SCOTT NICHOLLS has already been “blown away” by the fans of his new club and cannot wait to meet them again, this time on home territory.
Plymouth surprised the speedway world by clinching the 47-year-old, seven-times British Champion’s signature last week but so far he has only appeared for the Gladiators away from home – at Edinburgh and Oxford.
Tonight fans at The Coliseum can welcome their new hero in the flesh as, along with the BSN cameras, Oxford travel to Devon for the reverse fixture.
He said: “I can’t wait, I’m really looking forward to it.
“My debut was up in Edinburgh and it was amazing to see so many Plymouth fans make the long journey, that was really cool.
“I’m looking forward to seeing those fans again on Saturday, and hopefully many more cheering us on.
“Let’s see if we can turn the season around and have some fun in the process.”
Despite the addition of Nicholls and stunning performances by Nikolai Klindt –who dropped just three points from 12 rides over the two meetings – Plymouth lost both of those meetings and still lie bottom of the Cab Direct Championship with two points from their eight outings.
And they will be without Klindt tonight, the Dane committed to his Poland club, with Ben Barker filling his number five spot and Poole’s Tobias Thomsen guesting at number two, Tom Spencer deputising for the unfortunate Arran Butcher who suffered a hand injury on debut last Friday.
Plymouth’s hopes of reaching the play-offs look remote but they can still have a major say in the destiny of those in the mix for the three places being contested behind runaway leaders Poole, including the Cheetahs.
With just four points between the sides after Oxford’s win at Cowley on Wednesday the aggregate point is very much up for grabs. That closeness between the sides is reflected in the fact that each team has won three times in the seven clashes between the sides in Devon since the Cheetahs’ return to British speedway in 2022 with that year’s Jubilee League qualifier ending in a 45-all draw.
Patched up Oxford have Paul Starke and Zaine Kennedy guesting in place of the injured Mitch McDiarmid and Jonas Knudsen, riding in the Euro Under-24 final in France, and also operate rider-replacement for the injured Jordan Jenkins.
They have already won at Plymouth in the BSN Series qualifier this year with Sam Masters winning all five of his rides; the first of four maximums in an incredibly prolific first half of the season.
The Australian’s battles with former team-mate Nicholls are likely to be among the highlights of the evening but the meeting is likely to be decided in the middle and lower order where Oxford will be hoping that Luke Killeen continues his recent run of good form while the Gladiators would welcome a repeat of Lasse Fredriksen’s 12-point haul in the BSN clash.
Tonight’s meeting is included in BSN’s Total Season and Championship Season packages or can be obtained on a pay-per-view basis here.
Plymouth: Scott Nicholls, Tobias Thomsen, Lasse Fredriksen, Joe Thompson, Ben Barker, Alfie Bowtell, Tom Spencer.
Oxford: Sam Masters, Paul Starke, R/R for Jordan Jenkins, Zaine Kennedy, Cameron Heeps, Francis Gusts, Luke Killeen.
Words by George Dodds.
Images by Taylor Lanning.