PIRATES' rising star James Shanes will contest the British under-21 final at Berwick after the venue was switched.

The meeting had been set to be staged at Birmingham but the change was required with Perry Barr unavailable on Tuesdays.

The Berwick showpiece is scheduled to take place on Tuesday, May 1 (7pm), the night before Poole travel to Somerset in the Knockout Cup quarter-final first leg.

Leicester and Sheffield boss Damien Bates, who is on the British Speedway Promoters’ Association's management committee, said: “With fixed race nights at the top level, Championship clubs are restricted over when they can stage meetings.

“Tuesday is the only night of the week which is unaffected and therefore this gives us the opportunity for a full field without affecting other meetings around the country.

“We’re very pleased to be taking the event to Berwick, with their forward-thinking promotion and the hard work which goes on behind the scenes at Shielfield Park."

The BSPA are planning to livestream the event, with further details to be announced in due course.

Shanes booked his place in the final after finishing fourth in a rain-affected semi-final at Eastbourne on Saturday.

The Dorchester-born racer banked 11 points and qualified alongside Zach Wajtknecht, Max Clegg, Connor Mountain, Josh Bailey, Drew Kemp and Jason Edwards.