I like the look of this team, very solid without the top rider as number one, Fricke has gone to Kings Lynn but because of that they have weaknesses lower down, this could be the season Leicester win the title.

100%.... But. All glaringly obvious... Yet zero has been done to act upon it... Instead of marketing nationally I remember seeing one club set up a decorator's table with club memorabilia on it, in the foyer of a local supermarket... In the Speedway Star this week there is an excellent article with Mark Lemon who mentions wanting to bring others with "broader skill sets" into the sport.. Let's hope, marketing is one of those skills.. The bottom line is hardly any riders will increase crowds by their appearances, (as has been proved since "The Stars" came back a few years ago), so to keep forking out hundreds of thousands in paying them, instead of redistributing this cash into marketing (which "may" grow the sport), is not a great business plan... You can develop the greatest product ever to have existed in the world, using nothing but the very best ingredients, but you won't make any money if no one has heard of you, or your product ..  

Roman? 

It depends on what constitutes "huge" over decades. sure the sum over 20 years looks big but when viewed as an annual spend its not huge by any stretch of the imagination. Its not clear if you mean a couple of million spent on riders each year is the figure per team or in total but at an an average of around 150k per club per year (low) or 280k per rider (high). If it is the former and being on the low side even a figure double that, is not remotely big.  By and large todays promoters spend what income they generate from gate receipts, sponsorship and media deals and cover small losses (200k is small) as their interpretation an an investment. sure it keeps the sport going which we should be thankful for, but in no way does it create the prospects for growth. What's lacking is additional working capital (cash) investment by the promoters in significant marketing & PR (so folk do know who the riders are), and the improvement of the  meeting experience which (besides a few exceptions) is woeful with sub standard presentation. The reason its not done is for two linked reasons. 1, The promoters don't know what great promotion (marketing & PR) is and 2, They don't have the money and so rely on keen and willing volunteers to help out rather than being able to invest in engaging full time professional PR, marketing & sponsorship agencies. Also, worth considering that there is a need to promote at the national level (BSPL) and at the local level (individual promoters) in a coordinated and cohesive manner at a much greater level than is currently undertaken.  

Tasmanian State Championship, Kurri Kurri, New South Wales, 8 December 2018 1  (15) Kye Thomson [QLD] 3 3 2 2 3 13 + 3 2  (4) Zach Cook [NSW] 3 3 3 3 3 15 + 2 3  (12) Ben Cook [NSW] 2 2 3 2 3 12 + 1 4  (16) Josh MacDonald [NSW] 2 1 1 3 3 10 + 3 + f 5  (6) Declan Kennedy [QLD] 1 3 2 1 2 9 + 2 6  (13) Dakota Ballantyne [SA] 1 3 2 2 1 9 + 1 7  (1) Matthew Gilmore [NSW] 2 2 3 1 2 10 + r 8  (8) Jedd List [QLD] 0 0 3 3 1 7 9  (7) Cooper Riordan [VIC] 2 2 x 3 x 7 10 (5)  Isaac Hawes [NSW] 3 1 xt 1 2 7 11  (10) Connor Bailey [VIC] 3 0 1 2 0 6 12  (9) Matthew Pickering [NSW] 1 0 2 0 2 5 13  (2) Kane Lawrence [NSW] 1 1 1 1 1 5 14  (14) Alan MacDonald [NSW] r 2 1 0 1 4 15  (11) Tyson Snow [QLD] 0 1 0 0 0 1 16  (3) Mitch Cluff [NSW] 0 0 0 x n 0   This meeting was staged with the intention of providing additional opportunities for riders to achieve a top three position in a State Championship and thereby achieve eligibility for a UK visa.  

They’d be better off with Martin Kemp or his older brother Gary. They would provide the half time entertainment aswell.