mikebv 10,268 Posted May 25, 2020 (edited) 6 hours ago, iainb said: Probably something for a different thread, but it amazes me watching back through clips, especially in this country, of the high throughput of riders who never really "make it" and when I say make it I mean hold down a regular spot in the main body of a team. I don't know how Speedway compares to other sports for throughput of talent but you only have to have a look through the speedway updates site from a few years ago to see the amount of riders who don't "make it" Watching clips of football from the past decade or so, there is also a huge amount of players who just seem to have 'dissapeared', with many teams having wholesale changes in squads in around just five years or so.. My lad is in a League One U17 youth team and the competition for places is incredible at that level with young lads coming through all the time trying to get into that first team, and experienced players dropping down into it from the two divisions above... Often the players dropping down have been replaced by either purchased foreign imports, or foreign imports who have been at the clubs from eleven years old, such is the huge 'trawler net' used these days by the leading clubs.. At my lads club, only three players in the first team squad have been there over three years, with many ending up non league and working full time when their contract ends, as the next batch of younger lads have come through to replace them, or better players from the leagues above have dropped in, desperate to remain a pro and try and get back up the levels.. For the vast majority of pro footballers their 'shelf life' is nowadays shorter than ever given supply well exceeds demand... Edited May 25, 2020 by mikebv 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
