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Poole Speedway 2010
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Poole Speedway 2010
Big Weekend for Darcy
Whilst the thoughts of most of the Castle Cover Pirates will be focussed on Monday night's Sky Sports Elite league championship decider at Wimborne Road, young Australian Darcy Ward is currently pre-occupied with the defence of the World U21 championship he claimed last season.
When Ward scooped the prestigious title this time a year ago it was a one-off meeting but the rules of the competition were changed this year with the introduction of a three-round series. That cumlinates in Pardubice on Saturday with Ward presently in joint third place in the standings on 17 points . Ward, who endured a night of frustration in the Pirates first leg of their play-off final last Monday, trails championship leader Maxims Bogdanov by 4 points. Ward's opening ride though pitches him against second place Patrick Hougaard (19) and Artum Laguta (level with Ward on 17) a heat that could shape the destiny of the title. Ward meets Bogdanov in their third ride (heat 9) with the Pirate on the outside gate of the sweeping Pardubice circuit.
Ward heads for the Czech Republic with the good wishes of Poole owner Matt Ford who says "Darcy has been a revelation for us this season, you only need to look at how well he done in his first full season in the Elite league. There is no doubting that he was been hugely instrumental in putting us where we are and I am sure that many people still do not appreciate just how young he is. It would be a great achievement if he could pull out a result on Saturday and retain the title he won last year, that would make Monday an even bigger night for him."
Ford who described himself as 'gutted' after Monday night's 12 point defeat added "Last Monday the Bees handled the conditions much better than we did and we have now left ourselves a masive task this coming week if we are to lift the league championship. Bizarrely, we go into the meeting now as the underdogs and Coventry the clear favourites and I expect them to bring a huge fanbase to back them all the way. We need a liitle luck now, something I believe has deseerted us of late.. Can I just remind all of our League Ticket Holders that whilst their seats will be reserved for them and they will be able to gain admission through their usual turnstile, under the terms of the scheme they will have to pay on the night."
Rosco Reflects
 Former Poole skipper and present day Coventry team manager Alun Rossiter didn't see his team achieve the 20 point lead he was hoping for but has admitted to www.poolespeedway.net that had he been offered a 12 point lead at the start of the meeting hewould have "snatched at it". Reflecting back on the action at Coventry Rosco said "Let me say first and foremost that the track was not the way we as a team would have wanted it. I can honestly say that I am not into that game of track doctoring and we would have liked to have had a better stage than that to be honest. But in fairness to the track team they were hampered with the good old British weather. We were rained off after a couple of races last Thursday and then we had a more than a fair share of rain since then and in the end we had to just accept that they tried their best to get it rideable. It wasn't anything like what we have been used to, but in the end our lads seemed to be less distracted by it in the early stages and we were able to build up a lead which by all accounts I can be happy with. That doesn't mean we can take our eye of the ball whatsoever. Poole are a formidable side, they have shown that all year and you only need to look at the record around Wimborne Road this season to see that they can demolish the best. I have some great memories of Poole, after all it is with Poole that I enjoyed the most success of my racing career and although there often seems to be something between Poole and Coventry I can honestly say that the Poole fans have always been good to me."
When asked what will be going through the mind of Alun Rossiter in heat 15 this coming Monday, he quipped "I hope it doesn't all rest on heat 15 thats for sure. If it does then I don't think I could bear to watch. It will be a memorable night though that is for sure. I have a great deal of respect for the Poole club. They have a superb management infrastructure there with Matt, Giles and Middlo and I know that they will be getting behind their side and trying to wipe out our 12 point lead."
Just a few short months ago struggling Coventry were being quoted on the exchanges as a 300/1 shot to be crowned champions, now as the season approaches the all important final 15 heats the Bees are being bandied as favourites for the title so did Rossiter ever believe that his side would be in this position? "In total honesty no I didn't. In fact I didn't really believe we were going to get to the play-offs and I told Mr Sandhu that when he pressed me on the matter, but the lads have turned things around unbelievably and whilst the job is far from done its credit to their efforts for bringing us this far."
