STOKE Easy Rider Potters gained their first win of the season as they gained all three points defeating last seasons’ National League Champions Mildenhall Fen Tigers 55-40 in the National Trophy at Loomer Road on Saturday night.

Mildenhall took the lead in the opening heat with a 4-2 from Stefan Nielsen and Aaron Baseby over Luke Chessell with Lee Smart retiring. Nielsen had locked up initially as everyone passed him before Baseby and then Smart both fell in separate incidents Baseby remounting to take third and Nielsen eventually passing Chessell to win the race.

The Potters then struck with three successive 5-1 heat advantages to build a 17-7 lead after the opening four heats.

Tigers team manager Robert Henry nominated Nielsen as a tactical ride in heat five but it was home skipper Luke Priest who took the victory from a determined Nielsen with Ben Reade overhauling Baseby for third place for a drawn four all heat.

Aaron Baseby and Ryan Terry Daley combined for a Tigers 4-2 in heat eight as Chessell split the Tigers pairing after home debutant Lee Payne came to grief attempting to go around Daley on the second lap but it was the Potters who remained in front as they lead 29-21 after eight heats.

Heath nine saw the Potters extend their lead with a 5-1 heat advantage after former Potter Liam Rumsey fell at the first time of asking and then Tigers skipper Daniel Halsey failed to beat the two minutes time allowance and went off fifteen metres to open up at twelve point lead.

The Tigers reduced the deficit in heat ten as Jon Armstrong took victory from Smart with Josh Bates taking third place as the Tigers trail 36-26 after ten heats.

Hughes and Tedham extend the Potters lead to fourteen points with a 5-1 over Baseby after Nielsen had fallen allowing the Tigers manager Rob Henry to nominate Bates as a tactical ride and he promptly delivered as he took victory from Reade with Rumsey finishing third for a Mildenhall 7-2 heat win with the Potters leading 43-34 after twelve races.

Hughes took his fourth victory of the night despite suffering from flu from Halsey with Smart taking third place for a Stoke 4-2 after Nielsen had fallen after clipping Hughes back wheel while attempting to pass him and Priest and Tedham followed this up with a 5-1 over Daley to seal all three points up for the Potters.

Josh Bates took the chequered flag in heat fifteen from Ben Reade and Luke Priest for a drawn heat to give the Potters a comfortable 55-40 victory over the Suffolk side.

A delighted Easy Rider Potters team manager Malcolm Vasey said “It was an extremely gritty performance from us right from the word go. We really got stuck in from the start and the team looked far better balanced tonight and I think we are now beginning to go places and we’re all really pleased with the result. Kyle (Hughes) has been ill all day and asked to be excused from heat fifteen with all three points in the bag or he would have come out for that race and it was good to be in the knowledge we had the points secure against such a quality side as Mildenhall and it’s good to feel like that. Everyone chipped in tonight and we’re really pleased with the performance but we cannot ever be complacent and I’ve said that to the lads already. We now look forward to Coventry Storm on Friday in our first National League meeting and our reserves are both there on Monday in a development league meeting so that’s rather handy and the rest of the team are capable of going well there but it will not be an easy meeting especially as Coventry have done some tweaking to their line up recently and we will see how things go on Friday.”

STOKE 55: Luke Priest 12+2, Kyle Hughes 12, Ben Reade 10+1, Shaun Tedham 7+2, Luke Chessell 5+1, Lee Smart 5, Lee Payne 4+2.
MILDENHALL 40: Josh Bates 12, Stefan Nielsen 7, Daniel Halsey 6, Jon Armstrong 5+1, Aaron Baseby 5, Ryan Terry-Daley 3, Liam Rumsey 2.