remain with Peterborough for a second term, but he suffered with injury and eventually lost his team spot, before moving back into the Premier League with Scunthorpe in 2008. However, he re-aggravated an ankle injury in his fourth heat during the World Long-track qualifier at Artigues de Lussac on 17 May, when he made a mistake and fell exiting the first bend. Thankfully, he wasn’t out of action for long and went on to post a solid 7-point average for the Scorpions.

Having re-joined Sheffield in 2009, Hall sustained a broken scaphoid during the Tigers’ home league fixture versus Edinburgh on 17 September. The injury occurred in heat seven of the meeting, when he crashed into team-mate Scott Smith. Although he spent the rest of the campaign on the sidelines, he had done sufficiently well to warrant a recall in 2010, with Sheffield announcing that they had concluded a deal for his services in mid-November.

Despite enduring a spell on the sidelines through illness in August, Hall still went on to complete thirty-eight official matches for the Tigers, with his season’s haul of 295 points equating to a 7.32 average. His best performance of the campaign occurred in a Premier Trophy fixture versus Redcar at Owlerton on 27 May, when he tallied 15 points from half-a-dozen rides.

The rider was ruled out of the South Yorkshire club’s plans for 2011 but, on 17 December, Leicester announced that they had signed the all-round motorcyclist – who had enjoyed notable success in grass-track and sand racing events – on loan from the Tigers. And, on 5 January, the Lions confirmed that Hall had been handed the captain’s armband, having previously carried out the duties for Scunthorpe in 2008.

Although he was to head the Leicester averages on around 7.5 points per match over the first half of the season, Hall was to figure in a move back to Scunthorpe in July as a replacement for the injured Viktor Bergström.

Meanwhile, the out-going Lions’ skipper was replaced by Magnus Karlsson – who had also previously ridden for Scunthorpe – with Leicester boss David Hemsley explaining that Hall was released because he had already missed three league fixtures during the season due to his World Long-track commitments and was likely to be absent for a further two and possibly three home meetings.

HALSEY, Daniel John
DATE OF BIRTH: 15 September 1988, Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2005-07) Rye House II; (2008) Rye House II, Rye House; (2009) Rye House II, Birmingham; (2010) Bournemouth, Weymouth; (2011) Mildenhall.
CLUB HONOUR: Knock-Out Cup winner: 2011 [Mildenhall].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.56 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Halsey has his roots firmly in sport, as his father, John, was a three-time British Grass-track Sidecar Champion, taking the title in 1994, 1997 and 2000. His dad also completed a hat-trick of British Speedway Sidecar Championship successes, being victorious in 1999, 2000 and 2001.

Meanwhile, the youngster himself represented his county at athletics, rugby and football. He was also a member of football academies at League clubs Peterborough, Wycombe Wanderers, Northampton Town and Luton Town.

After taking his initial speedway skids early in 2002 at Burton-on-Trent training track, he went on to have second-half outings at Eastbourne in 2004, as well as furthering his experience in Southern Track Riders’ meetings.

His official debut came with Rye House Raiders at Conference level the following year and he was to establish himself in the side thereafter, particularly enjoying the 2007 campaign, when he notched 199 points from twenty-one meetings for a 7.90 average.

He was to represent both Rye House sides in 2008, as he got his first taste of Premier League action but despite posting an average of a shade under 4 points per match, he didn’t feature in the team plans for the following year and only represented the Hertfordshire club at the re-branded National League level.        

However, he joined Birmingham on loan in April 2009, following the Brummies’ decision to release Marek Mroz. In mid-May, though, a further team re-shuffle saw Halsey replaced in the Birmingham line-up by Manuel Hauzinger. He did continue to skipper Rye House’s National League outfit, attaining a real-time average of 7.5 points per match.

During the early part of the close season, it was revealed that Halsey would be linking with Bournemouth in place of Kyle Newman for the 2010 campaign; this followed his request for a change of track in order to kick-start his career.

Despite maintaining an average of 6.95 with the Buccaneers, he was released amidst sweeping changes in August. Both Karl Mason and John Resch were also relieved of their duties, whilst replacing the trio were Jerran Hart, James Sarjeant and Danny Stoneman.

He wasn’t out of action for long, though, being snapped-up by Weymouth as a replacement for Adam McKinna who, at the time, had returned to the Premier League with Newcastle, but would also resume in the Wildcats’ ranks shortly afterwards.

Halsey’s season came to an abrupt end on 17 September – coincidentally on the day when promoter Phil Bartlett had put Weymouth Speedway up for sale – when the Wildcats entertained the Isle of Wight in a National Trophy fixture. He fell on the first bend of heat fifteen and clattered into the Wessex Stadium safety fence, fracturing the L1 vertebrae in his spine.

After a lengthy delay, he was taken to Dorset County Hospital in Dorchester by the track ambulance, resulting in the meeting being abandoned. He was subsequently replaced in the Wildcats’ line-up by Brendan Johnson. With his season’s racing curtailed, he had represented Weymouth on just seven occasions, scoring 43 points for a 6.32 average.

Having recovered fitness over the close season, Halsey was named as a full signing by Mildenhall on 24 March 2011. He joined the likes of James Brundle, Jack Hargreaves, Joe Jacobs, Cameron Heeps and Lewis Blackbird in the Fen Tigers’ camp, following the club’s winter takeover by Kevin Jolly, Chris Louis and Michael Lee.

He was to average in excess of 6 points a match during the first half of the campaign, but spent a spell on the sidelines after suffering a lower back injury in heat nine of the Fen Tigers’ league win over Hackney at West Row on 24 July.

HARGREAVES, Jack
DATE OF BIRTH: 28 May 1988, Shrewsbury, Shropshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2003) Wolverhampton II; (2004) Stoke II; (2005) Stoke, Stoke II; (2006) Redcar, Stoke II, Cleveland; (2007) Stoke, Stoke II, Redcar, Cleveland; (2008) Birmingham; (2011) Mildenhall.
CLUB HONOURS: Young Shield winner: 2007 [Redcar]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2011 [Mildenhall].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 8.30 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Hargreaves took his first tentative racing steps on a grass-track machine in 1999. He progressed via the usual route of second-halves, before making his first official appearance with Wolverhampton’s Conference League side in the summer of 2003.

He was to make four appearances for the then nicknamed Cubs, scoring 17 points for a 3.43 average. His best performance of the four saw him notch 7+1 points from an away league fixture at Newport on 12 October.

Lining up for Stoke Spitfires in 2004, Hargreaves was to enjoy a solid first full season of Conference League activity, recording an average in excess of 7 points per meeting. Among many double-figure returns were tallies of 16+1 and 17+2 points against Newcastle (away) and Mildenhall (home) on 5 and 9 September, respectively.

Regrettably, he ended the campaign injured, having suffered a broken hand when he careered into the Loomer Road safety fence after clipping Rob Grant’s rear wheel in heat six of the Pride of the Conference League individual meeting on 30 October.

Hargreaves was again identified with the Spitfires in 2005, when he showed excellent form to post an average of over 9 points per match. Along the way he registered three maximums (1 full and 2 paid), the most eye-catching being a five-ride full-house versus Newport in a home encounter on 27 April.

His spirited racing led to a number of outings for the senior Stoke side and he was to net 32 points and a 2.94 average from fourteen appearances in the Potters’ colours. The year also saw him claim third place in British Under-18 Championship at Wolverhampton on 5 September, when he finished behind William Lawson and Lewis Bridger.

Hargreaves was to spend the 2006 campaign with Redcar, for whom he carded 140 points from forty appearances to average 4.00. His most profitable meeting for the Bears occurred on 6 July, when he scored 10+1 points in a 64-26 league victory over Berwick.

The year also saw him again represent Stoke Spitfires in the Conference League and, additionally, he enjoyed several matches for Cleveland in the late-season Conference Shield. For Stoke’s second side, he averaged 8.44 from five league fixtures, while six meetings in the Shield competition produced a 10.07 average with the Bays.

The season also saw him finish fourth in British Under-18 Championship, behind Lewis Bridger, Tai Woffinden and Ben Barker; the meeting staged at Wolverhampton on 2 October.

He began the 2007 season in the senior Stoke line-up, but he was to lose his team place on 21 July, when the Potters replaced him with Jamie Smith. Prior to this, he had yielded 56 points from eighteen meetings for a 4.37 average. He subsequently re-joined Redcar as a replacement for the injured Jamie Courtney and was to average 3.04 from seventeen matches back in a Bears’ race-jacket.

The youngster was also identified with both Stoke Spitfires and Cleveland Bays again in 2007. He made six appearances for the Potteries side, which produced a 6.27 average and, following his senior club switch to Redcar, he rode in just one match for the Bays at Scunthorpe in September, registering a 7-point tally.

He joined Birmingham ahead of the 2008 campaign, but was released after twenty-three matches had produced 75 points and a 3.59 average. Hargreaves then took a spell out of the sport because his partner was expecting a baby. His first steps on the comeback trail occurred in 2009, when he assisted Brummies’ rider Manuel Hauzinger as mechanic and driver.

Then at Telford on 13 February 2011, he partnered German Christian Hulshorst to victory in the Speedway Star Best Pairs event, as the duo overcame Tony Atkin and Edward Kennett in a superb six-lap final. And, just five days later, Mildenhall announced that they had signed the Shropshire rider ahead of their first season with the promotional team of Chris Louis, Kevin Jolly and Michael Lee at the helm.

Hargreaves suffered bruised ribs in a heat one accident during Mildenhall’s home clash with Buxton on 26 June but, in spite of obvious pain, he rode in their next match at Buxton on 3 July and scored 9+1 points to maintain an average of over 7 per meeting during the first half of the season.

HARRIS, Christopher (Chris) Calvin
DATE OF BIRTH: 28 November 1982, Truro, Cornwall.
BRITISH CAREER: (1998) St Austell; (1999-2000) Exeter; (2001) Trelawny; (2002-03) Trelawny, Peterborough; (2004-10) Coventry; (2011) Belle Vue.
MAJOR HONOURS: British Champion: 2007, 2009, 2010.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 1998 [St Austell], 2000 [Exeter], 2005 [Coventry], 2007 [Coventry], 2010 [Coventry]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 1998 [St Austell], 2006 [Coventry], 2007 [Coventry]; Premier Trophy winner: 2002 [Trelawny]; Elite Shield winner: 2006 [Coventry]; Craven Shield winner: 2007, 2008 [both Coventry]; Pairs Championship winner: 2008, 2010 [both Coventry].
GRAND PRIX HIGHLIGHT: British GP Champion: 2007.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 8.06 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Harris started riding in the Auto Cadets at local grass-track meetings at just 6 years-of-age in 1989 and went on to become Intermediate Cornish Youth Grass-track Champion seven years later. He first came to the attention of speedway supporters at Exeter’s County Ground on 26 May 1997.

He was aged just 14 at the time and took a demonstration ride prior to an Amateur League fixture between the Western Warriors and St Austell. In 1998, he appeared for the Gulls in a Press Day challenge match versus Exeter Devon Rangers on 19 April, scoring 5+1 points.

He went on to be a regular for St Austell and helped them to a double triumph, winning the Conference League Championship and Knock-Out Cup. He was also the youngest-ever rider to be selected for the England Under-19 squad. Towards the end of the year, his father, Cedric, asked if he could join the Falcons and the late Colin Hill, then-promoter, jumped at the chance.

He signed for Exeter on his sixteenth birthday. His dad was naturally delighted and was soon building-up a couple of bikes in readiness for the following season. Regrettably, though, he would not see his son race in a Falcons’ race-jacket as he passed away before the 1999 campaign.

Further success came for Harris in 2000, when Exeter narrowly edged out Swindon to win the Premier League title by virtue of a superior race-points difference. A move back to the Clay Country Moto Parc followed in 2001 as St Austell Gulls morphed into Trelawny Tigers and came to the tapes in British speedway’s middle tier. A year later, his efforts helped the side to an amazing Premier Trophy victory, courtesy of a hard-fought aggregate success over Sheffield.

