For only the second time in the competition’s 13 year history all ten top flight sides look likely to appear in the second round of the KO Cup. With last years winners and runners-up—Coalville and Barnet—having received byes, there are eight first round ties involving top flight sides and after the first legs it’s hard to see any shock aggregate results after the return match-ups next week. Leading the charge are Eastbourne Seagulls, they impressive 42-48 winners at division two leaders Willenhall, the visitors dominating the heat win stats in a fixture they were expected to struggle in. For once Jimmy Hammer (10) was outclassed on his home track, Kenny Dornan (13+1) and Peter Carl (13) both beating him twice, but he got away lightly compared with Wolves second heat leader Thomas Bo Andersen (7), his confidence cut to shreds by the closing stages after early defeats to Carl and Dornan sandwiched a cheeky Jaroslaw Szyskzko (9) success in heat 7, the World Under 21 Champion cutting back under the Dane in dramatic fashion on the final bend of the final lap to snatch the three points. Eastbourne’s success wasn’t the biggest on the road though, that honour went to Leeds Jaguars who defeated an under-strength Plympton 30-60, home fans would have feared the worse when Pumas boss George Bate ‘rested’ his top two for the fixture, Yevgeniy Kashentsev (15) isn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he one of three Jags to complete maximums on the night. Fifty point plus scores at home for Fleetwood, Friern and Linlithgow in the first legs of their ties should be enough to see them through, while both Huntingdon and Brickhill need only to make up four points in the home return legs of their ties against former winners Peterborough and White City, after slender defeats on the road against the fallen greats this week.

With a negative points difference Kelso’s position in second place in division one looked a bit false going into their home fixture against Leeds Jaguars this week, and so it proved to be, the recently promoted side now lie eighth and in the relegation zone after suffering a 42-48 defeat against the Jags. Darren Evans won’t be celebrating just yet though, he still has real problems with his side, number one Nathan Kay (4+1) scored far below par in the win, while Yevgeniy Kashentsev (9) is still struggling to reach the sort of form he’s capable off. If it wasn’t for a flawless 18 point maximum from Anthony Rose the result would have been very different, with second string John Read (7) the only other rider to come out of the fixture with any credit for the visitors. The win though and later success against Brickhill (46-44) is enough to see them replace the Kestrels in second spot in the standings, for now at least. The only other side to win on the road in the top flight this week were Fleetwood Sharks, Gavin Moss (14) clinching both points for them at bottom side Huntingdon (44-46) with his fourth win of the night in the last heat decider, the Sharks moving out of the bottom three as a result.

Kai Kimppa’s (5) five year run in the GP’s has come to an end, the 29 year old out of this years World Championship after failing to achieve a top eight spot in his Scandinavian semi final in Oslo this week. The Friern Barnet rider won the Scandinavian title last season for the first time before going on to become World Number ten. Mika Kokko (6) was another SL12 GP rider to fall at the first hurdle, he finishing down in ninth. The qualifying round was won by Lublin’s Magnus Farnerud (12), the current World Number 14 beating Bristol’s Seppo Heikkinen to the meeting victory after winning a race-off between the pair.

With a home defeat in the Cup it proved to be a poor week all round for Willenhall, they also losing top spot in division two after being held to a home draw by Stoke Eagles, the visitors snatching a point with a Laurie Johnstone (11+1) winning last heat 5-1. Dudley, another of the promotion contenders, suffered their own home woes, Bill Perten (11) and Dan Evans (17+1) scoring a last heat 5-1 for Swindon Serpents on the West Midlands circuit to ensure a first away victory of the season for them, Swindon were twice six points down in the meeting. The win lifts them to fourth and to within a point of Dudley, who remain third.

There’s little change in division three this week with the only away point being picked up by Crowborough Crows, their draw at Wednesbury—clinched with a final heat Matt Thomas (12) win—seeing them leap-frog their hosts at the bottom of the table on points difference.