Jason's Ready
 Jason Doyle has given the Poole Castle Cover Pirates an eve-of-final boost by confirming that having undergone some track racing he has come through without any problems with the shoulder injury he sustained in a moto-cross accident a fortnight ago.
"I had a try out at Newport and I am feeling good and ready to go for Monday night" said Doyle who will take his place at reserve for the Pirates in Monday's first leg of the Sky Sports Elite league play-offs.
The Pirates had number eight Gary Havelock standing by in the event that Doyle's dislocated shoulder continued to cause problems for the Australian whom Matt Ford described as the "Pirates missing link" last season. Doyle spent the whole of the 2009 season sidelined after a crash, ironically, at Newport just hours before the Pirates Press Day and the Pirates struggled to replace him all year. Back this season Doyle has been a consistent anchor man for the Pirates returning a current average of 5.24 in league meetings.
Poole go into the first leg keen to improve on the 11 point defeat they suffered at Coventry on the night the top four positions were finally confirmed but face a Coventry side that has won 11 of their last 12 matches including a double triumph over Peterborough in the play off semi-finals. Club owner Matt Ford said "we can be under no illusions that our next two meetings will be the toughest two matches of the season and we will be needing to be scoring from every position in the side if we are to secure that title we have been pressing so hard for. The Coventry side have really ridden themselves into some good form and their present record shows that they are a very tough side to beat. But I think that our lads showed at Wolverhampton that they can ruffle a few feathers and hopefully the final will be as entertaining as the semis and a similar outcome for the Pirates."
Teams from - Coventry - K.Kasprzak, R.Sweetman, B.Barker, E.Kennett, C.Harris, L.Bridger, P.Pawlicki Team Manager A.Rossiter
Poole - C.Holder, D.Ward, B.Pedersen, A.Mroczka, D.Watt, L.Madsen, J.Doyle Team Manager N.Middleditch
26 September, 2010
Gollob's Lot
Polish supremo Tomasz Gollob at last clinched the elusive World Individual title, becoming the first Polish rider in a staggering 37 years to claim the individual crown, despite the country's speedway dominance. And it was a British rider that actually sealed the destiny of the 2010 crown as Chris Harris held off a late semi-final challenge from Gollob's compatriot Jaroslaw Hampel. In a photo-finish there was drama waiting for the official result as Hampel needed to be a finalist if he was to harbour any hopes of denying Gollob the dream, but even with the world title in his locker Gollob rode a tremendous race in the final to win the meeting, Harris though coming within a whisker of upsetting Gollob's evening
Defending world champion Jason Crump lost any faint designs he may have had on the title when he failed to make the top 8 being inched about adopted Pole Rune Holta in heat 20. Crump finished on 7 points, a similar total to that of Chris Holder who survived a heavy looking fall in heat 10 to pick up a win and a second from his final rides. That was a point more than Poole skipper Davey Watt, riding in his last GP of the season as reserve following Protasiewicz's decision to take up the option of replacing injured Emil Sajfutdinov in the final round of the series at Bydgoszcz, Poland.
Holder now drops to the precarious 8th spot - the last automatic qualifying place but he holds an 11 point advantage of Hans Andersen who is 9th as the series moves to its climax in Bydgoszcz, Poland in a fortnight.
Scorers T.Gollob 13+3+6=20 (1,3,3,3,3,3,3); C.Harris 11+2+4=17 (3,2,3,3,0,2,2); G.Hancock 9+3+2=14 (3,3,2,Fx,1,3,1); N.Pedersen 9+2+0=11 (3,1,1,1,3,2,0);
J.Hampel 9+1=10 (2,1,2,1,3,1); R.Holta 8+1=9 (0,3,0,2,3,1); A.Jonsson 8+0=8 (0,1,3,2,2,0); H.Andersen 8+0 (1,Fx,2,3,2,0); M.Zetterstrom 8 (2,2,1,2,1); J.Crump 7 (0,3,R,2,2); C.Holder 7 (2,0,Fx,3,2); D.Watt 6 (3,2,0,1,0); F.Lindgren 6 (1,2,3,0,0); T.Woffinden 6 (1,1,2,1,1); K.Bjerre 4 (2,0,1,0,1); M.Carpanese 1 (F,0,1,0,0)
Championship points - T.Gollob (163); J.Hampel (131); J.Crump (129); K.Bjerre (102); R.Holta (97); G.Hancock (95); C.Harris (93); C.Holder (90);
H.Andersen (79); A.Jonsson (78); N.Pedersen (78); F.Lindgren (76); M.Zetterstrom (68); T.Woffinden (45);E.Saifutdinov (33); D.Watt (19)
Doyle To Take First Steps Back to Action
Poole reserve Jason Doyle will be taking a major step towards confirming his fitness tonight as he heads for Lakeside and an after-meeting 'spin' at the Purfleet venue.
