Highbridge-based speedway team the Somerset Rebels were crowned the 2013 Premier League KO Cup Champions on Sunday (October 6th).
The team beat Rye House 103-77 on aggregate after narrowly losing Sunday’s second final 46-44 at Rye House.
Somerset held a healthy 28-point lead, courtesy of their 59-31 first leg. Their game plan was to keep matters tight in order to prevent the Rockets getting up a head of steam with which to put the Rebels under early pressure.
“It’s not often that I am speechless, but this is one of those occasions,” Rebels promoter Debbie Hancock told Burnham-On-Sea.com afterwards. “Garry May, the Somerset team manager, gave the boys a game plan and it worked a treat.”
“Although Rye hit us mid-meeting, we knew we had the strength in the final few heats to come back at the Rockets, which is exactly what happened, and here we are as the KO Cup winners!”
“All the boys rode exceptionally well and although the hard work was done in the first leg at the Oaktree Arena, they still had a job to do in today’s match and they did it superbly in front of a great band of travelling Somerset supporters.”
Garry May was equally delighted with the way the team performed. “It was a fantastic feeling when Doyley was presented with the Cup,” he said.
“The boys did a great job in containing Rye House early on, and with each passing heat so the pressure built on their side of the pits, which had been our plan all along.”
“Even though Rye House did open up a bit of a lead on us at one stage, we were never worried about losing control of things and came back at them to such an extent that we almost snatched a draw out of today’s match, but although we just missed out on that, we will be heading back to Somerset with the KO Cup to lock away in that Oaktree Trophy cabinet.”
