SHEFFIELD host their only home fixture of the month on Thursday (July 14, 7.30) as they take on reigning Champions Peterborough at Owlerton.

It promises to be a key clash as the Tru Plant Tigers try to consolidate their place in the Premiership play-off positions.

They currently occupy the fourth and final spot but are just three points behind league leaders Belle Vue with two meetings in hand.

Another home win could see them pull as many as 13 points clear of Peterborough though, leaving them in a solid place as they enter the second half of their league programme.

While the Panthers have just one Super Heat defeat point to their name on their travels this term, they have a side more than capable of clicking into gear around the South Yorkshire venue.

Triple British Champion Chris Harris and dynamic Dane Benjamin Basso are without doubt the two in form Peterborough riders right now – and Tigers co-promoter Damien Bates expects them to provide plenty of entertainment on Thursday night.

“While there is still a long way to go, a home win over Peterborough really would leave us and the rest of the top four well placed in the league,” he said.

“Peterborough might not have hit the heights that they managed last season, but they’ve got a group of riders who you can never rule out.

“Yes, the likes of Hans Andersen and Scott Nicholls have been struggling this year, mainly with engines more than anything, but when you’ve got riders like Chris Harris and Benjamin Basso riding how they are, you can never rest on your laurels.

“We’ve gone for a bit of reshuffle with the riding order – let’s see how that works out and then we can look at it again moving forward.”

Sheffield’s change in approach sees captain Kyle Howarth, reigning British Champion Adam Ellis and winter signings Craig Cook and Tobiasz Musielak all switch racejackets while Justin Sedgmen makes his home debut after racking up 10+3 as a guest in the previous Owlerton outing against Ipswich.

SHEFFIELD: Jack Holder, Kyle Howarth, Adam Ellis, Craig Cook, Tobiasz Musielak, Justin Sedgmen, Connor Mountain.

PETERBOROUGH: Chris Harris, Michael Palm Toft R/R, Ulrich Ostergaard, Scott Nicholls, Hans Andersen, Benjamin Basso, Jordan Jenkins.