Torn apart in Pila in the final of the European Cup, Lyme Bay responded to reach this season’s KO Cup decider by beating league leaders Eastbourne by eight in their last four tie. Team spirit was high despite last weeks disappointment, in fact heat one of this weeks second leg at Lyndhurst Road was delayed five minutes as the septet concluded an extended team talk in the corner of the pits. The home fans will forgive them the wait as they went on to put on a great team effort to prevent a third successive semi final exit, points scored throughout the seven as the side overturned their first leg deficit in the first four heats, and when in front they stayed there, the aggregate victory clinched with a heat 14 Oliver Ross winning 4-2. 23 year old Ross—who failed to score in Poland last week—has been at the club since joining as a 15 year old, this was one of his better performances, the tie clinching victory his second of the night and taking the reserve to season best figures of 10+1 from five. A race earlier any late nervousness about an Eastbourne comeback had been quelled by a Mario Mueller (13)/Thomas Klemmensen (8+1) 5-1, the home side’s second of the meeting following Trevor Putnam and Gyorgy Eros’s heat five success, critically both maximums were scored against visiting number one, Morten Kaya (13). Lyme Bay will meet holders Southampton in the final, the Saints having to work harder that expected to get past third division Harringay this week, a point down from their home leg the Racers were in contention right up until the end of heat 14 of the Banister Court return.

John Shuttler would have targeted the trip to bottom of the table Tooting to get their title challenge back on track, his Southampton side got all three points, but he’d have hoped for an easier passage to get them. Guest Tom Countess (16+1) was in the visiting side for injured World Champion, Sergey Guerk, and when he took the chequered flag in front in a heat one 4-2 the home fans would have been fearing the worse. However the Dons hit back with five heat advantages in the next six, twice going six in front in the process. Goran Seslar (11+2), Lee Andersen (9+1) and Countess all make successful tactical substitute appearances, and without those points Southampton would have lost this. As it was Coutness and Seslar would return the lead to the Saints for the first time since heat one at the very last moment, the pair clinching a heat 15 5-1 and a 44-46 victory when Seslar passed Graham Elrick on the final lap of the decider. Victory for the Saints cuts their deficit to leaders Eastbourne to a point, the Hyenas having earlier lost at third placed Lyme Bay by six.

Wimbledon’s SL21 WU21 Champion Pazman Sabados scored a maximum 12 points as Hungary (33) won the first ever International Fours competition, the Magyars—managed by Eastbourne boss Marc Labrum—winning the final in Horsens by a clear eight points from Russia (25) despite the absence of national champion Laszlo Bojte through injury.

An injury to last years winner Sergey Guerk has left this years World Championship wide open, the previous leader now out of contention and after this weeks round in Prague the new look top four are separated by just four points. Eastbourne’s world number five Eddie Myhill (12) is the fourth in that group, with victory for the 32 year old in the Czech round making the American a real contender in SL24, his second career GP success secured after a race-off win over Tarmo Zelinski and Maris Korablev. The two defeated riders are the new joint leaders of the championship on 53 points, Janne Vuorinen drops to third overall on 52 having scored ten in the Czech capital.

18 year old Lakeside ace Jordan Baker (13) beat home track rider Harry Myers and Jari Annala in a race-off to clinch victory in his WU21 semi final at Hailsham, the victory is already the fourth recorded by Baker—who won the BU19 crown earlier this season—in his fledgling WSO event career.

Jordan Baker (10) was unable to prevent Lakeside dropping points at home in the race for promotion from division two for the fourth time this season, the Aces number one failing to score in a heat 15 4-2 reversal which secured Stone Cross a draw and two of the three league points from the fixture. Lakeside slip three points adrift of the promotion places as a result, the big winners this week divisional leaders Timperley, who went ten clear at the top with home and away wins. The latter was recorded at bottom side Cradley, 44-46, where 5-1’s in heats 14 and 15 secured them their eighth away success of the campaign. Elsewhere Sawley moved to within five points of the top three with a two point win at Coleshill, while in division three Preston won a promotion six pointer at Birkenhead by the same score.