REACTION: PIRATES RECOVER AGAINST RESURGENT REDCAR

Seeking to maintain their unbeaten start to the SGB Cab Direct Championship campaign, the Poole 'Wessex Marine' Pirates produced a stunning comeback against the resurgent Redcar Bears to eventually run out winners by just four points (47-43), with the excitement so intense, the final heat lasted a full five laps!

Taking the victory in that one was Tom Brennan, claiming his third successive race win and he admitted afterwards "I think we did one more laps than we wanted to do which was a bit unexpected but we had a plan going into that last race and we had everything set up pretty good and yeah, obviously the nerves were there but at the end of the day, everyone came together and we managed to get that win. To be honest I was expecting to have to go off gate three in that last one, but then Richard (Lawson) had that breakdown in heat thirteen and so he gave the choice of gates to me. But every decision is like a team decision and I want to give a really big up for Rich tonight, he was absolutely phenomenal and didn't deserve to drop any points, but unfortunately that is how speedway goes and I am just happy for the team as we managed to get the job done."
Brennan was referring to the cruellest piece of luck to strike on Lawson when, leading heat thirteen by a huge margin and steering the Pirates to what would have been a more comfortable final few heats, he shed a chain as he started the final circuit, an incident that gifted the visitors a 1-5 to come back to within two points, with just two heats to go. That was how things stood going into that final heat and although the Poole boys could have settled for second and third, behind the hugely impressive Jason Edwards, young Brennan opted to go for certainty, reeled his opponent in and made the pass. Absorbed in the drama so much, the wrong flag came out on the fourth lap and although the race continued for another circuit the result was officially, and correctly, called by the referee after four laps.
Prior to the weekend the Teeside based Bears hadn't won a league match but a home win over Glasgow on Friday and then a victory at Plymouth on Tuesday, it was evident that they were coming back into form, and for the first half of the meeting kept the Pirates at arms length, twice building up a six point lead.
But a volley of three maximum heat advantages across heats nine, ten and eleven allowed Poole to forge ahead and then even suppress a tactical move which saw Charles Wright replace Ben Trigger. But the brilliant Brennan had the beating of the former British Champion in the twelfth heat and then came that dramatic twist with Lawson's dreadful luck, before the Pirates' resilience finally came to the fore.
The cheers of relief when Brennan flashed over the line matched the noise levels that had greeted debutant Vinnie Foord at the end of heat two after his all-out efforts to try and pass Trigger resulted in a last bend fall, but his hard work was hugely appreciated and although he finished without a score, he demonstrated that he intends to grasp the opportunity afforded to him with both hands.

POOLE 47 - Tom Brennan 13 (2,2,3,3,3) ,Richard Lawson 10 (3,3,3,R,1) ,Ben Cook 8+1 (3,1',3,1) ,Sam Hagon 7 (1,0,2,2,2) ,Tobias Thomsen 5+1 (0,1,2,2') ,Zach Cook 4+3 (0,1',2',1') ,Vinnie Foord 0 (F,RS,0,0)
REDCAR 43 - Jason Edwards 12 (3,3,1,3,2) ,Charles Wright 11 (2,3,1,2,3,0) ,Justin Sedgmen 7+1 (2,2,1,2') ,Jake Mulford 5+1 (3,1',1,0) ,Connor Bailey 4+1 (1',0,3,0) ,Ben Trigger 2+1 (2',0,0,TS) ,Dan Gilkes 2+1 (1,F,0,1')
 

• The Pirates have been drawn against Workington in the semi-finals of the BSN series, thus avoiding the Scunthorpe Scorpion whom they will meet in the KO Cup semi-finals. Dates for these meetings are as yet to be determined, but the Pirates do have a change of fixture with their SGB Cab Direct Championship trip to Edinburgh, originally set for Friday 21st June now deferred until Friday 23rd August.

Photo credit: Anthony Burchell

Match report and heat details