PREVIEW: POOLE v OXFORD (BSN SERIES S/F)

FIERCE rivals Poole and Oxford clash in the first leg of their BSN Series semi-final at Wimborne Road tonight (Wednesday).

It’s only a fortnight since the Pirates won a controversial Cab Direct Championship encounter between the clubs, and they also met in the group stages of the BSN Series over Easter when the Cheetahs won in Dorset to top the section.

And Poole promoter Dan Ford has urged his side to embrace the knockout nature of meetings coming up on their own track as they chase a repeat of last season’s Treble.

Ford said: “I have said it before, but when Oxford are in town there will always be talking points. The passion levels seem to rise, and Southern pride usually reaches fever pitch.

“We just haven’t been too dominant at home, especially in the course of the last month or so, but now is the time to turn that around.

“This is knockout speedway now, all the way here at Wimborne Road, and we need to get into a mindset as such. A win in itself is not enough, we ideally need to win big.”

The Chetahs are forced into two changes with Francis Gusts out due to illness and Jonas Knudsen missing the meeting due to a Danish League commitment.

Jye Etheridge and Sam Hagon step in to guest for the visitors who will look to keep things as tight as possible ahead of the second leg.

POOLE: Richard Lawson, Tobias Thomsen, Lewis Kerr, Zach Cook, Anders Rowe, Paul Starke, Will Cairns.

OXFORD: Sam Masters, Jye Etheridge, Jordan Jenkins, Mitch McDiarmid, Cameron Heeps, Luke Killeen, Sam Hagon.

SCB Referee: Paul Carrington

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