Diamond thieves bag two points.

Byline: BARRY WALLACE

NEWCASTLE Diamonds staged one of the greatest comebacks in their 80-year history at Redcar last night to take two valuable league points after snatching a 47-47 draw in the final heat.

Trailing by 14 points after just six races and having already used one of their two tactical rides - no one would have given tuppence for Newcastle's chances of salvaging anything as the still sore and hurting Bears, after a 64-26 whupping at Byker last month, were intent on revenge.

But terrific performances by Danish duo Kenni Larsen and Rene Bach in particular helped turn the match on its head as the Diamonds took no less than seven heat advantages from the last nine races to deservedly earn a share of the spoils, leaving home fans stunned.

Yet it was all so different at the start as Redcar took 5-1 wins in heats one, four and six and had 4-2 successes in heats two and three for good measure.

Such was the Bears' superiority that Diamonds' team boss George English was forced to give Larsen a tactical ride at the earliest point allowed in any match - heat five - and his second place behind Ben Wilson helped Newcastle to a 53 advantage.

But when Ty Proctor and Robbie Kessler recorded their second 5-1 together in the next race to put the Bears ahead 26-12, it looked like curtains for the Diamonds' chances.

TERRIFIC: Bach

Bach was given the other tactical ride in heat seven but he was beaten by home skipper Gary Havelock, and though the outcome was another 5-3, Newcastle were still 12 points down with seemingly no trump cards left to play.

Newcastle had not provided a race winner at that stage, but Derek Sneddon set the ball rolling by taking heat eight, and when Trent Leverington, after two scoreless rides, became the first man to beat Wilson in the next, it brought the deficit down to eight points, 33-25.

Larsen then came into his own, beating Havelock twice, and with third-places from Sneddon in heat 11 and Mark Lemon, who brilliantly held off Proctor in heat 13, the Diamonds were now just four points behind at 43-39.

Bach defeated former Grand Prix rider Carl Stonehewer in heat 14 where Leverington picked up a vital point to set up a grandstand finish, and Larsen and Bach put another 4-2 over the Bears' best, Wilson and Havelock, in the last race to square the match.

English was delighted with his team's recovery, saying: "We promised we would put on a show and we did, despite what Jason King described as the bumpiest track he had ever ridden on.

"Once again, it was a terrific all-round team effort with everyone contributing vital points.

"It is just a shame we are without Rene for the match at Scunthorpe tonight as he has been called back to Denmark for the Danish Championship Final."

The Diamonds are now ninth in the table - their highest position of the season - having moved above both Berwick and Edinburgh after last night's amazing result.

REDCAR (47): Ben Wilson 13, Gary Havelock 10, Ty Proctor 9, Stuart Swales 7, Robbie Kessler 4, Carl Stonehewer 3, Arlo Bugeja 1. NEWCASTLE (47): Kenni Larsen 14, Rene Bach 12, Adam McKinna 5, Derek Sneddon 5, Jason King 4, Trent Leverington 4, Mark Lemon 3.

CAPTION(S):

TERRIFIC: Bach