The Truro-born racer continued to ply his trade with Trelawny in 2002 and 2003, whilst also gaining valuable Elite League experience in a ‘doubling-up’ role with Peterborough. The latter of these two years saw him make his Grand Prix debut in the British round at Cardiff, where he replaced broken-hand victim Hans Andersen. And his career really began to flourish with a second-place finish, behind Jaroslaw Hampel, in the World Under-21 Championship and victory in the British Under-21 Grass-track Championship.

He moved into the Elite League on a full-time basis in 2004, when Coventry won the race for his coveted signature ahead of a plethora of other clubs. And, more league title glory came his way in 2005, when the Bees defeated Belle Vue in the Play-Off final.

There was more silverware to cherish in 2006, as the Elite Shield and Knock-Out Cup made their way to Coventry’s trophy cabinet. On the world stage, although he had ridden as a reserve in the 2003 British Grand Prix at Cardiff, he wasn’t a full-time participant in the series until 2007.

However, any fans who attended that year’s British GP at the Millennium Stadium will never forget the remarkable riding of the young Cornishman on 30 June. Some 4,500 rooms in hotels and guest-houses from Bridgend to the Valleys were booked up weeks in advance of the event. Those who couldn’t get to Cardiff were glued to their television sets at home or in public houses that were screening the action.

Over 40,000 spectators in the fabulous arena witnessed Harris deny the former World Champion, Greg Hancock, victory in an absorbing final. Not many would have bet that he would even make the final, but he booked his place with 12 points from the heats and a second-place finish in his semi-final.

The Cornish St Piran flags were in abundance and there was euphoria as Bomber cleverly sold Hancock the most sublime of dummies exiting the fourth bend of the final lap, allowing him to nip inside the American to take victory and send the fans into pandemonium, as Jason Crump and Leigh Adams had to be satisfied with third and fourth position, respectively.

Team-wise, he played an integral part in Coventry’s honours-fest that culminated in the Brandon-based side completing a glorious treble, winning the League Championship, Knock-Out Cup and Craven Shield. His on-tack exploits brought off-track accolades, as he was voted BBC South-West Sports Personality of the Year, piping England rugby captain Phil Vickery MBE.

Harris also came out on top in the BBC Midlands Sports Personality of the Year award. Over the winter months Scott Nicholls, who had captained the Bees in 2007, agreed a move to the South Coast with Eastbourne. This paved the way for the Coventry management to offer the captaincy to Harris, who happily accepted the challenge.

Aside from the serious business of Elite League racing and his overseas commitments in 2008, he found time to do some charity work by turning out to run a mile for Sport Relief on 23 April, at St Leonards First School in Dunstan.

A little over a month later, he also agreed to pedal the last stretch of the way of a charity cycle ride, which had seen Emmerdale actor Kelvin Fletcher and former moto-cross champion Jamie Dobb ride 1,000 miles from Barcelona to Donington Park.

On 28 June, Harris returned to Cardiff for the British GP, but there were to be none of the previous year’s heroics. Indeed, it was a tough meeting for him, which featured a nasty crash when he was brought down by Niels-Kristian Iversen in heat twenty.

When he eventually got to his feet little did the crowd know that Bomber had sustained a broken nose, a damaged knee and a suspected broken shoulder. He bravely finished second in the re-run, before being eliminated with a third-place in the semi-final. Despite his battering, he was only out of action for a few days.

More glory came his way at Swindon on 17 August, when he was partnered to victory in Elite League Pairs Championship by Hans Andersen, the Coventry duo happy to settle for the higher-scoring middle-order positions behind home rider Mads Korneliussen, whilst keeping Robins’ skipper Leigh Adams in last position. And, late in the season, he helped the Bees retain the Craven Shield courtesy of an aggregate success over Lakeside.

In 2009, Harris conjured more of the trademark battling qualities that have been a feature of his career, as he notched 401 points from thirty-nine official appearances to head the Coventry averages on a real-time 8.74 figure. In November, he was handed a permanent wildcard for the 2010 GP series and, towards the end of the month, it was confirmed that he would once again lead the Bees’ assault for a seventh successive term.

Individually, he finished second to then team-mate Scott Nicholls in the 2005 British Championship, before reaching the top step of the podium in 2007 at Wolverhampton and, of course, he replicated that success in at Poole on 20 May 2009.

Then, again at Wolverhampton on 14 June 2010, he completed a hat-trick of British titles. Harris had to pick himself up from two nasty crashes to become a three-time Champion, though, before getting the better of his arch-rival, Nicholls, in the final.

Harris suffered a series of falls at the tail-end of June, both when racing for Coventry and also in Poland and Sweden, and he twice came to grief in the Bees’ league match at Poole on 30 June. He was to carry a knee injury for several weeks, before suffering further damage whilst racing in Sweden on 10 August.

That meant a short spell out of action, but he was fighting fit on the occasion of the Elite League Pairs Championship at Ipswich on 4 September, when he partnered Krzysztof Kasprzak to his and Coventry’s second success in three years in the event.

The Cornishman was instrumental in a remarkable Coventry revival that saw the Warwickshire side recover from losing their first seven league matches of the campaign to launch a stunning late-season revival that saw them grab the last spot in the Play-Offs. They then defeated Peterborough at the semi-final stage, before facing runaway table-toppers Poole to decide the title.

After winning 51-39 in the first leg at Brandon on 27 September, the Bees journeyed to Wimborne Road for the return fixture seven days later. And they completed an astonishing transformation from relegation candidates to Championship material on a stunning night when they overturned the overwhelming favourites – not only by defending their 12-point first leg lead, but also by winning the away leg, 50-40, as well.

To put that into context, the Pirates’ worst result on their home patch all season was a 10-point win, and they had frequently topped the 60-point margin – but Coventry were the form team leading into the Play-Offs, and they swept to glory in front of a huge travelling support.

Indeed, skipper Harris put in an immense display after looking to be seriously injured in a first-bend pile-up in heat six. He could easily have been ruled out of the meeting, but instead was unbeaten from his remaining five rides – totalling 13+2 points – and made fantastic last-ditch overtakes of both Chris Holder and Bjarne Pedersen.

Then, on 9 October, Harris secured the highest overall World Championship finish by a British rider since the turn of the century. This came courtesy of a second-place in the Polish Grand Prix at Bydgoszcz – his third runner-up position in the space of four events – to end the season in sixth place overall. Meanwhile, for Great Britain, he has been placed in four Speedway World Cup finals, as follows: (2005) fourth; (2006) third; (2007) fourth; (2010) fourth.

When all the number-crunching was completed on the domestic front, a total of 343 points from thirty-four official appearances gave Harris a real-time average of 8.80. His best performance at Brandon occurred in a league fixture against Swindon on 31 May, when he carded 16 points from five rides; his score on that occasion was enhanced by a 6-point return from a tactical outing in heat six. Meanwhile, his best away showing was his previously mentioned match-winning haul of 13+2 at Poole in the Play-Off final.

On 28 January 2011, the big close season move saw Belle Vue announce the signing of Harris as their new No. 1 ahead of the Elite League campaign. The World No. 6 joined the Aces after seven terms at Coventry; this followed much speculation regarding a move away from Brandon for the Englishman, although nothing could happen because of a ban on transfers after the Bees’ dispute with the BSPA.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 51 – 18th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 362 – 19th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 273 – 15th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 41 – 22nd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 1 – 21st on SGP all-time list      
Grand Prix finals: 6 – 21st on SGP all-time list

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 7
Events: 15 – 3rd on Great Britain’s list; 17th on SWC all-time list
Points: 146.5 – 3rd on Great Britain’s list; 15th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 4
Gold medals: 0

HARRISON, Russell (Rusty) Wade
DATE OF BIRTH: 11 October 1981, Elizebeth, Nr. Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2000) Glasgow; (2001-04) Workington; (2005) Edinburgh, Belle Vue; (2006) Edinburgh, Workington; (2007) Stoke; (2008) King’s Lynn; (2009) Glasgow, Birmingham; (2010-11) Workington.
MAJOR HONOURS: South Australian State Under-16 Champion: 1995, 1997; Australian Under-16 Champion: 1995, 1997; Australian Under-21 Champion: 2001; South Australia State Champion: 2003.
CLUB HONOURS: Four-Team Championship winner: 2001, 2004, 2006 [all Workington]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2005 [Belle Vue]; Young Shield winner: 2010 [Workington].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.92 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Harrison quit the sport in September 2007 after a bad run of mechanical problems and a loss of form, but had a change of heart and returned to competitive action for King’s Lynn in 2008, following a pre-season injury suffered by Trevor Harding.

However, he was subsequently forced to retire after being diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis in September that year, but – after seeking the necessary medical assurances, together with some training – he agreed a deal to again return to his first British club, Glasgow, in June 2009, when he replaced Robin Törnqvist in the Tigers’ line-up.

The South Australian’s stint in the Scottish side was to be short-lived, though, as he was released in mid-July and his team spot filled by William Lawson. He wasn’t idle for long since, at the end of the same month, he was snapped-up by Birmingham to replace the released Robert Ksiezak.

Again, he appeared lost to the sport in 2010, but was signed by his former club, Workington, initially on a short-term deal in April after Adam Roynon was ruled out of action with a doctor’s certificate declaring he would be unavailable until further notice.

Harrison’s form was so good that his return to the Comets was to last for the remainder of the season. Having overcome a viral infection in August, he went on to top the club’s averages on a figure of 7.69, having totalled 291 points from thirty-seven meetings and played in big part in Workington winning the Young Shield for a third successive season.

Indeed, in the final, they had to pull back 20 points against Rye House in the second leg at Derwent Park on 30 October, but won emphatically on the night, 66-28; the Aussie leading the way with a paid maximum tally of 16+2 points. Harrison’s excellent run to the end of the campaign was rewarded towards the end of November, when the rider – who is based in Workington – agreed terms to again represent the club in 2011.

HART, Jerran
DATE OF BIRTH: 19 January 1991, Ipswich, Suffolk.
BRITISH CAREER: (2007) Sittingbourne; (2008) Newport, Sittingbourne, Newcastle; (2009) Scunthorpe, Bournemouth, Ipswich; (2010) Scunthorpe, Bournemouth; (2011) Ipswich.
NOTE: Hart also appeared for Mildenhall prior to joining Bournemouth in 2010, but this is not credited in his career record because the club closed down prematurely, with all their matches expunged from the records.
MAJOR HONOUR: British Under-18 Champion: 2009.
CLUB HONOURS: Knock-Out Cup winner: 2009 [Bournemouth]; League Championship winner: 2009 [Bournemouth].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 4.28 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Newport Speedway was forced to close down after promoter Tim Stone’s death on 26 April 2008. Only the side’s Premier Trophy and Knock-Out Cup matches were permitted to count in the riders’ records and Hart subsequently re-located to Newcastle.

The Suffolk racer linked with Scunthorpe (at PL level) and Bournemouth (NL) in 2009, whilst also filling the No. 8 role with his hometown team, Ipswich, in the Elite League. The pinnacle of his career occurred at the Eddie Wright Raceway on 25 September, when he took victory in the British Under-18 Championship.

He went on to complete the NL campaign with a real-time average of over 9.5 points per match and played a full part as the Buccaneers firstly won the Knock-Out Cup and followed it up by also taking the League Championship.

In November, it was announced that Hart would again feature in the Scunthorpe line-up in 2010 and, shortly afterwards, he also agreed a deal to represent Mildenhall in the National League. Then, in January, Lakeside revealed that he would fill the No. 8 berth in their squad for the new campaign.

Hart continued to move in the right direction, culminating in a career-high Premier League score of 14+3 points – and a pivotal role – in the Scorpions’ away win at Glasgow on 6 June. Early the following month, he was relieved of his duties at Lakeside, having not been called into action on a single occasion for the top-flight side. His place with the Hammers was filled by Chris Neath.

Following the early closure of Mildenhall – for whom he had maintained an average of a shade below 10 points per match – due to off-track problems, Hart returned to Bournemouth in August. His resumption with the Buccaneers came amidst sweeping changes that also saw the arrivals of James Sarjeant and Danny Stoneman, whilst Karl Mason, Daniel Halsey and John Resch were all released.

Regrettably, his season was over shortly afterwards, though. This followed an accident whilst representing Scunthorpe in a Premier League encounter at Redcar on 19 August. With a break near his left wrist and concern that his right leg might also have suffered a break, he underwent X-rays at the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough. This confirmed that, aside from the wrist injury, he had also sustained a broken ankle and a sliced heel bone.

