PREVIEW: POOLE v OXFORD (MAXICAB KO CUP Q/F)

POOLE take a ten-point lead into the second leg of their MAXiCab KO Cup quarter-final with Oxford at Wimborne Road tonight (Wednesday).

The Pirates won an eventful Cowley clash 49-39 last week and will now look to complete their progression to the last four as their trophy defence continues.

Fraser Bowers is back from an eye injury for the home side but Cooper Rushen is ruled out, with youngster Charlie Southwick coming in to replace him.

Meanwhile the Cheetahs again bring in Nick Morris to guest for Erik Riss, whilst Luke Killeen and Darryl Ritchings are out after crashes last week, with rider replacement in operation for Killeen and Senna Summers stepping up from the NDL to replace Ritchings.

Poole promoter 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.”

Cheetahs boss Peter Schroeck said: “Poole will start as hot favourites to progress for the semi-finals, but we’re not ready to throw in the towel yet and we’ll travel down there with an open mind.

“The first thing we want to do is win on the night and we’ll aim to do that. Beyond that, if there’s any chance on aggregate with a few races to go, we’ll do our best to take that opportunity.”

POOLE: Richard Lawson, Fraser Bowes, Lewis Kerr, Kyle Newman, Zach Cook, Will Cains, Charlie Southwick.

OXFORD: Sam Masters, Luke Killeen R/R, Mitch McDiarmid, Nick Morris, Anders Rowe, Dayle Wood, Senna Summers.

SCB Referee: Michael Breckon

*LIVE STREAMING: https://livestream.poole-speedway.com/