Tomas H Jonasson, who has ridden in 18 Grand Prix meetings, has joined Berwick after the Bandits lost Aaron Summers to injury.
And within hours of the Swede, who formerly tracked for Edinburgh Monarchs, and is an ex-Swedish under-21 champion, agreeing to join the Championship club, he landed a return to former home club Poole Pirates where he replaces ex Edinburgh Monarchs and Glasgow Tigers star Richie Worrall.
Gary Flint, Berwick’s team manager, said: “With the injuries we have suffered with Aaron Summers and Nikolaj Busk Jakobsen we couldn’t finish the season with guests and rider replacement.
“Having your top two riders out puts massive pressure on the team and signing Tomas will relieve the pressure and help us finish the season strongly.”
Bandits visit rock-bottom Birmingham Brummies have given long-suffering fans a boost ahead of Wednesday’s (7.30pm) home SGB Championship fixture with Berwick Bandits.
Former title winning captain Tom Perry returns and the Wolverhampton-born racer guided the Brummies to National League success in 2015 and 2016.
He was a big hit with the Perry Barr faithful and, with Jordan Jenkins quitting the club last week, club bosses have moved quickly.
Lawrence Rogers, their team manager, said: “People shouldn’t forget that Tom is a rider who has ridden in our league before and who has also ridden in the top league too.
“He’s also very popular at Birmingham following his previous spells with the club and it was a no-brainer to bring him back for the final few meetings of the season when we knew he was available.”
Meanwhile, SGB Premiership side Peterborough Panthers have brought back fans’ favourite Ulrich Ostergaard as a replacement for Aaron Summers in a move which is sure to delight supporters.
Boss Carl Johnson said: “Ulrich is a great guy and has done great things for this club, he’s one of the most popular riders we’ve had down the years.
“Hopefully this will give us all a bit of a lift as we prepare to return home next week after a long absence.”
Elsewhere, ninth-placed Edinburgh Monarchs visit third-placed Somerset Rebels on Wednesday (7.30pm).
The Armadale side have 19 points from 14 fixtures while Rebels have 33 from 17 meetings.
They lost 51-39 at Leicester Lions on Saturday despite 16 points from former Edinburgh star Rory Schlein who will again be a danger man.
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