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This was a Conference League match postponed on a number of occasions because of the summer’s rainy weather but it was significant to both sides in their attempts to secure fourth place in the table. Boston went into the match without either of their recognised heat leaders and by the careful use of their tactical options they managed to mount a successful damage limitation exercise to ensure that they took the aggregate bonus point and claim fourth place in the league. The Rye House Raiders plundered most of the early races with a sequence of race wins on the slick surface but as Boston became used to the conditions they managed to regain some ground to achieve their main objective. The match hinged on the tactical ride by McKinna in heat 11 and the tactical substitute ride by Wright in the next race both securing second place with battling displays for a total of eight points between them in the two races. It was a backs-to-the-wall performance and the team can be proud of their efforts.

Rye House: Bowen 8, Mear 16, Halsey13, Karlis 18, Newman 6, Filmer 0.

Boston: McKinna 8, Lambert 5, Wright 10, Mallett 3, McDade 4, Lowe 3, Morris 0.

Friday October 12

Boston 36 Scunthorpe 56

(Scunthorpe win 119-66 on aggregate)

Once again the Scorpions stamped their authority over Boston and whilst the process may have been entertaining it was definitely a disappointment to the Barracudas who had hoped to finish their season at home on a high note. After winning the toss and choosing gates two and four, Boston were out-gated in Heat 1 although Brundle quickly passed Haines but could not catch Woffinden who was only one second outside the four-year-old Conference track record.

Adam Lowe’s engine suffered major damage just prior to the meeting and he did not make the start of heat two and, with McDade an early faller, Scunthorpe coasted to a 5-0 advantage. The track continued to remain grippy and some riders struggled with it and in particular Matt Wright was far from his usual self as Cockle passed him coming out of turn four of the opening lap and, with Lambert unable to catch Auty, Scunthorpe registered another 4-2 in heat three. The next race was shared with Mallett passing Compton on the first lap to romp away to a fine victory but Scunthorpe scored another 4-2 in the next race in which Woffinden looked invincible. A tactical ride for Brundle came in heat six which he won and with Adam McKinna narrowly holding off Compton after the two had battled for four laps Boston reduced Scunthorpe’s lead to four points. Mallett led Auty for three laps in heat seven before the Scorpion neatly switched inside his line as they entered the final lap. Heat eight was a disappointment for the Barracudas as Haines and Bekker scored a relatively easy 5-1.

Heat nine was shared, providing the first win of the evening for Simon Lambert and Cockle was excluded in the next when his fall clearly impeded McKinna, Brundle winning the re-run despite a hectic chase by Auty to give Boston a 4-2. But the eight-point deficit became 12 points when Woffinden and Haines led all the way for another Scunthorpe maximum in heat 11. Auty was too fast for Lambert in heat 12, yet another 4-2 to the visitors a score repeated in the next as the lead stretched to 16 points. Matthew Wright demonstrated his true ability with a fine win in heat 14 but tactical substitute Simon Lambert clearly tiring during his second match of the evening could make little impression on Bekker and Cockle.

In the final race Mallett made the gate but first Woffinden and then Auty passed him during the first lap the former completing an 18-point maximum. A big crowd had stayed on to watch the match following Kings Lynn’s Premier League fixture and they witnessed another power-house display from Scunthorpe’s talented team. Woffinden has the hallmark of a future champion and Auty could well be bracketed with him. Joe Haines, still at an earlier stage in his career, also appears to have some special abilities and may well attain the heights of his illustrious team-mates next season. Boston did their best and Brundle, Mallett and Lambert were always in the thick of the action. McKinna battled hard and Wright won a race after struggling to get to grips with the track in the early stages.

Boston: Brundle 13, McKinna 4, Lambert 9, Wright 3, Mallett 7, Lowe 0, McDade 0.

Scunthorpe: Woffinden 15, Haines 7, Auty 13, Cockle 3, Compton 6, Richardson 4, Bekker 8.

Sunday October 7

Scunthorpe 63 Boston 30

Scunthorpe achieved an emphatic 63-30 victory in this third meeting of the two clubs inside eight days. And they practically sealed their place in the final of the Conference League play-offs with such an emphatic semi-final conquest. Only Paul Cooper and Simon Lambert made significant contributions for Boston and left the Cudas with a mountain to climb in the second leg at King’s Lynn on Friday (October 12).

