Chris Brown

Was a decent meeting in front of what looked to me like a good crowd. Lets hope despite all the disappointment of the missing riders a good few quid was raised

Speedway Star in critising Middeditch shock !!! Actually a pretty decent article Philip, you recognise that he should have kept his mouth shut but didn't see anything to suggest is his full page article that he thought he done anything wrong

Philip Have to say I was disappointed, not with he way that the Star reported the facts because as you said the FIM was saying nothing but some of the stuff that was printed quoting Middleditch was frankly ridiculous and I am really surprised it was given print space. There was a stage where his insaner ramblings were on Page 2 or 3 for 2/3 weeks and personal view is that it did the SS no favours giving space to the garbage he was spouting Just my view

I meant lets hope he does not decide to take up the chance of an appeal

I think that is the good thing, so he knows where he stands and although its in reality a 4 month ban during the season it sufficiently messes up his season so it will hopefully act as a deterent for him and others After the ban is over he should then be left to get on with his career as he will have served his ban. Only time will tell whether its been enough to teach him a lesson Lets hope there is no appeal eh ?

But do they not realise this is Poole they are dealing with, the self proclaimed Man Utd of speedway Middleditch has showed his real colours here though hasn't he, a whole bundle of people saw him as a clown and he has performed that act brilliantly, breaking the rules of his own governing body, factually being wrong over and over again, seemingly speaking for others in say 'everyone' wants Ward to be allowed to ride I suspect his ridiculous antics have done nothing to help Ward's position in terms of whether speedway fans want to be allowed to ride. I reckon the best thing Ward can do is fine somewhere else to live and cut himself off from this bloke who is dragging him down Certainly glad that Ward's memory is coming back though, fancy forgetting that there was a 45 day rule, wonder if he told his muddled mouthpiece ? They all look like a bunch of idiots to be honest What do I want, I want Ward to be punished properly and that means seeing out a 12 month ban for me, I would then think he should distance himself from those who are hampering him (both so called mates who seem to lead or at least stop him going astray) and get back to doing what he is good at because as it stands in terms of a wasted career, he is on the road to being the biggest waster in history

With you 100% on the last bit, having said that Middleditch would have been better keeping his mouth shut because he has consistently whined that he should be let off. He was a rider, wonder what he would have thought if this was one of his opponents ? He may not have condoned it but he has made endless excuses for him from Day 1 when he claimed it was because he had some bad news. All the way through he has made an arse of himself

Let us not forget that only one thing has brought all this stress on poor little Darcy............................the fact that was drinking alcohol the day before a GP. Now we hear about dodgy tests etc, but NOTHING escapes the fact that he has admitted to drinking the day before and for that and for that alone for me he deserves massive punishment and so far its been 2 months based on the fact that there is no speedway from October to March (and he never rides in Aussie) Middleditch has continued to make himself look a complete tool in all this to be honest and has done Ward no favours IMO Simple message to Ward though, had you not been drinking the day before there would be no issue Stop blaming everyone else I can certainly vouch for the fact that one of his team mates couldn't stand up the night before a major individual meeting a few years ago. Maybe its systemic thing. Personally I would like to see testing of every rider, having seen one good mate paralysed and another nearly killed on track (neither related to alcohol I must add) then that reminds you how dangerous this sport is and how ANY alcohol in the blood has no part in such a dangerous sport Just my view

Lets not praise him too much for going a whole 18 months without a run in with the law. Most of us manage to go our entire lives without getting any incidents

If he is guilty then I am sorry but he has nowhere near paid his dues, he has missed a couple of months of racing and for what he is alleged to have done and then gone out on track 2 months does not scratch the surface sadly Lets just hope whatever the outcome he learns from it. The first thing he can learn is to get the hell away from Middleditch because he is doing himself and Ward no favours

The voice of reason who makes the point I really cannot understand why people are not grasping How about a slogan such as "Don't drink and ride".......................or for the Darcy supporters, "Its OK to drink and ride as long as you can get off on a technicality"

Surely it must have been because no sane adult could possibly think that given he turned up at a speedway meeting with alcohol in his body above the limit that he should just be allowed to get off because he's good at speedway...........................oh apart from Middleditch and he is proving himself to be plain silly with his comments

perish the thought that if he had not drunk ANY alcohol the day before a GP then it would not matter about calibration of the machine Geez the point is being horrendously missed here

