Astley & Tyldesley opened their Northern League programme with a hard fought win over Stockport on Sunday. The scores were very close for most of the match, as A & T struggled to overcome two race exclusions, before pulling away in the closing stages to record a 79 - 68 win. A & T welcomed Polish star Przemek Binkowski back after a four year absence and he went through the card unbeaten, winning all his five races to take maximum points. Tomasz Wlodarczyk lost just once to former British Champion Terry Norman in heat 10, with good scores from both Darek Kurkowski and Joe Allen, each reduced by a race exclusion. Norman top scored for the visitors, as Graham Johnston made a return for them, scoring well, despite a race exclusion. The match finished on a sour note, as Norman cut sharply across Binkowski after the race had ended, causing a heavy fall and Norman can consider himself fortunate that the referee chose not to take any action. Stockport have lost plenty of riders over the winter, but they can feel well pleased with a spirited performance.

Northern League match result

Astley & Tyldesley 79 Stockport 2006 68

A & T: Przemek Binkowski 20, Tomasz Wlodarczyk 18 (1), Darek Kurkowski 14 (1), Joe Allen 12 (1), Mike Hack 5 (1), Andy Knowles 5, Roy Heslop 5.

Stockport: Terry Norman 15, Graham Johnston 13, Jeff Radcliffe 11, Dylan Radcliffe 10 (3), Alan Taylor 7 (1), Ben Higham 6 (1), Alistair Lam 3, Jack Lush 3.

Referee - Gary Nuttall.

An older and more experienced Stockport team ran out easy winners in the Combination match, 75 - 45. Joe Allen, fresh from winning a mountain bike race in Wales in the morning, rode unbeaten for A & T in the match. It was good to see a full squad of juniors fielded by A & T and the experience will stand them in good stead for their age category individual competitions during the year.

Northern Combination League match result

Astley & Tyldesley 'B' 45 Stockport 2006 'B' 75

A & T: Joe Allen 16, Adam Phillips 9, Stefan Whitelegg 8, Adam Turnbull 4, Matthew Turnbull 4, Philip Atherton 4.

Stockport: Ben Higham 14 (1), Matt Lush 12 (2), Jack Lush 11 (4), Dylan Radcliffe 11, Alistair Lam 10 (1), Joe Pickford 9 (2), Jake Read 8 (1).

Referee - Darek Kurkowski.