IT has been a privilege to have Jason Crump and Bjarne Pedersen as Pirates' leading lights in 2007.

This was never more apparent than on Wednesday as we finally secured two league points and a bonus aggregate point against old rivals Swindon.

How on earth Jason (Crump) managed to secure an unbeaten score against the Robins with a heavily infected kneecap which he broke three weeks ago, I will never know.

It caused him to only score five points in Sweden on Tuesday night and also miss Thursday's Elite League Riders' Championship at King's Lynn.

But never has his commitment been greater for the Pirates than his determination to ride through the pain barrier for the club on Wednesday night against a Leigh Adams-inspired Swindon.

Huge credit must also be afforded to Bjarne (Pedersen) who produced a true captain's performance - especially partnering Crumpie to a maximum heat advantage over Leigh and the Robins in the final heat in front of our biggest crowd of the season so far at Wimborne Road.

It's hard to determine where Wednesday's victory will put us in the final Elite League table with only a couple of weeks to go before the cut-off date for the play-offs.

But if we can keep on winning in such a forceful fashion as Wednesday, it can only help our cause.

REF JUSTICE! INCONSISTENT refereeing in any sport is infuriating, but when it happens in speedway and involves me personally, it really jars.

Everyone was aware of how important Castle Cover Pirates' away match at Wolverhampton was last Monday.

We lost by two points on the night, but I believe if referee Chris Durno had stuck by the same decisions all night, the final result may have been different.

Fair enough, if he wants to exclude skipper Bjarne in the first heat after he was taken out unlawfully on the first bend.

But then to stop the race when exactly the same thing happened to home Wolves rider Freddie Lindgren later in them meeting and deem an unsatisfactory start is just plain daft.

For me, it spoilt the meeting and more importantly probably cost the Pirates two league points.

FINGERS CROSSED PIRATES are right in the middle of an incredible run of fixtures.

After losing at Wolves on Monday, defeating Swindon on Wednesday, we travel to Peterborough on Monday and welcome back in-form Coventry next Wednesday.

In my opinion, the Bees are a much tougher proposition than the Coventry side we faced earlier in the season. They've added the experienced Aussie Steve Johnston to their side.

Johnston has been a key reserve for them. They're on a confident run of results and once again Pirates are going to have to be on top of our game to contain them.

We have to keep our fingers crossed of course that the inspirational Crumpie will be fit for the next nail-biter at Wimborne Road.