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What the same Ty Proctor who averaged more than Thomas Jorgensen (in the same team) who was pretty much our rider of the season? The same Ty Procter who averaged more than Heeps, Auty, Palm-Toft, Kerr, Rose, Bates & Robson amongst others. Think people are doing him a disservice. He'll know most of the Premiership tracks, seems to be a good team man and ridden very well at Lynn previously. it might work, it might not but I'm at least going to give him a chance before writing him off.

Signing riders on an average achieved a number of years ago, when they were learning their trade and have clearly now improved is unfair and illogical and works against those riders who have progressed and improved during the same period but continued to ride in the UK. It is a problem which is easily avoidable. All riders should be assessed on their most recent performance. If they have not ridden in the UK the previous season a formula can easily be calculated to convert their Polish, Swedish or any other league average to a UK average. It would be transparent and fair to all, so why isn't it done?

Is it just me who finds people who hold grudges several years later irritating? Also please let me know which second division teams that Tungate, Fricke, Vaculik, Pieszczek, Andersen, Iversen, Doyle, Batchelor, Thorsell, Kasprzak, Kurtz, Woryna, Szczepaniak, Holder, Jeppersen, Andersen, Lambert, Cook, Bellego, Masters and Musielak are riding for this year as I think I must have missed it

Like you I cant see where he done anything wrong. the language used by Mr Rogers was perfectly acceptable and he made no accusations as far as I can see. Basically he asked for clarification. Nothing to see here!

Take your point and don't necessarily disagree but the reason Poole are head and shoulders above the rest is the failure to reassess riders accurately. Things would be much more even had that been done.

Just one meeting? Have you forgotten qualifying rounds plus those what you call ‘just one meeting’ we’re like pressure cookers...go give your head a wobble

Nurse!

Well I don't think the budget would stretch to the likes of the Lambert deal. I think both Kennet and Scott have berths in the Premier, but that won't pay them to ride in the PL alone as they don't do Poland, Sweden or Denmark either. They will both need for financial seasons, to have a supplement to their earnings especially on marginally lower money in an easier league like the Championships. If they had signed the other way around, their Championship salaries would have been higher than they can expect now. They won't be cheap, but I would think at least they will be at every meeting unlike one that we know. Funny enough they are both at Rye House alongside Robbo, what's to say Scott's travel could be combined with a hitched ride with Robbo to half his driving. No doubt there will be a plan to get him to Brough every Sunday and Glasgow, Edinburgh, Berwick fixtures will just be combined as two days racing instead of just one home meeting. Let's see what happens in the middle of next week. Never know we might have another couple of riders announced by then.

Good job it was one off World Finals Ivan won, Shudder to think how many he would have won in a GP format!!

I've jut read LaurenceRogers posts and can't see what he's said to upset anyone, I think it's a good thing when officials give there opinion even if we don't agree with them

there is a difference between the leagues , but not huge one sarj @ reserve for leeeceesteer and @ reserve for glaaasgooow . . only the odd one or two good prem stars that cant be in our league. but that could change if the powers that be cave in and then both leagues will be the same , except for the prem promotors charging more to get in for what is basically the same product . yes , there is a small gap , but not a huge one . there was a time when a good no 1 would make a reserve for a top league team . how things have changed ..

Belle Vue's race night will be Monday? Will they also be at home on some Wednesday's? Surely all teams will have to ride on both nights, not just one?

Now Sarj is on board the management are probably thinking that stronger start gate elastic is needed! Not a good idea. In these times where health and safety over rides everything, there is a potential injury risk to spectators on the 4th bend if Sarj catapults himself backwards due to an over enthusiastic start and the start tape remaining intact. Joking aside, if he can learn to trap at BP ( without being penalised) he should outscore all visiting reserves and maybe some second strings.

Concentrating on his cars apparently.

Depends which world you live in. Rather then controlling the costs and concentrated on the sustainability of this sport, the bosses felt it right to pay the extravagant fees required by the top riders, even to the point of self destruction.... This has driven up admission fees, and by getting rid of the second half's , it cuts down on VFM once enjoyed by the fans... Looking at the majority of Stadiums , most are in a poor state of repair, this is also caused by the lack of funds. It appears to me the riders has all but bleed this sport dry and now turning their backs when their fees are questioned... Sometimes I wished, I never lived in the real world

Lol at Gavan! Jack Holder and Newman v Sundstrom and Woryna? nothing in it? LOL! They should make the playoffs comfortably? Is that praise? Of the other completed teams no other side has the potential or strength in depth. If Swindon had named this side I would be waving the white flag! A superb lineup which should go unbeaten at home and pick up plenty of points on the road. Looking forward to trips to the bigger tracks of Swindon, Belle Vue, Kings Lynn and Somerset. Gavan not happy tonight. Lol!

