IT should have come as little surprise that Poole arrived at Brandon with a clear point to prove after their home embarrassment on Wednesday.
Another landslide Buildbase Bees victory was never likely to take place, but in the end it was job done as they went top of the Elite League by taking maximum points on offer from the meeting, and the week.
Wednesday's result was a glorious one-off, this a more realistic Elite League contest, and it was one which again showed the Bees' ability to make things hard for themselves with a poor start, fight back to take control, and then defend their advantage to the end.
Pirates skipper Bjarne Pedersen - consistently one of the best Brandon visitors over recent years - enjoyed probably his best performance of the season save for a surprise last in his second ride, and there was enough determination elsewhere in the visitors' ranks to keep them in contention for a point until the very last race, which turned out to be the night's big highlight.
Pedersen took the early advantage for his side with a swift start to lead Heat 1, but much more of a surprise was Chris Harris getting trapped in mid-track on the second bend and being moved aside by Lukasz Jankowski - and even more surprising than that was that the Bees skipper could make no impression thereafter.
If that was good news for the Pirates, Heat 2 must have redoubled their optimism as Jordan Frampton and Paul Hurry clashed elbows off the start-line and Frampton, off the outside, was compromised, so much so that Hurry and Carl Stonehewer were able to combine for maximum points - Poole were into a 9-3 lead.
Edward Kennett got Bees a race win in Heat 3 with Joe Screen just getting the better of Olly Allen on the first lap for second place, and Poole's four-point lead could have been extended further in Heat 4 but for a last-ditch pass by Schlein on Hurry after the Bees man had been sent very wide on the first two turns.
Chris Holder's start from gate 4 had been electric, and the early signs from the Pirates' top two were rather ominous.
However, that all changed in Heat 5 when Pedersen missed out completely, and early leader Jankowski was quickly swallowed first by Kennett and then by Allen, both on the outside. With Pedersen unable to move past his team-mate, Bees had levelled the scores and could effectively start the match once again.
Harris was much more like his usual self in winning Heat 6, even if he did give himself a scare when he went a little too wide off the final bend in his win over Holder, and Barker's comfortable third place - after an early challenge on Holder - put Bees ahead for the first time.
Screen trapped just ahead of Schlein in Heat 7 but Schlein made a perfect cut-back off the second bend to move in front up the back straight in a shared race, and Bees knew they had to take advantage in the next section of the meeting.
They duly did so in Heat 8 with Barker and Frampton getting things absolutely right in exciting fashion coming off the second bend, Frampton holding Hurry at bay and Barker directing operations from the outside as he made his way around whilst looking out for his partner.
Holder's win in Heat 9 kept the Pirates in contention with Allen having a somewhat uncomfortable ride but still hanging on for third place, and the Bees appeared to be stretching clear when Barker was involved in another 5-1 in Heat 10, this time teaming up with Harris as Screen and Davidsson both missed out in the run to the first bend.
However, Poole weren't finished with the tactical ride in play in Heat 11 - and after delays to re-flate the airfence and re-power the starting gate, Pedersen duly banked six points and was very nearly joined for an 8-1 by Jankowski, only for Schlein to force his way down the inside going into the last lap.
Even so, it had cut Bees' lead to five points with two Pedersen/Holder races to come, so the Pirates were clearly happy with the 3-3 outcome of Heat 12 when Screen made a terrific start to get to the first bend ahead of Allen, and he comfortably took the race.
And suddenly the visitors were thinking of a possible comeback to win on the night when they took a 4-2 out of Heat 13, Schlein being the main man to lose out from a rather ragged start when he received a hard knock from Holder. Harris followed Pedersen home to maintain a three-point Coventry lead, but they needed two of their younger riders to step up to the plate in Heat 14.
That was exactly what happened with Frampton making another good start to control the first lap as Kennett had an exciting tussle with Hurry, finally switching back inside his opponent at the end of the first lap and then staying on the inside of his team-mate for the remainder of the race.
Bees' win on the night was safe but the new scoring system ensured that Heat 15 was still a big race - and a Poole 4-2 or 5-1 would have given the visitors a point to take back to Wimborne Road, and reduced Bees' reward for winning from three to two.
And it turned out to be a cracker, with Pedersen taking the lead only to be overtaken by an inspired Kennett, who then just overslid slightly which gave the Dane his chance to move back through on the inside. No problem for the Bees - until Holder dived inside Harris into the third bend and forced the Coventry captain into an immediate response, and he too managed to switch back half a lap later to protect the 3-3 that his side required.
So for the second time in three away matches, Poole finished a frustrating seven-points adrift - and as in their previous home match, Bees got the desired outcome from Heat 15 to take the maximum three points. 13 points from five Elite League matches so far is a fine return... keeping the momentum going is the next challenge in this fascinating season so far.