The meeting started badly for Boston when Paul Cooper blew a hole in the casing of his best engine in the re-run of heat one after he had touched the tapes in the first attempt to stage the race. Boston made the most awful of starts in the first four races with only Lambert splitting the Scunthorpe pair in heat three, the other races being 5-1 in favour of the home team. Cooper mounted on his second machine managed to win heat five but it was business as usual for Scunthorpe with another maximum in the following race.

Simon Lambert won heat seven but with Matthew Wright unable to get to grips with the track the race was shared and McKinna fell in heat eight another maximum to the Scorpions. The Scunthorpe onslaught was unabated until Paul Cooper scored six points from a tactical ride in heat 11 with McKinna third as Boston tried to salvage some degree of pride. Lambert outpaced Auty in the next race as Boston fought to try and preserve respectability in the score line but Cooper’s second places in heats 13 and 15 were all that Boston could muster in the closing heats.

It must be said that Scunthorpe are a remarkable side with Haines now almost as good as the peerless Woffinden and the outstanding Auty. And try as they might, Boston just could not match this fine side.

Scunthorpe: Woffinden 13, Haines 12, Auty 10, Cockle 7, Compton 7, Richardson5, Bekker 9.
Boston: Cooper 13 McKinna 2, Lambert 10, Wright 0, Mallett 2, Morris 2, McDade 1.

Friday October 5

Boston 30 Scunthorpe 62

(held at Scunthorpe)

This KO Cup semi-final second leg meeting proved to be a big disappointment for the Boston “Staffsmart” Barracudas” who had hoped to improve on their showing at the same venue just five days earlier when they restricted the Scorpions to a mere six point advantage. But the return to the Scunthorpe ranks of Tai Woffinden appeared to raise everyone else’s game and although the match was interesting and attracted a good crowd, in reality there was only ever one team in it as Scunthorpe went on to secure a 113-75 passage into the final.

The immaculate Woffinden opened his account with a superb race win over Paul Cooper in Heat1 with Joe Haines passing Adam McKinna for the third place point. Heat 2 left the Barracudas with major problems when McDade spun and fell in the path of Adam Lowe as the pair came out of turn two, the latter striking his grounded partner and was thrown from the bike which then proceeded to a spin violently out of control across the infield luckily hitting no-one before it eventually came to rest. Lowe himself was excluded for a fall in the re-run to complete a disastrous start for the “home” team with the Scunthorpe pair cruising to a 5-0 at the third attempt to stage the race.

Things did not improve with consecutive 5-1s for Scunthorpe who led by an incredible 19-4 after four races. Lambert managed to split Woffinden and Haines in heat five, resisting pressure from the latter who almost squeezed past and with Cooper scoring a six-point tactical ride victory in heat six the beleaguered Boston had climbed back to within 14 points of the Scorpions. Slight relief for the Barracudas came in heat seven when Jamie Cockle slid off his bike while third but it was merely the calm before the storm.

Scunthorpe continued their relentless attack with four more maximums in the last eight heats demonstrating their strength right across the board. Race victories during the final onslaught came from Haines (twice), Bekker, Woffinden and Auty the Barracudas being swept aside by a sea of talent that was both devastating and efficient in its execution. A fall by Woffinden in Heat 9 was the only blemish and it was left to Cooper, Lambert and Mallett to provide any real opposition to one of the greatest sides that the Conference League has seen and who would appear destined to claim all of the major team events at this level in 2007.

Boston: Cooper 12, McKinna 1, Lambert 7, Wright 3, Mallett 6, Lowe 1, McDade 0.

Scunthorpe: Woffinden 14, Haines 10, Auty 16, Cockle 5, Richardson 7, Bekker 10.

Sunday September 30

Scunthorpe 51, Boston 45

With yet another rain off for the Boston “Staffsmart” Barracudas at the Norfolk Arena on Friday they certainly made a brilliant recovery after a terrible start at Normanby Road on Sunday coming back from an 18 point deficit to end the match a mere six points adrift of their multi Champion opponents. Indeed after trailing 10-2 after just two heats the Barracudas outscored mighty Scunthorpe over the remainder of the match not something many teams can do at the “Normanby Fortress.”

