REPORT: Poole 52 Scunthorpe 38

The enforced reshuffling of the Pirates' lineup, due to the new August averages saw Sam Hagon get off to a good start from the number two berth, getting ahead of the vastly more experienced Simon Lambert and Michael Palm-Toft, and then moving close enough to pace-setter Richard Lawson, who gallantly waved the teenager through for victory, Lawson more than happy to settle for the bonus point.

Hagon's replacement at reserve, Tobias Thomsen kept trying to plot a wide pass move on former Poole number seven Nathan Ablitt, but the latter's time at Poole served as good intel as he continuously closed off the lines. Poole's guest Ben Trigger had done well at the first turn to nestle into third place and he had the point sewn up long before Luke Harrison packed up in the latter phase of the heat. Talking of first turns, Ben Cook showed true grit as he rounded both Jake Allen and Connor Mountain and set about setting a sub-sixty seconds time. Zach Cook making up early lost ground was however unable to find the key to unlock a pass that would have given Poole an advantage so the four points from heat one remained the difference between the two sides, who both sit perched at the top of the table. There were plenty of wheels in the air at the start of heat four but importantly, for Poole, it was Tom Brennan who was quickest to get his down and storm to victory, leaviing Kyle Howarth some way behind, with Harrison this time beating Trigger.

After some track tendering, Ben Cook came out and showed his pace again so it was down to Zach Cook to do the hard graft at the first turn and once he had rounded both Palm-Toft and Lambert the race result was, as they say on the pits turn, never in doubt. Howarth held his nerve, and his ground when, in heat six, Lawson tried desperately to squeeze by on the back straight fence and although the Poole number one was foiled he never gave up the hunt but it proved to be his first defeat from his last ten Wimborne Road rides. Heat seven could have been re-titled heats 7a and 7b, as two races developed and Poole looked set to lose out in both. Thomsen couldn't move the block that was Mountain whilst Allen had the advantage over Brennan, for all but the last few yards, when Brennan's move off the final turn was perfect and gave him the drive to snatch the win. Super Speedway!

Not wanting him to miss out on his customary heat eight ride, Neil Middleditch drafted in Thomsen as a replacement, albeit this time in blue rather than the red he has been used to. He worked Ablitt exceptionally hard for two laps, but then the ex-Poole man kicked off. That left Thomsen having to react to defending his advantage over Lambert who was gaining ground, all the while Hagon was working very hard to try and join in the fun. As things panned out there were no positional changes but it certainly wasn't for lack of effort from any of the contestants. Zach Cook produced more good work in heat nine, holding off Howarth whilst brother Ben bolted away. Lawson was long gone in heat ten whilst Hagon kept probing away at the back, the heat finishing all square and eight points separating the sides (34-26).

Tactical territory and time to rest struggling Palm-Toft in favour of lively Howarth. Into the first turn and it was tight, three abreast with Howarth and Lambert leaving Brennan little, if any room. Down went the Poole man. On came the stop lights. Then a delay before the shock announcement that Brennan was out! Thomsen was left to battle the Poole corner alone and whilst he made a decent fist of it for the first couple of laps he could never land the blow needed and there was most certainly a game on now. 35-31 the score with Poole looking for a decent lead to take with them on Friday when the bonus point goes on offer.

Buzzing Ben Cook wasted no time in winning heat twelve, the only points going Poole's way in that one. Back at the tapes after his earlier detention, Brennan was in no mood for any questions to be asked at the first turn this time, and quickly cleared off leaving Lawson to happily defend against Howarth and Palm-Toft. Four valuable race points gained, now eight between the sides. Zach Cook pulled off a very important and clinical move on Ablitt in the opening lap of heat fourteen to set up the heat advantage, Thomsen kept looking for a similar move to improve it but unable to pull it off. Now ten the difference. Into the final heat and Brennan was again the dominant one from the tapes but the skipper was determined to fully max-out and he wound his machine up, and scythed his way through to the front, knowing that his team-mates would be at the pit-gate waiting to deliver the traditional 'maximum bumps'. More crucially though, the 5-1 finish gives Poole a fourteen point lead. But only two visting sides this season have managed to score 39 points or more, so it will need the Pirates to be at their very best if they are going to scoop the bonus point that would guarantee them finishing above Scunthorpe ahead of the play-offs.

POOLE 52
Richard Lawson 2',2,3,2'=9+2 (4)
Sam Hagon 3,0,0,0=3 (4)
Ben Cook 3,3,3,3,3=15 (5)
Zach Cook 0,2',2',3=7+2 (4)
Tom Brennan 3,3,FD,3,2'=11+1 (5)
Tobias Thomsen 2,0,2,1,1=6 (5)
Ben Trigger 1',0,RS,0=1+1 (3)

SCUNTHORPE 38
Michael Palm-Toft 0,0,TS,0=0 (3)
Simon Lambert 1,1,1,2',0=5+1 (5)
Jake Allen 1',2,1',2=6+2 (4)
Connor Mountain 2,1',2,0=5+1 (4)
Kyle Howarth 2,3,1,3,1,1=11 (6)
Nathan Ablitt 3,1,3,RS,1',2=10+1 (5)
Luke Harrison R,1',RS,0,RS=1+1 (3)

Ht 1:  S.Hagon, R.Lawson, S.Lambert, M.Palm-Toft 5-1 5-1 [60.72]
Ht 2:  N.Ablitt, T.Thomsen, B.Trigger, L.Harrison [rtd] 3-3 8-4 [61.25]
Ht 3:  B.Cook, C.Mountain, J.Allen, Z.Cook 3-3 11-7 [59.25]
Ht 4:  T.Brennan, K.Howarth, L.Harrison, B.Trigger 3-3 14-10 [59.72]
Ht 5:  B.Cook, Z.Cook, S.Lambert, M.Palm-Toft 5-1 19-11 [59.63]
Ht 6:  K.Howarth, R.Lawson, N.Ablitt, S.Hagon 2-4 21-15 [59.97]
Ht 7:  T.Brennan, J.Allen, C.Mountain, T.Thomsen 3-3 24-18 [60.78]
Ht 8:  N.Ablitt, T.Thomsen, S.Lambert, S.Hagon 2-4 26-22 [62.94]
Ht 9:  B.Cook, Z.Cook, K.Howarth, L.Harrison 5-1 31-23 [60.31]
Ht 10:  R.Lawson, C.Mountain, J.Allen, S.Hagon 3-3 34-26 [61.69]
Ht 11:  K.Howarth, S.Lambert, T.Thomsen, T.Brennan [fell exc], M.Palm-Toft [Tac Subbed] 1-5 35-31 [62.28]
Ht 12:  B.Cook, J.Allen, N.Ablitt, B.Trigger 3-3 38-34 [61.4]
Ht 13:  T.Brennan, R.Lawson, K.Howarth, M.Palm-Toft 5-1 43-35 [60.62]
Ht 14:  Z.Cook, N.Ablitt, T.Thomsen, C.Mountain 4-2 47-37 [61.47]
Ht 15:  B.Cook, T.Brennan, K.Howarth, S.Lambert 5-1 52-38 [60.75]

SCB Referee Ms Christina Turnbull 
SCUNTHORPE won toss and chose gates 1&3 | POOLE choose gates 1&3 in heat 15  
League Points: POOLE 2 SCUNTHORPE 0

Photo Credits Tony Hartmann

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