PIRATES ace Adam Skornicki was quick to absolve Jason Crump of any blame for his nasty heat five tumble following Poole's 50-31 home win over Belle Vue last night.

Poland's champion went down heavily on the third bend while the riders were vying for third behind race leader Bjarne Pedersen and Patrick Hougaard.

Skornicki was correctly excluded after referee Daniel Holt had looked at Sky replays of the incident.

But some Castle Cover Pirates fans, who clearly had not seen the television coverage while watching inside the stadium, aimed boos at Crump and gave him a hard time as he lined up for the re-run.

They felt the Aussie had impeded Skornicki.

However, Poole's second string said: "It was not his (Jason's) fault. I just left a gap and he was waiting for me to go in.

"I didn't and he just went for the gap. It was just normal racing. I just went a little bit out and made a mistake.

"It was a problem for me in the top turn. I fell because I thought if I went into the slick awkward stuff I wouldn't be in control and fell off."

Skornicki, who scored four paid six from three rides before the meeting was abandoned after 13 heats because of rain, added: "It was a shame I fell because I felt pretty good on the first and second turn.

"I was a little bit disappointed with my second ride because I got excluded but my two 5-1s with Bjarne (Pedersen) were good.

"The main thing is we won as a team, especially after last week's home draw against Coventry in the cup.

"We were a little bit worried about tonight but everything went good so we are really happy.

"It was raining everywhere but not at the track today.

"We were expecting rain any time and glad the meeting was on, so we just tried to get through it as quickly as possible and win.

"Personally, I've struggled a bit over the past two months but I'm trying different things, different set ups.

"I don't feel very comfortable, especially at Poole, but the last couple of meetings have been better.

"I'm working hard and hope I will perform well in the play-offs.

"We are in a good position to get into the top two. We have a good team.

"If someone doesn't have a good night, we have other riders who can perform better, so it is really good."