ALUN Rossiter admits that he was ‘surprised’ by the Lakeside Hammers team that showed up at the Abbey Stadium last night but credited his riders for consummately beating what was put in front of them.

In a meeting rearranged from last week, Essex outfit Lakeside travelled to Swindon without Andreas Jonsson – the Grand Prix star was unavailable due to his Polish League commitments – and fellow swede Kim Nilsson.

Belle Vue Aces’ Craig Cook guested for Jonsson but the Hammers chose not to find a replacement for Nilsson and the Robins got the job done, producing an impressive team performance to run out 52-41 winners, despite Edward Kennett’s stunning 18-point haul.

Swindon showed no rust in their first meeting in 19 days, with every member of the home side claiming a race win, and Rossiter was more than satisfied with what he saw. “It was very good and a good all-round performance,” said the Robins chief.

“I was maybe a little surprised – as a team that’s second in the league – with their approach (last night).

“They had the opportunity to bring in some guests. I know we’re always running out of dates but they were happy to come (on Thursday).

“Cooky was a good guest but I thought they might have brought in another one but that’s their call, at the end of the day.

“Just looking at it; I was a bit surprised in the make-up of their team, especially with them being in second place but that’s their business, not mine.

“All I’ve got to worry about is my team and making sure that we beat the other team.

“We’re really pleased for the boys and we’ve got to keep going now.

“We’ve got another week off before we go to Coventry next Friday – we genuinely ride there pretty good and we’ve got a full side because there’s no Somerset meeting, so, fingers crossed, it will all be good.”