Pre-meeting favourite and Comets number one Connor Bailey capped a fine season by winning the National Development League Riders’ Championship.
A dominant performance on his home Northside track sealed another title for the young Australian.
He strung together five good starts to reel off five tape to flag victories, winning each by a comfortable margin.
It was soon clear that barring any mechanical misfortune it was a case of who would be joining him on the rostrum.
In the end it was the Edinburgh Monarchs Academy duo of Max Clegg and Jacob Hook that occupied the lower steps on the podium.
The precise order – in Clegg’s favour – was only determined following a run-off after both had scored 12 points from their scheduled outings.
It was 2016 title winner Clegg, who made the better start from the inside gate, to lead from start to finish and seal second place overall.
Finishing fourth overall with 11 points, was the stylish 16-year-old Ashton Boughen but it was very much a case of what might have been.
Having been out-paced by the wide riding Lee Complin around the first two turns of heat 4, he led heat 7 from start to finish before showing great determination to round former title winner Ben Morley on turns three and four of the opening lap of heat 10 to hit the front.
That determination was evident again in heat 17 as he harried Jamie Halder throughout the opening lap before making an outside pass stick as they started lap two.
Between those two heats it was his fourth outing, in heat 16 that was to prove to be Boughen’s downfall as he started from the outside gate with both Bailey and Hook inside him.
Having been forced wide on the first turn he spent the remainder of the race playing catch up and although he got close to snatching third place from Jacob Clouting, an unexpected bit of drive saw him lift coming off turn four on lap three, which killed his momentum and, so it turned out, his chances of a place on the podium.
Workington’s other representative, Sam McGurk, acquitted himself well as he battled to a hard-earned nine points, which included a race win in heat 9, and his none point return was matched by Belle Vue’s Freddy Hodder who, after winning his opening ride and following that up with two second places, faded after the interval.
Meanwhile the unlucky Complin, with five points to his name from his first two rides, crashed out on turns three and four of the second lap having just edged into second place.
Although he was unhurt his only bike was damaged forcing him to withdraw from the meeting.
But, the day deservedly belonged to Bailey, adding this title to the British under-21 title he won earlier in the season.
It was a perfect way to round off an undoubted season of progress for him in front of his home fans in the autumn sunshine.
Sunday, October 15
- C.Bailey 3 3 3 3 3 – 15
- M.Clegg 2 2 2 3 3 -12
- J.Hook 1 3 3 2 3 – 12
- A.Boughen 2 3 3 0 3 – 11
- B.Morley 2 1 2 3 2 – 10
- S.McGurk 1 2 3 2 1- 9
- F.Hodder 3 2 2 1 1- 9
- B.Trigger 0 3 0 3 2 – 8
- M.Perry 3 0 1 2 0 – 6
- D.Phillips X 1 2 2 1- 6
- L.Complin 3 2 X – – 5
- T.Woolley 2 0 1 0 2 5
- J.Halder 0 0 1 1 2- 4
- J.Clouting 1 1 0 1 1 – 4
- L.Muff 1 1 1 1 – 4
- J.Scott 0 0 0 0 R – 0
- C.Foy (res) 0 0 – – – 0
- B.Rathbone (res) 0 – – – – 0