Forgetting the scoreline it was a memorable afternoon of Conference League speedway demonstrating totally the entertainment value at this level of the sport. After a poor start by Boston as so often happens they started the fight back with a shared heat three followed up with another drawn heat after Byron Bekker fell close to the end of heat four. Paul Cooper won heat five for Boston but Scunthorpe were still looking very strong at this stage and their lead had advanced to 16 points by the end of heat eight. After sharing heat nine an outstanding last bend pass by Josh Auty gave the Scorpions a 4-2 and an 18-point lead.

Paul Cooper was nominated for a tactical ride in heat 11. And, with Adam McKinna fending off the challenge from his opponents, Boston scored an 8-1. The next two heats were shared with a battling performance from Simon Lambert in heat 12 in which he used the dirt line of the outer tack edge to great effect to out pace the Scorpions pair. Cooper, who was inspirational both on the track and in the pits enabled Boston to share heat 13 with his third race win. Boston pulled Simon Lambert back 15 metres in the penultimate race to enable him to double his points scored if he beat one of the Scunthorpe riders. It took the Boston captain three laps top get past Richardson who blocked his every move but as Lambert swept passed him on the final turn he maintained his momentum to go under James Cockle in one of the manoeuvres of the season to take a 6-3 advantage from the race. In heat 15 Josh Auty reared at the gate allowing Paul Cooper an easy victory with Lambert nursing a sick motor around to take third place to end a remarkable match.

Scunthorpe: Auty 11, Haines 14, Cockle 7, Compton 6, Richardson 5, Bekker 8.

Boston: Cooper 16, McKinna 4, Lambert 15, Wright 2, Mallett 5, Lowe 1,McDade 2.

Sunday September 9

Sittingbourne 40, Boston 53

Boston made a terrible start to this match with the Crusaders and were trailing 17-7 after just four heats and looking all at sea on a very slick track which contained a number of ruts making cornering difficult especially on turns three and four

James Brundle was given a tactical ride in heat five and with Adam McKinna following his No.1 home the Crusaders lead was reduced to three points. Another 5-1 to Sittingbourne in Heat 6 was quickly reversed by Wright and Lambert in the next before eventually the superior skills of the visitors showed as they got more and more used to the track eventually easing to a comfortable win

This was achieved without the services of McKinna after heat five in which he caught his right leg in a rut leaving him with further damage to his knee.

Sittingbourne: Felton 12, Cook 11, Reynolds 4 Cross 4, Baseby 3, Hart 6, Mullins 0

Boston: Brundle 12, McKinna 2, Lambert 9, Wright 13, Mallett 6, Lowe 4, McDade 7

Friday September 7

Boston 58, Buxton 34

This was a really exciting match spiced up for Boston and their fans by the first return visit of their early season No.1 Jon Armstrong, who left for Birmingham in May but who is now with Buxton after the Brummies terminated his services.

The match began badly for the Barracudas when, although seeing James Brundle and Adam McKinna take the lead, the former then shed a chain and McKinna hit the fence when trying to re-pass Armstrong, giving the Hitmen a 5-1 to start their campaign. Lewis Dallaway led heat two from start to finish but the Boston reserves were comfortably ahead of Paul Starke when he retired with a problem. Simon Lambert and Matthew Wright looked a strong pairing as they put the Barracudas on terms with a 5-1 in the next and Mallett showed little sign of his recent injury when he won heat four with McDade collecting third place to put Boston ahead for the first time.

Wright rode a fine heat five and with Lambert behind him resisting the challenge of Armstrong the crowd began to buzz with anticipation as their lead was stretched to six points. Another win for Mallett in a shared heat seven was followed by an impressive effort from Lowe as he took heat eight replacing the injured McKinna with Hodgson presenting a threat which the youngster staved off to take the win. Lambert and Wright increased the lead with a 4-2 in heat nine, Lambert and Armstrong battling for the lead which changed hands several times before the Boston captain won the race.

Brundle and McDade scored another 4-2 in heat 10 with Ben Taylor eventually passing the Scot to prevent another Boston maximum. Darren Mallett passed Jon Armstrong who took a tactical ride for the Hitmen in heat 11 to minimise the damage as Buxton clawed two points back Boston leading 38-30 with four heats remaining.

The Barracudas then despatched the Hitmen with four consecutive 5-1 race wins to end the match but that does nothing to reflect their efforts in achieving such a grandstand finish. Lambert won the first of the sequence with Adam Lowe adopting a round the boards style that earned him second place with the crowd gasping at his flirtation with the outer limits of the track.