The injuries occurred in heat nine of the clash when Bears’ Charles Wright picked up some unexpected grip and careered into the side of Hart, who was sent flying over the fourth turn safety fence and into the pits. The personal damage also cost the Ipswich-born rider his place in the Bournemouth side and he was replaced in the Buccaneers’ line-up by the returning Jay Herne in September.

Meanwhile, Scunthorpe had agreed a deal to sign Teemu Lahti as Hart’s replacement in September, but the move for the 2006 Finnish Under-21 Champion didn’t materialise because the rider suffered a broken collarbone. Instead, the club had to make do with guest riders because the transfer deadline had passed.

Hart had ridden in thirty official matches for the Scorpions and obtained 168 points for an average of 5.17. At home, his leading performance came in a league fixture against Somerset on 3 May, when he notched 14+1 points from six starts out of the No. 6 berth. Away from home, his undoubted highlight occurred in the previously mentioned encounter at Glasgow on 6 June. Meanwhile, for Bournemouth, he had made just two appearances, scoring 18 points for an average of 7.20.    

Following the decision of Ipswich to drop down to the Premier League at the BSPA AGM in Bournemouth, it gave Hart the opportunity to link with his hometown club, having previously only occupied a No. 8 role with the Witches. And, on 8 December, the move was confirmed ahead of the 2011 campaign. Then, in May, he was again named in the squad of Elite League Lakeside although, in the event, he didn’t make any appearances for the team and was replaced in July by Chris Neath.

HAVELOCK, Robert Gary
DATE OF BIRTH: 4 November 1968, Eaglescliffe, Yarm, Cleveland.
BRITISH CAREER: (1985) Middlesbrough, King’s Lynn, Wolverhampton; (1986) Middlesbrough, Bradford; (1987-88) Bradford; (1990-97) Bradford; (1998) Eastbourne, Poole; (1999-2002) Poole; (2003-04) Peterborough; (2005) Arena-Essex; (2006-09) Redcar; (2010-11) Redcar, Poole.
MAJOR HONOURS: British Under-21 Champion: 1986; European Junior Champion: 1987; British Champion: 1991, 1992; Overseas Champion: 1992; World Champion: 1992; Premier League Riders’ Champion: 1995.
CLUB HONOURS: Four-Team Championship winner: 1985 [Middlesbrough]; Gold Cup winner: 1990 [Bradford]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995 [all Bradford]; BSPA Cup winner: 1991 [Bradford]; Premiership winner: 1994 [Bradford]; League Championship winner: 1997 [Bradford]; Craven Shield winner: 2001 [Poole]; Young Shield winner: 2007 [Redcar].
RIDER LINKS: Son of Brian Havelock (born: 9 May 1942, Yarm, Cleveland).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.83 (PL), 4.70 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Havelock was always likely to take up a career in speedway, since his father, Brian, was a leading rider during the 1970s and early 1980s, appearing for a number of Second Division/National League teams in the north of England.

Gary, in fact, had his first motorbike at the age of just three and progressed on to the junior grass-track scene five years later. Then, aged fourteen he started attending speedway training schools, where he was a star pupil, always listening and willing to put good advice into practice.

By the time 1985 came along, he was more than ready to stake a claim for a place in his local team, Middlesbrough, and duly made his official debut on 28 March. Once in the Tigers’ line-up he went from strength-to-strength to post an impressive 7-point average. Opportunities also came his way in top-flight racing with King’s Lynn and Wolverhampton, and the young ‘Havvy’ was quite rightly described as one of the finds of the season.

He moved up to the role of a heat-leader with Middlesbrough in 1986, lending tremendous support at the top-end to Martin Dixon and Mark Courtney. He was to show eye-catching form in the British League as well with Bradford and it was only natural that the West Yorkshire outfit would want Havelock on a full-time basis in 1987.

Having signed for the Dukes, he was to remain loyal to the club until the end of the 1997 campaign, when they regrettably closed their doors to speedway after winning the inaugural Elite League Championship. During that time, he did miss the entire 1989 season, having been banned by the SCB after testing positive for cannabis at the previous season’s British League Riders’ Championship, held at Belle Vue on 9 October.

It has to be said that although he was aged only twenty at the time of the ban, he took his punishment like a man and returned in 1990 an even better rider. He was to become an international regular for England, but there was one particular performance that really made his name and this occurred at the Olympic Stadium in Wrocław, Poland, on 29 August 1992.

The occasion was the World Final and Havelock took his bow in the sport’s premier event and what a debut it was, too! He showed grit and determination to take the title with a 14-point tally, losing only to Pole Sławomir Drabik in a re-run eighth heat.

Due to heavy rainfall, track conditions were poor and Havvy also injured an ankle in the original running of heat eight; but if these caused problems to him no-one would have known, as he powered his way to the crown.

His long association with Bradford was rewarded with a testimonial meeting on 8 June 1997, when a large Odsal attendance witnessed him lead his side, the North, to a 50-40 win over the South. With the riders subsequently made available for transfer by promoters Bobby and Allan Ham, it was something of a surprise when Havelock linked with Eastbourne in 1998.

Unfortunately, not through any lack of trying, he found it difficult to get to grips with the Arlington raceway and, in a late-season switch, he joined Poole, where he replaced an off-form Lars Gunnestad. To a degree, he was taking a chance with the move, since he could not have had good memories of the Wimborne Road circuit. This dated back to 3 July 1996 when, riding for England against Australia in a Test match, he had suffered serious back injuries in a track accident and was out of action for the remainder of that season.

Anyway, nobody need have worried as he kick-started his season with a flourish and was a must for a team spot the following year. In 1999, Matt Ford and Mike Golding became co-promoters at Poole alongside Pete Ansell, and an enthusiastic Havelock showcased vintage form and inspirational leadership, as the Pirates finished second in the Elite League. Such was his on-track sparkle again during 2001 that he managed to rejuvenate an international career that had been on hold for sometime.

That occurred when Pirates’ boss and national team manager Neil Middleditch brought him back into the fold for Great Britain in matches against Australia and Denmark, prior to making him captain for the Speedway World Cup tournament in Poland.

The 2002 campaign was to be his last with Poole and his season ended prematurely when he sustained a broken arm in a home match versus King’s Lynn on 26 August. A move to Peterborough followed in 2003 and, after spending a second term with the Panthers, he saw out his top-flight career with a single year at Arena-Essex.

With a new track opening at Redcar in 2006, Havelock was unable to resist the temptation to go back to his roots, as the re-formed Bears entered the Premier League. The hugely popular Redcar skipper had his 2007 campaign disrupted by two spells on the injured list. Somewhat bizarrely, the second of these was a wrist injury, which he sustained when he was competing in an all-star soccer competition.

It was well-documented that the Bears were mired in financial uncertainty during 2008 and matters reached a head following a home league match versus Scunthorpe on 3 July, when it was announced that the club had made the shock decision to release Havelock – their No. 1 rider, captain and talismanic leader – for economic reasons. This came after then-promoter Glyn Taylor had put forward proposals for an adjusted pay structure, which the former World Champion couldn’t accept.

However, in the Bears’ very next match at Workington on 5 July, the axed Havelock was back in his familiar position at the head of the side. The rider’s father, who was also Redcar’s team manager, had called an emergency SOS (Save Our Skipper) meeting at a hotel the evening before the trip to Derwent Park, at which a consortium was formed.

The upshot of that enabled Havelock to ride under Mr. Taylor’s new terms, with any shortfall in his income made up by its members. In 2009, the Eaglescliffe-born speedster sustained injuries to his back and right leg when he and Ryan Fisher tangled in an aborted heat fifteen during Redcar’s televised league fixture against Edinburgh at the South Tees Motorsports Park on 24 August.

Regrettably, that necessitated a spell in the James Cook University Hospital for the veteran rider who had turned forty the previous November. It transpired that he had damaged four vertebrae in his lower back, which understandably caused considerable pain. With the injuries requiring time to heal properly, the Bears eventually drafted in Slovenian racer Maks Gregoric at the end of September to replace Havelock for the latter section of the campaign.

In November, Redcar revealed that the veteran English racer would again line-up for them in 2010 and, later in the month, Elite League Poole announced that he would slot into their squad in the No. 8 position. He went on to appear in thirty-five of the Bears’ 36-match programme, scoring 326 points for an average of 8.32. Meanwhile, when called upon to ride for the Pirates, he did a sterling job at top-flight level to average 6.18 courtesy of 26 points from five appearances.

His best performance of the year at the South Tees Motorsports Park came in a league encounter with Stoke on 22 July, when he carded a perfect 15-point maximum. On Redcar’s travels, his top score was 13+1 points from five rides, ironically at Stoke, in what was the Bears’ first official match of the campaign in the Premier Trophy on 27 March. He also equalled that tally in a league fixture at Newport on 25 April.

After amazingly missing out on the Bear of the Year award in each of the previous four seasons since Redcar opened at the South Tees Motorsports Park in 2006, Havelock finally claimed the elusive prize with a landslide success in the poll organized by the Middlesbrough Evening Gazette. And, the rider made it plain that he wished to ride again for the Bears in 2011.

The rider was again confirmed in the skipper’s role during the close season, along with fellow Englishman Adam Roynon, Czech Matěj Kůs, Dane Peter Juul and Aussies Jason Lyons, Aaron Summers and Robert Branford.

Then, on 21 March, Poole confirmed that Havvy would also share a ‘doubling-up’ position alongside Jason Doyle with them – the 1992 World Champion being on standby in the event that the Australian had any fixture clashes due to his other commitments in the Premier League with Rye House.

He was to maintain an average in excess of 7 points a meeting for the Teesside outfit but, ahead of the Elite League Play-Offs, Havelock found himself replaced in his squad position at Poole by Edinburgh’s German international Kevin Wölbert.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 7 – 64th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 72 – 51st on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 42 – 59th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 10 – 48th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 4
Events: 8 – 5th on Great Britain’s list; 38th on SWC all-time list
Points: 70 – 5th on Great Britain’s list; 35th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 2
Gold medals: 0

HAWKINS, Ritchie Mark
DATE OF BIRTH: 9 November 1983, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2000) Sheffield II; (2001) Swindon, Sheffield II; (2002) Swindon, Swindon II; (2003) Swindon, Swindon II, Peterborough; (2004) Mildenhall, Berwick; (2005) Somerset, Peterborough; (2006) Workington, Swindon; (2007) Somerset, Poole; (2009) Sheffield, Scunthorpe; (2010) Somerset, Ipswich; (2011) Rye House.
MAJOR HONOUR: British Under-21 Champion: 2004.
CLUB HONOURS: Conference Trophy winner: 2004 [Mildenhall]; League Championship winner: 2004 [Mildenhall]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2004 [Mildenhall]; Four-Team Championship winner: 2005 [Somerset].
RIDER LINKS: Son of Kevin Hawkins (born: 21 July 1954, Buckingham, Buckinghamshire).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.71 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Hawkins began his racing career on the moto-cross circuits as a 13-year-old, but he didn’t move on to the shale sport until first appearing at the Sheffield training track in 2000. He subsequently made his Conference League debut for Sheffield Prowlers in a home match against St Austell on 8 October that season.

Having enjoyed a first full campaign with Swindon, he went on to represent Young Britain when they toured Down Under in 2001/02, however, he was injured in the sixth Test match against Young Australia at Shepparton, Victoria on 26 January. Unfortunately, in a first bend fall in heat fourteen, he suffered a shoulder injury that was to plague him upon his return to the UK.

After struggling for form with Swindon he was rested for a spell, only to injure a leg shortly after returning – in heat twelve of a league match versus Arena-Essex on 20 June – when he spun and fell on the second bend. Regrettably, Hawkins then took a hefty fall in a curtailed league encounter at Hull six days later, when he looped at the start of heat two, and subsequently endured another spell out of action.

The Peterborough-born rider took a knock to the ankle when he fell during heat twelve of Swindon’s league match against Newcastle at the Abbey Stadium on 19 June 2003. That meant a short spell of recuperation, before he took another knock after clashing with Somerset’s Mark Lemon in heat eight of a league match at Swindon on 3 July.

