Astley & Tyldesley Miners' Welfare Club took on Stoke in a Midlands / North League Division 1 match at Gin Pit on Sunday. A minute's silence was held in memory of two of the sport's leading officials, Harry Glover and Dave Blinston, who had both died during the week.

Once again, A & T lined up without the Finnigans, whilst Stoke were without the injured Lewis Bates and Richard Harrison. A & T took an early lead with a 6-3 to Danny Hughes and Tom Hall in heat 3, after Darren Challinor was excluded for jumping the inside edge. However, a gate exclusion to Hall in heat 6 let in Andy Franks and Errol Thaw to take a 7-2 heat win over Hughes and put Stoke four points ahead. A & T immediately hit back with a 7-3 to the Damian Zareba and Warren Mee pairing over Challinor and Leighton Bates to level the scores, and the scores remained level, at 44 apiece at the interval. Chris Challinor and Thaw took a 7-3 over Hall and Mike Hack to put the visitors back in front, but A & T reduced the deficit to 2 points with a 6-3 in heat 12 to the Zareba / Mee pairing over Thaw, after Franks was excluded for excessive force. Terry Norman and Garry Pearce bagged a vital 7-3 over the Hughes / Hall pairing to open up a 6 points lead for Stoke in heat 13, and another 7-3 to the Thaw / Pearce pairing over Hughes and Mee in heat 16 sealed the match for the visitors, running out 94-82 winners.

The match was a terrific advertisement for the sport, full of close racing, ridden in an excellent spirit. Remi Burchardt and Damian Zareba were once again in magnificent form for A & T, both were unbeaten by an opponent. However, despite a whole hearted effort from A & T, Stoke's greater experience eventually told and they ran out deserved winners, with a solid scoring team performance. The match was excellently refereed by Alan Farrell.

Midlands / North League Division 1 match result:

Astley & Tyldesley MWC 82: Remi Burchardt 20, Damian Zareba 19 (plus 1 bonus), Danny Hughes 13, Warren Mee 9, Mark Taylor 6 (1), Tom Hall 6, Mike Hack 5, Jeff Radcliffe 4.

Stoke / Whiterock Cycles 94: Terry Norman 17, Errol Thaw 15 (3), Andy Franks 14, Garry Pearce 13 (4), Darren Challinor 10 (1), Leighton Bates 10 (1), Chris Challinor 10 (1), Simon Munden 5 (2).

Referee - Alan Farrell.

The Combination match followed a similar pattern, with a more experienced Stoke team running out winners, 68-50. Lance Bates, Simon Munden and Chris Challinor all raced unbeaten for Stoke, whilst Becky Heslop was best for A & T, winning three of her four races.

Midlands / North League Combination Division match result:

Astley & Tyldesley MWC 'B' 50: Becky Heslop 14, Dylan Radcliffe 10, Mark Keirl 9, Ryan King 7 (2), Charlie Keirl 5 (1), Maurice Radcliffe 3, Tom Callan 2.

Stoke / Whiterock Cycles 'B' 68: Lance Bates 16, James Alcock 14 (1), Simon Munden 12, Chris Challinor 9 (3), Damien Leach 7 (1), Tim Cooper 7, Janet Kirkman 3 (1).

Referee - Mike Hack.