Good post. It was interesting reading last weeks speedway star about how to attract a younger audience to speedway. Unfortunately the things that first hooked us 40 somethings in the 70's and 80's was as described in the star "the strong aroma of Castrol R, the throaty roar of the 4 stroke 500 hundred cc engines. Add to that the speed and the crackling atmosphere on the terraces for the big matches under the lights and you had a magical experience as a kid. Move on 30 years and the smell has gone and so has the noise ,taking with it the atmosphere in the stands ,a somewhat watered down version to what we had .Watch some old footage from the 80's on Youtube and you can hear the crowd before each race starts. Is it any wonder youngsters are not hooked any more, todays machines are also not compliant with the tracks in this country any more, it might be fine in Poland but only the new purpose Belle Vue is anywhere near of the shape and preparation required. As someone who was hooked, I'm now unhooked on what I'm watching in Britain, most of the time the racing is poor, processional strung out stuff with little excitement, speedway is lucky that many of those over 40 still attend out of habit and the social side rather than the excitement of what they are watching. Unfortunately the future looks grim, the machines are not going to change and neither are the tracks on which they race. Speedway in Britain may have been in decline since the eighties but it has been more rapid since 2011 when the new silencers were brought in.

Mark Loram, Joe Screen, Kelly Moran.......all more talented than Ivan Mauger on a bike but it takes something special to become a multi world champion. For all his talent Darcy hadnt got there when his career cut short...................but to say he would have been world champ time and again is a bit much

No doubt that Darcy was more talented on a bike than Ivan. If he hadn't had it taken away from him I'm sure he'd have been world champ time and time again.

Only on paper at the moment just like last year untouchable better to wait and see I think

Brady Kurtz Chris Holder Linus Sundstrom Josh Grajczonek Mateusz Szczepaniak Kacper Woryna James Shanes Wow! That's got to be the team to beat this year. If the Pole's perform as Matt and Middlo hope, and Holder makes a bit of a comeback, we should be near untouchable.

They are clearly running scared. If Sundstrom and Shanes are the final two, Poole will have a powerhouse team which would be stronger than any completed team so far. Comparing Swindons team, which if I am honest looks a bit flat and lacklustre, to Pooles is like comparing a two day open bottle of Lambrusco with a couple of extinguished fags floating on top, (Swindon) to a chilled bottle of Krug. (Poole)

SCB's thin veneer of intelligence is once more stripped away by his rancid and repugnant ageism. It's a familiar argument - "I know a pensioner who's well-off so every one of them must be." It's as intellectually and morally bankrupt as "All these foreigners are taking our jobs". I do wonder if he's got a problem with his parents or other elderly relatives, given the sick bitterness and prejudice he continually shows to the elderly. In another recent thread he came up with what were superficially intelligent comments about the way forward but which were invalidated by his comment "Stop pandering to the old, they'll be dead soon", or words to that effect. I'll leave you to consider for a moment just how repugnant that is. Don't be taken in by someone who is obsessed withe speedway rule book and averages. It doesn't make them intelligent, merely fixated. I had to correct him ages ago when he was spouting this regulation and that to point out that he was completely ignoring the key part of the rule book, the supplementary regulations which are issued during a season and regularly amend those rules., I remember SCB complaining about the car park at a certain track on the basis that it was damaging his very expensive car. Lovely chap. I'd park mine outside ;-) If people were singled out for such abuse on the grounds of race, gender or sexuality they would be rightly condemned by most reasonable people in society and in many cases prosecuted. So why is ageism allowed? Speedway may have an age profile that could do with reducing. The SCB's of this world would achieve that by making the sport hostile to the elderly and forcing them out on the basis that the young and 'cool' (i.e. his own perception of himself) are put off by the sight of geriatrics viciously sitting down because they can't stand up for two hours and callously drinking hot drinks from a flask because they know that the stuff on sale at the track is awful quality and overpriced. Shame on them! It's not the elderly that are the problem, it's the shallow, ignorant outlook of certain people at the other end of the age spectrum. Still, there's one consolation, given the modern trend to despise the old by the time he gets to be in that age group life's going to be pretty appalling for him. Yes I have attacked the poster, and I have not one iota of apology for doing this. I've posted some strong views on here over the years but they have all been based on a deep love of and concern for the sport, and not my ego. I had my brief spell in the spotlight and I can tell you I am much, much happier sitting quietly in the shadows now. When I see SCB's posts I see raw ego. I worked with a few TV technicians like him in the past and you would sometimes get those who developed appalling arrogance through working in the industry. I thought I'd seen the worst.......until now. I remember years back Sittingbourne getting their only away Conference League win at Newport. Almost everyone on the BSF were congratulating the then Crusaders on finally getting a win. One kid wasn't though. He went through every decision made in the match, every pass and incident, desperately trying to prove that the Kent side hadn't deserved their win. Ever since then I've been waiting for SCB to grow up. Seems like I've got a longer to go. Still, I'll probably be dead first, eh? Rob McCaffery - aged 60 and expecting the basic state pension only, if that when I can finally afford to retire. You see, instead of building up a career I spent too much time with speedway. I'm now partially disabled so have to have a seat at a track even if it's a folding one which SCB so despises. After 46 years of course I don't deserve a small concession on the admission in my advancing old age.....It would be nice to be able to enjoy the sport in my final years without having to put up with prejudice from this shallow clown.

