PIRATES look set to travel to Peterborough on Friday without two heat leaders and their most inspirational second string rider of the season so far.

World champion Tony Rickardsson is already ruled out of the Sky Sports Elite League meeting because he has to be in Norway practising for the following day's Grand Prix round at Hamar.

And Bjarne Pedersen - who has been going really well at number two for Poole this term - and Hans Andersen look set to miss out on the East of England Showground showdown. That's because of a special clause in the Danish Mo-tor Union's rules. Both Poole Meridian Lifts riders claimed podium places in the Danish Final of the 2003 GP World Championship qualifiers at Outrup on Friday night.

That means Bjarne Peder-sen, who finished second be-hind champion Nicki Peder-sen, and Andersen, who was third, line up in the GP qualifying round at Pfaffenhofen, Germany, on Sunday.

Under a DMU agreement with speedway's world governing body, the two Pirates can be exempt from any racing up to 48 hours ahead of World Championship meetings, a clause brought in to boost the chances of Danish riders progressing. So it looks as though Pirates will have to do without the two Danes at Peterborough as well as Rickardsson.

Poole can use rider replacement for the Swede, just like the Panthers can for their spearhead Ryan Sullivan, who also rides at Hamar on Saturday. But the will have to search for guests with similar averages to replace the two Danes, who will probably not ride at Peterborough.

Bjarne Pedersen and Andersen both scorched to 11 points from five rides at Outrup, where Nicki Pedersen took the title with 13. Bjarne then beat Andersen and Char-lie Gjedde - who had also scor-ed 11 - in the run-off for second, third and fourth places.

Pirates will now host Ips-wich at home in the league on Wednesday, May 15, following the rain-off of the original meeting on April 17. That means King's Lynn, who had been due at Wimborne Road that night, will have to return to Poole later in the season.