REPORT: First silverware for Cheetahs since return, after Sam Masters and Anders Rowe win the Championship Best Pairs at Poole
SD TIMMO CAR SALES Oxford Cheetahs’ duo Sam Masters and Anders Rowe won the Championship Best Pairs at Poole’s Wimborne Road stadium in Dorset last night (Wednesday), after defeating Berwick in the final race.
While the Oxford Chargers have twice won the WSRA National League in 2023 and 2025, this is the first silverware won by Oxford Speedway at a senior level since speedway returned to the BetGoodwin Oxford Stadium in 2022 after a gap of 15 years.
And it comes at the end of a season where the very continuation of Oxford Speedway seemed in doubt, after the loss of a greyhound streaming contact at the stadium in early April. But Cheetahs kept going, with Mike Austin and Spencer Timmo joining Jamie Courtney on the Oxford Speedway promotion to provide extra investment and help keep the club afloat.
Masters and Rowe were the best pair on display throughout the evening. Under the 4-3-2-0 scoring system, it is key to avoid last places and the Oxford duo did not register a single last place between them in six outings.
Cheetahs topped the score-chart in the qualifying heats on 26 points, three ahead of hosts Poole Pirates. In the qualifiers, Masters and Rowe took two 7-2s maximum heat advantages and two 6-3s, dropping two just points.
Masters and Rowe had beaten Glasgow by 6-3 in Heat 16 and they met Tigers again in the first semi-final. Oxford team manager Peter Schroeck handed Rowe the favourable inside gate and Cheetahs’ skipper Masters gate three. Cheetahs trapped well. Chris Harris then moved into second place. Under the 4-3-2-0 scoring, second and third is enough to progress, and Harris looked to block Rowe, but the Oxford man was too clever to place himself in a vulnerable position and the race finished as a 6-3.
In the second semi-final, a major upset occurred. Poole Pirates’ Zach Cook and Richard Lawson – the home favourites – seemed to have the race under control from the start. But Berwick’s Nick Morris got into second place and slowed down Lawson and Peter Kildemand pushed inside Lawson on the third lap. With Morris second and Kildemand third, Berwick Bandits won the race by 5-4.
Oxford boss Jamie Coutrney is also the owner of Berwick Bandits, so he could not lose entering the final – his two teams were guaranteed first and second place. But, of course, the Oxford fans were very keen to see their riders win long-awaited silverware.
In the final, Schroeck handed Cheetahs the same gates – Anders Rowe gate one and Sam Masters gate three. Masters and Rowe again trapped. Kildemand moved into second place. Again, there was an attempt to slow down Rowe, this time from former Oxford rider Kildemand. But again, Rowe was equal to the challenge and never put himself into a position where he could be squeezed out and he stayed comfortably ahead of Nick Morris. After a tense race, Masters took the chequered flag, ahead of Kildemand and Rowe in the vital third place, as Cheetahs won 6-3.
Joyous scenes followed, involving Masters and Rowe, a highly emotional Peter Schreock who was clearly holding back the tears at times, and the loyal band of travelling Oxford fans, with a group on the first bend and other Oxford supporters dotted all around the stadium. Apart from hosts Poole, Oxford had the most supporters at Wimborne Road last night.
Cheetahs’ skipper Sam Masters said: “Oxford needed this and deserved it as a club. A big thank you to Jamie (Courtney), Pete (Schroeck) and all the crew who kept speedway at Oxford earlier this season. Oxford needs speedway and speedway needs Oxford – it’s as simple as that.
“It was nice to finally get a gold. We’ve had a lot of silver since I’ve joined the club but we’ve finally got a gold and it’s come at the end of the toughest year in the club’s history. A big thank you to all the fans who came to support us today – you could see what it meant to them.
“Poole were favourites, and Berwick did us a massive favour by knocking them out in the semi-finals. But I felt we deserved to win – we were the best pair throughout the evening, including in the qualifying races. Anders was awesome tonight. He was out there scoring points and we were team riding, which is what this pairs event is all about. The best team won and I’m glad it was us.”
Anders Rowe said: “It’s awesome to win the pairs with Oxford. We haven’t had the best of seasons, but we’ve fighting hard all year, and it’s fantastic that we won today.
“I was giving it my all in every race. In the semi and the final, I stuck to the inside and trusted myself that it was right call to make and it was.
“When we talking before the meeting, we said we needed no last places and we managed that all night. We knew that would get us through the qualifiers and then it started all over in the semis and the final and we managed it there too.”
An emotional Oxford manager Peter Schroeck said: “I’m so chuffed with the result today. It’s what everyone connected with the club deserves at the end of such a rough year.
“It wasn’t just about winning today. It was about bringing back something to everyone at Oxford, and say thank you for continuing for backing our great club.
“It’s been a hard year both on and off the track and we could still end up with the wooden spoon in the Cab Direct Championship. But this result today gives us new hope and new belief heading into next season, when we will come back stronger.
“For JC (Jamie Courtney), it was a dream night, with both his clubs, Oxford and Berwick, in the final. It’s a testament to Jamie’s work at Oxford at the start of the season, when he kept the club going and brought in the right men in Mike (Austin) and Spencer (Timmo).
“It was a pleasure to work with Sam and Anders tonight. They let me get on working out the gate positions for each race, while they did a brilliant job on track. It all worked out exactly how we wanted it to.
“Sam’s been with us for four seasons and no-one deserved some silverware more than him – he’s such a good skipper. Anders was so happy as well. I told them ‘no last places’ and that’s exactly what they did.
“I’m a bit speechless at the moment. With time, it will all sink in.”
The next meeting at the BetGoodwin Oxford Stadium will be advised in due course. Real Mini Company Chargers have two home meetings left – against Edinburgh Monarchs Academy and Buxton Bulls in the WSRA National League. News on these fixtures is expected soon. For the latest news, please keep an eye out on Oxford Speedway’s social media channels plus the official website at https://oxfordspeedway.club/
Meanwhile, Chargers are in action at league leaders Edinburgh Monarchs Academy on Friday evening (September 4).
RESULT:
1. Oxford (Sam Masters & Anders Rowe)
2. Berwick (Peter Kildemand & Nick Morris)
Semi-final 1: Sam Masters, Chris Harris, Anders Rowe, Leon Flint, (Oxford beat Glasgow 6-3).
Semi-final 2: Zach Cook, Nick Morris, Peter Kildemand, Richard Lawson, (Berwick beat Poole 5-4).
Grand Final: Sam Masters, Peter Kildemand, Anders Rowe, Nick Morris, (Oxford beat Berwick 6-3).
SCORES AFTER QUALIFYING HEATS:
Oxford 26 – Sam Masters 14, Anders Rowe 12
Poole 23 – Richard Lawson 12, Zach Cook 11
Berwick 20 – Peter Kildemand 13, Nick Morris 7
Glasgow 19 – Chris Harris 7, Leon Flint 12
(Top 4 qualify for semi-finals).
Plymouth 17 – Danny King 12, Ben Barker 5
Scunthorpe 17 – Josh Pickering 15, Luke Harrison 2
Redcar 16 – Charles Wright 13, Jason Edwards 3
Edinburgh 14 – Dan Thompson 10, Kye Thomson 4
Workington 10 – Troy Batchelor 6, Drew Kemp 4
PHOTO by Les Aubrey