Worse was to come two weeks later on 17 July, though, when, in the opening race of a PL match at home to Exeter, he sustained head and neck injuries after a heavy tumble barely 50 metres after leaving the starting gate.

He did return to action in September, but shortly afterwards announced his temporary retirement from the sport in protest at a ruling that precluded him from riding in a Conference-level challenge match for Swindon Sprockets at Weymouth.

After spells with Mildenhall and Berwick in 2004, the British rider represented Somerset and Peterborough a year later, before linking with Workington in 2006. And he was proving to be a real favourite with the Comets’ supporters until a tangle with Glasgow’s Danny Bird at Derwent Park on 15 July left him with a badly bruised brain.

It was a serious injury and he spent the remainder of the campaign recovering on the sidelines. After representing Somerset in 2007, Hawkins had agreed to remain with the Rebels in 2008, but he received multiple injuries in January while appearing in an indoor meeting in Kiel, Germany. He was eventually replaced in the Rebels’ starting line-up by Brent Werner.

Having missed the entire 2008 season whilst in recuperation, Hawkins returned to action with Sheffield in 2009. However, he was in the wars again on 16 May, when he suffered a badly dislocated and broken wrist in a Premier Trophy meeting at Berwick, which was ultimately aborted after heat eleven due to the time curfew in force at Shielfield Park.

The accident happened in heat ten, when he looked to have clipped the back wheel of Bandits’ guest Michał Rajkowski and, as a result, crashed spectacularly on the apex of the first corner. The Tigers initially utilized the rider replacement facility in his absence, before introducing Hugh Skidmore to the side in June.

Having recovered from his broken wrist, Hawkins subsequently linked with Scunthorpe in July, when Adam Allott was released from the Scorpions’ line-up. In November, Somerset revealed that he would be re-joining them for a third spell in 2010. And, towards the end of January, having enthusiastically helped with the re-modelling of the Ipswich track during the close season, he was named as the Witches’ No. 8 for the new campaign.

Hawkins shook off his previous injury problems to post an average of 6.50 for the Rebels, having registered 249 points from a full quota of thirty-six meetings. His best performance occurred in a home league match against Scunthorpe on 30 April, when he notched 13+3 points from seven outings in the No. 6 berth.

Meanwhile, for Ipswich, he was called upon eleven times and totalled 40 points to average 3.61. At the revamped Foxhall Heath circuit, his best performance occurred in the Relegation Race-Off versus Newcastle on 28 October, when he totalled 10 points from five starts in the No. 7 slot. Away from the Witches’ raceway, his high spot had been in the first leg of the encounter against the Diamonds four days earlier, when he notched 6 points from seven rides.

On 22 November, he was named in the Rye House’s starting line-up for 2011, the Rockets’ management having concluded a loan arrangement with the rider’s parent club, Somerset, after it became clear that he didn’t figure in the plans of the Oak Tree Arena-based side. This was seen as a good move for both the Hertfordshire outfit and the rider, Hawkins having previously landed the British Under-21 Championship at the Hoddesdon circuit in 2004.

The rider toured New Zealand during the close season and did very well to finish third in the National Championship at Rosebank Speedway on 27 February; former Newport Hornets rider Grant Tregoning took the title to add to his victory in the South Island Championship three weeks earlier, with Jason Bunyan in second place.

HAZELDEN, Shane Roy
DATE OF BIRTH: 24 October 1993, Hailsham, Wealden, East Sussex.
BRITISH CAREER: (2010) Rye House II; (2011) Hackney.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 4.37 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Hazelden initially rode on the Eastbourne junior track, riding a 100cc machine, in February 2005. He moved on to a 200cc steed the following year, before advancing to a 250cc Jawa in 2007.

Then, in 2008, he starting using a full-size machine, but had the misfortune to lift on a rut at Sittingbourne, before hitting the safety fence on one wheel. The accident resulted in a dislocated knee and a broken right femur, which required a metal rod to hold it together.

Having recuperated, the injury bug regrettably struck again at Ipswich early in 2009, when he picked up grip and went through the fence, suffering a broken right tibia and fibula. That meant more surgery and the insertion of a metal plate but, having recovered and got back on a bike, he was to go through the rest of the year injury-free.

In January 2010, Rye House announced that they had signed the Lakeside Hammers’ asset to represent their National League side, the Raiders; the youngster having already become familiar to Rye supporters from a number of second-half appearances.

The teenager – previously sixth in the 2007 British Under-15 Championship and winner of the Under-15 250cc race at the Cardiff Grand Prix that same year – made two late season guest appearances at National League level for Newport in 2009, scoring an impressive paid 10 points at King’s Lynn and then delivering an equally excellent paid 8 haul for the Hornets in the return against the Barracudas in Wales.

He subsequently returned to winter practice at Hoddesdon following an October operation to remove metalwork from his previous leg break and was eagerly looking forward to his first full season of league racing. And the term saw him net 101 points from nineteen official meetings to post a 4.74 average. An undoubted highlight saw him represent the Young Lions in an international challenge versus the touring USA side at Lakeside on 15 October, when he tallied 9+1 points from four starts.

On 14 February 2011, the resurgent Hackney Hawks who would race in the National League, with home meetings jointly staged at both Lakeside and Rye House, confirmed that Hazelden would represent them in the season ahead.

He was to do exceptionally well and, at the half-way sector of the campaign, sat nicely on top of the Hawks’ averages on a figure of close on 7.5 points per match. However, in a clash with the Isle of Wight at Lakeside on 8 July, he exited the match after suffering a hand injury in the very first race, which resulted in him having two fingers taped up.

Hazelden visited his local hospital for a further examination the following morning and, unfortunately, it was revealed that he had suffered a dislocated and fractured finger. That meant a short spell on the sidelines whilst he recuperated.

HEEPS, Cameron Andrew George
DATE OF BIRTH: 27 October 1995, Perth, Western Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2011) Mildenhall.
MAJOR HONOURS: Western Australia Under-16 Champion: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010.
CLUB HONOUR: Knock-Out Cup winner: 2011 [Mildenhall].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.00 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: The teenage Aussie sensation – who listed his favourite riders as Leigh Adams, Ty Proctor and Frank Smart – was unveiled as Mildenhall’s fifth signing for their new look National League side at a packed ‘Support the Tigers’ night at West Row on 5 March 2011.

Co-promoter Chris Louis believed that the Fen Tigers had had signed the hottest prospect from Down Under for the campaign, as he joined the previously announced James Brundle, Jack Hargreaves, Joe Jacobs and Olly Rayson in the line-up.

A number of clubs had been looking at ‘Camo’ but, when he heard that he would be getting the chance to work with Michael Lee and joining a young vibrant team, he had no hesitation in choosing Mildenhall.

Aged just 4, Heeps began riding in 1999 at Bibra Lake Speedway and one of his most embarrassing moments occurred shortly afterwards, when he hit the wall at Narrogin Speedway. However, he recovered quickly to make astonishing strides, before becoming a junior solo rider in 2005. That year saw him claim third place in the Western Australia Under-16 State Championship.

Then, in 2006, he took first place in the Western Australia Under-16 Championship. And that was the start of five successive title victories in the WA Under-16 category. His 2009 success came at Pinjar Park, where he scored a maximum 12 points in the heats, prior to taking victory in the final.

Frustratingly, Heeps had his arrival in the UK held up by paperwork and, as a result, missed the Fen Tigers’ Press and Practice Day. It was explained by co-promoter Chris Louis that the youngster’s documentation had taken longer to sort out than expected and that the rider had delayed his flight to the UK until everything was correctly in place. Whilst that was sorted, Mildenhall plugged the gap in the side with the short-term signing of Danny Stoneman.

Entering May, the Mildenhall Fen Tigers’ management team admitted they were growing ‘very frustrated’ at continuing delays in getting clearance for the teenage Australian star to join the rest of the team. The club fought off a number of other sides to sign the 15-year-old, rated as one of the best prospects from Down Under for years.

After not making it for the start of the season, it had been hoped that Heeps would be in the UK in time for a National League clash against Belle Vue Colts at West Row on 8 May. But the paperwork required for him to come to Britain was taking far longer to complete than anyone had expected. Prior to that, on 5 May, Stoneman took up the option of joining Dudley and, as a result, Nick Laurence came into the Fen Tigers’ line-up as Heeps’ replacement.

Finally, on 1 June, Mildenhall were able to report that Heeps was on his way to Britain. The teenage Aussie star was expected to be in the country in time to watch or even ride in a Knock-Out Cup clash against Hackney at West Row on 5 June. The club had a workshop ready for the rider, although it was stated that there still remained some paperwork to be finalised.

Heeps served notice of his abilities in an amateur meeting at Scunthorpe on 19 June, when he became the tenth overseas winner of such an event at the Eddie Wright Raceway, following in the tyre tracks of Linus Sundström (Sweden), Jen Trasborg, Patrick Bjerregaard, Peter Juul Larsen (twice), Mark Randrup, Claes Nedermark (all Denmark), Nick Morris and Robert Branford (both Australia). The Aussie’s success came in the Open Class when he headed home Luke Chessell, Shane Henry and Adam Portwood in the final.

Three days after his individual success, Mildenhall received a massive boost to their title hopes after Heeps was finally given clearance to ride in the National League. In a team re-declaration, he came into the line-up in place of Adam Portwood.

Heeps lived up to all the pre-match hype ahead of his Fen Tigers’ debut to net 12+3 points from seven rides in a home league match versus Buxton on 26 June. His first official heat win in British speedway came in heat eleven, when he reeled in the visitors’ Ben Taylor with a superb swoop to claim 3 points to the delight of his new army of admirers at West Row.

He really hit a high on 2 August, when Mildenhall faced Dudley at Wolverhampton’s Monmore Green raceway. Indeed, the 15-year-old sensation adapted to the track on his first visit in sensational fashion to bag a bumper 20-point haul at reserve.

The sensational youngster continued to bang in some impressive returns, but was ruled out of action for a spell after he suffered a broken wrist in the Fen Tigers’ league match at the Isle of Wight on 16 August. This occurred when the 15-year-old – who had won his opening six outings – high-sided and fell as he challenged the home pair of Nick Simmons and Danny Warwick in the nominated race.

Heeps returned to the Fen Tigers’ line-up in the No. 1 berth for the first leg of the Knock-Out Cup final versus Stoke at West Row on 25 September, scoring 11 points as Mildenhall secured a 51-43 victory. He then notched a tally of 8+1 in the second leg at Loomer Road on 22 October as the Fen Tigers sealed an aggregate success, having narrowly missed out on the league title just 24 hours previously.

HEFENBROCK, Christian
DATE OF BIRTH: 15 May 1985, Liebenthal, Germany.
BRITISH CAREER: (2006) Wolverhampton; (2007) Lakeside, Peterborough; (2008) Wolverhampton; (2010) Coventry, Somerset; (2011) Somerset, Poole.
MAJOR HONOURS: German Under-21 Champion: 2001, 2005; German Champion: 2006.
CLUB HONOUR: League Championship winner: 2011 [Poole].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.38 (PL), 3.23 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Hefenbrock had earned a growing reputation in his homeland after taking victory in the German Under-21 Championship in 2001. He was to replicate that success in 2005 and almost made it a glorious double, when he filled the runner-up position behind Mathias Schultz in the senior National Championship at Brokstedt on 2 October.

He was invited to participate in the prestigious Bank’s Olympique at Wolverhampton eight days later and an impressive showing saw him notch 7 points amidst a high-quality field. And it was little surprise that he was subsequently snapped-up by the Monmore club in 2006 and he was to make a number of telling contributions for the side.

When the figures were totted up at the end of the season, he had posted a very respectable first term average of 5.08, courtesy of 168 points from thirty-five league appearances. The year also saw him become German Champion at Herxheim on 24 September, when he top-scored with a 15-point maximum, before defeating Tobias Kroner, Tommy Stange and Martin Smolinski in the final.

Hefenbrock began the 2007 campaign in the colours of Lakeside, but was to finish the season with Peterborough after being released by the Hammers in June, when he was replaced by Luboš Tomíček in a team re-shuffle. The Panthers introduced the German to their side as a replacement for Richard Hall, the move becoming effective on 24 August.

