Eastbourne's Davey Watt admits the danger can come from anywhere in his Eagles line-up.

And if the skipper cannot predict who will be top man, how on earth can the opposition know what to expect?

Watt partnered Cameron Woodward for a match-crowing 5-1 in heat 15 as Eagles hammered early season Elite League leaders Lakeside 55-41 at Arlington.

Yes, hammered. Although Lakeside could have pinched a losing bonus point with a 5-1 in heat 15, they never looked like getting it and it would have been a travesty if they had.

Apart from the admirable ex-Eagles duo of Adam Shields and Lee Richardson, they were hopelessly outgunned and would have been trounced without one double points win apiece for that pair and two unfortunate falls by Eastbourne.

And, yes, Woodward in heat 15. The same Woodward being tipped for an imminent reserve berth as he struggled in early season.

This time he was paid for more points than any of his team-mates, 12 from five rides. That means in the last six meetings, four different Eagles have top scored in terms of paid points.

All seven Eagles shared in at least one 5-1 and all seven had at least one paid win. In fact, popular Lukas Dryml was the only home man not to take a chequered flag.

Lowest scorer Ricky Kling outpointed all but Shields and Richardson of the Hammers. That is why Eagles pride themselves on strength in depth.

Watt, who gradually worked up momentum as the meeting progressed, said: “It was brilliant. We had a good team to ride against and every one of the boys rode really well.

“We had some issues. A couple of the boys had a little of trouble and I didn’t have a great night but we still pulled through.

“They threw two tactical rides at us and did well out of both of them and we still won by a whole bunch of points so I’m really happy with everyone.”

Lewis Bridger went flying when his throttle cable snapped in heat three, just as it seemed he was going to share a 5-1 with Woodward which would have opened a 14-4 lead.

Then, with Eagles poised to secure a three-point win in heat 14, Simon Gustafsson pushed a bit too hard in a thrilling attack on Jonas Davidsson and fell just yards from the line.

The young Swede could have quite easily cruised through for second but that is not the mentality which has got him to where he is, still weeks short of his 19th birthday.

So a 5-1 for the impressive Shields and the still unbeaten Richardson in heat 15 would have nicked an unmerited point for Lakeside, who badly missed injured ex-Eagle Joonas Kylmakorpi.

They won the toss and took gates one and three but the hosts got a dream start as Watt kept Richardson pinned inside and Woodward hurtled around the outside.

Woodward was a surprise nomination for some fans although they needed to be aware that, under complex eligibility rules depending on match score and average, Bridger was not allowed to run in heat 15.

Watt said: “I was more than happy to have Cameron in the race with me and it worked out great.

“I did exactly what I said I wanted to do, to get over the top of Lee Richardson and let Cameron have all the room he needed to get right around the outside.”

Do not under-estimate the roles of David Norris, Dryml and Kling on a night when, including those falls for Bridger and Gustafsson, Eagles had just three scoreless rides.

Norris was especially impressive in holding off Shields to win heat one.

“We are all gaining confidence in each other,” Watt said. “That can only lead to better things.”

Standings: Coventry (5 meetings) 13, Eastbourne (5) 11, Lakeside (6), 11, Swindon (3) 7, Wolverhampton (3) 6, Peterboroigh (4) 6, Belle Vue (4) 3, Poole (6) 3, Ipswich (4) 2.

Eagles: Watt 11 (5), Woodward 10+2 (5), Gustafsson 10+1 (5), Norris 7+2 (4), Dryml 6+3 (4), Bridger 6+1 (4), Kling 5+1 (3).

Lakeside: Richardson 15 (5)^, Shields 11 (5)^, Davidsson 5 (5), Nieminen 4 (5), Mills 3+1 (6), Robson 2 (4), Kylmakorpi r/r.