Doyle who dislocated his shoulder in a moto-cross fall just ten days ago has been working his way back to fitness by spending time in an oxygen chamber and undertaking intensive physiotherapy and is hopeful of being given the all-clear to return for the Pirates in time for Monday night's first leg of the Sky Sports Elite League play-off final against Coventry.
Poole boss Matt Ford said "Jason is determined in his own mind to be back for the tough contests against Coventry butknows that he must be be fully fit to do so. We have Havvy (Gary Havelock) still waiting in the wings if the outcome of Jason's try out on Friday is not positive and we are grateful to our colleagues from Lakeside for accommodating Jason's request."
The clash of the Bees and the Pirates for the league title is a replay of 2003 when the two sides met in the final. In that year Coventry had finished second to Poole after the regulation league fixtures had been completed and the Pirates claimed victories in both legs of the final. This time around the Bees confirmed their place in the play-offs by beating the Pirates at Brandon in their last league fixture prior to the cut-off date and then beat Peterborough home and away in their semi-final.
Teams from - Coventry - K.Kasprzak, R.Sweetman, B.Barker, E.Kennett, C.Harris, L.Bridger, P.Pawlicki Team Manager A.Rossiter
Poole - C.Holder, D.Ward, B.Pedersen, A.Mroczka, D.Watt, L.Madsen, J.Doyle or G.Havelock Team Manager N.Middleditch
24 September, 2010
Bees Looking to Revenge for Seven Year Grudge?
Coventry Buildbase Bees will have an added incentive to snatch the league title from the grasp of the Poole Castle Cover Pirates as they look to revenge for having lost the Grand final to the Pirates seven years ago
This season's Pirates finished the regulation season 26 points clear of the Bees, who squeezed into the play-offs at the eleventh hour. Back in 2003 the table topping Pirates outpointed second place Coventry by 8 league points. The Bees went on to crush Peterborough in the semi-finals that year, in similar fashion to their exploits this time around, with Poole beating now defunct Oxford.
When the two sides met in the final Poole pulled off a narrow 45-44 away victory before going on to win the tie 100-79 on aggregate. Two of the current Poole side, Davey Watt and Bjarne Pedersen, both featured in those contests, Pedersen scoring 6 and Watt 4 (from reserve) at Brandon. Poole only trailed at one stage on that occasion, when Coventry gained a 5-1 in heat 7 through Andreas Jonsson and Jason Bunyan over Todd Wiltshire (guest) and Antionio Lindback. Jonsson went on to fulfill a 15 point maximum but Tony Rickardsson and Leigh Adams kept out Lee Richardson to give Poole that one point advantage. That meeting was held on September 29th 2003, this year's eagerly awaited visit taking place two calendar days previous, Monday September 27th.
Club owner Matt Ford said, "that was a memorable occasion for sure and I will always recall the huge support we had on the terraces on that night. If we can have the same sort of backing again on Monday it will certainly play its part in lifting the Pirates. If Coventry are looking for revenge from that year then we will be equally as keen to make up for our semi-final defeat to them in 2007."
22-Sep-2010
Adams The Fan
 Wolverhampton team manager Peter Adams acknowledged the Poole Castle Cover Pirates as the 'best time by far' in this season's Sky Sports Elite League even before the Pirates knocked his beloved Wolves side out of the title race.