However, his stint with the club was to be interrupted by a rib injury, which he suffered in a bizarre accident whilst racing in his homeland. This happened in an open meeting in Leipzig when, during the celebration of a race victory, he became entangled with the starting tapes.

Immediately prior to that, he had been unfortunate enough to have his van broken into during the Peterborough’s Elite League meeting at Ipswich on 13 September, when thieves stole valuable items, including his racing licence, passport, credit cards and a mobile phone.

Hefenbrock later appeared as a wildcard in historic 100th Grand Prix at the Veltins Arena, Gelsenkirchen on 13 October, winning the opening heat to establish the first track record at the venue. He went on to total 4 points in a meeting that was eventually won by Andreas Jonsson.  

Identified in Wolverhampton’s distinctive colours in 2008, the Liebenthal-born rider was involved in a crash in a Bundesliga meeting at Olching on 20 July. The following day, he made his way to Monmore Green for an Elite League encounter with Eastbourne but, having suffered dizzy spells on the way to the track, he was ruled out before the start by the track doctor.

He was subsequently advised to see a neurologist and, in early August, was replaced in the club’s declared line-up by the returning Jesper B. Monberg, who formerly raced under the surname of Jensen. Having missed the UK season in 2009, Hefenbrock was the subject of much speculation regarding a return to these shores and, right at the end of December, Coventry announced that they had secured the rider’s services on loan from his parent club, Wolverhampton, for 2010.

Unfortunately, the Bees’ winter signing was injured within yards of the start of his very-first Elite League race for the club at Peterborough on Good Friday morning, 2 April. Indeed, the unlucky German rider was involved in a nasty-looking first bend accident in heat one of the clash. Coventry captain Chris Harris had led convincingly going into the turn, but the other three riders were all close and Hefenbrock was sent slamming into the air safety barrier, with his machine clearing the fence.

A lengthy delay ensued whilst he was attended to, and although initial concerns were over possible breaks to his ankle and pelvis, word eventually came back from hospital later that the damage was to his ankle ligaments and also concussion. On 20 April, he was replaced in the Bees’ declared line-up by Polish hotshot Przemysław Pawlicki, having officially been credited with just one appearance and no points in their colours.

Almost two months passed before the German returned to the British racing scene when, on 18 June, Premier League Somerset unveiled him as a new signing to replace the departed Luboš Tomíček. He marked his debut with 8+2 points that night in a league match versus Berwick at the Oak Tree Arena.

Hefenbrock went on the represent the side in fifteen official matches, from which he totalled 84 points for an average of exactly 6.00. And, on 3 December, in front of a packed Oak Tree Clubhouse, the popular speedster was named as a certain starter in the Rebels’ line-up for 2011. Then, on 22 February, he was named by Poole in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity alongside Kyle Newman, with Pirates’ promoter Matt Ford indicating that the German would be the senior rider in that role.

The German revealed blistering form when Somerset entertained Ipswich in a Premier League encounter at the Oak Tree Arena on 8 April, as he put together a superb paid maximum tally of 13+2 points from the No. 3 berth.

Hefenbrock was involved in a horror crash during a league fixture for Poole against Swindon at Wimborne Road on 20 April. This occurred in a dramatic heat eight, when partner Dennis Andersson accidentally clipped the German’s front wheel as he pursued the Robins’ pairing of Jesper B. Monberg and Justin Sedgmen.

The contact by Andersson was sufficient to throw Hefenbrock off his machine and he somersaulted down the back straight, ripping out several sections of the safety fence. The medical crew insisted that the rider, who reported no pain, be checked over at the local Poole General Hospital. Thankfully, there was no reported damage and he made a fast-track return to racing action.

The German reserve was in the wars again on 9 May when, in a meeting broadcast live by Sky Sports, he was involved in a hefty first bend clash with Coventry’s Richard Sweetman in heat two of the Pirates’ encounter with the Bees at Wimborne Road.

Hefenbrock ended up clattering into the air safety barrier and sustained a bang to his head as he landed on the racing strip. He suffered concussion and was transferred to Poole Hospital, where he underwent precautionary X-rays from the neck upwards.

After a week’s rest, the rider still felt a little concussed so he visited a hospital in his native country where further X-rays revealed two broken ribs. But, following more rest, he was given the all-clear to resume racing on 21 May.

That proved a false dawn, though, and Somerset had to utilise the rider replacement facility in his continued absence in a Premier League encounter at Rye House. He did, however, return to action for the Rebels in a league fixture versus Leicester at the Oak Tree Arena on 27 May, scoring 9+1 points.

But Hefenbrock was injured once more in the eleventh staging of the Auerhahnpokal at Teterow on 11 June. Having notched 8 points in the qualifying heats, he crashed in the second semi-final and was taken to hospital where, although it was thought no bones were broken, he was diagnosed with bad bruising to his leg and shoulder.

That caused him to be absent from Poole’s away victories at Belle Vue and Swindon in the Elite League and Knock-Out Cup, respectively, on 13 and 16 June, with a home EL win over Eastbourne sandwiched in between.

However, bad news came for both the Pirates and Somerset via a CT scan on 22 June that, although Hefenbrock’s injuries from the crash in Teterow had initially been largely diagnosed as superficial, he had in fact suffered a broken right shoulder and left ankle.

As such, at the end of the month, Somerset announced the signing of Joe Haines as an injury replacement. The German was deemed fit to return at the tail-end of July, however, and slotted back into the Rebels’ line-up at the expense of Haines.

On 15 August 2011, Poole announced the signing of Polish rider Mateusz Szczepaniak, having decided to dispense with the ‘doubling-up’ duo of Hefenbrock and Kyle Newman, although the German did retain a place in the Pirates’ squad after being shuffled to the No. 8 berth.  

Regrettably, Hefenbrock suffered a broken tibia and fibula whilst representing Somerset in a Premier League encounter at Scunthorpe on 4 September. The German rider, who had notched a couple of excellent wins from his earlier outings, came to grief in his third ride at the Eddie Wright Raceway.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 1 – 123rd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 4 – 109th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 5 – 107th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 1 – 84th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 2
Events: 2 – 2nd on Germany’s list; 110th on SWC all-time list
Points: 2 – 8th on Germany’s list; 145th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 0
Gold medals: 0

HENRY, Christian
DATE OF BIRTH: 20 February 1981, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2000) Edinburgh, Ashfield; (2001-02) Edinburgh; (2003) Glasgow; (2005-08) Newcastle; (2009) King’s Lynn; (2011) Glasgow.
CLUB HONOUR: League Championship winner: 2011 [Glasgow].
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 5.21 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Regrettably, Henry crashed heavily and sustained a broken arm in three places, whilst representing King’s Lynn in a Premier Trophy fixture at Birmingham on 3 May 2009. He was subsequently replaced in the Stars’ line-up by Linus Eklöf and spent the remainder of the campaign on the sidelines. At the time, he had made just eleven official appearances for the Norfolk outfit, which had yielded 58 points and a 6.93 average.

Having missed the entire 2010 season, on 27 November, he was named in Glasgow’s starting side for 2011. As such, it meant that the Aussie began his second spell as a Tiger, having ridden for the club in 2003. It was, perhaps, something of a gamble in bringing Henry back into the Premier League fold after his serious arm injury.

However, there was the very real prospect of him recovering the form he had shown previously with King’s Lynn and Newcastle. Indeed, he had posted a real-time average of 7.28 from thirty-four meetings in the Diamonds’ colours in 2008 and was doing well for the Stars a year later, before the injury struck.

The Aussie was to regain his sparkle as Glasgow set out their stall for a good campaign on a significantly revamped racing strip at Ashfield. Indeed, he posted an average of 7.83 from their first half-dozen official meetings, but the Tigers’ promotion was left sweating on Henry’s fitness after he picked up a shoulder injury in the gym ahead of the club’s Knock-Out Cup matches with Leicester in May. Regrettably, the Aussie didn’t make it and Glasgow had to utilise the rider replacement facility for both legs of the tie.

He did, however, return in the Tigers’ home league match versus Scunthorpe on 22 May, but clearly wasn’t fit and failed to score from three outings. That left the club’s management to assess his situation during the week that followed and Henry was to miss a significant chunk of action whilst Glasgow covered his absence with the rider replacement facility until he finally returned to the track in a home league match, ironically versus Leicester on 3 July.

Regrettably, he faced another spell on the sidelines after an X-ray confirmed that a heat twelve crash he had taken against Ipswich at Ashfield on 18 July had resulted in a hairline fracture in his back. Henry had continued riding in the Tigers’ subsequent matches away and at home to Berwick in the Knock-Out Cup, prior to seeking medical advice near the end of the month for the discomfort he was feeling.

Henry’s injury-jinxed season came to an abrupt end on 26 August when, in heat seven of Glasgow’s league match at Edinburgh, Monarchs’ Byron Bekker fell in front of him and caused the Aussie to fall heavily, sustaining a broken collarbone. He was subsequently replaced in the Tigers’ line-up by Frenchman David Bellego.

HERNE, Jay Brett
DATE OF BIRTH: 22 September 1984, Campbell Town, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2007) Weymouth; (2008) Weymouth, Birmingham; (2009) Bournemouth, Somerset, Birmingham; (2010) Somerset, Bournemouth; (2011) Edinburgh, Newport II.
CLUB HONOURS: Four-Team winner: 2008 [Weymouth]; League Championship winner: 2008 [Weymouth], 2009 [Bournemouth]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2009 [Bournemouth].
RIDER LINKS: Son of Phil Herne (born: 27 March 1955, Ballina, New South Wales, Australia). Brother of Lee Herne (born: 27 March 1980, Ipswich, Suffolk).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.81 (PL), 10.67 (NL).
AADDITIONAL INFO: Herne shared a ‘doubling-up’ role with Brendan Johnson at Somerset in 2009, but assumed a full-time position in the side in June, when the club elected to run with a straight 1-7. However, towards the end of that month, the Rebels’ management announced that, with great regret, they had decided to release the Australian.

That was due to a congested fixture list through competing in two leagues – which led to him not being available for a number of Somerset’s meetings – and it was acknowledged that the situation was not of the rider’s making. Herne’s place in the side was subsequently taken by Nick Simmons.

Meanwhile, having enjoyed a stint with Birmingham the season before, the Aussie linked again with the Brummies for a second spell early in July, when he took the place of James Cockle. Highlighting a fine season of progress for the Sydney-born rider, he took victory in the prestigious National League Bronze Helmet at Weymouth on 24 July. On 15 October, the Aussie’s efforts helped Bournemouth cement an aggregate victory over Buxton in the Knock-Out Cup final.

During the match against the Hitmen, he completed an unbeaten sequence of 36 rides at Wimborne Road, before visiting rider Craig Cook brought his astonishing run to an end. That took him into the record books as he eclipsed Tony Lewis, who was undefeated by an opponent in 35 rides at the track (1961-62). The only rider who had previously almost reached the landmark established by Lewis was Martin Yeates, who went 34 races unbeaten (1985).

The Aussie went on to help the Buccaneers complete a glorious double, as they defeated Plymouth in the Play-Off final to win the League Championship. In November, Bournemouth announced that Herne would remain on board with them in 2010 and, shortly afterwards, it was revealed that he would also be rejoining Premier League Somerset.

Regrettably, though, on 6 February, the Sydney flyer sustained severe damage to his right knee in a full-throttle crash – whilst riding his brother’s machine – in the Australian Long-track Championship at Tamworth Showground.

The accident left him with a significant hole in the bone and he subsequently underwent three procedures in hospital, which culminated in a skin graft using a mass of tissue taken from his thigh. Fortunately, there was nothing broken and the rider remained hopeful of lining-up at the start of the British season.

And, in fact he did, as he took his place in a practice session at Sittingbourne and then came through the Rebels’ Press Day on 17 March with no ill effects of the injury. But, the season had only just got underway, before he was in the wars again in a Severn Bridge Trophy encounter at Newport on 28 March.

Unfortunately, he faced a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering a back injury as a result of a fall in heat fourteen of Somerset’s match in the Principality. After initial X-rays at the Royal Gwent Hospital, it was found that Herne had sustained a wedge-fracture in his vertebrae, whilst his foot was also fractured.

