Premier League Best Pairs Finals
Queensway Meadows, Newport
Sunday, 26th July 1998.
The top eight team pairings based on Green Sheet Averages were seeded to the finals. This was organized into two groups of four teams.
Group A: Exeter, Reading, Arena-Essex, and Edinburgh.
Group B: Peterborough, Newcastle, Newport and Hull.
The top two from each group over six heats progress to the semi-finals with the winning team from each semi-final contesting the final.
Heat 1: Petri Kokko, Dave Mullett, Peter Carr, Kenny McKinna [60.13]
Easy maximum for Reading over Edinburgh
(Reading 7, Edinburgh 2)
Heat 2: Nikki Pedersen, Glen Cunningham, Brett Woodifield [59.69]
Good win for Nikki Pedersen but Jesper Olsen fell to give Peterborough a narrow advantage
(Peterborough 5, Newcastle 4)
Heat 3: Jan Pedersen, Michael Coles, Frank Smart, Leigh Lanham [61.32]
Jan Pedersen kept up his good form at Newport to win but the Exeter pairing kept together to take to odd point
(Exeter 5, Arena Essex 4)
Heat 4: Craig Watson, Paul Fry, Paul Bentley, Roger Lobb [60.57]
Roger Lobb was drafted into the Hull team to replace the breakdown victim Paul Thorp. Bentley gated but was passed by Watson and Fry to the delight of the home crowd.
(Newport 7, Hull 2)
Heat 5: Petri Kokko, Dave Mullett, Jan Pedersen [60.40]
Another Reading maximum with Leigh Lanham retiring.
(Reading 7, Arena-Essex 2)
Heat 6: Nikki Pedersen, Paul Bentley, Jesper Olsen, Roger Lobb [60.06]
Nikki Pedersen with a good win from Paul Bentley with Olsen still shaken after his fall.
(Newcastle 6, Hull 3)
Heat 7: Michael Coles, Frank Smart, Peter Carr, Kenny McKinna [61.37]
Michael Coles from the back to secure an Exeter maximum.
(Exeter 7, Edinburgh 2)
Heat 8: Brett Woodifield, Glenn Cunningham, Craig Watson [60.68]
A key heat in Group B. Paul Fry gated with Watson making a charge from the back. Woodifield took advantage of a slip by Fry to pass and Cunningham followed suit a lap later. Fry then fell and remounted but subsequently retired. Watson could make no impression.
(Peterborough 7, Newport 2)
Heat 9: Jan Pedersen, Kenny McKinna, Leigh Lanham, Peter Carr [61.53]
Kenny McKinna led but Jan Pedersen took him from the back.
(Arena-Essex 6, Edinburgh 3)
Heat 10: Glenn Cunningham, Brett Woodifield, Paul Bentley, Roger Lobb [61.41]
An expected maximum for Peterborough over the depleted Hull team.
(Peterborough 7, Hull 2)
Heat 11: Michael Coles, Dave Mullett, Frank Smart, Petri Kokko [60.87]
A re-run heat after an unsatisfactory start. Kokko missed the start for once and that was that. Both teams had ensured qualification before this result.
(Exeter 6, Reading 3)
Heat 12: Nikki Pedersen, Craig Watson, Jesper Olsen, [61.04]
Paul Fry was excluded in the second attempt to run this final deciding heat after falling at the first bend when marginally ahead of Pedersen to the dismay of the home fans. This ensured that Newcastle only had to finish with two riders to eliminate the home team. Watson lifted the spirits of the home support by passing Olsen but Pedersen took the win.
(Newcastle 6, Newport 3)
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Group A |
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Exeter Falcons |
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18 |
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Michael Coles |
3 |
4 |
4 |
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11 |
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Frank Smart |
2* |
3* |
2 |
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7+2 |
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Reading Racers |
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17 |
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Dave Mullett |
3* |
3* |
3 |
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9+2 |
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Petri Kokko |
4 |
4 |
0 |
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8 |
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Arena-Essex |
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12 |
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Jan Pedersen |
4 |
2 |
4 |
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10 |
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Leigh Lanham |
0 |
R |
2 |
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2 |
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Edinburgh Monarchs |
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7 |
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Peter Carr |
2 |
2 |
0 |
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4 |
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Kenny McKinna |
0 |
0 |
3 |
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3 |
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Group B |
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Peterborough Panthers |
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19 |
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Glenn Cunningham |
3 |
3* |
4 |
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10+1 |
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Brett Woodifield |
2* |
4 |
3* |
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9+2 |
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Newcastle Diamonds |
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16 |
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Nikki Pedersen |
4 |
4 |
4 |
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12 |
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Jesper Olsen |
F |
2 |
2 |
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4 |
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Newport Wasps |
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12 |
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Paul Fry |
3* |
R |
X |
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3+1 |
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Craig Watson |
4 |
2 |
3 |
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9 |
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Hull Vikings |
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7 |
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Paul Bentley |
2 |
3 |
2 |
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7 |
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Roger Lobb |
0 |
0 |
0 |
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0 |
1st Semi-final: Frank Smart, Nikki Pedersen, Michael Coles, Jesper Olsen [61.09]
Nikki Pedersen was beaten for the first time after Smart made the gate with Coles ensuring that Exeter would progress
(Exeter 6, Newcastle 3 )
2nd Semi-final: Petri Kokko, Glenn Cunningham, Brett Woodifield, Dave Mullett [60.50]
Petri Kokko won by some margin but Peterborough filled the minor placings to progress with Mullett falling.
(Peterborough 5, Reading 4)
Final: Frank Smart, Brett Woodifield, Glenn Cunningham, Michael Coles [61.50]
Peterborough won by finishing second once more with Smart winning but Coles pointless.
(Peterborough 5, Exeter 4)
The pairs scoring formula of 4, 3, 2, 0 ensured that provided you avoid last place you must progress. Peterborough took advantage of this to win the trophy despite only finishing first in two heats out of the five they contested (one each for Cunningham and Woodifield).
The revised knockout format kept the meeting exciting as compared to the 1996 21 heat format.
Man of the match: Nicki Pedersen
Most exciting rider: Michael Coles
John Lowe