Wolverhampton Wolves seal play-off win to bag Grand Final place

Wolves 55 Poole 35

Wolverhampton win 94-86 on aggregate.

The Monmore men will now face Belle Vue in the title decider next Monday at Monmore and Wednesday in Manchester after ending the reigning champions' grip on the crown.

It was a tense affair in front of a bumper crowd with the Monmore terraces packed.

They started well with Freddie Lindgren - who was brilliant all night - partnered by Peter Karlsson with a clever inside move for a 5-1 in the opening race.

But Poole's reserves bounced back immediately with both Kyle Newman and Adam Ellis restoring the 12-point aggregate lead.

It was the British youngsters who kept Poole's hopes high and ensured a tense atmosphere throughout the stadium.

Poole, in truth, were left short handed by poor displays from Brady Kurtz, Rohan Tungate and Krzysztof Buczkowski which put too much pressure on their reserves.

Wolves, meanwhile, had solid contributions from every team member and delivered the goods when the pressure was on.

Chris Holder, Poole's former world champion, was nominated for double points as a tactical ride - but Lindgren and Sam Masters made a lovely move early on to block him out for a massive maximum win to give them the aggregate lead for the first time.

But when Newman passed world champion Tai Woffinden in the next it brought the tie level again and the crowd were silenced.

And it was Newman again alongside Holder in Heat 10 who restored the lead for the reigning champions.

Two exclusions for guest Tungate - in for Bjarne Pedersen - helped Wolverhampton's cause.

He touched the tapes in Heat 13 and boss Neil Middleditch felt it best to replace him with Adam Ellis rather than put Tungate off a 15-metre handicap.

But Lindgren and Masters delivered the goods to go 45-33 up on the night and level again on aggregate after squeezing out Holder in the first turn.

Guest Chris Harris joined Woffinden for a comfortable 5-1 in the penultimate heat which left the visitors needing a maximum of their own to take it to extra time.

But Tungate went down in the first turn and referee Phil Griffin excluded him, handing the tie to Wolves.

Woffinden and Lindgren rounded the night off in style in the rerun to send be fans wild.

Said Woffinden: "It means a lot to be in the final and full credit to the guys, it was a great team effort.

"The final will be tough but I'm sure the boys will give it their best and we look forward to facing Belle Vue here on Monday."

Wolverhampton 55: Tai Woffinden 13+1, Freddie Lindgren 12+3, Sam Masters 7+2, Chris Harris 7+1, Kyle Howarth 7, Peter Karlsson 5+2, Max Clegg 4.

Poole 35: Kyle Newman 14+1, Adam Ellis 9+2, Chris Holder 8+1, Rohan Tungate 3, Krzysztof Buczkowski 1, Brady Kurtz 0, Antonio Lindback R/R.