Snubbed Nic’s last laugh bid

NICOLAI KLINDT has the chance to go from zero to hero as Poole close in on their fifth league title in eight years.

The Pirates defend a 16-point lead in the second leg of the Premiership Grand Final at King’s Lynn tonight.

And for Klindt (below) it’s a chance to prove every top-flight club blundered by ignoring him in the winter.

The Dane, who missed the final five months of last season with a serious knee injury, said: “I didn’t have a single call from a Premiership club in the winter – zero offers.

“I even put myself out there, sending messages to every single club.

“A couple came back and said at that moment in time they didn’t have a team place for me.

“But the others never answered. I didn’t have any interest whatsoever, which was very disappointing.” Poole finally ended his nightmare when they revamped their struggling squad with three mid-summer signings.

And Klindt, 29, has been the inspiration behind the Pirates’ surge up the table from rock bottom to the title decider. Rivals King’s Lynn, who finished nine points ahead of Poole in the regular season, are underdogs going into the second leg. Their squad has been ripped apart by injuries to Grand Prix star Niels-Kristian Iversen and reserve Michael Palm Toft, who is out for the rest of the season.

Toft crashed in Monday night’s first leg.

He said: “I’m absolutely gutted. I sat waiting in A&E while they decided whether to put my broken hand in a pot or a brace.”