(SPEEDWAY 1)

POOLE have completed their line-up to defend the Elite League Championship with the signing of Przemyslaw Pawlicki.The 22-year-old Pole was part of Coventry’s title win against the Dorset club 2010 but then had his first spell in Pirates colours last year as cover for Darcy Ward.Poole promoter Matt Ford said: “I am delighted Shamek is back. I am also pleased to report that he is now fully fit after having an operation on his leg which has troubled him for some time.“I think we all saw his potential during the relatively brief spell he had with us and I was aware of just how popular he was with our supporters. I believe with Shamek in better shape physically than before, I think his confidence could soar as a longer-term Pirate.”

(SPEEDWAY 2)

EASTBOURNE will launch the new season with a Testimonial meeting for Joonas Kylmakorpi on Saturday March 22.The Finn, who has won the World Longtrack title in each of the last four years, is back with the Eagles this season after a spell with Peterborough in 2013.The club will stage their official practice session earlier on the same day, which will be open to the public before the Arlington stadium and track are prepared for Kylmakorpi’s meeting in the evening.

(SPEEDWAY 3)

DARCY Ward is expected to be fit for the new season despite suffering a knee injury at the weekend.Ward was competing in the Troy Bayliss Classic event at Kurri Kurri and took a heavy fall during the Americana feature event.Poole manager Neil Middleditch said: “Darcy has been in touch and said that he has hurt his knee but believes the damage is not too serious, in that he has not done any ligament damage.“He will probably need a couple of weeks’ rest but there is still a way to go before our season gets underway.”

(SPEEDWAY 4)

SCUNTHORPE have elected to open the season with home matches on Sunday afternoons until mid-May.With the exception of the Good Friday clash against Newcastle, the Scorpions will run on Sundays at 3pm and anticipate senior meetings to be followed by a National League match following the Stags’ acceptance into the third tier.Promoter Rob Godfrey said: “Friday night is still our racenight. But for the opening couple months of the season, we will switch to Sunday afternoons. “We experimented with Sunday afternoons at the end of last season, and it seemed to go down well with the supporters. Last season, it was bitterly cold at the Eddie Wright Raceway for the first few evening meetings of the season. The switch to start with Sunday afternoon enables the fans to watch the meetings in comfort in natural daylight.”