REPORT: Poole Pirates v Scunthorpe Scorpions

Poole extended their advantage at the top of the table with a comfortable victory over second-placed Scunthorpe. Poole accelerated through the the final two thirds of the meeting to run out 58-31

Pirates were determined to throw Scunthorpe into the shadows on this eclipse day and whilst Scunthorpe showed early promise they ultimately proved as underwhelming as the actual eclipse as Poole ultimately won by 27 points, a margin established across the final ten heats after the scores were all square from the opening handful of heats.

Back at tier two level for the first time since leaving the Pirates at the end of the 2024 Treble Winning year, Tom Brennan set a 59.39 winning time with William Cairns and Nick Morris (guesting for Richard Lawson) settled in behind him without threat from Connor Mountain. Poole's other guest - Jordan Jenkins covering Kyle Newman - was equally as impressive as he got by Nathan Ablitt but most eyes were on debutant Slater Lightcap who opened his British racing career with a third place, defeating Ryan Ingram, that enabled Poole to establish a small lead. A rider that has served Poole as a guest this year, Luke Harrison, took advantage of a slice of fortune when Lewis Kerr packed up entering the third turn due to a faulty spark plug and with Cooper Rushen unable to reel in Jacob Hook the Scorpions opened up a lead of their own. Skipper Zach Cook and Jordan Jenkins had the perfect response over Michael Palm-Toft and the retiring Nathan Ablitt to convert the two point deficit back into a two-point lead before Brennan again sped away in heat five split from his team partner for the night Mountain. (15-15)

Cairns, quick to hunt down the outside line, and Morris wasted little time in re-establishing Poole's lead and from here on in it became a little one-sided.  Cook took his Wimborne Road win tally to a straight twelve outings, suitably backed up in third place by Lightcap who wasted little time in guiding his way by Hook. Cairns won for the second time on the night with Jenkins unbeaten as Poole eclipsed Ablitt and Mountain in heat eight and then Kerr splendidly defeated Brennan to defy the tactical substitute option invoked by Scorpions team manager Rob Godfrey. It was Poole again who banked a heat advantage, a 4-2 to extend their overall lead over the side that before the night were just a point behind them in the table. Harrison was caught in no-mans land in heat ten as Morris and Cairns went either side of him on turn two, going on to record 5-1 number four for the hosts. (38-22)

Lightcap showed that he could learn the lines to head for despite being alien to the circuit and was all over Brennan in heat eleven with Cook tucked back in third, losing his unbeaten sequence but content to prevent any form of comeback from the Scorpions. Jenkins and Kerr mathematically sealed the victory on the night with the fifth Pirates' 5-1 before Cook returned to winning ways in heat thirteen and had Morris in two. Rushen who was enduring a less productive night than normal burst into life in heat fourteen to beat Harrison whilst Lightcap steered his way to a fifth point on debut. Cook went too wide into the first turn in heat fifteen, falling and earning a disqualification. Cairns was leading at the time of the stoppage. In the re-run Cairns was building up the speed off the pit turn in a bid to pass Harrison who seemed to be aware of the threat but then reared, taking a heavy fall himself and also earning a disqualification leaving Cairns to go up directly against Brennan in a shoot-out - and what a thriller it produced. Nipping tightly inside Brennan, Cairns established the narrowest of advantages and had Brennan on his back for four solid laps. Cairns read the race perfectly, cutting off Brennan's options turn by turn, instinctively knowing where the threat was coming from and delighting himself as much as the enthusiastic crowd.
 

POOLE 58
Nick Morris 1',2',3,2'=8+3 (4)
William Cairns 2,3,3,2',3=13+1 (5)
Lewis Kerr R,2,3,2'=7+1 (4)
Cooper Rushen 1,0,RS,3=4 (3)
Zach Cook 3,3,1',3,FD=10+1 (5)
Slater Lightcap 1,1,2,1=5 (4)
Jordan Jenkins 3,2',2',1,3=11+2 (5)
.
SCUNTHORPE 31
Tom Brennan 3,3,2,3,1,2=14 (6)
Connor Mountain 0,1,0,0=1 (4)
Jacob Hook 2',0,0,0=2+1 (4)
Luke Harrison 3,2,1,2,XD=8 (5)
Michael Palm-Toft 1,1,0,0=2 (4)
Nathan Ablitt 2,R,RS,1,TS,1=4 (4)
Ryan Ingram 0,RS,0,RS,0=0 (3)

Ht 1:  T.Brennan, W.Cairns, N.Morris, C.Mountain 3-3 3-3 [59.39]
Ht 2:  J.Jenkins, N.Ablitt, S.Lightcap, R.Ingram 4-2 7-5 [60.58]
Ht 3:  L.Harrison, J.Hook, C.Rushen, L.Kerr [rtd] 1-5 8-10 [61.32]
Ht 4:  Z.Cook, J.Jenkins, M.Palm-Toft, N.Ablitt [rtd] 5-1 13-11 [59.89]
Ht 5:  T.Brennan, L.Kerr, C.Mountain, C.Rushen 2-4 15-15 [60.12]
Ht 6:  W.Cairns, N.Morris, M.Palm-Toft, R.Ingram 5-1 20-16 [60.64]
Ht 7:  Z.Cook, L.Harrison, S.Lightcap, J.Hook 4-2 24-18 [60.42]
Ht 8:  W.Cairns, J.Jenkins, N.Ablitt, C.Mountain 5-1 29-19 [61.48]
Ht 9:  L.Kerr, T.Brennan, J.Jenkins, M.Palm-Toft, N.Ablitt [Tac Subbed] 4-2 33-21 [61.26]
Ht 10:  N.Morris, W.Cairns, L.Harrison, J.Hook 5-1 38-22 [61.62]
Ht 11:  T.Brennan, S.Lightcap, Z.Cook, C.Mountain 3-3 41-25 [62.12]
Ht 12:  J.Jenkins, L.Kerr, N.Ablitt, J.Hook 5-1 46-26 [62.73]
Ht 13:  Z.Cook, N.Morris, T.Brennan, M.Palm-Toft 5-1 51-27 [61.07]
Ht 14:  C.Rushen, L.Harrison, S.Lightcap, R.Ingram 4-2 55-29 [62.37]
Ht 15:  W.Cairns, T.Brennan, L.Harrison[fell exc], Z.Cook [fell exc] 3-2 58-31 [62.43]

SGB Referee Ms Christina Turnbull

Meeting Reaction