REPORT - Redcar Bears v Poole Pirates - BSN Semi Final 2nd Leg

The Wessex Marine Pirates stormed into the BSN Final with a 52-38 win over Redcar in the second leg of their semi-final against the Bears to record an aggregate victory of 100-80,
 

With Poole defending a narrow six point lead and Redcar determined to avenge for their 2022 KO Cup Final defeat at the hands of the Pirates, this second leg BSN Semi-final was sure to be a tense affair, and amongst the large crowd the Bears' declared number one Erik Riss was able to witness his deputy for the evening, ECCO Arena specialist, Lewis Kerr deliver a perfect ride to head off the pursuing Steve Worrall and with Danyon Hume beating rider replacement Kyle Newman, Riss and otherw would have seen a third of the Bears' deficit being sliced off immediately.
The tensions came to the fore in heat two when a double warning was issued to start-line movers Jake Mulford and the more obvious Kyle Newman before Adam Roynon was dealt one in the re-start. But third time of asking it was the  experience of the Poole boys that came to the fore, and to the front, to put Poole in the lead on the night for the first time. Connor Bailey did well to pass Zach Cook in heat three to build on Charles Wright's victory over Ben Cook as the evening scores levelled up and then Richard Lawson pushed Danny King hard for the first two laps of heat four, before the former Poole skipper stretched his legs. A good first lap pass by Roynon on Mulford however prevented Redcar from a heat advantage and Poole had survived the first batch of rides without any damage to their first leg lead.

Steve Worrall, another Pirate to receive a warning, made a great gate in the restart of heat five, recording one of the fastest times around the ECCO Arena this season and he wore out the chasing Charles Wright. Zack Cook again got the better of Bailey and Poole went ahead again. This time they were determined to hold on to that lead, Newman's excellent foiling of Hume in heat six whilst Lawson was putting Kerr under pressure, ensured that two point-on-the-night, lead remained and an aggregate eight points were in Poole's favour. 

Sensational Cook stuff in heat seven. Zach outgated King and then Ben cleverly picked off his former clubmate to return a surprising, but convincing 5-1 advantage that began to swing things more heavily towards the Pirates having to make the trip to Scotland, and when Ben, in a two-on-the-trot spell, produced a good first turn in heat eight with with Roynon backing up in third, the aggregate lead extended to fourteen points. Richard Lawson eventually and deservingly dispensed with his second place finishes, beating Wright, Newman's third place giving an air of despondency amongst the home fraternity as they needed big heat advantages from all the remaining six heats to turn their fate around.

But the Cook brother combination proudly worked again for the Pirates, Kerr and Hume the victims this time as the 5-1 took the aggregate position to a twenty point lead for Poole, 85-65. There was a bit of controversy in heat eleven when Steve Worrall, in third place behind both Bears made an inside move on Jason Edwards as they entered turn three for the second time. The young Redcar reserve went down and from his vantage spot on the opposite side of the track, referee Seth Perkin saw it as a fair move by the Poole skipper and Edwards received his marching orders as the cause of the stoppage. In the re-run, and a better start by Worrall, a battle of wits ensued with King just doing enough but realistically it was only a consolation victory as the maximum total the home side could now muster was 88, a figure on which Poole currently sat. 

Mulford showed good spirit when in trouble around the first turn of heat twelve he almost packed up, but he kept going despite having lost a lot of ground. He received his just rewards for that as Newman sustained a third lap puncture and although he tried to nurse his wobbly back wheel home, as he prepared for a back straight push on the final circuit his stead decided it didn't want to move any further. It was the first time since heat three that the home crowd could celebrate a heat advantage but the tie had well and truly slipped them by.

Poole's response was massive, Worrall missing the exchanges between Lawson and King which were frenetic behind him which Lawson eventually trumped. Zach Cook eased out of the gate superbly to set up his heat fourteen victory, Roynon for the first time in his five rides failing to add to his scorechart. Poole looked set to lose out on reaching the hundred as Wright and King made the early running but quite sensationally Ben Cook took the Pirates to that tally as he brilliantly kept the pressure on King and had the speed coming off the final turn to make the pass, split the Bears and give Poole a 52-38 score on the night, making it 100-80 across both legs.

Heat Details

REDCAR 38
Lewis Kerr 3,3,1,0=7 (4)
Danyon Hume 1,0,2,0=3 (4)
Charles Wright 3,2,2,3,3=13 (5)
Connor Bailey 1,0,0,2=3 (4)
Danny King 3,1,3,1,1=9 (5)
Jason Edwards 0,0,FD,1'=1+1 (4)
Jake Mulford 1,0,0,1=2 (4)
.
POOLE 52
Steve Worrall 2,3,2,3,0=10 (5)
Rider Replacement
Ben Cook 2,3,3,3,2,2=15 (6)
Zach Cook 0,1,2',2',3=8+2 (5)
Richard Lawson 2,2,3,2'=9+1 (4)
Kyle Newman 0,2',1',1,R=4+2 (5)
Adam Roynon 3,1',1,1',0=6+2 (5)
.
Ht 1: L.Kerr, S.Worrall, D.Hume, K.Newman 4-2 4-2 [54.8]
Ht 2: A.Roynon, K.Newman, J.Mulford, J.Edwards 1-5 5-7 [54.8]
Ht 3: C.Wright, B.Cook, C.Bailey, Z.Cook 4-2 9-9 [54]
Ht 4: D.King, R.Lawson, A.Roynon, J.Mulford 3-3 12-12 [54.2]
Ht 5: S.Worrall, C.Wright, Z.Cook, C.Bailey 2-4 14-16 [53.9]
Ht 6: L.Kerr, R.Lawson, K.Newman, D.Hume 3-3 17-19 [54.8]
Ht 7: B.Cook, Z.Cook, D.King, J.Edwards 1-5 18-24 [54.8]
Ht 8: B.Cook, D.Hume, A.Roynon, J.Mulford 2-4 20-28 [55.2]
Ht 9: R.Lawson, C.Wright, K.Newman, C.Bailey 2-4 22-32 [54.7]
Ht 10: B.Cook, Z.Cook, L.Kerr, D.Hume 1-5 23-37 [54.9]
Ht 11: D.King, S.Worrall, A.Roynon, J.Edwards [fell exc] 3-3 26-40 [55.6]
Ht 12: C.Wright, B.Cook, J.Mulford, K.Newman [rtd] 4-2 30-42 [55.6]
Ht 13: S.Worrall, R.Lawson, D.King, L.Kerr 1-5 31-47 [54.4]
Ht 14: Z.Cook, C.Bailey, J.Edwards, A.Roynon 3-3 34-50 [55.1]
Ht 15: C.Wright, B.Cook, D.King, S.Worrall 4-2 38-52 [55.5]
SCB REFEREE: Seth Perkin
REDCAR won toss and deferred choice to heat 15; POOLE chose gates 1&3 |REDCAR choose gates 2&4 in heat 15
 

Full report to follow