SHEFFIELD Tigers face a tough Premier League test against Stoke Potters at Owlerton on Thursday (7.45pm).

The Owlerton side have been warned to up their game by club bosses after last weekend's disappointments at Workington and Newcastle.

The Sheffield Window Centre-backed team are fighting for their 2009 team place - but Stoke will provide a difficult night.

Tigers owner Neil Machin said: "Stoke are a good side and they have riders who are capable of doing well around our track.

"What our riders must be aware of is that performances between now and the end of the season will influence the way we think towards next season."

Stoke have booked Reading's Mark Lemon as a guest for Lee Complin who is still recovering from injuries sustained in a car crash in May.

Lemon has finished on the rostrum in the Premier League Riders' Championship at Owlerton in the past and should provide a test for Sheffield's top guns.

And Ben Barker has impressed during several outings for Elite League Coventry in recent weeks and will be worth watching for the Potters.

Tigers are once again without Lee Smethills who is recovering from back injuries and they will use the rider replacement facility to cover his four programmed rides.

The summer promotion with cut-price drinks continues in the Owlerton Panorama Room with a Happy Hour from 9.30-10.30pm.

SHEFFIELD:Ricky Ashworth, Lee Smethills R/R, Andre Compton, Joel Parsons, Ben Wilson, Kyle Hughes, Paul Cooper.
STOKE: Mark Lemon, Mark Burrows, Ben Barker, Jesper Kristiansen, Andrew Moore, TBC, Klaus Jakobsen.