Monarchs reached their second final of the year after beating Sheffield on aggregate by 91 points to 89. They will face Arena Essex who outpointed Exeter to take the other place in the final.

Monarchs could hardly have had a tougher route to the final. They started in the first round against bogy team Newcastle who had already beaten Edinburgh home and away. After disposing of Newcastle, they faced a tough draw against Newport where Monarchs came back from the brink of defeat with a breathtaking last five heats at Armadale in th second leg. Then in the semi-final, Monarchs encountered league champions elect Sheffield who, up to then, had not been defeated over two legs by any team.

By contrast, Arena Essex had a much easier path to the final. They received a bye to the second round where they beat Swindon after recording twenty point win in the home leg. They then defeated the dangerous Exeter side defending a narrow home leg lead at the County Ground.

There is no news of dates for the final at this stage. Both Edinburgh and Arena have Friday as their race night with Saturday as the normal change night. It would make sense to stage the match over a weekend with the first leg on the Friday and the return on the Saturday. This worked well when Monarchs last were in a cup final against Oxford in 1997.

Monarchs start as favourites having won at Arena Essex twice in the last three years and only missed out by 46-44 in 1998. Edinburgh would probably prefer to stage the second leg at Armadale so they can win the cup at home. Arena Essex may also prefer to stage the first leg at home as a big defeat at Armadale could affect the second leg attendance and it would also avoid riding on a change night.

The earliest Friday and Saturday available to stage the tie is likely to be September 24th and 25th. The Premier National Trophy final is scheduled for September 10th and the Test Match is on for September 17th, so there is no real alternative. The first and second rounds of the Young Shield Play-offs are down for October 1st and October 8th.

That arrangement will involve cancelling or postponing the Scottish Cup home leg scheduled for September 24th.

Arena Essex's Purfleet track is one that most, if not all, of the Edinburgh team like riding. Edinburgh won there in 1997 and 1999 and should have won in 1998. The Arena Essex team do go quite well at Armadale. Colin White and Leigh Lanham have gone well in the past as has Troy Pratt. Matt Read was sensational last year and Roger Lobb has scored points at Armadale. It promises to be a good cup final with two close-fought legs.

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