NEWPORT Hornets duo Jay Herne and Todd Kurtz failed to bring the British National League Championship trophy back home on Saturday night.

The Australians had lined up in the final against Stoke Potters pair Simon Lambert and Tim Webster, an ex-Hornet, at Queensway Meadows Stadium.

Newport won the competition in 2009, when then-skipper Tony Atkin and New Zealander Grant Tregonning, who has also since left the club, emerged victorious on the Isle of Wight.

However, despite Kurtz magnificently taking the chequered flag, Herne couldn’t get past Lambert to take the third-place position which would have meant a Newport victory.

Webster made the gate in the final before Kurtz brilliantly swept past everyone around the boards to go from last to first.

Off he sped around the tight track, surely hoping skipper Herne would be in a point-scoring place behind him.

But Lambert, winning the event for a record-breaking third time, and Webster were too track wise for the Newport man and simply team-rode to a thoroughly deserved success.

Earlier, Herne and Kurtz had reached the final by winning Group A of a 20-heat qualifying competition ahead of the Scunthorpe/Sheffield team.

Kurtz won his first three rides in fine style, and in his last outing followed Herne home and his victory in the final meant he remained unbeaten by an opponent in five races.

Stoke’s path to the final was made slightly harder when Webster finished last of four in heat 16 against Isle of Wight and they went into their final qualifier against Buxton knowing they had to score a minimum six points.

They actually managed a maximum seven thanks to a win for Lambert, who was runner-up with King’s Lynn in 2010, and Webster’s second-place finish to set up that final clash with Herne and Kurtz.

20-heat qualifying tournament (winner of each group reached final) Group A: 1st – Newport 26 points; 2nd – Scunthorpe/Sheffield 22; 3rd – Belle Vue 17; 4th – Hackney 15; 5th – King’s Lynn 10.

Group B: 1st – Stoke 23 points; 2nd – Mildenhall 21; 3rd – Dudley 20; 4th – Buxton 13 (on count back); 5th – Isle of Wight 13.

Final: 1st – Stoke (Simon Lambert/Tim Webster), 61.55 seconds; 2nd – Newport (Jay Herne/Todd Kurtz).

Newport Speedway is gearing up for an extremely busy weekend. The Hornets host Dudley Heathens in a National League clash on Friday night (7.30pm start), some club officials will be on World Championship Grand Prix duty at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday evening (5pm) before Queensway Meadows Stadium is the venue for the Wales Open on Sunday afternoon (1pm).

Newport Mike Manning Wasps’ next scheduled British Premier League meeting is on Friday, July 8, when they visit Plymouth Devils.

However, a postponement-induced backlog of fixtures could mean the club may soon announce new dates for meetings to take place before the Plymouth clash.