He was subsequently transferred to Poole Hospital for two weeks’ bed rest, before being fitted with a back brace, which he would need to wear for two months. Herne was replaced in the Rebels’ line-up early in April by American veteran, Brent Werner.

Shortly after, the unlucky Aussie’s place in the Bournemouth side was filled by Chris Mills. At the time, he had appeared in just one official fixture for Somerset in the Premier Trophy at Rye House on 27 March, scoring 2+1 points.

Remarkably, though, he made a superb comeback at Weymouth on 10 September, when romping to a 12-point maximum for Bristol in a challenge match against the home side. In so doing, he followed in the footsteps of his father, Phil, who had represented the Bulldogs with distinction in 1977, when they raced out of Eastville Stadium.

Naturally, that prompted interest from elsewhere and – ironically – it looked like he was headed for Rye House as a replacement for Robbie Kessler. However, this was turned down on the grounds of insufficient lead time between the point of submission and the deadline date for final team changes in the 2010 season.

The BSPA did, however, grant the Rockets use of the rider-replacement facility for the retired Kessler, whilst Herne instead rejoined National League Bournemouth as a replacement for the injured Jerran Hart. He went on to make four appearances for the Buccaneers, which yielded 40 points and an average of 9.11

On 31 January 2011, having confirmed that they would again operate a second side in the National League, Newport announced the signing of Herne to spearhead the Hornets’ attack alongside fellow Aussie Todd Kurtz. Again, this meant a link with his father, who had ridden for Newport at the city’s former Somerton Park Stadium in 1975 and 1976.

Then, on 18 March, Edinburgh handed their final team place for the season to the Australian. The Monarchs moved for Herne, who had previous Premier League experience with Somerset and Birmingham, after William Lawson’s decision not to race in 2011.

Although the rider faced a long weekly journey, he had been so keen to accept the offer from the reigning PL Champions that he spent several days arranging transport for himself to get him to Scotland each week. However, shortly after linking with the club, Herne suffered concussion in a heat eight crash during the Spring Trophy encounter with arch-rivals Glasgow at Armadale on 1 April.

Although the Australian returned quickly to the Monarchs’ line-up, the club revealed on 26 April that they had decided to release both him and Ashley Morris because they hadn’t been getting the points they required from the reserve berths. The vastly experienced Lee Dicken filled the spot vacated by Herne’s departure.

HILL, Thomas (Tom) Matthew
DATE OF BIRTH: 16 September 1986, Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2003) Peterborough II, Wolverhampton II; (2004) Buxton, Newport II, Weymouth; (2006) Weymouth; (2009-11) Isle of Wight.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.38 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: After three years out of the sport, Hill linked with the Isle of Wight in May 2009, as a replacement for Scott Meakins in the No. 8 position. Shortly afterwards, on 13 June, he sustained a broken knuckle on his right hand in a crash at King’s Lynn in a National League encounter.

The accident occurred when he and team-mate Ben Hopwood seemed set for a 5-1, only for Hill’s steed to pick up a huge amount of unwanted drive and send him careering into the Norfolk Arena safety fence.

Having regained fitness, the Sheffield-born rider was subsequently promoted to a slot in the side’s declared 1-7 in July, when he replaced Andy Braithwaite. He went on to attain a real-time average of a shade under 4 points per match and his battling qualities made him a firm favourite with the Islanders’ supporters. Late in December, the club announced that he would be remaining on board for the 2010 campaign.  

Hill was to suffer horrendous problems with machinery, blowing five engines and spending in excess of £7,000 on them during the season. In spite of that, he remarkably remained ever-present throughout the Islanders’ twenty-eight official matches to post 106 points and an average of 4.20.

On 8 February 2011, the Isle of Wight confirmed that Hill would be remaining with them in the season ahead, having become a very popular figure at Smallbrook Stadium during the previous two terms. However, he was injured in a pairs meeting for The New Holmwood Cup at Smallbrook Stadium on 3 May. This occurred in heat six, when he lost control exiting the fourth turn and fell awkwardly.

After receiving medical attention, Hill was withdrawn from the meeting and returned to his northern base to visit his local hospital where – in the early hours – it was revealed that nothing was broken, although he had suffered soft tissue damage and deep cuts. He also had a blood clot removed from a finger nail. Whilst he recuperated fully, the Yorkshireman was replaced on a short-term basis in the Islanders’ line-up by Luke Chessell.

HOLDER, Christopher (Chris) Robert
DATE OF BIRTH: 24 September 1987, Appin, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2006-07) Isle of Wight; (2008-11) Poole.
MAJOR HONOURS: Australian Under-21 Champion: 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008; New South Wales State Champion: 2006, 2007, 2008, 2011; Western Australia State Champion: 2008; Australian Champion: 2008, 2010, 2011; New South Wales Under-21 State Champion: 2009.
CLUB HONOURS: Four-Team Championship winner: 2007 [Isle of Wight]; Pairs Championship winner: 2007 [Isle of Wight], 2009 [Poole], 2011 [Poole]; League Championship winner: 2008, 2011 [both Poole]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2010, 2011 [both Poole].
GRAND PRIX HIGHLIGHTS: British GP Champion: 2010; Swedish GP Champion: 2011.
RIDER LINKS: Son of Mick Holder. Nephew of Matt Holder. Brother of James Holder (born: 7 May 1986, Appin, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 8.39 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: The Australian sensation – who rides with pace, aggression and flair – enjoyed a fabulous 2008 domestic campaign with Poole and scooped league titles in Britain, Sweden and Poland.

Holder finished second – behind Russian sensation Emil Sayfutdinov – in the World Under-21 Championship for two successive seasons (in 2007 and 2008) and was widely tipped for a very bright future at the sharp end of the sport.

Indeed, he has achieved plenty in his short career, including representing his country in international competition and collecting an individual victory in the 2008 Australian Championship. Holder also shares a fierce rivalry with Troy Batchelor and the two talented compatriots are renowned for their spirited on-track duels.

In May 2009, the Sydney-born rider bizarrely sustained a broken collarbone in a moto-cross accident, meaning an unexpected spell on the sidelines. After his return from injury, Holder combined with Hans Andersen to win the Elite League Pairs Championship for Poole at Eastbourne’s Arlington Stadium on 8 August – the triumph adding to his previous success at PL level with Jason Bunyan for the Isle of Wight in 2007.

As the Pirates entered the last phase of the campaign, the Aussie was happy to sit out some end-of-season challenge matches, as the promotion looked at different riders with a view to the following term. Holder also confirmed that he fully intended to be back at Wimborne Road in 2010 and, in November, Poole boss Matt Ford confirmed that the Aussie would indeed return for his third successive term.

Then, in the New Year, the New South Wales star won his second Australian Championship after a dramatic series decider at Newcastle on 9 January. The Poole ace started the third and final round 4 points adrift of Troy Batchelor, who had won the previous two events at Gillman and Mildura.

However, the Peterborough acquisition failed to reach the final, allowing Holder to overturn the deficit and take the Championship by a single point overall, with Darcy Ward and Rory Schlein completing the top four.

A broken arm was feared when Holder fell in heat fourteen of the Toruń Grand Prix in Poland on 19 June and was subsequently clipped by the closely following Greg Hancock. However, he was fortunate to escape without any broken bones, although he did suffer some muscle damage that necessitated a short spell on the sidelines.

Having recovered quickly, he went on to celebrate his maiden Grand Prix victory in front of a record-breaking 44,150 crowd at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium on 10 July. The Aussie ended the recent British GP dominance of compatriot Jason Crump, with the reigning World Champion having to settle for second place after winning in South Wales for the previous two years.

Holder sustained a wrist injury in Poole’s home league match versus Wolverhampton on 18 August, but quickly recuperated to post a real-time average in excess of 8.5 points per match as the Pirates completely dominated the domestic programme to comfortably head the Elite League table.

However, they missed out on the Championship after losing to Coventry in the Play-Off final. They did at least gain some consolation at Wimborne Road on 27 October, though, when they clinched an aggregate victory over Eastbourne to lift the Knock-Out Cup.

The end-of-term statistical run-down gave Holder a final average of 8.58 for the Pirates, the rider having attained 387 points from forty-one official appearances. His best performance of the season occurred in a league match against Swindon at Wimborne Road on 11 August, when he reeled off a faultless 15-point maximum.

On 11 December, Holder regained the New South Wales State Championship at Kurri Kurri, defeating Darcy Ward, Richard Sweetman and Sam Masters in the final. And, four days later, Poole boss Matt Ford confirmed that both Holder and his Australian compatriot, Ward, would be remaining with the club in 2011.

Indeed, the duo had forged a formidable on-track partnership in 2010 that enabled the Pirates to soar to the top of the Sky Sports Elite League, finishing 17 points clear of their closest rivals. In addition, the two were good buddies off-track and helped to form a camaraderie that was infectious amongst the side.

Holder was involved in a nasty spill with Kozza Smith in heat fifteen of the second round in the Australian Championship at Gillman, Adelaide, on 22 January. He sustained hefty knocks to his left shoulder, neck and right wrist but, despite that, he rode on through the pain barrier to take victory and continued his march to a third national title. He bravely wrapped up the Championship at Mildura on 29 January, but then faced a race to be fit for the start of the Elite League campaign with Poole.

Poole clinched the first piece of top-flight silverware for 2011 when, on 27 April, the Australian duo of Holder and Darcy Ward romped to victory in the Elite League Pairs Championship at King’s Lynn. The Pirates defeated the Belle Vue pairing of Chris Harris and Rory Schlein in the final after getting the better of Wolverhampton in the second semi-final on a night of thrilling racing at the Norfolk Arena.

On 14 May, Holder was delighted to bounce back from being crushed on count-back in the season’s opening Grand Prix a fortnight earlier at Leszno, Poland, by winning a rain-soaked Swedish SGP in Gothenburg. The meeting was abandoned after sixteen races as heavy rain, which had lashed the Ullevi Stadium all evening, rendered track conditions and visibility too poor to continue.

Holder was top of the score-chart with 10 points when the meeting was stopped and was level with Greg Hancock. Like the American, the Sydneysider had two heat wins and two second-places to his name. But the Poole, Toruń and Lejonen hero came out on top as he had pipped the Californian to the chequered flag in a fiercely-contested heat eleven.

With Holder and Darcy Ward forming a dynamic spearhead, the Pirates went to to take victory in the Elite League Play-Offs – defeating Eastbourne in the final – and the Dorset side completed a clean sweep of the top-flight trophies on 20 October, when they sealed an aggregate success over Belle Vue to retain the Knock-Out Cup.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 18 – 42nd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 166 – 33rd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 99 – 38th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 22 – 35th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 2 – 15th on SGP all-time list      
Grand Prix finals: 3 – 29th on SGP all-time list

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 5
Events: 13 – 4th on Australia’s list; 23rd on SWC all-time list
Points: 122 – 4th on Australia’s list; 23rd on SWC all-time list
Finals: 4
Gold medals: 0

HOLDER, James Michael
DATE OF BIRTH: 7 May 1986, Appin, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
BRITISH CAREER: (2008) Isle of Wight; (2009) Newport; (2010) Stoke, Somerset; (2011) Somerset.
RIDER LINKS: Son of Mick Holder. Nephew of Matt Holder. Brother of Chris Holder (born: 24 September 1987, Appin, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia).
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 4.00 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: The elder of the Holder brothers linked with Newport in 2009 and was also named as Eastbourne’s No. 8 rider but, prior to making any appearances for the Eagles, he was replaced in the role by Chris Schramm in May.

Holder’s battling qualities made him extremely popular on the terraces at Queensway Meadows and he was the only Wasp to remain ever-present in what was an otherwise difficult season for the Welsh club, which had re-opened under new management.

In November, Stoke announced that they had acquired the Aussie’s services for 2010. But he was to be released by the Staffordshire club early in May and replaced by Lee Smart, as promoter Dave Tattum sought improvements to his side. He had ridden in just nine official meetings for the Potters, from which he had notched 34 points for an average of 3.73.