Adams who has strategically masterminded two championship 'steals' since the play-off format was introduced said before tapes went up at Wimborne Road "we will be doing our best to try and stop Poole and keep a hand on the title we won last year but I really must say that it would be a travesty of justice if Poole weren't crowned champions this season. They have been the dominant team all season, you only need to look at the league table and see that they currently outpoint us by 20 points. That is a big lead and yes the play-offs are there to keep the destiny of the title an unknown quantity for as long as possible but you can't help but admire the Pirates this year."
Adams, a team manager of considerable longevity and success could only watch on in awe as the Pirates went about their business to book their passage to the final where they will meet Coventry who claimed a semi-final double over third placed Peterborough.
The Bees are certainly the 'in-form' team, having been a basement side after seven matches but a 9-match unbeaten run in the past 8 weeks or so leaves the bookmakers with the difficult task of installing a favourite for the title.
The first leg of the final will be staged at Coventry on Monday September 27th (7.30) with the Poole club organising coach travel to the meeting. For details call 01202 681145 during normal office hours.
21-Sep-2010
Poole Fans can Shout Pirates Into Final
WITH the scores level after the play-off semi-final first leg against reigning Elite League champions Wolverhampton, Poole boss Matt Ford has sent out a call to Dorset sports fans to roar the Pirates into the play-off finals in Monday night’s second leg.
Ford revealed last night: "This is a unique opportunity for all sports fans in Dorset to show the rest of the country just how wonderful this area is.
"My advice to everyone is come and be part of the atmosphere, let’s lift the decibel level and play a part in getting our team into the finals.
"Many people believe we have one foot in the final after our draw last Monday away from home. but Iam taking nothing for granted. Swindon were big favourites to land the Elite League crown this time last year but were blown away in the final by a Wolves team who raised their game when it mattered. We know just how capable they are.
"It's going to come down to the team making home advantage pay and I believe the secret weapon is the supporters. I want the rest of speedway to see the transmission going out live on Sky Sports just what sort of meeting atmosphere and crescendo we can produce."
And Castle Cover Pirates skipper Davey Watt echoed Ford's sentiments.
Watt said: "We rode in a cauldron of huge Wolves support last Monday. Their boys were given some awesome backing and it was hard to block out that fervent noise. But while all the fans congregate on the home straight at Wolverhampton, it's different at Poole. We've got supporters stacked around the whole arena. There's no escape for the visitors at our place.
"I cannot begin to explain the feeling as a rider when you go round the track and get the ovation from Poole supporters. It's awe-inspiring. Nights like Monday are very special and I hope we are able to deliver for the fantastic Pirate fans."
The management have announced that admission prices will be pegged at regular 2010 weekly prices for Monday's semi-final.
Former world champion and ex-Pirates captain Gary Havelock said he is thrilled to step in to the cut throat atmosphere of Monday’s winner-takes-all semi-final at Wimborne Road.
Havelock, 42 in November, has received a late call up following reserve Jason Doyle’s freak motox accident last week when he fell practicing and dislocated his shoulder.
And Havvy, world champion 18 years ago in Poland, admitted he would always jump through hoops to help out the club he served with passion between 1998 and 2001.
Havelock commented: “I feel absolutely gutted for Jason. He’s distraught. But daft things like this happen.
“He’s been a key member in getting Poole to the top of the table and I would like nothing better than to help the club into the final for him. That’s the best tonic he could get.
“I met up with the boys again on Thursday and helped the team win at Ipswich. It’s a great atmosphere in the camp, but we’re all going to need to crank up our performance by a couple of notches again on Monday.
“It’s going to be lovely ‘coming home’ to Wimborne Road. But there is a big job to be done first.”
Teams:
CASTLE COVER PIRATES: 1 Chris Holder, 2 Darcy Ward, 3 Bjarne Pedersen, 4 Artur Mroczka, 5 Davey Watt (Capt), 6 Leon Madsen, 7 Gary Havelock. Team manager: Neil Middleditch
WOLVES: 1 Freddie Lindgren, 2 Ty Proctor, 3 Nikolai Klindt, 4 Tai Woffinden, 5 Adam Skornicki, 6 Matthew Wethers, 7 Ludvig Lindgren.