The impeccable Brundle and Mallett gave Armstrong no chance in heat 13 and then Lowe returned to his exploits passing and re-passing Ben Taylor around the outside actually brushing the fence on one occasion to win his battle with Taylor bravely while Matt Wright powered home with great drama, which had the crowd on their feet, going on behind him. It was heady stuff and marked Lowe’s best performance for Boston and the match was completed when Wright and Mallett took yet another 5-1 in the final race. Boston’s play-off hopes were still alive and a very supportive crowd cheered them loudly on their victory lap.

Boston: Brundle 9, McKinna 1, Lambert 11, Wright 12, Mallett 13, Lowe 8, McDade 4.

Buxton: Armstrong 11, Hodgson 6, James 5, Taylor 7, Dallaway 5, Starke 0.

Boston 65, Rye House 26

With Boston’s injury list almost cleared and Rye House struggling to field a team with Messrs Cottham and Strudwick injured and Luke Bowen in action for his parent club, the Rockets, it was perhaps no wonder that the final score line saw 39 points separating the two teams.

However, the Barracudas tore into this match as if their lives depended on it opening with a salvo of three 5-1s against the depleted Raiders who, although outclassed in the early stages, had two heroes in the shape of Robert Mear and Daniel Halsey who did their utmost against massive odds to keep the Boston victory level down. But the Barracudas were simply awesome as they progressed to 29-7 after six heats leaving stand-in team manager Jack Lee with a heavy frown as he looked for ways and means of obtaining points for his team.

A tactical ride for Robert Mear in heat seven produced the first shared heat of the evening but two more 5-1s for the Barracudas and the match was all over by the end of heat nine with a scoreline of 43-13 in favour of the home team. Robert Mear shot from the tapes to bravely win heat 10 and Halsey joined Ezergailis to share the points in the following race as Rye tried to edge towards respectability.

Indeed Mear took second place in heat 12 as he split Lambert and McDade and Halsey did the same one race later getting between Brundle and Mallett. Kye Norton fell and Shane Henry retired in the penultimate to gift a 5-0 to the rampant Barracudas before Mear and Halsey snatches a 3-3 in the final race maintaining their effort to the end. Every one of the Boston team rode well with Lambert looking especially sharp and Mallett making a return after breaking his collarbone for a useful eight point haul.

Boston: Brundle 10, McKinna 9, Lambert 14, Wright 10, Mallett 8, Lowe 6 McDade 8.

Rye House: Ezergailis 3, Mear 13, Henry 0, Halsey 9, Laurence 1, Norton 0

Friday August 31

Oxford 50, Boston 43

Everyone associated with the Barracudas can be very proud of the way that the team performed at Oxford where despite the difficulties faced by both sides due to injuries a highly competitive and entertaining match was played out at Sandy Lane, which brought considerable appreciation from many Oxford supporters and their promoter Alan Trump.

For Boston it was an opportunity to end a dismal run against Oxford but with so many riders missing through injuries the run of Oxford victories was extended to eight – and they are Barracudas’ bogey team by a long way. Simon Lambert, Matthew Wright and Adam McKinna all delivered outstanding performances as did Cal McDade promoted to No 2 for one week and he turned in a fine display.

McDade said: “I’m really up for it again now and I think that’s starting to show.” he said. “I’ve got my bikes going well again and that is so important.” he stressed. Lambert rode through the pain barrier and even scored a Tactical Ride six point victory in heat 11 while Matthew Wright and Adam McKinna weighed in with very important victories.

Oxford: Smethills 16, Hughes 3, Martin 14, Andrews 2, Campos 6 Johnson 9.

Boston: Lambert 11, McDade 5, Dunworth 0, Wright 13, McKinna 9, Lowe 3, Pickard 2.

Friday August 17

Boston 46, Scunthorpe 43

Boston Barracudas claimed the prized scalp of reigning Conference League champions Scunthorpe with a pulsating victory at the Norfolk Arena in what was arguably one of the highlights of the club’s 2007 campaign — in the process becoming the first team this season to lower the Scorpions’ colours. Top scorer for the Cudas as James Brundle with a 17-point haul.

