OXFORD Cheetahs kept their Championship title hopes ticking with a 50-40 win against Scunthorpe Scorpions at Oxford Stadium.

Peter Schroeck’s side were made to work hard for the points though as while the visitors never led, they did come from 10 points behind to trail by only two points with four heats to go.

Three successive race advantages in Heats 12, 13 and 14 stretched the Cheetahs’ lead to 12 points, before Scorpions registered a fourth race advantage of their own in the finale.

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Schroeck said after the meeting: “We knew Scunthorpe are capable of putting in a big performance and so that proved.

“They’ve gone under the radar this season and I’d expect them to cause an upset or two when the play-offs come around. From our point of view, it was another solid team performance from one to seven.

“We were frustrated by a few results in the middle part of the meeting, but the response after the interval was awesome and exactly what we asked for. Focus shifts to Glasgow on Friday which is a fixture we’re really excited for.

“Again, thank you to the supporters for turning up – we cannot thank you enough for your commitment to the club.”

Lewis Kerr dropped only one point on his way to an 11-point haul.

He said: “Scunthorpe are a good team, they’re in the play-off places and they made us fight for it. But we pulled through and got the win in the end.

“I had a good night. I only was beaten in the race where they placed a tactical substitute. I got past Jake [Allen] and I also got up to Ryan [Douglas] and nearly passed him.

“Overall, I was very happy with my night, dropping just the one point. I’m feeling really confident at the moment.

“I’ve got plenty of meetings and want to keep it going. I feel even better than I did before my injury and I feel I’m showing my best form at the right end of the season.

“As a team, we’re just doing the same we’ve done all year and it’s a good crack down here – we have fun. We just need to take the form we’ve been showing into the play-offs and we’ll be good.”

Sam Masters top scored for Cheetahs with 13 points. The rest of the Oxford side scored solidly, with six out of seven Cheetahs at least paid seven.

The Cheetahs conclude their Championship campaign at third-placed Glasgow Tigers on Friday evening ahead of Sunday’s cut-off date when the division’s six play-off spots and league leaders will be finalised.

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