SWINDON slumped to a dissapointing nine point home defeat at the hands of a rampant Poole septet.
An impeccable paid eighteen point maximum from Captain Leigh Adams and an impressive paid thirteen point haul from Jurica Pavlic wasn't enough to halt the Pirates' spirited charge.
Swindon Robins 42 Poole Pirates 51
Thursday 7th August, Sky Sports Elite League 'B'’
Poole collected their second Abbey Stadium victory of the 2008 season and in doing so bolstered their lead at the top of the Elite league standings.
The Pirates ripped Swindon apart in the middle sector of the meeting and had roared to a fourteen point lead after heat twelve.
A Leigh Adams tactical ride in heat thirteen temporarily halted the Poole charge but the damage had already been inflicted and the Dorsest side cruised to a comfortable nine point victory.
Leigh Adams once again headed the Swindon score chart with a flawless paid 18-point maximum.The bumper haul means that the Robins’ skipper is now just 11 points short of Martin Ashby's all-time record for the club.
The dependable Australian received brilliant support from Blunsdon debutant Jurica Pavlic who notched up a scintillating paid thirteen from his six ride schedule.
The nineteen year old Croatian certainly endeared himself to the Swindon fans with three race wins and an array of stylish riding that caught the eye.
However, Adams and Pavlic received little back up and contributed a mammoth twenty nine of Swindon’s eventual fourty two points.
Leigh Adams conjured a lightening fast start in the opener to lead into turn one and was untroubled throughout. James Wright struggled to recover from a poor get away and despite asserting pressure on the Poole duo in the latter stages was unable to stamp his authority.
Daniel Davidsson engineered an intelligent second bend to grab the lead in the ensuing race and the Swede looked to be cruising to victory before an engine failure on the home straight of the third lap caused him to retire.
Davidsson’s misfortune provided Jurica Pavlic with his maiden Blunsdon victory and Manuel Hauzinger’s third placed finish propelled Swindon into an early two point advantage.
The Pirates quickly levelled with a 4-2 of their own in heat three that saw Bjarne Pedersen inflict defeat on his compatriot Mads Korneliussen.
Troy Batchelor was penalised for exceeding the two minute time allowance in race four and the tenacious Australian opted to start the race from a fifteen metre handicap.
Jurcia Pavlic demonstrated great composure to repel a spirited challenge from Davey Watt and gained his second successive heat win.
At the rear, Troy Batchelor showed impressive speed to place pressure on Freddie Eriksson but was unable to secure a route past the Poole reserve.
Chris Holder and Magnus Zetterstrom collected the first 5-1 of the evening with victory in a heat five that saw Travis McGowan fall in the latter stages whilst challenging for second spot.
With the Pirates holding a four point lead, Leigh Adams eased to victory in heat six whilst a third place from James Wright ensured Swindon slashed the Poole advantage.
A points share ensued in heat seven via a Bjarne Pedersen race win before a second successive 3-3 followed in heat eight.
Poole bolstered their lead with a comfortable 5-1 in race nine through Watt and Eriksson before Leigh Adams once again steadied the ship in heat ten.
However, the Pirates asserted their superiority with successive 5-1 advantages in heats eleven and twelve that left Swindon flummoxed and trailing by a daunting fourteen points.
Adams was nominated for a tactical ride in heat thirteen and delivered the goods but a disappointing ride from Batchelor meant the effectiveness of the move was minimised.
Daniel Davidsson and Adam Skornicki re-bolstered the Poole advantage with a 4-2 in heat fourteen which sealed victory for the Dorset side.
Adams and Pavlic restored some pride for Swindon with a well worked 5-1 heat advantage in the concluding race which shuffled Swindon’s tally along to fourty two.
