REPORT: Cheetahs climb back to the top after two-point win in Berwick

The Monarch Oxford Cheetahs climbed back to the top of the Cab Direct Championship table on Saturday night when beating Berwick Bandits 44-46 at Shielfield Park.

It marked Cheetahs’ fourth successive league win and meant Peter Schroeck’s side remain unbeaten in the league with one quarter of the campaign complete.

Skipper Scott Nicholls topped the score chart with 13 points while Sam Masters weighed in with 11+1. Cameron Heeps and Jordan Jenkins scored 6+1 and 7+1 respectively.

Performance of the night undoubtedly went to reserve Henry Atkins, though. The Devon-based racer won his final two heats to return with nine points from six rides. Lewis Kerr meanwhile had to withdraw from the meeting after a crash in heat one.

Team Manager Schroeck was delighted with his side’s performance and wants to keep the positive momentum rolling ahead of Tuesday’s trip to Plymouth before Poole Pirates visit Oxford Stadium on Wednesday.

“I couldn’t be happier with the team’s performance tonight,” said Schroeck. “We knew we were capable of getting the win, but Berwick is a tricky place to go given it’s a specialist track.

“That only makes the win feel sweeter. It was a big blow to lose Lewi (Kerr) in the first race, but the team pulled together to get over the line.

“I’m not the one to pick out individual performances as this is a team sport, but Henry (Atkins) really came to the fore towards the end of the meeting. He has come on leaps and bounds in recent weeks and those two race wins towards the end will make the drive home feel that bit shorter.

“We won 11 heats on the night so I do believe we deserved this win. We’ll celebrate this one, then quickly refocus for Plymouth on Tuesday.”

The Monarch Cheetahs’ Cab Direct Championship campaign resumes on Tuesday night away to Plymouth Gladiators. Tapes-up at the Plymouth Coliseum is at 7pm.