IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY.....1977

April 27th will forever be remembered in the hearts of Poole Pirates fans for that was the day, in 1977, when speedway lost one of it's brethren.

Kevin, nephew of former Pirate Bill Holden , had begun his racing career with Romford in 1970 and made a couple of appearances for Newport that season. In his second season he again predominantly rode for Romford but also made a link with Exeter for whom he was about to begin an association with, through until 1977 when he was transferred from the Devonshire club to become a Pirate.

Great things were expected from the 26 year-old but tragically, in only his third Pirates' meeting, he was to lose his life doing what he loved most, racing.

That night the Pirates were hosting the visit of Reading Racers and in the fifth heat Holden was trying to go round Bob Humphrey's to get into third place. He ran out of first turn room and slid, somewhat innocuously, into the fence. Crucially though Kevin had suffered a rupture to main blood vessel of the heart and it soon became apparent that this fall was far more worse than it had seemed.

As the medical team attended and the minutes clicked by, a blanket of silence engulfed the four-figure crowd. A silence that was only pierced by the announcement over the public address system that broke the news which stunned everyone. As the blue lights of the ambulance disappeared into the distance, speedway followers of all ages were reduced to tears as they tried to take in what had been said, "Kevin Holden had died".

Lest we forget