RARELY could Pirates have needed their star triumvirate more than last night. In amassing a crucial 39 points, they did not disappoint.

Hit hard by the absence of leading reserve duo Renat Gafurov and Christian Hefenbrock, the Elite League leaders had it all to do to continue their perfect home form.

Yet to taste defeat at Wimborne Road in the league this season prior to Belle Vue’s visit, Poole faced arguably their hardest task of 2011 without their regular lower order.

But despite the Aces, particularly Ricky Kling, taking advantage of the depleted nature of Pirates’ line-up, battling Poole simply refused to relinquish their proud home record.

Utterly dominant in front of their own fans this term, this was undoubtedly Poole’s the toughest assignment so far. Aces did well to deny Poole the three points for the first time but given the circumstances, emerging victorious was a superb effort in itself.

And not for the first time, it was Darcy Ward, Chris Holder and Davey Watt who deserved most of the plaudits.

With little pressure placed on James Holder and Kyle Newman at six and seven, all eyes were on Pirates’ other five men.

And with Dennis Andersson and Jason Doyle not firing on all cylinders, Pirates were left looking in the direction of the big three.

And they did the business. In claiming 39 of Poole’s 47 points, they ensured Wimborne Road remained a fortress.

With the sun making a welcome appearance just in time for tapes-up, Pirates got off to a winning start in a highly eventful heat one. Chris Harris, the Wimborne Road track specialist, fell on the first lap but with the hosts ideally placed for a 5-1, Dennis Andersson also slid out and hit the deck on the opening circuit. With both swiftly scrambling on to the centre green, Chris Holder raced clear to defeat Kling.

Pirates’ stand-in reserves were next in line and after two false starts, it was third time lucky for the visitors as Kling and Craig Cook combined for a maximum despite a promising start from Newman and James Holder.

With their new-look lower order, Pirates needed to score heavily at the top of the scoreboard. But things did not go to plan early on when Charlie Gjedde and Rory Schlein ensured a heat advantage over Watt and Jason Doyle.

Ward did not disappoint as he stormed home next but Kling and Patrick Hougaard stopped Pirates from reducing the five-point deficit.

Watt, back to his best in recent weeks, won the battle of the captains when he fought past hard-chasing Harris before Holder produced a fabulous heat-six move to stun Hougaard and make it three in a row for Pirates.

Ward, utilising his trademark line around the outside in front of the pits, left Schlein powerless in race seven.

But despite another Pirates victory extending to five their tally, Belle Vue still had the upper hand with the scores at 22-19 in favour of the Aces.

And the Aces looked determined to ruin Poole’s excellent home record when they opened up a seven-point lead thanks to a Gjedde and Kling 5-1. Newman produced his best effort of the evening and looked likely to claim at least two points until Kling made his move in the closing stages.

Watt and Doyle then looked poised to claim a much-needed maximum but Kling, enjoying a busy and productive night, restricted Pirates to a 4-2 with a battling display.

At 29-24 down, Poole remained in with a shout – providing their leading lights bagged big points in the closing races.

Number one Holder did his bit and Poole were gifted a potentially-priceless 5-1 in heat 10 when Schlein suffered mechanical issues and pulled up, paving the way for Andersson to follow Holder home.

Ward then held off Grand Prix star Harris to claim his third win of the meeting before Watt did the same to leave fans on the edge of their seats, with Pirates trailing 36-35.

Having been seven points adrift at one stage and having not led since the first race, Pirates finally hit the front when star duo Ward and Chris Holder did the business in race 13.

And with Pirates 42-41 in front after two points from Doyle in heat 14, it was no surprise to see number one Holder and Ward sent out to seal the verdict.

As so often already this season, they reaped rich rewards. Holder got out in front but Ward looked in a spot of bother as he was slowest out of the traps.

But by the end of the opening lap, he had roared into second, eventually passing his compatriot to secure a 5-1, a 15-point maximum and another home success – perhaps the most memorable of the season so far.

Pirates 47: 1 Chris Holder (3-3-3-2*-2*) 13+2, 2 Dennis Andersson (0-0-0-2*) 2+1, 3 Davey Watt (2-3-3-3) 11, 4 Jason Doyle (0-1-1-2) 4, 5 Darcy Ward (3-3-3-3-3) 15, 6 James Holder (1-0-0-0) 1, 7 Kyle Newman (0-0-1-0) 1. Team manager: Neil Middleditch.

Aces 42: 1 Chris Harris (0-2-2-1-1) 6, 2 Rider replacement for Dawid Stachyra, 3 Charlie Gjedde (3-1*-3-1-1*) 9+2, 4 Rory Schlein (1-2-0-3-0) 6, 5 Patrick Hougaard (1*-2-0-0) 3+1, 6 Craig Cook (2*-0-1*-2) 5+2, 7 Ricky Kling (2-3-2-1*-2*-2-1) 13+2. Team manager: Jim Lynch.

Referee: Graham Flint League points: Pirates 2 Aces 1 Ht 1: C Holder, Kling, Andersson (fell), Harris (fell), 58.97 (3-2) Ht 2: (re-run) Kling, Cook, J Holder, Newman, 61.28 (4-7) Ht 3: Gjedde, Watt, Schlein, Doyle, 58.91 (6-11) Ht 4: Ward, Kling, Hougaard, Newman, 59.44 (9-14) Ht 5: Watt, Harris, Doyle, Cook, 58.44 (13-16) Ht 6: C Holder, Hougaard, Cook, Andersson, 59.50 (16-19) Ht 7: Ward, Schlein, Gjedde, J Holder, 59.06 (19-22) Ht 8: Gjedde, Kling, Newman, Andersson, 60.47 (20-27) Ht 9: Watt, Kling, Doyle, Hougaard, 60.37 (24-29) Ht 10: C Holder, Andersson, Gjedde, Schlein (retired), 59.47 (29-30) Ht 11: Ward, Harris, Cook, J Holder, 58.37 (32-33) Ht 12: Watt, Cook, Gjedde, Newman, 60.16 (35-36) Ht 13: Ward, C Holder, Harris, Hougaard, 59.87 (40-37) Ht 14: Schlein, Doyle, Kling, J Holder, 61.13 (42-41) Ht 15: Ward, C Holder, Harris, Schlein (retired), 60.00 (47-42)