He wasn’t without a club for long, though, as shortly afterwards his services were acquired by Somerset, initially as a 28-day injury replacement for Tommy Allen. But, he was to sustain a dislocated collarbone in only his third meeting for the Rebels, when they appeared at Redcar in a league encounter on 20 May.

That occurred in heat two, when his rear wheel was clipped by home rider Gary Irving, with both men being catapulted over the high side and the Somerset signing coming off worst in the ensuing mêlée. Having recovered, the Aussie went on to total twenty official appearances for the Rebels, which yielded 108 points and a 5.15 average. With the addition of his earlier meetings for Stoke, it gave the Aussie a seasonal tally of 142 points from twenty-nine matches and an overall real-time average of 4.70.

On 3 December, in front of a packed Oak Tree Clubhouse, the Aussie was named as a starter in the Somerset side for 2011. The forward-looking club named all seven team members on the night, with Holder being one of five riders from Down Under in the septet – his fellow countrymen being Sam Masters, Cory Gathercole, Dakota North and Travis McGowan.

Later in the month, it was confirmed that Holder had been appointed team skipper and, after he recovered from again dislocating his shoulder in his first meeting back in Australia at Kurri Kurri, he was honoured to lead the Rebels into the 2011 campaign.

However, the Aussie was injured shortly after the season had got underway in a home league fixture against Rye House on 1 April. In the reserves’ race, Holder aggravated the shoulder he had injured the previous year. The race in question took two attempts to start, as visiting rider Tyson Nelson had jumped the gun in the first running.

In the re-run, the Rye House representative again bolted out of the traps and led from the Rebels’ pair of Dakota North and Holder. Towards the end of the second lap, Holder took an innocuous looking slide off, whilst in third place.

Rockets’ No. 6 Ben Morley quickly laid down his machine, but couldn’t avoid sliding into the prostrate Somerset captain and his bike. Although he was soon on his feet, Holder subsequently withdrew from the remainder of the night’s racing.

HOPWOOD, Ben James
DATE OF BIRTH: 13 March 1991, Salford, Greater Manchester.
BRITISH CAREER: (2006) Mildenhall II, Stoke II; (2007) Oxford II; (2008) Plymouth, Scunthorpe II; (2009-10) Isle of Wight; (2011) Hackney.
CLUB HONOUR: Conference Trophy winner: 2008.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.83 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: A British Under-15 silver medalist in 2006 – achieving that finish despite riding with a dislocated ankle – Hopwood linked with the Isle of Wight in 2009 and, despite the long journey from Manchester for every home meeting, thoroughly enjoyed himself to post a real-time average of over 7 points per match.

His whole-hearted efforts made him popular with the Islanders’ supporters and he was keen to return in 2010, with his wish subsequently granted in December after he had travelled down to attend the club’s Christmas dinner at the Wave 105 FM Stadium.

He again proved a solid competitor, maintaining an average in excess of 6 points per match; however, he was injured in a league fixture at Scunthorpe on 6 August. Regrettably, he went through the air safety barrier and struck a steel stock car post back first.

He was subsequently taken to hospital in Manchester where he underwent tests to determine the prognosis on his back injuries. With a lengthy recuperation probable, he was replaced in the Islanders’ line-up by Paul Starke. He had ridden for the club in eighteen official meetings, scoring 135 points for an average of 7.05.

On 9 February 2011, Rye House confirmed the signing of Hopwood on a full transfer from the Isle of Wight and that he would represent their National League operation, Hackney, in the season ahead. The Manchester born rider viewed the move as a major step forward in his career, with the resurgent Hawks splitting their fixtures between the Hoddesdon circuit and Lakeside’s Arena-Essex Raceway.

HOUGAARD, Patrick Hald
DATE OF BIRTH: 23 May 1989, Fredericia, Denmark.
BRITISH CAREER: (2007) Reading; (2008-11) Belle Vue.
MAJOR HONOURS: Danish Under-21 Champion: 2007, 2009; World Under-21 Team Cup Champion: 2010.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.34 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Hougaard is exciting youngster, who is tipped to excel on the world stage in future years. After appearing briefly for Reading at the tail-end of 2007 – having been brought to the Berkshire club by then co-promoter Malcolm Holloway – he subsequently joined Belle Vue mid-way through the 2008 season after completing his school studies in his Danish homeland. At 6’ 2” in height, he rides with a unique style that is certainly spectacular to watch.

Having again linked with the Aces for 2009, he underlined his immense talent when he won the Danish Under-21 title after dominating the final at the Glumso Speedway Centre on 16 August. In December – having made a very good impression during his short time in British speedway – the Belle Vue management confirmed that Hougaard would again line-up for them in 2010.

As well as maintaining a solid average in excess of 6.5 points per match for the Aces, he was captain of the Danish side that finally broke Poland’s dominance of the World Under-21 Team Cup, when they triumphed in the final at Rye House on 5 September. Hougaard’s contribution to the success was an 11-point tally, as he supplied strong top-end support to maximum man René Bach (15) and Michael Jensen (12)

The final statistics for the season saw the talented Dane achieve a solid 6.77 average, having garnered 210 points from twenty-nine official appearances in the Aces’ distinctive colours. His most eye-catching performance occurred at Kirky Lane on 24 May, when he notched 12+2 points from six rides in a league encounter against Swindon.

On 15 December, Belle Vue named Hougaard as the first rider to sign on the dotted line for 2011. The highly-rated rider committed himself to his third full season with the Aces (and fourth in total) after first joining the club when he left school mid-way through the 2008 season. He completed the signing with Aces’ supremo David Gordon and operations director Chris Morton at the Radisson Blu Hotel at Manchester Airport.

The Dane began the term on fire by scoring a 12-point maximum from four rides, as Belle Vue collected their first Elite League points of the campaign with a 52-42 win over King’s Lynn in front of a bumper crowd for the season-opener at Kirkmanshulme Lane on 28 March.

He went on to maintain an average of around 7.5 points per match for the Aces, but his season was derailed for a spell following an accident in Poland on 29 May. Indeed, he required twenty-eight stitches to a hand injury after crashing during a home meeting for Grudziądz against Łódź. Hougaard was in the lead when he was struck by another rider and sent flying. He landed on a shoulder, which wasn’t damaged, but his left hand was caught in a wheel.

The rider was told initially that he would be sidelined for about ten days, but then the wound became infected and swollen so Hougaard had to spend almost a week in hospital back home in Denmark whilst he had antibiotic injections three times a day. And, after a period of recuperation, he finally returned to the Belle Vue line-up in an away league fixture at Poole on 29 June.

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 1
Events: 1 – 13th on Denmark’s list; 141st on SWC all-time list
Points: 6 – 13th on Denmark’s list;       114th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 0
Gold medals: 0

HOWARTH, Kyle
DATE OF BIRTH: 11 February 1994, Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester.
BRITISH CAREER: (2009) Scunthorpe II; (2010) Bournemouth, Somerset; (2011) Belle Vue II, Edinburgh, Belle Vue.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 6.61 (NL), 3.00 (NL), 3.00 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Howarth is a former youth grass-track and moto-cross rider who, it was said, reluctantly first gave speedway a try in July 2008. He began entering the amateur meetings at Scunthorpe and his best result was a second place finish behind James Sarjeant in the Youth 500 class on 20 September.

He subsequently participated at the same level in the Winter Championships at the venue and, emphasizing his quick development, he claimed first place overall. Howarth made his official debut at National League level for Scunthorpe Saints on 13 April 2009, when he hit the ground running to tally an immensely impressive 13+2 points from the No. 7 berth in a home fixture versus Weymouth.

The youngster went on to take victory in the final round of the British Under-15 Championship at the Northside track in Workington on 19 September, but had to settle for the runner-up spot overall, behind fellow Scunthorpe rider Ashley Morris. During the season, he completed nineteen official matches for the Saints, recording 74 points for a real-time average of 4.62.

In February 2010, Bournemouth revealed that Howarth had joined them on a full contact ahead of his second season of league racing. The year saw him make further strides and he certainly caught the eye when notching 9+1 points as a guest for Somerset in a Premier League match at Berwick on 29 May. He was to represent the Rebels in a similar capacity on a number of occasions, before finishing third in the British Under-18 Championship at the club’s Oak Tree Arena raceway on 30 July.

Having greatly impressed the Somerset management, the club subsequently announced his signing on loan from Poole on 4 August, when he took the place of Australian Jake Anderson in their line-up. He was to make nine official appearances for the club and, having scored 14 points, achieved an average of 1.94.  

Howarth was to remain ever-present for Bournemouth throughout the club’s twenty-two official matches, scoring 177 points for an average of 7.43. As such, he was a deserving recipient of the Buccaneers’ Rider of the Year award and subsequently toured Down Under during the winter break.

Following the close season decision of Belle Vue to run a second team in the 2011 National League, the Manchester outfit announced on 16 February that Howarth would be part of a solid line-up that also included fellow local boy Jason Garrity, along with Byron Bekker, Adam McKinna, Scott Richardson, Karl Mason and Chris Widman.

Then, on 26 April, Edinburgh revealed that they had drafted the Poole asset into their line-up as a replacement for Ashley Morris. This came as part of a double move by the Monarchs, who had not been getting the points they required from the reserve berths, with Jay Herne also losing his team spot to Lee Dicken.

Howarth was to enjoy a dream start in the Monarchs’ colours by posting a score of 9+3 points in a comfortable Premier League victory at home to Scunthorpe on 29 April. Indeed, he picked up three paid wins and also gave a strong challenge to David Howe when the Scorpions’ skipper was going for double-points. And, on 6 May, he racked-up an excellent 11+3 points, as Edinburgh claimed another victory against Ipswich.

The rider from Ashton-under-Lyne was injured, though, whilst representing Belle Vue Colts in a Knock-Out Cup tie against Dudley at Wolverhampton’s Monmore Green raceway on 17 May. This occurred when the previously unbeaten Heathens rider Ashley Morris tangled with him on the third turn of heat fifteen and both riders careered into the safety fence at high speed.

Howarth came off the worst, sustaining shoulder and collarbone injuries. And although the Dudley man was excluded, there wasn’t sufficient time to repair the damaged fence before the time curfew and the meeting was abandoned.

Howarth made an early return from injury as Belle Vue Colts made ground on the National League leaders courtesy of a 50-40 win at Buxton on 19 June. The rider had been due to come back from his injuries in the following evening’s return fixture, but he rode ahead of schedule at the Hi-Edge Raceway and picked up 10+2 points from five rides.

In August, Howarth made another significant stride up the speedway ladder, when he was introduced to the main Belle Vue squad in the No. 8 capacity.

HOWE, David Peter
DATE OF BIRTH: 1 March 1982, Leicester, Leicestershire.
BRITISH CAREER: (1997) Peterborough II; (1998) Peterborough, Norfolk; (1999-2001) Peterborough; (2002-05) Wolverhampton; (2006) Oxford; (2007-08) Wolverhampton; (2009-11) Scunthorpe, King's Lynn.
CLUB HONOURS: League Championship winner: 1997 [Peterborough II], 1998 [Peterborough], 1999 [Peterborough], 2002 [Wolverhampton]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 1999, 2001 [both Peterborough]; Craven Shield winner: 1999 [Peterborough].
MAJOR HONOUR: British Under-21 Champion: 2000.
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 8.15 (PL), 4.76 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Howe first rode a speedway machine at Milton Keynes’ Elfield Park raceway in 1991, when just nine years of age. Then, in 1997, he made his British Amateur League debut with Peterborough.

It was to be a dream first year for the then fifteen-year-old, too, as he brilliantly headed the side’s averages and, along with the likes of Simon Stead, Olly Allen, Paul Clews and Ross Brady, helped the then-nicknamed Thundercats to hoist aloft the league title.

Howe’s efforts earned him a crack at the Amateur League Riders’ Championship, staged at Long Eaton on 7 September. Luck wasn’t on his side in his first outing, though, since he suffered a puncture while leading on the last lap. However, showing wonderful mental courage for one so young, he then reeled off four straight wins to finish on 12 points and occupy third place overall.

He moved into Peterborough’s Premier League side in 1998 and also made a single appearance for Norfolk in the re-named Conference League. He rode in seventeen league fixtures for the Panthers, netting 136 points and a superb 7.70 average. And, once again, he had cause for celebration, as Peterborough landed the league title.

