MARK Loram has revealed he is a big fan of rising Pirates star Darcy Ward.

Britain's last world champion believes the young Australian is a "value-for-money" rider who genuinely excites the fans on the terraces.

Loramski, arguably the most popular Poole rider of the past decade-and-a-half, retired in December following an illustrious 20-year racing career, capped by his world title success in 2000.

The Brit was excitement personified on a bike, so for him to give Ward his stamp of approval is a major plus for the youngest ever world under-21 champion.

Loram watched Ward whiz to 12 paid 13 against Lakeside at Wimborne Road last week - the teenager's biggest score for Castle Cover Pirates since joining the outfit for a club record fee of £28,000-plus over the winter.

And he will be tuned into Sky Sports tonight to see Ward in action for Poole at home to Elite League title rivals Belle Vue (8pm).

Loram, who has just been inducted into Poole's 'Hall of Fame', runs a thriving independent BMW garage these days, with a 30-car forecourt and a workshop just outside Ipswich.

It's a far cry from his hectic racing days, but he said: "I don't miss the travelling to get to and from meetings, that's for sure.

"But I do miss the riding, so I go to Ipswich to watch once a month, twice if it's a good meeting.

"If Poole were there, I'd like to watch the likes of Darcy, and if Coventry were there, I'd like to watch Edward Kennett, because they are good value.

"They are the sort of riders who put bums on seats and fill stadiums."

Table-topping Pirates will be aiming to rack up another big home score tonight after crushing Lakeside 70-24 last week.

Belle Vue arrive in Dorset in second place, but were very much a two-man team in 54-40 and 55-41 defeats at Lakeside and Eastbourne, respectively, on Friday and Saturday.

Ex-Pirate Hans Andersen piled up 14 paid 15 at Arena and 15 at Arlington, with veteran Peter Karlsson getting 11 paid 12 at Lakeside and 14 at Eastbourne.

Pirates: Chris Holder, Bjarne Pedersen, Davey Watt, Darcy Ward, Jason Doyle, Leon Madsen, Artur Mroczka.

Belle Vue: Hans Andersen, Peter Karlsson, Patrick Hougaard, Tobias Kroner, James Wright, Ricky Ashworth, William Lawson.