Cases Somerset Rebels return to the Oaktree Arena for tonight's Premier League Grand Final first leg as the new League Cup holders.
The Rebels achieved the first half of what could be a historic double for the club when they lifted the trophy at Ipswich Witches last night.
The 14-point lead that Somerset had built up in last Friday's home leg against the Witches proved to be crucial as, although they lost by nine points at the Foxhall Stadium last night, they raised the silverware with a 95-90 aggregate win.
Crucially, the Rebels kept things tight in the first half of last night's second leg, so much so that they still held a 10-point aggregate lead after eight of the 15 heats.
Although Ipswich got to within two points of Somerset with consecutive maximum race wins in heats nine and 10, a double-point tactical race win for Rebels guest Craig Cook gave the Rebels a 6-3 heat advantage in heat 11 and pushed their aggregate lead back to five points.
Cook, who was in as a replacement for injured captain Jason Doyle, scored a flawless maximum, and was unbeaten in his four rides.
The Rebels then consolidated their five-point overall advantage by holding Ipswich to a succession of drawn heats, and a stunning win from Kyle Newman in heat 14 was enough to confirm them a 2012 Premier League Cup winners.
Attention now turns to the Premier League Grand Final, which will be contested over two legs against Scunthorpe Scorpions.
The Rebels host the Scorpions at the Oaktree Arena tonight (7.30pm), and will be looking to build up another healthy lead to defend in the away leg on Sunday afternoon (4pm).
Keep checking This is Somerset over the weekend for the latest news from the Premier League Grand Final meetings.
