Hackney V Scunthorpe/sheffield

[waco 1,026]

Yes that this was long after young Holloway had stopped racing!! For the life of me I'm not sure if Holloway completed four laps or not! I thought he did at the time but now I'm not so sure!!!!!

I am not surprised the ref messed up it was one of the most confusing situationS ive seen in 60yrs of going to Speedway...

[Bryce 349]

I am not surprised the ref messed up it was one of the most confusing situationS ive seen in 60yrs of going to Speedway...

 

It was a confusing night all round. I had to laugh when we all shouted at Bob when he kept announcing the wrong team totals for a few heats after the 3-2 in heat 2.

 

In the conditions I think all the riders deserve great praise for giving it such a good go. Sad to see the Hawks name going again, but I really do hope that Lakeside run an NL team next year. The only way British speedway can build itself up again is by giving as many opportunities to youngsters as possible.

[Parsloes 1928 nearly 495]

I am not surprised the ref messed up it was one of the most confusing situationS ive seen in 60yrs of going to Speedway...

 

My mind had wandered off so wasn't clear what had happened to Shane but my understanding was that he'd packed up and that Holloway who'd fallen earlier nearly caught him before the line which was indeed the chequered flag for Holloway but allowed Shane the chance to 'push home' an entire lap and a bit for the point. Considering the Hawks were home and hosed by this point, hugely admirable that he did this... Unsure why Chris (my absolute fav ref and a good mate btw!) didn't, if he thought that Shane had indeed been lapped, put the red light on straightaway but when he did all made it clear it was wrong. Fair play to him for admitting his error And I'm fairly sure Ian didn't show the wrong flag coz he's my favourite starting marshall and a good mate (! ) and he told me afterwards he hadn't!! Confused..? Yes I still am!!!

 

I have to say (as others have..) that though clearly this wasn't up to the normal standards of a NL match generally, it was hugely entertaining and took me back to not dissimilar days at Plough Lane and Iwade!

 

Montie there were 4 inexperienced riders in this match and they were bound to take points of one another..none of them are quite ready for this league..though given the conditions last night one or two could make the break through sometime next year and i hope they do however i would be surprised if Len Silver will be rushing to sign them ..Pace wise Kingston looked to have the most potential actually won a race...

 

Fair play to waco - we've clashed a little on this thread and elsewhere about the direction the Hackney experiment went etc. but I appreciate very much how positive you've been about last night... I made it there were three occasions riders were lapped (it was nearly called as four - see above!) and am sure that must be a record; but then equally both 'Vulture Races' winners who made it into the Hawks side recorded wins (including paid wins)- and young Jack's was over Lee Smethills who's meant to be a top rider at this level (certainly hugely experienced, though this must have been one of his career low-points surely - just three points..)

 

Mark Baldock has been on my radar since saw him finish runner-up to the Netherlands' Benjamin Borgers in an indiv. at Sittingbourne three years ago and of course he won the season-long championship at Lydd this term.. Not a teenager which has, I know, counted against him in the eyes of some, but well worth a place in this division; and I'm delighted to see Cookie's statement on Saturday being positive about running a Young Hammers side in 2012 and that Mark (plus both Jacks and Adam) are in his plans for that

[waco 1,026]

I very much hope John goes ahead with a national league team, he has stated that rider developement is the main aim and results are not important..However in my experience the fans would still need to see a a team that was capable of winning most matches at home at least ,or they will lose interest.So with the inclusion of the riders already mentioned a pretty strong top end would be required..He has already two assets in Marc Owen and Shane Hazeden wether or not he uses them remains to be seen..There is also the prospect of exciting local derbys with Rye House and Mildenhall ,,and Kings Lynn is not to far away...Sittingbourne too would be a great addition, if it could happen ,,all those local derbys can only strengthen the financial situation for all the clubs involved..lets hope this could be a turning point in the area for the developement of young british riders..

Edited October 9, 2011 by waco

[jollie roger 0]

Mmmm...... I seem to recall 'cityrebel' that one Friday when the Eastbourne Eaglets including Cookie were in town, a certain number of that night's Hackney Kestrel News mysteriously carried a spurrious back page artice stating that junior riders over 6'0" tall were being banned from riding. There then followed a detailed explanation as to the apparent reasoning behind this basically stating that the taller riders had a higher centre of gravity and therefore were that much more prone to falling off.

As an old track staff, I have help to "disentangle" Jon Cook from the fence on several occasions at Arlo.On his day he was reasonable but other wise ,be afraid, be very afraid, for the fence.I think the reason Mr Dugard went from 4x2 timber and mesh panels to to ply wood panels as J.C destroyed so many panels.

[Parsloes 1928 nearly 495]

Was the Jack Williams who made a brief appearance (before bike probs) in Vultures Race 1, Jack White Williams..?