19-September-2010
Panthers Book their Place as Cup Opponents
Poole Castle Cover Pirates' semi-final KO cup opponents was confirmed on Friday night when Peterborough overcame a first leg 8 point deficit to beat Swindon 99-86 on aggregate. The Panthers, like the Pirates, will be battling out a play-off semi-final on Monday night to try and maintain their double hopes but unlike Poole who go into their home leg with the aggregate scores all level, Peterborough will have to fire in a big win to do so.
The KO cup semi-final will be staged on Thursday 7th October (first leg) at the East of England Showground, with the return at Wimborne Road on Wednesday October 13th. The winners of that tie will then meet the winners of Lakeside v Coventry or Wolverhampton in the final.
17-September-2010
Top Goes To Bottom - Doyle Out Though
 Whilst the tantalising second leg semi-final play-off is uppermost in their minds on Monday (September 20th), the Castle Cover Pirates will be turning their attentions to a trip to Ipswich on Thursday (16th September) night to complete their regulation league fixtures.
The fixture falls right in the middle of the Pirates' engagements with Wolverhampton and provides an ideal opportunity to stay race fit. The Pirates won their first visit to Foxhall Heath by just two points, one of their six away wins of the league season and a second victory will serve as a further boost to the Pirates' confidence.
The Pirates though have been delivered the news that Jason Doyle has suffered a dislocated shoulder whilst 'keeping fit' moto-cross riding! "It's a frustration for us" said Matt Ford, "a similar thing happened to Chris Holder last year. Jason could well miss the remainder of the season so you can guess how annoyed he is with himself."
Number 8 Gary Havelock will step into the breach and the Pirates will have Bournemouth's team manager Garry May taking care of things pit-side as Neil Middleditch is unavailable, whilst Ipswich have a much changed side themselves as Robert Miskowiak and Dawid Stachyra are unavailable due to their commitments in the Polish Golden Helmet (Czestochowa) and also have Chris Slabon sidelined due to a broken hand. The Witches have booked Ryan Fisher as a guest and will also operate rider replacement.
Teams from -
Ipswich - S.Nicholls, R.Fisher, D.King, A.Dryml, R/R, R.Hawkins, K.Smith
Poole - C.Holder, D.Ward, B.Pedersen, A.Mroczka, D.Watt, L.Madsen,G.Havelock
15-September-2010
It All Starts from Zero
 A league advantage of 16 points over nearest rivals and league title defenders Wolverhampton will effectively count for nothing this evening as the two sides go head to head in the first leg of the semi-final play-offs.
The Castle Cover Pirates league dominance goes on the line as the Elite league season reaches the true business end of the season. "At risk of wearing out the record, nothing has been won yet by this fabulous Poole side and that should be motivation in itself for a final push towards the silverware" admitted Matt Ford as he looks ahead to tonight's trip to Monmore Green.
"There is no question that a team that wins over 70% of its fixtures, as we have done this season, can be anything but a good side. The word on the street is that the side is looking a little jaded of late but when you look at the form guide then our last six away matches have seen us win twice and lost by 6,4,10 and 11. Lets be honest a result within that sort of region wouldn't be a disaster. The last time we were at Wolverhampton it was a nightmare for Chris (Holder) by his own admission. He is a far better rider than the one we saw that night and even without his scoring influence we came within 10 points of them. The lads have re-grouped and will be as one in a determined frame of mind to get the reward that in truth they richly deserve. It won't be easy we know that, it can never be that at this stage of the season when its the cream against the cream, but the Pirates will be out there battling all the way. That's a given."
Teams from -
Wolverhampton - F.Lindgren, T.Proctor, N.Klindt, T.Woffinden, A.Skornicki, M.Wethers, L.Lindgren,
Poole - C.Holder, D.Ward, B.Pedersen, A.Mroczka, D.Watt, L.Madsen, J.Doyle
13-September-2010
Further GP Consolidation for Holder
Chris Holder pushed himself further up the GP standings with a 10 point score in Vojens on Saturday night, the scene of the Nordic round and the 9th in the 11 round series.
