Poole Pirates 40, Oxford Cheetahs 50 GRESHAM Oxford Cheetahs pulled off a superb win at Poole last night to keep alive their hopes of a place in the Elite Speedway League play-offs, writes LEON HILL.

Once again they were led from the front by No 1 Jason Crump, with a superb 18-point maximum.

Cheetahs were boosted by the news that Dane Jan Staechmann, who has been scoring so well in recent weeks, had not broken his wrist and could ride.

The first heat was a taste of what was to come, with Crump picking up his first win and an aggressive ride from Steve Johnston keeping Gary Havelock at the back of the field.

Three consecutive shared heats followed and then in heat five, Cheetahs pulled away again.

It turned out to be the heat of the night, with Crump and Craig Boyce locked in battle right to the end - and then beyond as both riders failed to spot the chequered flag and continued to race for another full lap! Poole hit back with a 5-1 over a struggling Paul Hurry and when Havelock picked up his first win of the night in heat eight, it narrowed the gap to just two.

Another 5-1 by Ryan Sullivan and Havelock saw Cheetahs fall behind for the first time all night.

But the visitors were in no mood to roll over and quickly levelled the scores again with a lucky 5-1 when Kelvin Tatum took a nasty tumble.

Another 5-1 in heat 12 gave Cheetahs a four-point lead once again at the interval stage and after that they never looked back as three 4-2's sealed the victory, and the all-important three league points that go with it.

It gives Cheetahs a big boost before their visit to Belle Vue tomorrow where they will be without Crump, who is on Grand Prix duty.

Poole: Sullivan 12, Havelock 12+2, Boyce 5+2, Tatum 0, Lemon 3, Zetterstrom 4. 40pts.

Oxford: Crump 18, Johnston 4+1, Wiltshire 11+1, Hurry 3, Schofield 7+1, Staechmann 7+2. 50pts. HEAT DETAILS

Heat 1: Crump, Sullivan, Johnston, Havelock 59.5 secs.

Heat 2 : Lemon, Schofield, Staechmann, Zetterstrom 60.5.

Heat 3: Wiltshire, Sullivan, Boyce, Johnston 60.2.

Heat 4: Zetterstrom, Hurry, Staechmann, Tatum 60.6.

Heat 5: Crump, Boyce, Johnston, Lemon 60.9.

Heat 6: Sullivan, Havelock, Schofield, Hurry 60.7.

Heat 7: Crump, Wiltshire, Lemon, Tatum 61.2.

Heat 8: Havelock, Staechmann, Zetterstrom, Johnston 61.0.

Heat 9: Havelock, Schofield, Boyce, Hurry 61.0.

Heat 10: Sullivan, Havelock, Wiltshire, Hurry 61.2.

Heat 11: Crump, Johnston, Lemon, Tatum (fell, ex) 62.9.

Heat 12: Wiltshire, Schofield, Boyce, Zetterstrom 61.8.

Heat 13: Crump, Sullivan, Hurry, Tatum 60.8.

Heat 14: Staechmann, Lemon, Wiltshire, Boyce 61.6.

Heat 15: Crump, Havelock, Wiltshire, Lemon 61.4.

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