Recently-appointed director of speedway Peter Oakes has wasted no time in bolstering the Oxford Lions squad.

During the club's period in limbo, Ben Hopwood departed to Plymouth, while both Michael Coles and Grant MacDonald found Premier League clubs at Glasgow and King's Lynn respectively, ruling them out of Conference League action.

The desperately unlucky MacDonald now seems set to miss the rest of the season after a crash last week.

But Oakes has snapped up Lee Smethills, Danny Betson and Dan Blake, to bring the numbers in the Lions squad back up to nine riders.

Smethills, ironically, is the rider dropped by Glasgow to accommodate Coles.

The 25-year-old, who hails from Bolton, had endured a poor run of form with the Tigers, but firmly believes that a drop to the Conference League for the rest of the season will help boost his confidence.

Sussex-born Betson has sat out the 2007 season until now.

The 19-year-old made his Conference League debut for Mildenhall in 2004, and made huge strides at Wimbledon in 2005, before averaging 7.82 for the Rye House Raiders last season.

The 18-year old Blake began this season with Plymouth, but has been sidelined of late with a broken collar-bone and hairline hip fracture.