Here you go again SCB. You really must be a very bitter person. You are right when you say that a hell of a lot of Pensioners are well of, some of them very well off. However the obverse is also true. There are also a hell of a lot of Pensioners who are not very well off, are indeed very, very poor. Some can afford Speedway every week, but others will inevitably not be able to, and it seems that you want to make them even worse off. I doubt if there are many very well off Pensioners who attend Speedway that often so you are actually having a go at the poorer ones. Shame on you!!! You are either very bitter, very jealous or very selfish or maybe a combination of all three. Shame on you!!!

Sings is passionate about his speedway, I don't always agree with him but he does always make his points fairly and sensibly. And tbf to him, I would of had the same opinions as him 2 seasons ago. Since a family member joined the team in 2016 I have been more active around the pits and riders etc and have more of a feel for the work behind the scenes. I think because Chris and Len are not as active on social media as say Connor Dugard, or not as active on forums as say Jane Moss it's easy to assume all things outside central park are unknowns to the kent management but they are as proactive as anyone else. And riders like Rowe,Thomas,and even Shansie don't just fall into your lap. The problem is with youngsters is, that not only does the sport have to fit around thier schooling, but also around the parents employment. So riders will usually prefer thier local track or a track that races at weekends. Anyway looking ahead with the side we have so far. Luke Bowen - At this level as good a number 1 as is possible. And the last couple of seasons he really has grown into a proper skipper. If you stand back and watch him off track he knows which riders to put an arm round, and which riders who respond to a kick up the arse. Something pointed out to me at Stoke away at the end of the season was he was talking the the two riders as a pair before more or less every Heat. Always has Immaculate equipment. And interacts with the fans as if everyone is a lifelong friend. Jack Thomas - Having progressed so far in two seasons, Jack should be looking at this season as his final National League Campaign before jumping in with the big boys. To do this he will be needing to challenge Luke for the number 1 jacket. Comes on a bargain average really too, when you consider the number of mechanical failures in points positions he suffered . level headed, polite lad. And he interacts with the kids through to the pensioners so naturally and professionally. But with a joker in him as well. Nathan Stoneman - Mr excitement, you can never relax until all 4 laps are completed with Nath. 100 percent trier with bags of potential and the ability to go all the way. Needs an injury free season and could well make it a 3 way challenge for Lukes vest. Proper genuine likable joker, and him and Jack together are quite the double act. Came in last year with a bit of a rep for poor equipment but last year I don't recall any issues at all. Anders Rowe - Anders had a great first season and will hopefully continue his progression towards the business end of the speedway pyramid, it should not be forgotten that he will still only be 15 when the season starts at easter. Very quiet and shy lad and much like Jack comes with great, clued up, and level headed parents in the bits. Another with immaculate equipment, and hopefully will come back more physically developed. Taylor Hampshire - on a 4 point average this can only be a great signing. Came to kent towards the back end of 2017 with brum in a challenge match and scored a big double figure score and rode for us at Stoke at number 5 and gave a good account of himself. Most knockers of him say he has bad equipment but I can't see uncle Len allowing his equipment to be sun standard. Jacob Clouting - Somebody I ve heard has a good solid style but may lack a bit of speed initially but apparantly has good equipment. But to be honest I ve only seen pics and vids, so can't really judge fairly. So a proper number 1 and skipper, and 5 riders with potential to up thier averages, I think we look in good shape. Personally I d like to see James Laker given his shot at 7.