Berwick Bandits v Poole Pirates

Poole's unbeaten run was ended by the Berwick Bandits, the Pirates picking up a key league point through the narrow 46-44 result.

Victory eluded the Pirates on this occasion as the Berwick Bandits dug their heels in mid-meeting, firing in three successive heat advantages to build a four point lead after twice trailing the visitors.

After a shared opening heat, won comfortably by Rory Schlein the two sides exchanged 5-1's in heat two and three, Stefan Nielsen and Steve Worrall countering that of Kyle Bickley and the impressive Kasper Andersen, the scores remaining all level after Danny King stormed to the fastest time in those front four heats whilst Berwick plugged the minor places.

Poole were given a big chance in heat five when Ricky Wells ran out of track room around the apex of the all-important first turn and went down heavily to earn a disqualification and load pressure on the shoulders of young guest Tom Brennan in the re-run. As the tapes rose Brennan was first to show but Rory Schlein showed his cunning as he worked the line to blitz by him and edge Poole into a two-point advantage (14-16).

Another sub-sixy six seconds time was clocked by King as James Wright made third place his own behind Nikolaj Busk-Jakobsen as Bickley tailed off and Poole looked set to march on from here. But Aaron Summers and Kasper Andersen had a different agenda and after shrugging off the interests of Worrall in the early stages of heat seven Andersen rapidly pulled clear to tuck in behind his team-mate, level the meeting and inspire the Bandits. Bickley refused to move over at the start gate when asked by the starting official but the race was allowed to start and although he made a decent start it didn't match that of Hume, but Ricky Wells made experience count as he came out of the fourth turn finding the speed to take him to the front and inch the home side narrowly ahead. Movement at the start of heat nine unsettled Danny King and he went fractionally too soon, touching the tapes and being punished for it with a disqualification. Rather then send him off an handicap, team manager Gary Havelock opted to deploy reserve Danyon Hume for the re-start. He made a good fist of it too but Brennan caught him out to set-up another home 4-2, doubling the lead in the process. Stefan Nielsen was keen in heat ten and made the best gate of the four riders but he was pegged back by a cleverly excecuted move from Busk-Jakobsen, all the while Worrall was trying to wrestle himself away from Andersen to at least stem the tide.

Hume was leading heat eleven with Summers in hot pursuit when suddenly the chasing Bandit was thrown off his machine as it ground to an instant halt. The race, about to enter lap three when the lights came on was awarded with Summers obvious disqualification, Schlein being promoted into third place, a position he might well have secured had the race gone its distance as he was making Andersen work hard at the time. Worrall was given a ticking off by referee Craig Ackroyd for not sitting still at the start and he obeyed that request admirably in the re-start but still found himself clear at the first turn. It was to be Poole's only return from that heat and they remained trailing their hosts by two points on the night. A big heat thirteen fell the way of Kasper Andersen, drafted in as a replacement for the shaken Summers and he responded in style, leading clear from Busk-Jakobsen who was embroiled in an intense battle with Schlein and King early doors. But the former Poole rider stood firm and moved six points clear with two heats remaining. 

Danny King was drafted in as a tactical and won it in style but a determined Andersen stood firm in second to ensure his Bandits were virtually assured of picking up three points - just a finisher was needed for that. King and Worrall were the Poole nominations to try and find that 5-1 to maintain their unbeaten run, the Bandits pinning their hopes on Brennan and Busk-Jakobsen.
King with a fine passing move on the Bandits guest for the night was excellent but Worrall was unable to close down Brennan and so it was a 2 point defeat that ended Poole's run although with the defeat came a consolation away point.
 

BERWICK  46
N.Busk- Jakobsen 1',2,3,2',0=8+2
R.Replacement  
T.Brennan 0,2,3,2,2=9
R.Wells  1,FD,3,1,0=5
A.Summers  1',3,0=4+1
K.Andersen  2,2',2',0,2,3,2=13+2
K.Bickley 3,2,0,1,1'=7+1
G.Blair 
POOLE 44
R.Schlein 3,3,1,1=8
J.Edwards  0,1,0=1
S.Worrall 2',1,1',3,1=8+2
S.Nielsen 3,0,2,1=6
D.King 3,3,XE,0,3,3=12
J.Wright 1,1,0,0=2
D.Hume 0,0,2,2,3=7

Ht 1:  R.Schlein,  K.Andersen ,  N.Busk- Jakobsen,  J.Edwards  3-3  3-3 |66.4]
Ht 2:  K.Bickley,  K.Andersen ,  J.Wright,  D.Hume 5-1  8-4 [66.6]
Ht 3:  S.Nielsen,  S.Worrall,  R.Wells ,  T.Brennan 1-5  9-9 [66.7]
Ht 4:  D.King,  K.Bickley,  A.Summers ,  D.Hume 3-3  12-12 [65.9]
Ht 5:  R.Schlein,  T.Brennan,  J.Edwards ,  R.Wells   (Fell d/q) 2-4  14-16 [67.1]
Ht 6:  D.King,  N.Busk- Jakobsen,  J.Wright,  K.Bickley 2-4  16-20 [65.9]
Ht 7:  A.Summers ,  K.Andersen ,  S.Worrall,  S.Nielsen 5-1  21-21 [66.8]
Ht 8:  R.Wells ,  D.Hume,  K.Bickley,  J.Edwards  4-2 25-23 [68.2]
Ht 9:  T.Brennan,  D.Hume,  R.Wells ,  J.Wright, (D.King tapes exc) 4-2  29-25 [66.8]
Ht 10:  N.Busk- Jakobsen,  S.Nielsen,  S.Worrall,  K.Andersen  3-3  32-28 [67.2]
Ht 11:  D.Hume,  K.Andersen ,  R.Schlein,  A.Summers  2-4  34-32 [awd]
Ht 12:  S.Worrall,  T.Brennan,  K.Bickley,  J.Wright 3-3  37-35 [67]
Ht 13:  K.Andersen ,  N.Busk- Jakobsen,  R.Schlein,  D.King 5-1  42-36 [67.6]
Ht 14:  D.King  (TS),  K.Andersen ,  S.Nielsen,  R.Wells  2-4  44-40 [67.3]
Ht 15:  D.King,  T.Brennan,  S.Worrall,  N.Busk- Jakobsen 2-4  46-44 [67.4]67.4
Gates: POOLE deferred choice of gates BERWICK  chose 1&3 | POOLE took gates 2&4 in heat 15
Referee Craig Ackroyd 

Rider of the Night: Danny King