OXFORD Cheetahs finished third in their four-team tournament at Swindon’s Abbey Stadium last night, writes ROBERT PEASLEY.
The crowd, which exceeded all expectations, was estimated at 2,000 – with an impressive number of Oxford fans in attendance.
Swindon owner Gary Patchett plans to stage a similar meeting again next year.
Niels-Kristian Iversen withdrew from the Cheetahs team at the last minute, without giving a reason for his absence. He was replaced by Eastbourne’s Lewis Bridger.
Cheetahs were third after eight races, but Bridger came out as a tactical ride on double points in heat nine and passed Cory Gathercole on the final lap to snatch second place.
And Troy Batchelor then won heat ten to bring Cheetahs into the joint lead with Swindon on 19 points.
But they were unable to maintain that momentum throughout the rest of the meeting, adding just a single point in the last six races. Leigh Adams won the meeting for Swindon by coming from third to first in a scintillating final race.
Paul Hurry continued in the meeting, despite a nasty fall on the second turn of heat seven, after a mechanical problem.
RESULT Swindon Robins 32 (Adams 12, Stead 8, Korneliussen 8, Risager 4), Cradley Heathens 29 (Andersen 10, Shields 11, Woodward 5, Gathercole 3), Oxford Cheetahs 20 (Batchelor 8, Bridger 7, Johnston 3, Hurry 2), Reading Racers 19 (Zagar 8, Hougaard 4, McGowan 3, Lemon 4, Sweetman 0).
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