Swindon Robins 56, Oxford Cheetahs 38: Cheetahs crashed to another heavy defeat as they were thrashed by their local rivals at Blunsdon last night.

Life in the top flight for new Cheetahs owner Aaron Lanney continues to be tough.

Despite tracking his re-vamped team against a weakened Swindon outfit, Cheetahs only managed to provide two race winners in the 15 heats.

These clashes quite often throw up controversy and shock results, but unfortunately for Oxford, that was not to be as the formbook was spot-on.

And had it not been for the tactical ride rule where riders of a team losing by nine points or more can double their score, then it would certainly have been a heavier defeat for Lanney's men.

Reserve Eric Andersson managed four points in heat eight, while David Howe notched the same in the next race.

This period of the meeting proved to be Oxford's most fruitful as Todd Wiltshire and Davey Watt showed a clean pair of heels to Grand Prix rider Lee Richardson for a 5-1 and Cheetahs' first genuine heat advantage of the night in race 11.

And they followed it up in the next with Adam Skornicki taking the chequered flag and partner Lubos Tomicek outgunning Sebastian Alden for third spot, a 4-2, and to cut the deficit to 42-34.

However, after the interval, Swindon re-grouped and two 5-1s in heats 13 and 15 from Leigh Adams and Richardson, and then Sebastian Ulamek and Adams, blasted anyway any hopes of a Cheetahs revival.

No Oxford rider stood out, with Andersson and Howe, aided by double points, heading the charts on eight points.

For the hosts, former Oxford rider Ulamek recorded his first Swindon maximum while another Oxford old boy, Adams, was unbeaten by a Cheetahs rider.

Wiltshire fell on the first bend in the opening heat and it never really improved for the visitors.

Swindon: Adams 13+2, Korneliussen 7+2, Katt 1, Ulamek 15, Richardson 9+1, Miedzinski 9, Alden 2. 56 pts.

Oxford: Wiltshire 6, Watt 5+3, Skornicki 6, Eriksson 2+1, Howe 8+1, Tomicek, 3 Andersson 8. 38 pts.