After four agonising play-off defeats in the past seven years, there was a feeling among Belle Vue Aces fans that their day would never come. Despite being the oldest and most successful speedway club in the country, a whole generation of supporters were yet to see them win a league championship.
Throughout the 1930s, they won six titles, bagging another in 1963, and adding three-in-a-row in the 70s, with the 'three-peat' of 1970, 1971, 1972 still a great source of pride to the fanbase. However since then, it has dried up with just two titles in the past 50 years (1982 and 1993) prior to last night (Thursday October 13).
Those old enough to have been there for their last title win in 1993 have had an agonising 29 year wait for another and the near misses in recent years are likely to have made last night's victory all the sweeter. In the second leg of the grand final last night, the Aces lost 50-40 to Sheffield Tigers but had still done enough for gold, having sailed into a 51-39 lead in the first leg - meaning they came out on top 91-89 on aggregate.
READ MORE : Belle Vue Aces win first Speedway Premiership title since 1993 with win over Sheffield Tigers
It was a nail-biting couple of hours for those who made the trip across the Pennines but Belle Vue eventually wrapped it all up with a race to spare. Australian Mark Lemon rode for the club in 2012 and has been the team manager since 2014 and in that time has overseen many highs including a Knockout Cup win in 2017, but he has also experienced the lows of play-off heartbreak on more occasions than he would wish.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News after leading the club to their 13th league title in their 94-year history, he admitted that he was "emotionally drained".
"It's been a huge huge year but I'm very very satisfied and happy," he said. "I'm overwhelmed. I feel absolutely honoured to be involved in such a historic club and play a role in some success.
"We've had so many near misses so to finally get it over the line... I was getting to the point where I didn't think it was possible. As a club, over the last half a dozen years, our success hasn't been measured on the trophy cabinet, it's been making it a sustainable business but to finally put a trophy in that cabinet... we won the knockout cup in 2017 which was fantastic but to win the league title means everything.
"The emotions are mixed because you think it's never going to happen. We've come so close many times. In 2015 we got pipped by one point. We've set up a culture at the club now where we've been challenging every year and come so close but had injuries at pivotal times of the play-offs have just crucified us again.
"Our backs were against going to Sheffield - they probably had the upper hand, their home form was brilliant, they topped the table, the odds were stacked against us and for that team to go out there and rally and muster, they just gelled and performed magically. The celebrations were amazing - the sombreros came out and everyone was happy dancing."
He added: "We're so proud of that club and it's ingrained in people's culture. They did a three-peat in the seventies and Manchester people are so proud of their speedway and we're seeing numbers increasing.
"It means a lot for a lot of people because you grind and grind away but it doesn't guarantee you success but to finally put the league trophy in the cabinet after 29 years has made a lot of people happy. It wasn't just down to the people who picked up the trophy last night, it's 29 years of hard work and we've got to embrace it.
"Our partners and sponsors have been so supportive for so long and we have a great group of volunteers. There's just a great buzz around the place."
Neil Drummond has been following Aces since 1986 and has volunteered at the club in various roles since 2003. He is currently the matchday announcer at the National Speedway Stadium in Gorton - Belle Vue's home since 2016.
The 43-year-old, who is originally from Beswick but now lives in Warrington, is a lifelong Manchester City fan and likened last night's win to the moment that Sergio Aguero scored in the 94th minute of the last game of the 2011/12 season to seal their first Premier League title.
"I'm absolutely buzzing," he said. "We were speechless last night because we didn't think we'd done enough from the first leg.
"It was very very tense because Belle Vue had a 12-point lead going into the second leg and that got cut down to two points on aggregate at one stage so we were fearing the worst at that stage. In the end, we won it with a race to spare.
"I'm a staunch Manchester City fan and the best analogy I can give is that last night felt like the atmosphere and feeling when Aguero got that goal. Everyone just went berserk because we've waited so long. My wife was bawling her eyes out with happiness, that's how much it means.
"We've probably got the most illustrious history in the sport and we've waited this long. I hope this is the monkey off our back now and we don't have to wait as long the next time around.
Neil admitted that he was grateful the victory was sealed in Sheffield rather than Manchester so that he could get swept up in the moment. He added: "I have to be very careful what I say on the stadium Tannoy and you have to contain yourself and be impartial, and sometimes that's hard when you're a fan.
"It would have been lovely to win it in front of our fans because we get big crowds but it was great to be able to let my hair down, have a few beers and watch it with the real hardcore fans, because they're the lifeblood of our club and without the fans there wouldn't be a club. To hug random Belle Vue fans was just amazing."
Lee Wild also volunteers as the club's match-night presenter. As a United fan, he could not quite share Neil's enthusiasm for the Aguero analogy, but said that the night was unlike anything he has previously experienced in his 23 years following Aces.
"The atmosphere last night was absolutely fantastic. It was something special," he told the M.E.N. "It was the best atmosphere I've ever experienced at a speedway meeting.
"I've been going since I was six and I've never experienced anything like that. There was unbelievable support and it was a really passionate group of fans.
"There'd started to become a feeling that Belle Vue were always the bridesmaid and never the bride. We always seem to fall short and there always seems to be an injury that really harms our chances.
"We lost two riders in the first leg and I though that was it. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. Never mind lightning striking twice, it's lightning striking four or five times. You start to think you're cursed but it was an unbelievable effort from the lads.
"It was amazing because the missing lads were still there supporting the team. It was a really good atmosphere and I think this is the most together team I've ever seen in British speedway.
"When Sheffield brought it back to within two points, I thought we were going to lose it. Last year in the grand final we had a decent lead going away to Peterborough and we lost. It was an unbelievable performance from the two youngest members (Norick Blödorn and Tom Brennan) - they went out and won the gold for us. It was unlike anything I've ever experienced as a speedway fan."
Aces boss Mark hopes that the win can help bring through a new generation of fans and it's a sentiment shared by Neil and Lee. "Thanks to the investment from Manchester Council, we've got possibly the best speedway facility in Europe, certainly the best track in the country," Lee said.
"We've got great passionate support but we want to get more people involved. I hope all this helps people realise what a fantastic sport it is.
"We're the longest operating club in the world, even Hitler couldn't stop us in the Second World War! I hope there's plenty more years to come."
The final fixture in Manchester this season takes the form of the Premiership Pairs on October 27 at the National Speedway Stadium. Ahead of the meeting, Belle Vue Aces will be on parade on home shale as they bring the league trophy home. Meeting tickets, race day programmes and south parking are available to reserve now on the official Belle Vue Aces website.
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