RULE CHANGE WELCOMED

And the move has been welcomed by Eastbourne Eagles' co-promoter Jon Cook.

He went to the promoters' annual conference at the weekend hoping the rule - which allowed a rider's points to county double in two races if his club was nine points behind - would be amended.

And Cook got his way. The rule can now only be used once and only when a side is ten points adrift.

Under the previous rule teams could potentially claw back a staggering 14-points from two races to turn meetings in their favour, a move which many fans were against.

The tactical substitution rule, where a rider can replace one of his colleagues for double points off a 15-metre handicap, remains as an option for team bosses when eight-points down. Again, this can only be used once.

Eastbourne have received a bye in the first round of the KO Cup.