speedway By John Walsh

Last updated 13:56, Monday, 29 September 2008

in a remarkable return to the track last night Workington’s injured star Craig Branney featured prominently in a major meeting at Newcastle.

Branney: Seven points

Branney, who broke his leg in four places on the Telford ice in February, scored seven points at Brough Park in the Sapphire Engineering Precision Trophy.

It was the first competitive meeting Branney had tackled after the injury kept him out of speedway throughout the 2008 season.

He has had limited track time – the odd solo spin round Derwent Park, and on Saturday night two heats against several of the track juniors.

Comets team manager Ian Thomas said: “I thought he was crackers for going in with other riders when he was just getting back onto a bike earlier in the month.

“That was a bad break which put him out for the season and I thought he would take things nice and steady so that he was ready to go from the word go next year.

“That’s a remarkable effort to do so well after all this time out and with the injury he suffered.”

Branney actually won his first race of the meeting and then picked up a second and two thirds, only missing out of the points in one race.

Brother John, who was a hero for the Comets in their Knockout Cup win against Edinburgh at the weekend, did even better – finishing fifth on ten points.

That total came from a win, three seconds and a third – and after he was almost pulled-out of the home meeting with Edinburgh on Saturday because of a recurring back problem.

Josef Franc won the meeting with 12 points – four wins and an unplaced ride; followed by Christian Henri, Newcastle new boy Kenni Larsen and Ty Proctor who all had eleven.

Then came John Branney 10, Carl Wilkinson 7, Craig Branney 7, Ben Wilson 6, Jason King 5,Emiliano Sanchez 4, Chris Kerr 4, Jerran Hart 2.

Workington’s Carl Stonehewer was also in action yesterday when he finished third in the Ashfield Classic at Glasgow.