Sheffield Tigers worth wait for new boy Shanes

And the South Coast charger is determined to make the most of his chance to ride for the SGB Championship title holders.

Shanes, aged 20, impressed in guest appearances for the Tigers last year but was unable to commit to a full-time team place.

Yet club bosses waited patiently to include him in their 2018 plans as part of a revamped side aiming to defend their title.

The all-action racer will line up at reserve for Simon Stead’s side - and he says there was no other second tier club he wanted to ride for.

“Sheffield was quite a quick and easy thing to deal with,” Shanes said.

“I rode a couple of times for them last year and had a chance to sign up full-time around halfway through the year.

“But with the other commitments I had with Long track I just didn’t have the time to do it so I had to turn it down.

“It was always the plan that I’d ride there this year, and the contract was dealt with quickly to make sure it happened.

“From the times I guested for them, the team and the management have been so helpful and made sure I was looked after.

“That was the team I wanted to ride for in the Championship, and I wasn’t really going to settle for being anywhere else.

“Being in two leagues will make me busier, but I think that will help me a lot. The times I struggled were when we had breaks between meetings and I was a bit rusty.

“The top boys are riding several times a week and just get into a rhythm, whereas my season was a bit stop and start at times.

“I’ll be doing four meetings a week this year which is going to be different and it’s going to be busy, but I think it’s what I’ll need and I’ll hopefully do well for Sheffield and Poole.”

Tigers have confirmed they have reached agreement on a new lease to keep the sport at Owlerton. They’ve also landed both the Championship Riders’ Individual and British Semi-final meetings.