Holder started with two race wins, the first after a brilliant gate from the outside, the second when making a third to first move using all the track, a track that began to detioriate as the rain started falling quite heavily mid meeting.
Holder added a third and a second to his tally to secure a semi-final place but his night came to an end when he just missed out on getting by Nicki Pedersen in the first semi-final
Holder's team-mate Dave Watt had a difficult third GP, scoring just one point and taking a nasty fall when hitting a rut in heat 19
Magnus Zetterstrom, like Holder was semi-finalist but the night belonged totally to the unbeaten Tomasz Gollob who extended his series lead to 19 points over now, second place, Jason Crump who finished third in the very wet final
Scores from Vojens - T.Gollob 15+3+6=24 (3,3,3,3,3,3,3); K.Bjerre 10+3+4=17 (2,2,2,2,2,3,2); J.Crump 11+2+2=15 (1,2,3,3,2,2,1); N.Pedersen 10+2+0=12 (2,2,3,0,3,2,0);
J.Hampel 11+0=11 (2,3,2,1,3,0); C.Holder 9+1=10 (3,3,0,1,2,1); A.Jonsson 8+1=9 (2,2,2,1,1,1); M.Zetterstrom 8+0=8 (1,1,3,3,0,0); H.Andersen 7 (0,3,2,2,0); G.Hancock 6 (3,1,0,1,1); N.Iversen 6 (3,0,1,2,0); R.Holta 6 (X,0,1,2,3); F.Lindgren 5 (X,0,0,3,2); C.Harris 4 (1,1,1,0,1); T.Woffinden 2 (1,0,1,0,R); D.Watt 1 (0,1,0,0,X)
GP Standings - T.Gollob (141); J.Crump (122); J.Hampel (121); K.Bjerre (98); R.Holta (88); C.Holder (83)
;
G.Hancock (81); C.Harris (76); H.Andersen (71); A.Jonsson (70);
F.Lindgren 70; N.Pedersen (67); M.Zetterstrom (60); T.Woffinden (39); D.Watt (13)
Earlier in the day Poole's Artur Mroczka finished in 10th place in the Polish Youth championships in Torun. The meeting was won by his fellow U21 World Cup team-mate Maciej Janowski who netted a 15 point maximum. Mroczka scored just 6 points.
11-September-2010
Chilling Before Coventry
Poole Castle Cover Pirates Chris Holder and Darcy Ward have been enjoying a rare few days off by relaxing in the sun and seas of Marbella, Spain since Monday
After their Polish Extraliga play-off meeting with Torun on Sunday they flew to the Spanish resort to take some much needed time off from what has been a gruelling season for the pair of them.
But even the much deserved holiday couldn't keep the lads from being 'out of the saddle' spending plenty of time on jet skis
The young Australian duo have been spending time with club promoter Matt Ford who told www.poolespeedway.net "Chris and Darcy have been enjoying some time in the sun and a chance to de-stress a little and recharge their batteries. It has been great to spend some time with the lads without them having the pressures of racing. Chris in particular needed time to chill out as we face a couple of really crucial weeks ahead. The lads both feel ready now to go about the business back on the race track but to be honest we haven't spent too much time in the last few days worrying about things. They have had great fun on the jet skis - they are crazy, even on holiday they just want to race around!"
Chris and Darcy (seen below doing his impression of James Bond) will be returning to the UK and back to their normal saddles in time for the Castle Cover Pirates Sky Sports Elite League match at Coventry on Thursday.
The fixture is a crucial one as far as the play-offs are concerned as the Bees find themselves in a must-win situation if they are to have any chance of snatching the final play-off placing. Even a victory over the Pirates wouldn't be enough if Lakeside were to repeat their early season win at Swindon.
