THERE were talking points aplenty at Monmore Green but the most important statistic after an eventful night was that the Buildbase Bees had taken their first away win of the season.
And given that it was only their second match on the road in the Elite League, and also achieved without two members of their regular seven, it is one that gives further encouragement that things are heading in the right direction.
Bees came through a tight, competitive and controversial fixture, with Rory Schlein being the main victim of circumstances with two exclusions for causing other riders to fall - one which was debatable at best and another which almost defied belief.
However, those who were present at the meeting and not merely basing judgements on a scorechart will know that Schlein rode well enough for double figures, and his misfortune simply galvanised the rest of the team to complete the job over the final five tense heats.
The Monmore circuit had taken plenty of rain in the first half the day, and it was the Buildbase Bees riders who made the best job of coping with conditions early on, even though Wolves took a 4-2 from the first race. Ales Dryml made a fast start from the inside, and although Schlein was briefly passed by Fredrik Lindgren, he cut back under the Wolves skipper going into the second lap for second place.
Stan Burza started his meeting with a fourth-bend fall, but that was in no way a taste of what was to follow as the Pole put right a disappointing display at the Black Country venue in March to produce another key contribution.
Wolves have been mightily strong at reserve in their home matches so far, but Burza and Ben Barker shot from the gate in Heat 2, Barker doing well to retain control when he got into a spot of bother on the third and fourth bend, and any challenge from Christian Hefenbrock and Kenneth Hansen quickly melted away.
And the Bees fans were delighted when Heat 3 netted an identical result thanks to Chris Harris and Billy Janniro - Harris launching away from the gate, and Janniro, who was last into the first bend, riding a brilliant second corner to go between the Wolves riders.
Wolves edged back two points in Heat 4 as Hansen collected a shock win, although Barker was unfortunate not to score a point as he led David Howe for three laps before the home rider came down the inside going into the last lap.
The first big incident occurred in Heat 5, and it seemed to escape the attention of many that the incident between Schlein and Iversen was actually over second place - because Burza had again made a flyer and put himself in front. Iversen moved inside Schlein off turn two, but Schlein attempted to return the compliment into the next bend - and all three riders then went wide, Schlein having apparently cleared Iversen before the Dane fell... and the green exclusion light immediately came on.
That was hugely frustrating for the Bees, although the re-run could have been a good deal worse had not Iversen ridden across into Burza from the start-line and taken his chain off, referee Stuart Wilson electing to allow the race to continue to leave Iversen simmering with rage on the centre-green and then venting his fury in the pits after the race.
So Heat 5 eventually became a 3-2 to Wolves, and it was followed by a 4-2 in Heat 6 with Lindgren and Dryml both making good starts but Dryml going slightly too wide and Simon Stead smartly moving through on the inside and blocking out the Czech rider.
Coventry had their strong Harris/Janniro pairing out in Heat 7 and they nearly managed a 5-1, Janniro taking second place from Howe on the first lap only to be re-passed by the Wolves man next time around. Even so, a 4-2 put them three points clear again, and they managed the same result in Heat 8 as Burza again showed his worth from the gate and controlled the race from gate one whilst rider replacement Janniro recovered from a poor getaway to take third from Hansen in the early stages.
That left Bees 26-21 ahead, but Wolves made a big move towards making a comeback when Iversen and Nicolai Klindt raced away from Stead in Heat 9, and a tense series of races followed.
In Heat 10 it was Dryml from the start, but he was edged wide by Janniro and found himself relegated to the back - as Lindgren managed to go all the way from fourth to first with a smart cut-back on the second bend as the other three riders contested the positions.
Heat 11 was the race which will lead to debate long after the meeting as Bees were left astonished by the decision to exclude Schlein from a race in which he held a comfortable lead. True, he lifted slightly on the second bend but was still in control of his machine and far enough ahead of the other three riders to not be in any danger of impeding them - the problem was that both Wolves attempted to cut back, and tangled, with Hefenbrock riding into team-mate Howe... and possibly the only thing more remarkable than the referee's decision was that the closely following Stead managed to avoid the mess of bikes and riders strewn across the track.
Howe was withdrawn from the meeting with concussion and Hefenbrock had clearly taken a knock as well, and despite the injustice of Schlein's exclusion, Stead took the win from the re-run for a 3-3 to keep Bees one point ahead.
And in the final analysis, Heat 12 turned out to be absolutely vital - because it could so easily have been a Wolves 4-2, or even a 3-3, and yet Bees took a 4-2 out of it. That was largely down to a ride of brilliance from Harris who found the narrowest of gaps around Iversen on the fourth bend - but it was also down to another battling defence of a place from Burza, who took third ahead of Hansen.
Heat 13 was shared, which was perfectly acceptable to the Bees as Schlein and Stead took second and third, although Schlein mounted a strong challenge to Lindgren for the race win before settling for second.
There was more first lap drama in Heat 14 with Burza flying away from the start off the outside - but on this occasion, he did make a slight mistake and drifted too wide, and whilst he was avoiding the back straight fence, the other riders came by. It could have been a disaster, because the Wolves pair were through in first and second places - but Janniro has always been up for a challenge at Monmore, and this was one of his finest rides at the venue as he took both Hansen and Klindt in one move on turns three and four to protect Bees' precious advantage.
Schlein, who had made good starts and had no luck whatsoever, was nominated for Heat 15 with Harris, with Bees requiring just a second place to clinch the match. It was the British Champion who made it into the first bend first, out-gating both Lindgren and Iversen as Schlein was squeezed out - but then there was a magnificent passing move by Lindgren at the end of the second lap to come down the inside of Harris and take the lead.
Fortunately, Harris quickly regained his momentum before Iversen could offer a serious challenge, and second place was enough for the Bees at the end of a wild evening - which saw them take their third successive Elite League away win at Monmore Green, and inflict Wolves' second home defeat of the season.
There will be several incidents which are worth watching again (and again) but it's the final score which matters most, and the consequent boost that three points does to the Bees' position in the table. A good night's work - and a thoroughly deserved win.