Howe was to remain with Peterborough for three more seasons, starting with the 1999 campaign when the East of England Showground outfit returned to the Elite League. His golden tough was once more evident, as the Panthers completed a glorious treble, winning the Elite League Championship, the Knock-Out Cup and the Craven Shield.

During his time with the Panthers, he secured a brilliant victory in the final of the British Under-21 Championship at Edinburgh on 7 April 2000 and followed it up by making his British Final debut at Coventry the following month.

He again helped the Panthers to Knock-Out Cup success in 2001, before a change of scenery the following year saw him link with Wolverhampton. Howe brought his golden touch with him, too, as the Monmore men eventually claimed the League Championship after defeating Eastbourne 93-87 on aggregate in the Play-Off final.    

Having enjoyed a solid first term in the Wolves’ colours, his form was to be pretty consistent for the West Midlands outfit over the next three years. Among many high spots, he hit a superb 15-point maximum for the Great Britain Under-21 team against their Swedish counterparts at Monmore Green on 8 July 2003, as his side triumphed 57-33. Then, the following season, he raced to a brilliant victory in the prestigious Ladbroke Olympique on 25 October, scoring 13 points to finish ahead of Peter Karlsson and Scott Nicholls on the rostrum.

Howe spent the 2006 season at Oxford, where he was initially appointed skipper by then-promoter Aaron Lanney. In what was a difficult term for the Cheetahs, he was to be replaced as captain in mid-season by Todd Wiltshire.

Despite the problems that the club was enduring, Howe maintained his form and remained ever-present throughout their forty-two official matches to register 252 points and a 6.27 average.
A return to Wolverhampton followed in 2007, when Howe was to enjoy his best-ever term in top-flight speedway, securing 277 points from thirty-eight official matches for a solid 7.81 average.

On the downside he suffered two hefty knocks, breaking his collarbone whilst riding in Italy in July and then having his season prematurely curtailed by a similar injury in the Cumberland Classic at Workington on 29 September. He showcased great form either side of the first injury, not just for his club but also on the individual front.

That was highlighted by his performance in the British Final at Monmore Green on 4 June, when he accrued 14 points to jointly top-score with Chris Harris, before the Coventry rider took victory ahead of him in the four-man final.

His runner-up finish in the national championship earned him a wildcard place at the showpiece event of the year – the Millennium Stadium-staged British Grand Prix on 30 June. And he was delighted to appear in the event, scoring 4 points on a wonderful night in Cardiff.
 
Howe sustained a badly gashed foot during the annual indoor ice meeting at Telford on 24 February 2008. Representing England in the afternoon event, his injury occurred when he clashed with the Rest of the World’s Martin Smolinski at the end of the first lap of heat twelve. Despite such far from ideal preparation for the season ahead, he still went on to appear in forty-three official matches for Wolverhampton, which yielded 254 points and a 6.01 real-time average.    

He elected to drop into the Premier League with Scunthorpe in 2009 and was to enjoy a fine campaign with the Scorpions. His season ended prematurely, however, when he sustained a broken ankle on 16 October, as the side entertained Rye House in the Young Shield semi-final. Howe picked up the knock in heat ten when, having jetted from the gate, there was contact with visiting rider Joe Haines, which resulted in him clattering into the air safety barrier.

The rider was subsequently   in attendance for the Kenny Smith Memorial meeting at the Eddie Wright Raceway on 23 October, after which he committed himself to the Scorpions for 2010 and also stated that he would be happy to spend at least another ten years with the go-ahead club.

Howe suffered a shoulder injury after crashing with Birmingham’s Steve Johnston in heat one of a home Premier Trophy encounter on 9 April and subsequently aggravated the problem at Stoke in the same competition on 24 April.

In spite of the knocks, he was to take a fabulous second place – behind Newcastle’s Kenni Larsen – in the Premier League Riders’ Championship at Sheffield on 26 September. And he also remained ever-present throughout Scunthorpe’s 40-match programme in official meetings, obtaining 360 points and an average of 8.38.

At home, his highest return for the Scorpions was a 16-point tally from five rides in a league fixture versus Sheffield on 30 August; his performance on the day was augmented by 6 points from a tactical outing in heat ten.

Away, Howe’s high spot ironically occurred at Sheffield in a Premier Trophy encounter on 8 April, when he bagged an 18-point maximum from five rides, his tally enhanced by another successful 6-point tactical ride in heat eleven.

In November, Scunthorpe confirmed that Howe would again represent them in 2011, when he would also be the Scorpions’ skipper for the first time in his three-season association with the club. And he was to maintain an average of a shade below 8 points per match over the first half of the campaign.

However, he received a broken and lacerated finger when an engine was accidentally dropped on his hand during a grass-track meeting in Germany. Despite that, shortly afterwards, he rode through the pain barrier to contribute 8 points for Scunthorpe in a home match against Sheffield on 10 June.

The injury subsequently got worse, though, and he struggled to hold on to his bike in a Knock-Out Cup replay at Ipswich six days henceforth, resulting in him pulling out of the tie after two painful outings.

He soon returned to action, though, and at the mid-section of the season his average stood at a little over 8 points a match for the Scorpions. His form earned an Elite League call-up from King’s Lynn in July, when he was brought into the Stars’ squad as a replacement for Lee Complin in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity, alongside Lasse Bjerre.
 
FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 3 – 85th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 12 – 83rd on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 12 – 86th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 0 – n/a
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

HUGHES, Kyle Richard
DATE OF BIRTH: 15 June 1989, Bath, Somerset.
BRITISH CAREER: (2004) Mildenhall; (2005) Oxford II; (2006) Boston; (2007) Oxford II; (2008) Plymouth, Sheffield; (2009) Plymouth; (2010) Rye House, Rye House II; (2011) Somerset, Plymouth, King’s Lynn II.
CLUB HONOURS: Conference Trophy winner: 2004 [Mildenhall], 2008 [Plymouth]; League Championship winner: 2004 [Mildenhall], 2005 [Oxford II]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2008 [Plymouth]; National Trophy winner: 2009 [Plymouth].
2011 STARTING AVERAGE: 4.76 (PL), 8.96 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: In a famous sporting link, Hughes’ cousin is the Trowbridge-born and highly-ranked international snooker star, Stephen Lee. The Chippenham-based youngster took his first speedway rides at Reading’s then-training track in 1999, before becoming a regular on the second-half scene at Swindon.

Then, during his first two years of official competition, he tasted League Championship success with Mildenhall in 2004 and Oxford Academy in 2005. Further moves took him to Boston and back to Oxford, before he joined Plymouth in 2008 and also enjoyed regular outings with Premier League Sheffield from the middle of the season onwards.

Remaining with the Devils in 2009, he was also drafted into the Newport side as a ‘doubling-up’ rider – along with Kyle Newman – as a replacement for Tony Atkin in June. However, before actually appearing in a match for the Welsh outfit, further changes saw Hughes replaced in the ‘doubling-up’ role by Shelby Rutherford at the beginning of the following month. He was to see the term out with Plymouth and added to their Conference Trophy and Knock-Out Cup successes of the previous year by helping the Devils secure the National Trophy.

Prior to that, he was desperately unlucky in the National League Riders’ Championship at Rye House on 26 September, when he shed a chain on the last bend whilst leading a run-off for the coveted title, thereby handing victory to Buxton’s Craig Cook.

In November, it was revealed that he had agreed to link with Premier League Rye House in 2010 and would also represent the Hertfordshire club’s National League outfit. Emphasizing that his story is one of success for British speedway’s third tier, Hughes won the highly coveted National League Rider of the Year award at the annual Speedway Riders’ Association ceremony in December.

He was to show remarkable form for the Rockets in the season’s early exchanges, his efforts culminating in a brilliant fourth-place finish in the British Under-21 Championship at Lakeside on 16 April. However, Hughes was temporarily derailed in a heat four spill during Rye House’s home league clash with Berwick on 3 May.

That saw him tangle with Bandits’ Michal Makovský in the opening yards of the race, with the initial medical opinion suggesting he had sustained a fractured right foot after the appendage had become caught up in his real wheel. Thankfully, hospital X-rays revealed no more than tissue damage and, showing great determination, the youngster quickly returned to action.

Hughes’ season was to end prematurely, though, when he was involved in an alarming spill during a home meeting for the Rockets against King’s Lynn in the Young Shield on 10 October. Pursuing Stars’ Kozza Smith, he lost control on the fourth bend of the Hoddesdon raceway and the closely following Lasse Bjerre couldn’t avoid a collision.

It was initially thought that Hughes had broken his pelvis but, although that proved not to be the case, he did suffer a badly broken collarbone – which subsequently required plating – and was also left generally battered and bruised. His linking with the Rockets could be hailed a success, though, as he had scored 207 points from thirty-six matches for an average of 5.60. Meanwhile, he returned an average of 9.07 for the Cobras, having notched 158 points from fourteen appearances.

But with Rye House having named their septet for 2011 on 22 November and being unable to accommodate Hughes, it was announced on 3 December – in front of a packed Oak Tree Clubhouse – that the Bath-born rider was a certain starter in the Somerset side for 2011.

Late in February, it was reported that Hughes had received the all-clear to resume racing following the shoulder injury he had sustained the previous October. The rider required surgery after suffering a severe break whilst riding for Rye House at King’s Lynn and, having taken specialist advice, a plate would remain in place. That said, if he was to suffer any discomfort then it would be taken out.

He was to find points hard to come by in the early weeks of the campaign, as Somerset romped to the top of the Premier League courtesy of a string of away wins, and a recurrence of his shoulder injury certainly didn’t help, forcing him to miss a couple of meetings in late April. But, following a broken leg sustained by Darren Mallett, a confidence-boosting move saw Hughes drafted into King’s Lynn’s National League side as a replacement for the injured rider on 13 May.

That same evening, he returned to the Somerset side in a Knock-Out Cup tie against Plymouth at the Oak Tree Arena but, after making a successful comeback courtesy of a 6-point tally, a blown engine in heat eleven left the Wiltshire-based Hughes wanting to take a break from the sport. He informed the Rebels’ management of his decision shortly after the conclusion of the meeting. Eight days later, a team re-declaration at Somerset saw him replaced by Alex Davies.

Hughes’ break from the sport didn’t last long, though, as on 20 May – following Plymouth’s home league match versus Workington – Devils’ boss Mike Bowden revealed that the rider was to return to the St Boniface Arena, having previously represented the club in British speedway’s third tier in 2008 and 2009. It was subsequently confirmed that the rider he would replace was Seemond Stephens, who had announced his retirement from the sport.

The rider was troubled by mechanical problems in his first two home matches for the Devils, but proved a match-winner for the club when they celebrated their first-ever away victory in the Premier League at Leicester on 4 June after spending considerable time working on his bike prior to the meeting. Indeed, Hughes recorded two race wins in his 11-point tally, as Plymouth posted a narrow 45-44 success.

He belatedly made his debut for King’s Lynn’s National League side in a home match against Scunthorpe on 15 June but, although he top-scored with 11 points (his tally including 4 points from a tactical outing in heat six), he couldn’t prevent the Young Stars from going down to a heavy 58-34 defeat. Then, on 19 June, he notched a career-high Premier League total of 14 points at his least favoured track, Newcastle.

On 26 July, Hughes was the winner of the prestigious FAST Golden Hammer in front of a packed house at Wolverhampton’s Monmore Green. He proved to be the most consistent performer in a wide-open event in which the main contenders all took points off each other, with a large crowd enjoying some terrific action.

The victor revealed afterwards that the big event win meant he felt paid back for the biggest disappointment of his career – when he lost the 2009 National League Riders’ Championship with a chain failure on the final bend.

Shortly after his individual success, the Plymouth reserve suffered a broken collarbone in a heat eight crash during the Devils’ home win over Leicester on 12 August. Hughes had been in good form with paid 10 points from four rides, but he could take no further part in the meeting following the smash. He was replaced by James Cockle at the start of September, the incoming rider re-joing the club for his second spell of the campaign.

Hughes recovered quickly, though, and returned to the Plymouth side less than a month after his accident when he replaced the injured Lee Smart.