All of Thursday night's league fixtures will have regular updates on Sky Sports News HD with the Coventry v Poole match also being covered live through this website's own Live Update service and via Twitter
Teams from
Coventry: K.Kasprzak, R.Sweetman, B.Barker, E.Kennett, C.Harris, L.Bridger, P.Pawlicki
Poole: C.Holder, D.Ward, B.Pedersen, A.Mroczka, D.Watt, L.Madsen, J.Doyle
08-September-2010
BSPA Play-off Statement
The BSPA have today issued a directive that overturns the announcements made on Sky Sports television that Lakeside's trip to Swindon would not count towards final positions ahead of the play-offs.
In a statement released the BSPA say "To avoid any doubt ALL results established on the date of the cut-off (Thursday 9th September) will be included in the league standings to determine the four play-off qualifiers. Those fixtures being - Coventry v Poole, Ipswich v Belle Vue, Peterborough v Eastbourne and Swindon v Lakeside.
Poole, Wolverhampton and Peterborough are assured of their places in the play-offs with Lakeside and Coventry battling for the final place.
07-September-2010
Pirates Will Have Major Say in Play-offs
Despite having sealed top spot for some weeks the Poole Castle Cover Pirates will still play a major role in which team takes the fourth and final play-off spot. With the authorities having agreed to discount Lakeside's 16th away match, scheduled for Thursday, to ensure that the three teams that were chasing the final two places - Peterborough, Lakeside and Coventry - do so over equal away fixtures - the in-form Coventry Bees can snatch that fourth place with a victory over Poole on Thursday night.
Going into Thursday night the four play-off places are held by Poole (74), Wolverhampton (58), Peterborough (49) and Lakeside (48) but ready to pounce are the Coventry Bees, just two points behind Lakeside on 46 after their 16 point away win at Belle Vue this evening.
Whilst Coventry were winning emphatically in Manchester on Monday evening Peterborough bounced back into winning ways after their shock two home league defeats in the space of the week. By beating Lakeside the Peterborough Panthers collected a full four points to seal their place in the play-offs and should Coventry edge out Lakeside by beating the Pirates on Thursday then the Panthers will become the Pirates play-off opponents with Matt Ford saying "We had looked at the scenarious and prior to last Friday I think we were all geared up to go to Lakeside but the results have shaken things up a good deal and if we still want to go there then we need to upset Coventry's splendid run. We owe them for beating us in the Best Pairs on Saturday. They have gone 5 matches unbeaten in the league and I think it is something like just one defeat in 8 for them, so it would be good to spoil that run. If on the other hand they beat us on Thursday then I think we will leave Wolverhampton to take care of them in the semi-final play-offs and we will take on Peterborough."
06-September-2010
Bouyant Bees Pip Pirates in Pairs
 Chris Holder had to surrender the Elite League pairs title he won last season to former Pirate Krzysztof Kasprzak and British champion Chris Harris, at Ipswich on Saturday night.
In a format where not all pairings meet all opponents the 'luck of the draw' saw the Pirates matched against Coventry in their third ride, having picked up maximum 7-2 advantages from their opening outings against Ipswich (heat 1) and Eastbourne (heat 4). But Coventry, 5-4 winners over Peterborough and 7-2 victors over the Eagles, fired in a massive 7-2 on the Pirates which left Holder and partner Pedersen needing a heat advantage to ensure progression to the semi-final stages.
Through fast gating over the Wolverhampton combination of Nicolai Klindt and Joe Haines the Pirates made certain of being in the final four pairings and were matched against Lakeside, with Coventry having to see of Peterborough.
The likelihood of the Pirates marching into the final was hugely increased when young Joe Jacobs had to step in to cover for thumb-injured Jonas Davidsson, incurred in a bizarre after race crash. Under the scoring system of 4-3-2-0 the Pirates knew they only had to see off Jacobs to pitch themselves against the Bees who had bettered their heats performance over the Panthers with a 7-2 semi-final win.
Favouring the inside gates the Bees won the toss and Kasprzak was fast away leaving his parrtner Harris to cope with the determined pressures of the Pirates which the Cornishman managed to stave off and give the rejuvenated Coventry Bees something to cheer about in what has been a difficult season for new manager Alun Rossiter.
