SHEFFIELD Tigers are ready for the new Premier League season after two good workouts against Elite League champions Coventry.

The Owlerton side went down 61-31 at Brandon on Friday night, 24-hours after a bumper crowd saw the opening home meeting of the season when the Bees ran out 56-37 winners.

Former Tigers favourite Simon Stead scored a maximum on his home debut for Coventry and there was solid scoring all the way down the Bees riding order with skipper Chris Harris and Billy Janniro only missing maximums of their own in the last race.

That was when the hugely impressive 17-year-old Tai Woffinden raced clear in the early stages, and although the Bees duo overhauled a lively Joel Parsons, Harris could not catch Woffinden.

It was Woffinden's second race win of the night as he had earlier used the grip on turn two to surge past Rory Schlein and Olly Allen for a fine win in Heat 10.

Both teams suffered some gremlins, Olly Allen seizing a motor when set for a paid win in Heat 6, whilst Tigers' Andre Compton ground to a halt early in Heat 11.

Woffinden apart, Sheffield's chief resistance came from Parsons, who won Heat 2 ahead of Stanislaw Burza and Andreas Messing and then just lost out to Harris in a fine battle in Heat 9.

BEES: Chris Harris 13+1, Simon Stead 12, Billy Janniro 11+3, Rory Schlein 8+1, Olly Allen 7+1, Andreas Messing 5+2, Stanislaw Burza 5+1.
SHEFFIELD: Tai Woffinden 9+1, Joel Parsons 8, Andre Compton 7, Richard Hall 3+1, Ben Wilson 3+1, Ricky Ashworth 1, Paul Cooper 0.