Speedway Challenge Cup?

[comebackkings 113]

Last seasons inter league cup competition was a bit of a farce, but there was some good meetings, with Premier League sides doing well against weaker Elite league sides.

 

Would it be an idea to have a competition between all three leagues, like the FA cup in football. I know that a conference league side would not stand much of a chance against the likes of Poole at Poole, but they might have a chance at home.

 

Imagine the result at say Buxton or Mildenhall, I'm sure that most Premier league teams would not enjoy a trip there, never mind the likes of Belle Vue or Swindon.

 

Sky would enjoy it as it pits the smaller sides against the big boys, and home advantage can be a great leveller for the smaller teams, and everyone loves it when the underdog wins. With the gate profits split 50:50 it could be a nice little earner as well.

 

Doubling up riders would have to ride for the lower of their teams, as the larger teams have other riders to call upon.

 

Where there are both Premier and Conference or Elite and Conference teams at the same track the draw could be seeded to keep them apart.

 

Wouldn't this be a way to get the lower leagues on the map or the TV.

 

If it was held at the start of the season before the leagues started using last years averages, I think it might work.

[JT 167]

Sorry but it would never work, the BLC was a farce as EL teams could call on whoever they wished, sorry but despite Mildenhal having there selection of PL hasbeens can you really see the likes of Lindback, Sullivan and Pedersen travelling to Mildenhal where they are likely to lap CL riders?

[HenryW 1,178]

It's just not workable with the differences between the two leagues.

A good CL team might be able to give a bad PL team a battle on their home patch, and similarly a good PL team against a bad EL team, but what is in it for the team from the higher league?

They are going to tracks where the crowds and admission prices are both lower than they get at home, and yet receiving only half of the gate receipts.

I'm not sure how you work out that this could be a "nice little earner".

 

When I first heard about it, I thought the idea for the BLC last year was a good one. Then the rulings over team strengths started coming out and it became obvious that it would just be a farce.

If it had been organised properly, this could have been a genuinely interesting extra competition in the calendar, but as usual, that chance was blown.

[comebackkings 113]

Them how does the Football FA cup manage?

 

I'm not suggesting a 2 leg contest just one leg where home track advantage would help out the smaller teams if they are drawn at home.

 

As for the "nice little earner" How many belle vue fans would turn out at say buxton, workington or stoke, and how many eastbourne or poole fans would go to IOW or Newport? Plus its a trip to tracks not usually seen or riden on for some of the younger guys in the CL and PL, and their supporters.

 

As a season opener the competition could work as a pure knockout and would only last a few weeks.

 

Yes the BLC was a farce last year, but as I said ealier there were a few excellent meetings.

[Guest Carp]

Them how does the Football FA cup manage?

Because...

 

Sports are scored by one of two methods. You either score for achieving a rare objective (e.g. football, rugby, hockey, pool) or you score by continuous measurement (e.g. speedway, tennis, snooker, decathlon).

 

If you score based on rare achievements (goal!), it's entirely possible for one side to dominate the entire match, but not actually win because they didn't achieve the objective. As I'm sure we've all seen in football matches, it's possible for a team to walk all over their opponents for 90 minutes and yet still lose thanks to the "lesser" team popping a goal in during one of their rare moments of dominance.

 

If you score continously, you measure everything that happens during the event, and in that case the side that wins only has to be marginally better on the day. We see it week in, week out at speedway matches. Under speedways scoring system, it really doesn't take a massive disparity in team ability to produce a huge disparity in scores.

 

Looking at it another way, if football was scored like speedway, the cup competitions just wouldn't happen. If every completed pass, tackle, cross, foul, shot etc. was scored, the team that played best on the day would invariably win, and a lot of matches would effectively be over by half time.

[25yearfan 476]

The theory of a National trophey between all 3 leagues in British speedway sounds good in theory.

 

I remember some great National trophey matches at Norwich in the early 50s when the Stars then did manage to beat somme 1st Division teams as I can just about recall!

 

I also remember Workington knocking out both higher League Kings Lynn and then British League champions Ipswich in 1976 if I'm correct.

 

The biggest problem you would get is that standards differ quite a lot, even between good Premier League guys and Elite League heat leaders let alone Conference League riders.

 

Therefore I feel the only way such a National cup would work is if handicaping was introduced.

 

Elite League riders over 8 handicapped 10 yards on EL riders under 8 and Premier League riders 8 or over.

 

EL riders under 8 and Premier League riders 8 or over handicapped 10 yards on Premier League riders under 8.

 

Premier League riders under 8 handicapped 10 yards on all Conference League riders.

 

This would mean the top EL riders being handicapped 20 yards against lesser Premier riders and 30 yards against Conference League riders!

 

This would ensure close racing and undoubtedly lots of overtaking, though I'm not sure if some of the superstars would relish having to attempt to overtake some Conference League unsteady thottle merchant!

 

Other rules of a National Trophey: (Hopefully someone would come in to sponsor such a competition like the Daily Mail used to in the 50s.

 

Riders only allowed to ride for one team in the competition. (doubling up Riders would have to ride for their lower Division track, this will hopefully encourage riders to make permanant moves up.

 

All teams in random draw (wouldn't it be great to have draws made on Sky during speedway coverage).

 

One legged tie.

 

If the tie is a draw then a replay would take place on away team track.

 

Final on neutral track and some plush non League track would be even better!. (Maybe Cardiff the day after a British GP!) - Such an event could be made very attractive with a special occasion feel to it.

 

All cup matches to take place on the same week with the pick of matches to be televised. Imagine Buxton Versus Poole from Hi Edge on the TV!- With the handicapping the enevitable overtaking would make for great TV!

 

If ties are still level after the replay then sudden death to take place:

 

Top 2 scoring riders (including bonus points and tactical points) from each team to race of against each other. Who gets the heat advantage wins the meeting.

 

If this race is level then the next two highest scoring riders from each team to race each other. If this race is level then:

 

5th and 6th highest riders from each team to race against each other. If this race is shared:

 

One chosen rider from each team to race of with the winner, winning the tie for their team.

 

I think this format should be used in all League speedway cause after all League speedway is about team racing so run offs should be about team racing rather the current two man runoffs (As can be seen in my new system if after 3 level race offs a two man run off will decide the match anyway).

 

 

All the above suggestions would make the sport more exciting and give it more credibility with the media, local Councils and al other outsiders.