old bob at herne bay

Sincere Congratulations to Poole in adding another league title to their bulging trophy cabinet. With the league season completed and just a few end of season promoters’ benefit meetings left to contest in wet October, will be interesting to see what will happen in the winter, and what format UK speedway will go for in 2022. well done the Pirates!

Made me laugh when called Swindon and Poole “the big two” Although both now defunct Premiership clubs, Poole have in recent years been good enough to warrant a “big “ rating. Swindon ? 2019 p/off champions I think ? Hardly a “big” club. Never been the same without the big 2 Wimbledon and Wembley.

There’s been more meetings called off very early this season due to a “poor weather forecast” than I can remember this summer. All comes home to roost come October when riders coast round in mud ( eg Kent on Tuesday )

Apologies to Ford. Not especially picking on him . No bike . I knew that but what about the other Royals who didn’t make the 2 minute warning ? Leaving 3 riders in each race. And you say the track was fit for racing ? ? Pleased that no one suffered serious injury. Maybe if there was the same enthusiasm to run in wet conditions earlier in the season, there wouldn’t have been such a fixture backlog ? At the very least , Tuesday’s meeting should have been called off by ref after 10 heats. Lets hope that next season brings a full season of action with some slack in the very limited track time allowed at Kent. I say again Running in 2 leagues is not IMO a sensible option with no options of catching up using off nights or double headers.

that would need 2 cameras.

The meeting is ON shout Sheffield Speedway. Mmmmmmm …….don’t ring the speedway office …. Oh it’s OFF !!

The meeting is ON shout Sheffield Speedway. Mmmmmmm …….

What ! Do they search everybody entering the stadium ! Or have sniffer dogs at the gates. Never known such nonsense and I have been to many Speedway and Cricket stadia in my time.

Shame that his meeting is being spoilt by injuries. Irony is that its the younger members of the team who have suffered injuries ... the old fellas have kept on going and delivering the points throughout the season even when down to a 6 man side with R/R. Going into such a meeting with a gust is always a risky business. More so with Craig who surely will not want to upset the chances of his Glasgow Tigers progress in the CL p/offs? No doubt Pearson and Tatum will be delighted that Wolves now have been handed a massive advantage going into the 2nd leg, and they can shout from the roof tops how wonderful the Wolves TM is for managing to overcome a home defeat.

East End Fan, respect that you seem to be seeing your speedway through 3 pairs of rose tinted spectacles, and point out that “Clever Dick” Bob isn’t that clever for stating the b*****y obvious after seeing half the Kent Royals team pulling out of their rides for fear of serious injury on a track rendered unfit for racing. So much for the referee deciding on track conditions. I have previously stated that IMO it was a gross error planning to run an NDL team with their opening home fixture ( or was it their second) in late September . Suggests to me that the NDL team was very much an afterthought … but at near CL prices in Kent. The remaining fixtures across the NDL are now squeezed into October…. as has been said by others , probably the last we will see of the Royals in this poorly planned 2021 NDL .

Scotty or Starkey ?

Sounds like you should take your own refreshments ?

Given the vagaries of the weather in late Autumn / early Winter how many off the remaining fixtures will actually take place ? As always the key meetings in speedway take place on dodgy rain affected tracks …. There’s little “racing” possible just riding around to stay on and once again the fans are short changed

Seems the weather beat the Royals..... half the side not coming out and being excluded for “ exceeding the 2 minute warning “ Must have been a pretty miserable evening for the Kent fans.

Entertaining though this thread is ........ really, a speedway track so close to a new housing development that the shale will pepper the residents washing as it hangs out to dry. I am minded to think of a well known bedding shop - DREAMS. Sittingbourne have had severe planning restrictions with noise barriers, and an 8.30pm curfew, on a track located on an industrial estate, due to one resident who lives a a mile away from the stdium. Appeals have been rejected. Hundreds of new homeowners, none of whom are likely to be faintly interested in Speedway will not put up with the noise and dust from a speedway track in their back yards.

As long as the stock cars banger cars keep on using the stadium I guess there is hope......maybe a second hand air fence from another defunct track will become available to reduce start up costs ?

Thought I read somewhere that the “top” riders need to ride in both leagues to make ends meet ....so even if there are enough riders how many meetings per season will one big league allow given they start in late March and they have to finish by mid September for the p. Offs. 6 riders per team assume we stick with 15 heats gives everyone 5 rides. With 2 rising/falling stars per side that’s one third of the meeting of NDL standard. Value £ 15 a meeting ?

If Troy shows some form Sheffield are more than capable of becoming p/off winners . Congrats to “Dads Army” for being the best team overall this season. A remarkable performance from a team of experienced riders who have frankly demonstrated how poor the “ best of the rest “ are in UK speedway 2020.

No not at all - it’s almost as funny as the much over hyped “Millenium Stadium” Give me Hyde Road any day over the “National Speedway Stadium” … all I have ever seen at the “NSS” is 4 riders getting further and further apart as the “race” progresses…. And the TV pundits continually telling me what a wonderful track it is ……..

How many teams do folks think will run in a 2022 “premiership” assuming it still exists ? Pboro might be a housing estate…. Swindon ? hehe ?

BSPL seemingly doing all they can to get the p.off final to be on TV at the “National Speedway Stadium” that much over hyped racetrack in Manchester.

Not a dog fan, but dont think that many dog meetings ahve a crowd nowadays , they are staged and streamed online . So no aor very limited spectator facilities needed. As for the speedway - how on earth does anybody in their right mind think that the folks in their brand new £500k houses adjacent to the site are going to accept a noisy speedway track on their doorstep . Get real , smell the coffee. There will be 200 noise complaints on the council's desk before a wheel is turned. From the promotion team, I dont think Terry Russell has been in the best of health, Alain Rossiter is very enthusiastic about anything and everything, whilst Lee Kilby was last seen licking his wounds after the demise of Eastbourne.

Agree with Thornaby 48. Additionally I would allow the option of one gust to replace the team’s number 1 rider. The gust should only be allowed to take the 4 programmed rides and must ride in the number 1 slot in the team. ( no T/S or nominated heat appearances) and of course have a lower CMA than the number 1 rider he is replacing This to dissuade teams from picking track specialist gusts to strengthen their teams. R/r should be the preferred solution for all absences.

Some interesting comments on the early finish to the meeting. The consensus seems to be sod the racing, just prep a slick track with no passing after turn 2, stuff whether we win or lose ? Could have forfeited the match gave Leicester 4 points and just have the end of season knees up in the bar ? £18 a ticket for a booze up ?

That's a very poor show Waco ... very poor indeed. Didn't know that the "planning issues" restricted the time allowed in the bar , just the on track time to an 8.30 pm curfew. So totally unecessary to rush through the entertainment. Maybe Len likes to get to bed early. He might pay the price in dissing fans from attending the remaining Royals meetings , assumming the weather holds for anothe month ?