PREVIEWING POOLE V OXFORD MAXiCab KO CUP QUARTER FINAL

Poole Speedway will be seeking to establish a five-match unbeaten run and extend their unbeaten home record to twenty matches when they host the Oxford Cheetahs at Wimborne Road on Wednesday 20th May (7.30pm).

Coincidentally, the last club to win at the town-centre venue were Oxford, a little over a year ago, when they claimed a two-point victory in a BSN fixture. The Cheetahs have, however, lost on their last five visits and will need to break that sequence if they are to have any hope of denying Poole a semi-final appearance in the KO Cup for a fifth straight season.

Poole hold a ten-point lead from the first leg, but will be defending that advantage without the services of one of their signings of the season, teenage reserve Cooper Rushen, who has been ruled out following a hand injury sustained during the first leg. It means an opportunity for local lad Charlie Southwick to pull on the Pirate colours at reserve, where he will line up alongside Will Cairns.

Poole are also awaiting a fitness update on Fraser Bowes, who badly damaged his eye in a freak workshop accident, whilst Oxford have injury problems of their own.

Looking ahead to the fixture, Dan Ford said:

“We are in a strong position. The lads did the hard yards at Oxford, but that won’t count for anything until we finish the job on Wednesday. I know for certain that the lads will go into this meeting believing the scores are all square at nil-nil and approach it as a one-off meeting with the mindset of winning on the night. There has been a great rivalry between us and Oxford since we resumed battle in 2022. It is a local derby, there is Southern pride at stake, and we love having the bragging rights. Whilst we are sorry not to have Cooper in the team, I am pleased that we are able to give young Charlie an outing. This is exactly what the sport is about, A young rider working his way through, showing commitment and determination, and earning an opportunity. It is not an easy road but Charlie has stuck at it and deserves his chance. I'm sure that all our fans will appreciate his efforts and make him feel very welcome on his local track”

The effects of concussion protocols rule Luke Killeen out of the meeting following a horrific-looking incident at the end of heat eight at Cowley, whilst the ongoing medical problems that have beset Erik Riss’ career in recent seasons continue to keep him out of the saddle.

Teams (subject to confirmation and change):

Poole (TM Neil Middleditch) 1 Richard Lawson 2 Fraser Bowes or RR (subject to fitness) 3 Lewis Kerr 4 Kyle Newman 5 Zach Cook (Capt) 6 Will Cairns 7 Charlie Southwick (Guest)

Oxford (TM Peter Schroeck) 1 Sam Masters (Capt) 2 RR for Erik Riss 3 Mitch McDiarmid 4 Guest for Luke Killeen 5 Anders Rowe 6 Dayle Wood 7 Guest for Darryl Ritchings