The track looked good with more loose shale than at any of the previous three meetings, but it caught the home riders napping as they all tried to adapt their set-ups. Ryan Fisher and Aaron Summers sped from the tapes to win heat 1 with Ricky Ashworth unable to catch them and Paul Cooper way off the pace. Chris Mills led heat 2 but Michal Rajkowski passed him on the third turn. Josh Auty took a very wide line past the pits and claimed the lead at the start of the second lap. Andrew Tully took Ritchie Hawkins wide on the first corner of heat 3 and was joined at the front by Thomas Jonasson. Joel Parsons closed the gap on the third lap and tried an outside swoop on the last lap but to no avail. Richard Hall rounded the field to lead down the back straight in heat 4 and Josh was gifted second place when Matthew Wethers fell on the second lap. Joel made a real botch of the start of heat 5 but had passed Aaron by the second turn. Ritchie and Ryan had a great race with Ryan trying every which way to get past but Ritchie just held the lead at the finish line. After a shaky start the Tigers have levelled the scores.

Matthew was the early leader of heat 6 but he coasted to a standstill down the back straight on the first lap. Lining up for the start of heat 7 Andrew Tully's bike caught alight but it was quickly extinguished by the start marshals. After the 'two minute' klaxon had sounded for the third time his place in the rerun was taken by Sean Stoddart. Richard took another comfortable win ahead of Thomas and Chris with Sean falling on the fourth bend and quickly jumping back on. Michal led heat 8 from Aaron but Paul swooped through into second place around the fourth turn. Josh followed suit on the second turn and passed his team mate on turn three but Michal was streets ahead by this time. Joel made a good start to lead heat 9 and held off Matthew for four laps with Ritchie holding off Michal back in third place. Ricky lead heat 10 but Thomas swept past him on the pits turn on the second lap. Paul came under pressure but held off Andrew to share the heat and maintain the Tigers six point lead.

Richard's bike died at the start of heat 11 leaving Chris battling with Ryan. Aaron fell at the back on the second lap, Chris dived under Ryan on the third lap only for Ryan to swoop around him and back into the lead on the next corner. Thomas gated ahead in heat 12 but Josh blasted around the outside and was going for the lead when Thomas turned right on him down the back straight! Ritchie blasted around Michal out of the last turn to claim third place. Ricky led from the start of heat 13, just ahead of Thomas and Ryan with Richard climbing all over them. Scraping the fence Richard blasted past the pair of them at the end of lap three for a well earned 5-1. Andrew led heat 14 from Chris, Michal and Joel. Joel dived past Michal on the third turn and picked his way past his team mate on the next lap but Andrew was unassailable. The Monarchs need a maximum to pick up a match point. Ryan drifts Ricky out wide on the first corner but Richard takes the lead from Thomas. Ricky switches back and passes Ryan down the back straight and starts closing in on Thomas. They pass and repass on the third lap but Thomas pulls clear to finish second.

The Tigers battled back into the match after a shaky start and entertained the crowd with some excellent racing. One of Edinburgh's better Owlerton displays, but I expect it will be easy for them in the return match.

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