But as long you are only a little bit over the limit its sort of OK according to Middleditch. A drunk driver killed my sons mate at 18 when they were out in the village, good news is that he was only a little bit over the limit but didn't stop him killing an innocent 18 year old. But according to Middleditch he should be treated more leniantly than if he had killed him when way over the limit. Heaven forbid if Middleditch had a child killed by someone just over the limit, would he really think the same ? Brilliant, with logic like that he could be a high court judge And Starman, I do not have an issue with Middleditch but have a massive issue with the ridiculous statements that I highlighted and if you were honest with yourself so would you As for any comments about drunk, I agree that is clearly not correct but in terms of the crime its also completely irrelevant. Drunk or 0.01 mg over any limit is 100% and completely the same in this case. Arguing and trying to get him of on a technicality is pathetic, take you punishment, learn from it nad come back a better person. Instead he will do anything to get off and continue to be on the edge of the law for time to come

I really think the last thing Middleditch needs is thanks, some of this recent quotes are frankly embarrassing "it wasn't drugs and it wasn't and it wasn't performance enhancing. If anything it would be debilitating to his performance" "was he just over or way over ? They need to take that into account" "he'll be riding at the start of the season, which is what everybody is hoping for" "they've ruined two year of his career" "he has 3 mechanics sitting around wondering if they are going to have a job" Sorry but some of this is shocking, its alcohol in a dangerous sport Middleditch you fool, it does not matter one jot whether he was just over or couldn't walk. Just the same as when you drive a car. The drugs v alcohol comparison is also a disgrace Does 'everybody' really want him riding at the start of the season ? I don't, I want him punished if he is guilty Lets not forget that its Darcy Ward who turned up over the alcohol limit, the position he is in has been 99% caused by Darcy Ward and the reason 3 mechanics are sweating over their jobs is that their boss can't control himself And to be honest with crap like this being spouted by the bloke who supposedly looks out for him its hardly surprising. The FIM have not helped but let us not lose sight of why there is a problem As for the fact that these frankly appalling quotes were even given column inches by the Speedway Star..................well I am surprised and disappointed Still the bloke is clearly a car crash and he has learned nothing from previous scrapes so if he worms his out of this one on a technicality then its only a matter of time before the next one Complete waste of a huge talent and being let down by those around him IMO

Orion agrees with me 100% !!! Not sure you have ever said that before. I better go and lie down Maybe we are finally on the same wavelength

While agreeing with this to a degree the British system is what has allowed him to develop in his early career to the rider he is today He rode in both the Conference and Premier Leagues in the UK, not in Poland or Sweden or Australia, they had nothing to offer him and at that time he was happy to make the most of (I will refrain from the term 'use') the British system which allowed him to ride in 2 leagues when these other countries offered him nothing So now those other leagues are seemingly a better bet then its bye bye to the British speedway system which has helped him to develop to where he is today While partially understanding it, its very disappointing and he has a short memory as to who gave him the chance. As for coming back, who cares, British Speedway now owes him nothing But lets not kid ourselves he is burned out because of British Speedway, he is burned out because he has chosen to ride in Poland and Sweden which is where the travelling is involved If at some point he chooses to come back because the grass is not greener, lets hope British Speedway does not make it easy for him Just my view

Its without doubt one of the success stories of fans all agreeing on something. I recall I used to phone Ernie Hancock's results line many years ago and Leon Hill and Rod Leverton led the way with live results in the 90's I think. Leon covering Oxford and Rod and Vic doing pretty much the rest of the country on their own Its just great the way its developed and is without doubt an invaluable service with many people spending their own time and money in texts to keep us up to date

All down to your charm and charisma at an interview SCB I am sure

What a wonderful thought !

There is of course the rivalry but Josef Franc was there and has been every year pretty much

Oh please let's not even contemplate that he will be charged with a lesser offence because he was caught. For me that is completely irrelevant and lets hope 'commercial considerations' are not at play here. Its like me walking out of the pub pissed up but being breathalysed before I get in my car and that making it OK because I didn't actually drive But you know my view, the people running this circus couldn't give two hoots about the sport and the impact of allowing a bloke who was planning to ride while breaking rules concerning alcohol. As long as they make money they could give a toss about the sport Lets hope they prove me wrong because this should NOT be about commercial considerations but Philip's comments suggest the clowns are looking for a way around this

Yep, and the text clearly says subject to ratification from the BSPA.

But he is not a Co Promoter. There is a key passaqe of words in the website article that was quoted which I understand means he is not Bit unfair on Neil isn't it ? Its not really for him to answer on behalf of either the current or former promoter. All he can give is his opinion

On one hand I agree with you, where the moral high ground is lost is that so many riders are allegedly not being paid on time and therefore it works both ways. If promoters carry out there part of the bargain and pay ALL their riders ALL they are due on time and in full then they of course have the right to hold the moral high ground If they do not then I am sorry but they deserve to be messed about In this case I have no idea and am not suggesting there is an issue but the point stands