On a wonderful Sunday afternoon at Eaton Park, and with the weather being so kind, Norwich Stars took on old foes Wednesfield Aces at Eaton Park in the quarter-finals of the British Team Championship for the right to see who will go through to the semi-final stage of the competition to be held at East Newport in September.

On a track that had seen well over two hundred heats of cycle speedway the previous day due to the British Youth & Junior League national round one, the Eaton Park track looked in remarkably good
condition as both sides lined up for heat one. The match started with a shared scoring heat, with Norwich making the early breakthrough in heat two when Richard Williamson and Lee Grange scored a 6-4 heat win (11-9).

Straight away Wednesfield replied the best way possible from Scott Doherty and Lee Aris with a 7-3 heat win to go into the lead (14-16). The home side then scored a 6-3 heat win when Aces' captain Chris Jewkes was excluded for ‘Moving at the Tapes’, and then in the very next heat, Norwich’s Leigh Cossey lowered Wednesfield’s Terry Norman's colours with a victory that saw Leigh win in a time of 42.6
seconds.

Norwich’s 6-4 heat win in heat five saw the Stars re-take the lead by 26-23, but they could not build on that slender lead in heat seven when yet again Scott Doherty and Lee Aris came to Wednesfield’s rescue with a fine 7-3 heat win (34-35). Mark Griffiths came in for Roger Cox for Wednesfield in heat eight for a shared scoring heat (39-40), and then the former British senior finalist partnered Sam Smith to
a 6-4 heat win in heat nine as Wednesfield went into the interval leading 43-46.

The second half started just like the first with a shared scoring heat, and then in heat 11, Scott Doherty was excluded by referee Mark Winwood for yet another tapes offence. Lee Aris showed his true determination as he had to make his way through the traffic, defeating Richard Williamson and Lee Grange from the back to take the chequered flag in what was to be the fastest race winning time of the match 42.1 seconds and a 4-5 heat score (53 - 55).

Wednesfield’s Terry Norman took his first race win of the afternoon in the very next heat for a shared scoring heat (58-60). The shrewed Wednesfield management team of Mick Aris and Roger Ellis brought in Mark Griffiths for an extra ride in heat 13 (63-65). Lee Grange and veteran Chris Cullum brought Norwich level in heat 14 with a 6-4 heat win (69-69), but the ever reliable pairing of Lee Aris and Mark Griffiths gave the Aces a four point lead with the first 7-3 heat win of the second half (72-76).

With just three heats to go, and the match building up to a crescendo, Norwich had to come out firing on all cylinders if they wanted to progress in this year's competition. Ian Grange won heat 16 for a shared scoring heat, Lee Aris went on to win heat 17 by a mile for another shared scoring heat, and Richard Williamson of Norwich went on to win heat 18 but his partner Leigh Cossey in heat 18 could not find a way past Chris Jewkes for that vital second place that would have given Norwich the draw.

As it happened, Leigh made an attempt to pass Jewkes, but as he made the move he clipped the Wednesfield rider's back wheel on the final lap and fell, giving Wednesfield a shared scoring heat and the hard earnt win.

This was a superb cycle speedway match overall that neither side deserved to lose. Wednesfield came, saw and conquered, but the never say die attitude from Norwich made it the match it was. This match was well refereed by Mark Winwood of Birmingham.