REPORT: Poole 'Wessex Marine' Pirates 42 v Swindon Robins Select 48

10/05/23

Up against a combined top three average of 29.17 in comparison to their own 23.44, this challenge fixture was always going to be a big ask for the Wessex Marine Pirates and so they did well to take the match into a last heat decider.

But up against a rider who is in mint form at the moment, former world champion Jason Doyle, hopes of springing another Wimborne Road home win were somewhat remote. Doyle had given the Swindon Robins the perfect start, storming to victory in a time of 58.24 and as a real bonus had his team-mate for the evening, Anders Rowe, backing the win up with a battling performance against Poole's guest Ryan Douglas, deputising for the ill Steve Worrall, to make it a 5-1 opening for the Robins.

Adam Roynon took the win in the second heat, hitting the front at turn three of the first lap and having daylight ahead of him. Jack Smith looked unsure of himself at the same point which made Kyle Newman's job that much harder, whilst it also allowed Sam Hagon to cleverly nip in to second place. Newman kept the challenge on and in the closest of finishes just missed out, it couldn't have been by more than a beak!!

The third heat was somewhat strung out as Justin Sedgmen led comfortably, Poole fans seeing the rare sight of the Cook brother partnership being on the wrong end of a 5-1 this season. Nick Morris continued the early Robins' domination but it was his partner Hagon who produced all the good stuff in heat four, passing Roynon with some ease to extend the visitors lead to 16-8.

Doyle was away and gone in heat five but there was a battle between Ben Cook and Rowe, the former prevailing. The beaten pair from heat one, Douglas and Keynan Rew, were able to see off Smith in heat six but Morris had the beating of the pair of them. Five heats after their first heat advantage the Pirates collected a second as Rocketman Richard Lawson led home Sedgmen and Newman was astute enough to see off pressure applied by Alfie Bowtell.

Rew had things well dialled-in with a tapes to flag victory in heat eight, Hagon seemingly fancying his chances again over Roynon, but this time the more experienced Adam just had enough in his locker to fend off the challenge. Morris delivered a perfectly timed drop of the clutch, pulling away from the tapes just as they rose, allowing him to curb the Pirates mini-revival, although he needed to be on alert when Ben Cook closed in on him in the closing stages, shortly after his brother Zach had almost squandered third when he negotiated the pit-turn all wrong. Rew was a late arrival at the tapes for heat ten but was first away and stormed to his first ever Wimborne Road race win, whilst Douglas worked hard to stave off Sedgmen to give Poole a 5-1 which reduced the deficit to just two points.

Lawson exerted early pressure on Doyle in heat eleven, bu the Robins' number one just shrugged it off with contempt. Behind them Rowe and Ben Cook were slugging out a tense battle for two laps before Ben took control, keeping the margin to just two behind going into the meeting break.

When racing resumed, Sedgmen was quick to make hay when Ben Cook looked a bit out of shape at the first turn, and whilst the Poole man recovered sufficiently to pick off Smith, the Swindon reserve was able to open his account as Roynon ran out of distance. Although Doyle moved a fraction early in heat thirteen, Douglas had the advantage as the riders selected their lines coming out of the opening turn, but the referee hit the red light, considering it an unsatisfactory start and warning Doyle, a decision that frustrated the partisan Poole fans. Doyle had seen sufficient of Douglas' tactics and countered it at the second opportunity to maintain his unbeaten performance. Expectations, on form, were high for the Pirates in heat fourteen but neither Zach Cook nor Newman made a really strong enough gate and Bowtell had the advantage. Until, at the pit turn he lost control and was thrown off the machine. He was soon to his feet but aware he would be staying in the pits for the re-run as the white light denoted his disqualification. In the re-start, sole Robin, Hagon certainly made his presence felt as he led Newman a merry dance early on.
Determined to get his prey, Newman found the line on the final lap and even tried to peg Hagon on the outside in the hope that Cook was around to sneak up the inside, but unfortunately Cook had conceded too much ground and all the Pirates could salvage was a 4-2, moving into the final heat two points adrift.

Impressed by his past two rides, team manager Neil Middleditch offered Rew the chance to pair up with Lawson for some Pirate heroics but it was Morris who joined Doyle out front and the pair were just too good to allow Poole to sneak a shock victory.

Heat Details

POOLE 42
Ryan Douglas 1,2,2',2=7+1 (4)
Keynan Rew 0,1',3,3,0=7+1 (5)
Ben Cook 0,2,2,2=6 (4)
Zach Cook 1,0,1',1=3+1 (4)
Richard Lawson 2,3,2,1',1=9+1 (5)
Kyle Newman 1,1,1',3=6+1 (4)
Adam Roynon 3,0,1,0=4 (4)
.
SWINDON 48
Jason Doyle 3,3,3,3,3=15 (5)
Anders Rowe 2',1,2,0=5+1 (4)
Justin Sedgmen 3,2,1,3=9 (4)
Alfie Bowtell 2',0,0,XD=2+1 (4)
Nick Morris 3,3,3,0,2'=11+1 (5)
Jack Smith 0,0,0,1=1 (4)
Sam Hagon 2,1,0,2=5 (4)
.
Ht 1: J.Doyle, A.Rowe, R.Douglas, K.Rew 1-5 1-5 [58.24]
Ht 2: A.Roynon, S.Hagon, K.Newman, J.Smith 4-2 5-7 [62.37]
Ht 3: J.Sedgmen, A.Bowtell, Z.Cook, B.Cook 1-5 6-12 [59.68]
Ht 4: N.Morris, R.Lawson, S.Hagon, A.Roynon 2-4 8-16 [60.46]
Ht 5: J.Doyle, B.Cook, A.Rowe, Z.Cook 2-4 10-20 [59.04]
Ht 6: N.Morris, R.Douglas, K.Rew, J.Smith 3-3 13-23 [59.74]
Ht 7: R.Lawson, J.Sedgmen, K.Newman, A.Bowtell 4-2 17-25 [59.51]
Ht 8: K.Rew, A.Rowe, A.Roynon, S.Hagon 4-2 21-27 [60.4]
Ht 9: N.Morris, B.Cook, Z.Cook, J.Smith 3-3 24-30 [60.72]
Ht 10: K.Rew, R.Douglas, J.Sedgmen, A.Bowtell 5-1 29-31 [59.57]
Ht 11: J.Doyle, R.Lawson, K.Newman, A.Rowe 3-3 32-34 [60.41]
Ht 12: J.Sedgmen, B.Cook, J.Smith, A.Roynon 2-4 34-38 [60.75]
Ht 13: J.Doyle, R.Douglas, R.Lawson, N.Morris 3-3 37-41 [60.01]
Ht 14: K.Newman, S.Hagon, Z.Cook, A.Bowtell[exc] 4-2 41-43 [61.57]
Ht 15: J.Doyle, N.Morris, R.Lawson, K.Rew 1-5 42-48 [61.21]