STOKE A.R. Richards Potters let a 12-point aggregate lead with four heats remaining slip as Mildenhall staged a remarkable comeback to win the meeting 50-40 and tie the aggregate scores at 90-90 to force a replay of this KO Cup quarter final tie.
The deadlock was broken after three drawn heats as the Potters went behind in heat four with Daniel Halsey and Matt Marson combining for a 5-1 over Luke Priest and Shaun Tedham to put the Tigers in front and they extended their lead in the following race as former Potters skipper Jon Armstrong took the flag ahead of Mitchell Davey with Jordan Jenkins taking third to give the Suffolk side a 18-12 lead cutting the Potters aggregate lead to just four points with the Potters leading 62-58.
The Potters kept things tight in the next few heats before Shaun Tedham and Ryan Terry-Daley took a 5-1 over Danno Verge and Marson to reduce the Tigers lead to just two points at the midway point of the meeting. The Potters then took the lead in the meeting as Potters number one Davey teamed up with Terry-Daley for a 5-1 over Lewis Whitmore after Halsey had been excluded for being the primary cause of the stoppage as the Potters pairing silenced the West Row crowd giving the Potters a 34-32 lead with four heats to go and an aggregate lead of 84-72.
Mildenhall struck back in heat thirteen with a 5-1 from Halsey and Ben Morley over Davey and Luke Priest to put themselves in 40-38 in front with the Tigers needed two maximum heat wins to draw the tie on aggregate. The Tigers were not done as Marson and Jordan Jenkins got the better of David Wallinger and Shaun Tedham to lead 45-39 and trail on aggregate 85-89 leaving a tense final race.
With the Fen Tigers needing a 5-1 the Potters could win with anything other than this score it went into a tense final heat decider and the Tigers pairing of Halsey and Armstrong took the maximum 5-1 over Davey and Atkin to win the meeting 50-40.
Potters team manager Malcolm Vasey commented “It was a superb meeting and I cannot fault our riders at all they all played apart against a very good Mildenhall side who beat the high flying Eastbourne Eagles here last week also in the same dramatic style. I will admit it feels like we have lost having been 12-points up on aggregate with four races left but we still in there and ready for the battle in the replay.”
The Potters have already confirmed that their leg of the tie will take place on Sunday July 30th with the start time to be confirmed.
MILDENHALL 50: Daniel Halsey 12, Jon Armstrong 11+2, Ben Morley 10+1, Jordan Jenkins 6+2, Matt Marsen 5+1, Lewis Whitmore 4, Danno Verge 2+1 STOKE 40: Mitchell Davey 10, Tony Atkin 8+1, Luke Priest 6, Shaun Tedham 6, Ryan Terry-Daley 4+2, Paul Burnett 3+3, David Wallinger 3+1 Aggregate score: Mildenhall 90 Stoke 90
