SHEFFIELD needed a late rally to see off a battling King's Lynn side 48-40 in their opening Premier League meeting of the season at Owlerton.

Leading by just one point, Tigers' hopes looked to be in tatters after Cooper was forced into the safety fence at high speed by John Oliver in the penultimate race against the Norfolk side.

But after Oliver was excluded for causing the crash, Cooper dusted himself down and promptly won the three-man re-run ahead of team-mate Lee Smethills, with the 5-0 heat verdict - after Lynn's Simon Lambert trailed the two home racers before falling on the third lap - handing Tigers the win points.

Amazingly, there was never more than a point between the sides as the lead changed hands four times in a thriller of a match, which at one stage looked unlikely to start after heavy early evening rain.

Skipper Andre Compton top scored for Sheffield with 12, although Smethills' contribution of paid 9 from reserve was the key to Sheffield's win.

TIGERS: Andre Compton 12, Joel Parsons 11+1, Lee Smethills 8+1, Ben Wilson 8, Paul Cooper 5+2, Ricky Ashworth 3, Sam Martin 1+1.
KING'S LYNN: Kevin Doolan 12, Tomas Topinka 9+1, Rusty Harrison 6+1, Simon Lambert 5, Shaun Tacey 4+2, John Oliver 3, Kozza Smith 1.