The match opened with drama when Josh Auty looped at the gate in heat one and received an exclusion. Adam McKinna retired from the re-run with a machine failure and in this strange opening race Benji Compton defeated James Brundle who was riding Simon Lambert’s machine after his own gave him problems. Heat two was won by Joe Haines who led by a country mile with the Boston pair well clear of Scott Richardson. Simon Lambert gave a foretaste of things to come with a fine victory in heat three with Compton and Bekker behind him and he repeated his victory in heat four leaving the teams separated by one point in the visitors’ favour after the first four heats.

Josh Auty retired in heat 5 in which Boston scored a 4-2 to take the lead for the first time, something they hung onto with considerable grit throughout the rest of the match. Heat six saw that lead extended to three points when Brundle, back on his own bike, outpaced Richie Dennis with Adam McKinna well clear of an out of touch Richardson.

Real drama came in heat seven when Auty crashed on the third bend with Bekker and Lambert close behind forced to take evasive action and ending up in the fence. The two had been only two feet apart when the accident occurred and it was surprisingly announced that the race would be awarded. Apparently this announcement was made prematurely whilst the referee Tony Steele and rrainee referee John Homer were still deliberating the situation and subsequently a re-run was announced with Auty excluded as the prime cause of the stoppage.

This had always seemed the most logical option although obviously it caused some consternation for the Scorpions’ management and supporters even though it appeared to be a fairer decision. In the re-run Lambert won despite feeling the effects of his skirmish with the fence and with Lowe third behind Bekker the home team’s lead was now up to five points. Scunthorpe replied with a 5-1, Joe Haines showing all the skills in his youthful armoury with Compton close behind.

At this point the situation required more courage from Boston and that was provided by Matthew Wright who after a modest start to the match suddenly found his form and with Dennis unable to catch him and McKinna third Boston edged away again from the league champions. Brundle and McKinna gave the Barracudas another 4-2 in heat 10 and by now the home fans were beginning to sense that the seemingly impossible might just be about to happen. But those thoughts went back on ice when Compton beat Lambert in heat 11 with Haines third to cut Boston’s lead back to three.

The atmosphere was tense as heats 12 and 13 were shared and in an interesting and vital heat 14 a superb effort by McDade held up Bekker long enough to allow Wright to distance himself from the South African although well behind Haines ensuring that Boston went into the final race one point ahead of the Scorpions.

Heat 15 would settle everything one way or another with Scunthorpe needing a 4-2 for victory and Boston only needing to share the race. Scunthorpe won the toss and took gates one and three with Brundle speeding around the field from gate four and he led Compton down the back straight with Lambert in third place always well clear of Dennis. The race looked safe with Boston in control and on the night the Barrcudas were worthy winners ending a very long run of Scunthorpe success over them and taking their unbeaten league record from them.

Boston score chart	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Pts
1. James Brundle								17
2. R/R
3. Adam McKinna								4
4. Matthew Wright								8
5. Simon Lambert								12
6. Adam Lowe								3
7. Cal McDade								4

Scunthorpe: Auty 0, Compton 14, Bekker 9, Dennis 6, Richardson 0, Haines 14.

Rain, however, put paid to Boston’s hopes of following up their memorable triumph with the subsequent trips to Rye House (Saturday) and Sittingbourne (Sunday) being washed out by the inclement summer conditions.

Sunday August 12

Buxton 47 Boston 43

Boston lost this match in the first three heats as they struggled initially with the tight and difficult track. But from that point they made a tremendous fight of things, their efforts ultimately ending in the final race when Buxton scored a 4-2 to ensure their victory. Boston never gave up and entertained the home crowd with some excellent speedway as they battled back into the match. But although they reduced Buxton’s early lead to two points they could not get on terms. Skipper Simon Lambert was again a real hero and James Brundle also produced some good races although the reserves struggled to match Lewis Dallaway who was perhaps the main difference between the teams.

Buxton: Bethell 10, Hodgson 1, James 5, Taylor 13, Roberts 8, Dallaway 9, Starke 1.

Boston score chart	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Pts
1. James Brundle	2	1	2	3	3	2		13
2. R/R
3. Simon Lambert	1	3	1*	3	3	0		11+1
4. Matthew Wright	0	2	2*	0	3			7+1
5. Adam McKinna	1*	2	2	2	1			8+1
6. Adam Lowe	2	0	0	R				2
7. Cal McDade	Ex	1*	1*	R				<