HANS Andersen got it spot on. The Panthers hero marked the cards of Evening Telegraph readers yesterday when waxing lyrical about the qualities of his Danish side.

And last night they provided all the necessary proof by storming into Saturday's final with a splendid Event Two display at Coventry as Sweden, Great Britain and the Czech Republic were swept aside.

Aside from a spell of mid-meeting pressure from Sweden, Andersen and company were never troubled and booked their place in the final with plenty to spare.

And they hit the road for home as short-priced favourites to lift the World Cup in front of an army of their own adoring fans at Vojens on Saturday.

"We wanted to go straight through to the final and we have done it," said Andersen. "We couldn't have asked for anymore, although it wasn't easy against a strong Swedish team.

"And the job of winning the World Cup is nowhere near done because the real business doesn't start until the final."

Skipper Andersen was actually the lowest scorer in the Danish side with 10 points – a hefty haul in its own right and one which underlines the dominance of the side bidding to reclaim the crown they last lifted in 2006.

Andersen, who needed four attempts to finally win a heat, added with a sprinkling of self-deprication added: "The only weak link was the captain!

"My bike wasn't reacting to the track how I expected it would early on, but we got it sorted in the end and finished with a couple of heat wins to get back in the groove.

"I was glad about that because the other boys were scoring so well they left me behind."

Arguably the most impressive performance at Brandon was Andersen's Panthers pal Kenneth Bjerre.

The man who suffered a broken femur only six weeks ago powered to 14 points – and he earned the majority of them the hard way with some eye-catching surges from the back.

His hopes of a maximum only disappeared when being beaten by Chris Harris in heat 17, but Bjerre was still chuffed to bits.

Bjerre said: "It was a really good meeting for me personally and for the team.

"The aim is to win the competition and we will need to ride even better on Saturday."

World champion Nicki Pedersen equalled Bjerre's feat while Bjarne Pedersen (13) and Panthers asset Niels Kristian Iversen (12) completed a splendid night's work for the Danes.

Sweden and the bitterly disappointing Brits advance to the Race-Off on Thursday where they will do battle with Poland and Russia – the top two then going on to meet Denmark and Australia in the Saturday final.

GB captain Scott Nicholls said: "We have to brush this one under the carpet because it was a dismal night.

"The only option is to put it right for the Race-Off."