Claus Vissing leading Jake Mulford. Picture: Dave Payne
Poole moved clear at the top of the Cab Direct Championship with a spectacular finish to collect a 49-41 away win at Redcar.
The Pirates trailed by six points with four races remaining but remarkably they ended the meeting with three 5-1s and a 4-2 to collect maximum points on Teesside.
Captain Ben Cook piled up 15+2 from six rides for the Pirates, with west Cumbrian Richard Lawson also dropping just one point to an opponent with 13+1.
The visitors lost reserve Vinnie Foord after two early crashes – one, most unusually, coming on the parade lap due to a stuck throttle.
Poole are unbeaten in eight outings so far and look nailed-on to top the table ahead of the end-of-season play-offs.
Workington Comets were beaten at Edinburgh last night but the point gained from the aggregate win keeps them in fourth, a point better off than Glasgow who do have a match in hand.
Danny King top-scored for the Bears with nine, winning his first two outings, but the home defeat was a major blow to their play-off hopes.
Former Comet Charles Wright, riding at number one, scored seven and a bonus from his five rides which included a win, a second and two thirds.
Glaasgow skipper Chris Harris inspired a crucial comeback victory over Scunthorpe – despite suffering a heavy crash in his first ride.
Harris required medical attention after the Heat 1 incident but recovered to play a starring role in the 48-41 victory which moves the Tigers up to fifth in the Cab Direct Championship, just a point behind Workington and a match in hand.
The Comets were happy to settle for the aggregate point where under different circumstances would have been looking for the win Armadale.
The Comets arrived without Claus Vissing and Celina Liebmann, who were unable to make it to Armadale due to travel chaos caused by the global IT outage.
But the Monarchs then lost heat-leader Justin Sedgmen after a four-rider pile-up in Heat 4, although no serious injuries are reported, whilst the visitors’ Troy Batchelor was also involved and was limited to four outings.
Monarchs boss Alex Harkess said: “The way things were the Comets only had two riders to give us any problem, was the way we were looking at it.
“I was disappointed for the second meeting running that we lost Heat 12, I thought we should have won that one. These guys have got to start stepping up against the lesser opposition in that race.
“It was a great shame to lose Sedgy in his first race through no fault of his own. The rest beat who they should have beaten, and Mark James falling was the only last place we got.”
The Comets team manager James Denham said: “It was a great effort to get the aggregate bonus point and Cookie was absolutely superb for his 17 points.
“Batch put in a great effort before he had to withdraw but between them they had done enough to help get us over the line.”
