PIRATES chief Matt Ford has stressed their visit to Elite League table-toppers Belle Vue tonight (7.30pm) is going to be "an extreme test of our character".

But the Poole RIAS co-promoter added "it isn't time to panic yet" after their bid to win a third successive title had been knocked back by their second early season league defeat at Coventry on Friday.

Ford explained the Dorset club had already ridden three away league meetings and only one at home and therefore being in fifth place could be misleading.

He said: "It's all very early days. We're having more away fixtures than home ones at the moment and this will make a big difference to our league position in the foreseeable future.

"We have five away and only three home league meetings in April, so it could well be May before we know how we are really measuring up to the other teams at the top.

"I still believe that, come the hour of reckoning, we'll be in there. We just need to stay competitive.

"We're still only three weeks into the season."

Looking ahead to tonight's trip to Belle Vue, Ford added: "We're going to a track we genuinely don't enjoy as a team. It'll be an extreme test of our character.

"Having lost a meeting at Coventry we felt we could win, going to Kirky Lane is going to be tough. But we have seen signs in the last week, for example with Ryan Sullivan's form improving, that we are capable of being there when it matters.

"We aren't saying we can't finish top of the league, but we do have to make sure we finish top four to make the play-offs."

Both teams are at full strength tonight with Belle Vue switching around their pairings from previous meetings.

Belle Vue: 1 Joe Screen, 2 Simon Stead, 3 Kenneth Bjerre, 4 Jason Lyons, 5 Jason Crump, 6 Andy Smith, 7 Steve Masters.

Pirates: 1 Bjarne Pedersen, 2 Krzysztof Kasprzak, 3 Matej Ferjan, 4 Antonio Lindback, 5 Ryan Sullivan, 6 Ray Morton, 7 Ricky Ashworth.

The Isle of Wight Islanders face another busy period with two meetings in two days, at Exeter tonight and home to Newport tomorrow (7.30pm).

The match at the County Ground tonight will be another big test for the visitors on a track which is feared by most, because of its huge banking on the bends.

Three of the Islanders' 2005 squad have never even seen the Devon circuit, so much will depend on how they perform against a side expected to do well.

A bumper crowd is expected tomorrow for the Islanders' first home league match of the season after last week's match against Reading was washed out.

Newport were last season's whipping boys, but they have already beaten Reading and wereon the way to winning at Somerset until fog caused an abandonment.

But the Welsh side are capable of upsetting the Islanders with Craig Watson, Michael Coles and Mads Kornieliusson all Smallbrook track specialists.

Kristian Lund, former England International Neil Collins, super reserve Tony Aitkin and young Australian Karlis Ezergalis make a formidable seven.

Isle of Wight; Craig Boyce, Manuel Hauzinger, Ulrich Ostergaard, Krister Marsh, Jason Bunyan, Steen Jensen, Jason Doyle.

Newport; Michael Coles, Kirstian Lund, Mads Korneliussen, Ne, and Karlis Ezergailis.

Exeter; Mark Lemon, Lee Smethills, replacement for injured Jeri Kolenko, Toni Svab, Seemond Stephens, Nick Simmonds, Pavel Ondrasik.