OXFORD Cheetahs’ 48-42 defeat to Poole Pirates left Jason Crump with a bittersweet feeling.
The SGB Championship holders triumphed at a sold-out Oxford Stadium to back-up last Friday’s 58-32 win in the reverse fixture.
Cheetahs were much closer to Poole this time around and turned a 21-15 deficit after heat six into a 31-29 lead by the end of race ten, but the visitors showed their class to claim the points.
Team manager Crump said: “It was a little disappointing, I thought we dug in very deep in the middle of the meeting and got ourselves back into a really strong position.
“Unfortunately, we couldn’t quite manage to hold on.
“As good a team as Poole are, we showed in the middle part of the meeting we were a match for them.”
Troy Batchelor top-scored for Cheetahs with 12 points, while there were encouraging rides from youngsters Dillon Ruml (9+4) and Jack Thomas (8).
The latter finished fourth in his first two outings of the evening, but roared back with wins in heats eight and nine.
Jack Thomas (left) celebrates a solid heat Picture: Steve Edmunds
The 22-year-old felt the presence of the 2,000-strong crowd as Cheetahs fans packed out Sandy Lane for the second week running.
Thomas said: “It was a tough start with a few set-up problems, but I had two wins and a second which felt awesome.
“Coming to the stadium, the crowd is just brilliant when you have a race win.
“You can hear people cheer you over the line and it encourages you so much.”
SCORERS
OXFORD 42: Troy Batchelor 12, Kyle Newman 9, Dillon Ruml 9+4, Jack Thomas 8, Scott Nicholls 5, Nathan Stoneman 0, Cameron Heeps r/r.
POOLE 48: Richard Lawson 11, Steve Worrall 9, Danny King 9, Zach Cook 7+2, Ben Cook 5+1, Drew Kemp 5, Nathan Ablitt 2+1.
Championship points: Oxford 0 Poole 3.
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