PREVIEWING: POOLE V SWINDON - 18TH APRIL

REIGNING Premiership league champions Swindon provide the opposition for the Pirates next Wimborne Road action (Wednesday 7.30pm).

Having been able to retain the nucleus of the side that beat Poole in the semi-final stages of the play-offs last year before going on to win the title in dramatic last heat fashion against Wolverhampton, former Poole captain Alun Rossiter brings his Robins to town in what will be their first league action of the season.

With Poole looking to build on their solid start to the season which has yielded four league points from their two matches against Belle Vue so far, the meeting has all the ingredients of being a true local derby. It sees a swift return to Wimborne Road of Troy Batchelor who will be keen to improve on his paid 2 score he recorded as a guest replacement for British champion Craig Cook a week ago.

Despite having released world champion Jason Doyle over the winter, the Robins, led by Nick Morris, have a solid shape about them. From 22 rides taken at Poole last term between them, David Bellego and Tobiasz Musielak achieved 10 race wins proving that they can be more than a handful, and with former Poole rider Adam Ellis completing the main body team the hosts will need to be on their guard.

The Pirates are unchanged from the side that fought back strongly against the Belle Vue Aces last week to win 50-40 in which Brady Kurtz went unbeaten, and then clinched a valuable consolation point in Manchester on Monday.

Teams:-
Pirates: Brady Kurtz, Kacper Woryna, Josh Grajczonek (capt), Linus Sundstrom, Peter Kildemand, James Shanes, Mateusz Szczepaniak - Team manager Neil Middleditch
Robins: Nick Morris (capt), David Bellego, Troy Batchelor, Adam Ellis, Tobiasz Musielak, Zach Wajtknecht, Mitchell Davey - Team manager Alun Rossiter