Steve Shovlar

Starke stopped that he could have cleared. Message to Starke. Poole are going to be in the final. Ref trying to make up for his early blunders. Awarded.

Far better coms than Eurosport, with the exception of Tatum.

Lol. Not sure we need any.

Ref should have let it go.

Starke broke the tapes with his equipment. Rules are clear. Ref ignored rules. 21points now needed.

In which case he should have been excluded. Poor ref who should know better.

Starke benefitted from his first attempt. Bailey looks like a top GP rider here and the opposite elsewhere!

Penalised Poole again with Starke wrecking the tapes and all four back. Ref should have let it go.

Justice done in rerun

Cook exc fine not under power. Basso fell on his own and is allowed in? Shocking call!

There is no risk of 30 points being overhauled. Not going to happen. If the lead was 18 points I would say the same. Not going to happen. The Poole team I riding too well and is solid. It didn’t happen when we were riding mediocre mid season, so why would it happen when we are riding well?

No not bike issues. Just beaten up by riders with more desire and dialled in. As for Tom Brennan, as his career progresses he will certainly improve at Poole. I remember a young Chris Harris struggling for several seasons to get a grip of Wimborne Road and always flattering to deceive. Today, when in the right mood and with his bikes working, he can be untouchable.

Why wouldn’t they be?

I think if a final is to be rerun, then the riders should start in a staggered order. The rider leading should start 5 metres in front if second who starts 5 metres in front of third. A rerun rarely sees the same rider order coming off the second bend. The leading rider in the first running often loses out. Unfair.

We will win or keep it close. 60-30 is far too big a gap to blow. We have to come all the way up there for the Jubilee meeting as well in the next few weeks. Let’s hope the weather holds out. Glasgow have the makings of a very good team and next year, if they build well, could well be title winners. Cook has had issues. Hopefully they are sorted. Brennan is definitely one for the future. As is Ben Basso if they can keep him. Bailey? Great at home, poor away. Hume? Great lad and I would have kept him in the Poole lineup no doubt. Nicol. Not convinced. Incoming Pickering? I am hearing the Championship points limit will be lower next season so Pirates will not have the luxury of three top riders at heat leader. Danny Ford said the Poole team would need changes because of this but he wanted to keep the nucleus of the team. Expect the Cooks, Lawson, King or Worrall.

Good news as Sunday is far better weather and it doesn’t clash with the big match of Swindon v Northampton.

So it’s likely to be off again? A 3pm start to clash with the footy isn’t the wisest of moves. Sunday? Looking better.

That’s a great post. All spot on. I heard the news on Wednesday and it’s all so expected and all so disappointing and predictable. The sad thing is like Coventry, down to greed from stadium owners. The club, like Coventry, was profitable with good crowds and a decent atmosphere. I shall certainly miss my trips up to Blunsdon, like Brandon, with the banter and rivalry. Gutted for the fans.

Glasgow’s form continues in heat one of Ipswich v Belle Vue.

One thing to note. The swap deal between Poole and Glasgow for Lawson and Basso certainly came out on the Pirates side. Not for last nights score, but for overall value. There is no doubt that Basso will be a top rider with a high chance of a GP career. But he could well be gone next season from the Championship, while Richard Lawson has at least three more season in him before his career ends.

The track was fine on Sunday but the ref and a couple of Glasgow riders didn’t fancy it. Glasgow manager argued that if it rained again the result could be called at heat ten. That issue really is no longer valid.

I guess if there is oxygen in the air or a Tory wrecking the economy there is a chance. But the chances are Poole will win at Ashfield as well. Last night when the Cooks were interviewed they said Poole would be going there to win. Personally I would like to see safety first and don’t take risks but if you play safe you may invite trouble. In the quarter finals Poole went and won both legs and the same could easily happen here to keep the run going.

Glasgow riders made the gate on several occasions. Trouble for them though is they were at the back coming down the back straight.

There was plenty of passing last night. Nearly all on the first lap as Glasgow were simply blown away. Brennan gated twice but was swallowed up on the first and second bend. Basso got passed twice while in second place. If a team is that poor, do you expect them to chase and pass a faster and more aggressive rider? In heat 15 Glasgow gated on a 5-1 and Lawson got through to second. Steve Worrall is a gater so didn’t bust a gut when the job had been done already. It might not have been a great meeting for a neutral, as the teams were completely mis-matched. But the stadium was rocking last night and the atmosphere was brilliant. I doubt anyone other than a handful of Glasgow fans left the stadium last night feeling anything but elation.

I certainly don’t dislike Brennan and think he has ability to go a long way in the sport. But he hasn’t enough yet to come to Poole and expect to see off our top five. He gated in two heats but by the time riders had come out of the second bend he had been passed and was on a losing 5-1. Experience will come with age. At the moment it was too much for him to handle.