Result: 1st Coventry 26+7+7 (K.Kasprzak 21+2, C.Harris 19+4) 2nd Poole 23+7+2 (C.Holder 17+1, B.Pedersen 15+3) 3rd Lakeside 22+2 (A.Shields 14+2, J.Davidsson 10+1, J.Jacobs 0) 4th Peterborough 20+2 (K.Bjerre 10+1, N.Iversen 12+1) 5th Swindon 18 (M.Korneliussen 7+2, G.Zengota 11) 6th Ipswich 17 (S.Nicholls 8, D.King 9+1) 7th Wolverhampton 15 (N.Klindt 12, J Haines 3+1) 8th Eastbourne 13 (R.Kling 9, C.Woodward 4) 9th Belle Vue 8 (F.Sitera 2, J.Wright 6)
04-September-2010
Pirates Still Waiting
The Poole Castle Cover Pirates are still none the wiser as to who they will be choosing for their semi-final opponents in the Elite League play-offs, after Friday night's results.
With Peterborough slipping up for the second time at home in as many meetings, losing to Coventry by two points and Lakeside being held to a home draw by Swindon then plenty of permutations remain for the final two places.
The situation could become clearer on Monday night when Peterborough travel to Lakeside and Coventry visit Belle Vue, the Aces themselves not mathematically out of a possible fourth place finish. Then, next Thursday, on deadline day, the Bees host Poole, Belle Vue visit Ipswich and Peterborough face the worrying visit of Eastbourne, the first team to lower their East of England colours this season, and Lakeside travel to Swindon.
Friday's results prompted Matt Ford to say, "It is going to be a really interesting week. Monday night could make the waters that much clearer but with the way the results have been going and with clubs believing that they can still make the play-offs then it might go right down to the final cut-off date before we can look at which team to choose. That in itself will not be an easy choice but I guess we always knew that would be the case. I think it is fair to say though that we possibly have our preferred pecking order but I am not going to go any further on that. Let's wait until Monday and see how those results affect the league standings."
In the meantime, Chris Holder and Bjarne Pedersen fly the Poole flag in the Elite League pairs at Ipswich (7.30) tonight whilst Artur Mroczka will form part of the U21 Polish side on Sunday in the final of the World Team Cup at Rye House.
04-September-2010
Fixture Drought but "I'm Not going to gamble" says Ford
 Having completed their full schedule of home league matches the Poole Castle Cover Pirates now face a wait of 19 days before their next home fixture.
IIt is a situation that ideally Matt Ford wanted to avoid, hoping to provide some form of meeting, not least to keep his Pirates sharp in the saddle but he has explained the decision not to run on the next two Wednesdays". "Quite frankly I do not feel it right to gamble with the club finances and I have been reading a lot of negativity about what supporters consider 'meaningless' fixtures. I believe that if we were to put some racing on it would not be that well supported and that would hit the club's finances. I don't feel that I should put the club into the position where it loses money
We had planned a challenge match between Poole and the Australian SWC side, which in the end we had to cancel due to the problems with the weather in Poland that meant three of the riders would not be available. We had that meeting set up with a new sponsor, GD9, which would have of course covered a large proportion of the costs, but the feedback that I was sensing from the supporters is that a fair number of them would 'give the meeting a miss'."
"That would expose the club to a financial loss and the long term future of the club is far more important than that. Ideally I would have liked to have had some home meetings to keep the lads riding and I do accept that we could now be going into a very important semi-final second leg a little bit rusty which is not an ideal situation."
The Pirates' run-in to the end of season sees them travel to Coventry on Thursday 9th September for their last meeting before the play-off cut off date. Then on Monday 13th September they will be racing away at their chosen play-off opponents in the first leg before completing their outstanding league fixtures with a trip to Ipswich on September 16th. Four days later they return to Wimborne Road for the second leg and if they qualify on aggregate they will then ride the first leg of the final away on Monday September 27th and then stage the final a week later on Monday October 4th.
The Pirates are also awaiting the completion of the quarter final KO cup second leg between Peterborough and Swindon to learn of their semi-final opponents. The Panthers are due to stage that second leg on Friday September 17th.
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