PIRATES LEAD BY 12

POOLE established a 12-point lead at the halfway stage of the Cab Direct Championship Grand Final with a 51-39 first leg win over Glasgow at Wimborne Road.

The Pirates led the meeting throughout but appeared set to be restricted to a single-digit advantage when two Tigers 4-2s in Heats 12 and 13 reduced the gap to six points.

However, the home side doubled that margin with a 4-2 in Heat 14 and then a big 5-1 in Heat 15 from Richard Lawson and Zach Cook over Chris Harris and Dan Thompson.

Lawson had earlier seen his run of four successive home maximums ended by Harris, but he still scored 14 points from five rides whilst Cook also dropped only one point to an opponent as he ended with 11+3. Thompson (9+1) and Harris (9) led the scoring for the visitors.

Cook said: “We didn’t go out there in that Heat 15 with a specific gameplan, and sort of winged it a little.

“We got to the first corner and I don’t really know what happened. Bomber (Harris) was throwing everything at me and you just don’t know where he will be coming from. One moment he’s on the outside and the next he’s in my pocket coming into turn one the next lap!

“I just had to ride defensively, it’s a Grand Final after all, and we take a decent lead up there.

“Obviously it’s better than nothing and we will just take that one as it comes, and hopefully it will be enough.”

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Photo credit: TONY HARTMAN