REACTION: PIRATES IN 'ENCOURAGING' POSITION IN CUP DEFENCE

A bright start and a positive finish in their Knockout Cup semi-final tie at Leicester on Saturday has left the Pirates in an 'encouraging' position ahead of the second leg on Wednesday night.

Poole established an early four point lead, built up over a five heat period in which they denied the Lions a race winner, but after the first track grade of the meeting the home side suddenly found their solid home form and overcame those four points to go into an eight point lead over a similar period.

During the interval break the Pirates re-grouped and they out-pointed the hosts 18-12 in the final third of the meeting to lose by just two points, a margin which might well have been reversed had heat thirteen not been forced to go to a re-run. Danny King and Richard Lawson had both ridden well on the opening lap to get into a 5-1 scoring position but as the pair of them crossed the line for the first time, Nick Morris took an uncomfortable looking ride into the fence causing the race to be stopped. In the re-run, sole Lion Kyle Howarth produced a sensational four laps of speedway to use all possible parts of the track in pursuit of King, timing his final move to perfection and getting the verdict in a wheel-to-wheel finish, maintaining Leicester's six point lead. 

But Drew Kemp and Zach Cook claimed a vital 5-1 in the penultimate heat to ensure the Lion's had no chance of bringing a double-points advantage with them for the second leg, reducing the deficit to two, a level that was maintained when King and Steve Worrall both fended off Howarth for the shared final heat behind race winner Richie Worrall.

The unluckiest rider on the night had to be Nathan Ablitt. Leading heat two for three and three quarter lengths he fell on the final turn and he was also in a points scoring position in his second ride, holding back Howarth for the best part of three laps. He finished the night without a point to his name but his efforts were deserving of so much more.

So the Pirates have to overcome a two-point deficit on Wednesday (21st) if they are to proceed to the final of the Knockout Cup and they now know that if they are to reach the play-off final they will need an aggregate victory over Glasgow, after Leicester chose to take on Edinburgh in the play-off semis.
Poole will travel to Glasgow on Sunday 25th September with the second leg at Wimborne Road on the 28th.

Leicester 46 - Richie Worrall 12 (1,3,3,2,3) ,Kyle Howarth 9+1 (1',3,2,3,0) ,Nick Morris 8 (2,3,3,FD) ,Dan Thompson 6+1 (1',1,3,1) ,Max Clegg 5+2 (1',2,1,1',0) ,Joe Thompson 4+1 (2,2',0,RS) ,Connor Mountain 2 (0,0,1,1) 
Poole 44  - Danny King 12 (3,2,3,2,2) ,Steve Worrall 9+1 (3,0,2,3,1') ,Richard Lawson 8+1 (3,2,2,1') ,Drew Kemp 6+1 (2',1,0,3) ,Zach Cook 5+1 (3,0,FD,RS,0,2') ,Ben Cook 4+1 (0,1',2,1) ,Nathan Ablitt 0 (F,0,RS,0,RS)

Photo: Mark Hall