Stoke Potters Sadly, The Perennial Failures

[iannewsman 16]

Well said Vog.

[ch958 2,395]

how does it happen that a once first division side (many years ago admittedly), regular NL/PL competitors in the second tier end up as also rans in the third tier.

 

As a neutral who knows nothing about the circumstances i keep waiting for them to rejoin the PL

[vog 200]

how does it happen that a once first division side (many years ago admittedly), regular NL/PL competitors in the second tier end up as also rans in the third tier.

 

As a neutral who knows nothing about the circumstances i keep waiting for them to rejoin the PL

 

You'll be waiting a while.

 

Something isn't right at the club, but it's hard to put a finger on what. At a guess, it starts with the fact that our 2 owners are divorced from each other, which can't help. There have always been rumours flying around about who runs the finances, and about how accurate they are, but that is not for me to comment on here. Suffice to say that when one promoter said that in 2004, he averaged 400 paying customers a week, I find it hard to believe how accurate those figures are.

 

However, Stoke have never been good at building teams, even going back before the Tattums were involved. This year was the 70th anniversary of the last 7 man trophy we won, so it isn't just a Tattum thing, it is a Stoke thing. When we moved down, we were told it was due to financial reasons. They had spent too much money in the previous season and owed too much money out, and that they wanted to move down to allow them to level back out. That first season was a success, even if there was no team trophy. It was unfortunate that we probably had the best team that year, but the Cameron Heeps saga, combined with Stoke losing most of their riders to injury at the end of the year, meant that we just couldn't compete in the finals that we made.

 

Since then, you could point to excuses, you could say it is bad team building, but whatever it is, it is a continuing thing. The crowds come back if we win, and stay away if we lose. The problem is that every time we lose, fewer and fewer people turn up. It is one thing losing in the PL, but people view it as an entirely different thing to be losing in the NL. I think a part of it is that there are a lot of Stoke fans who would go to Buxton, to see a different level of racing, and put money into a smaller club. Now seeing this "smaller club" beating them as equals doesn't sit right with fans who were used to welcoming Sheffield, Edinburgh and the like. (This isn't a pop at Buxton! Please don't take it as such)

 

The simple fact is that they are in a vicious cycle, that the fans don't go because they are fed up with the promotion, the promotion don't want to sell, but year on year they are struggling. If you ask Mr Tattum, he would say that he would sell if the right offer came along. If you ask the former Mrs Tattum, she will never sell. Maybe there lies your problem.

[Mike.Butler 601]

is this the longest run in speedway history for a club to go without winning a league title?

[Wiz555 0]

I think it is unfair to say we 'wimped' out of the 4s. As someone who was there, I think, and it is only my opinion, but Jon Armstrong was great to watch and did us proud. Rob Shuttleworth did incredibly well as the first full race on a dodgy track and was unlucky on his last ride. Both of these riders could not have tried harder for us as a team. It seemed to me Chris widman had bike issues, and on seeing him walk back to the pits, no one seemed more disappointed than he was. At all times, I think these riders come across as 'club men' and I certainly didn't feel that they 'wimped' out of the 4s.

[teddy2706 166]

It is very sad to read Vog's post. I am proud to say he is my friend, if you cut him in half it would say "Stoke Speedway" right through him.

He has supported Stoke through thick and thin, man and boy.

 

Stoke started with a great side, but were on dangerous ground with Wilson, if he was successful on his return, they were always going to lose him, if he failed to ride to his potential they would have been stuck with him and the brickbats would have poured in.

Whilst reluctant to say anything favourable about Stoke speedway for reasons of my own, I believe Ian might have spoken before thinking very hard regarding sacking riders etc.

The fact is, that it is easy to form an NL team like Godfrey did at Scunthorpe, a step that destroyed every clubs gate receipts but his own by using raw, untried lads.

However, I doubt if such a team will end the season with silverware in the cabinet.

What Ian has missed, is that once the season is rolling, it is almost impossible to find a decent NL rider who is out of a job, certainly not a rider of Wilson's calibre.

Stoke have, in the past, in my opinion, treated their own riders like dirt, I won't drag up the same old examples ad nauseum, but they have let good riders slip through their fingers due to many reasons, but the result is the same, the fans no longer have that rider to shout on. Do promotions not understand that supporters support the man as well as the club?

Plainly not.

Promoters appear completely oblivious of the tribal nature of speedway, I was once patted on the head and pitied at Peterborough by an Edinburgh man when I confessed that I was from Stoke (even though I am not) because that is where my speedway heart lay. The answer was on my lips without a concious thought, yet Messrs. Tattum and Crabtree have no more thought of tapping into that potential, that loyalty, than booking a ticket to outer space with Branson.

Many ex. Stoke supporters have helped Stoke speedway, in small or large ways, but almost all have been subject to disdain from the promotion afterwards.

I may be fairly unique in the fact that I would love to help Stoke speedway again in some way, but be ignored, spoken sharply to or subject to abuse?

Not me brother.

If Stoke speedway can afford to alienate Vog, then they can afford to be riding EL, never mind PL, because the Vogs of this world are precious to speedway, a declining pool of support that will eventually wither and die out because it receives no nourishment from the promotion (although I guess Stoke fans get fertiliser aplenty from the Tattums).

It isn't unique to Stoke though, just look at the track surface that Coventry have attempted to palm off both riders and supporters with week after week!

Hardly guaranteed to encourage repeat trade is it?

Nor are Devon supporters going to appear in their thousands because some muppet forgot that they couldn't use the council carpark in the daytime!

Or Cradley, as a reward for years of vocal, massive financial support, their supporters can just get stuffed and go elsewhere apparently!

[boozer 14]

As a supporter who has followed Stoke from 1973 the first year at Loomer Road I feel I can comment on past promoters and teams that have represented Stoke.

We have over the years had some good and some terrible promoters at Stoke with varying degrees of success.

0n the rider front we have had some of the best riders in the league and I can say it was a real pleasure to watch some of the best racing in the country bar none on a great track with great riders.

Whilst the limited success on the track has never resulted in any meaningful team silverware the quality of the racing kept supporters by and large happy, the support was at most times reasonable though not always maintained the whole year for various reasons.

As one year ended supporters were waiting for the next year and generally the fall away supporters returned again proving that if you still provide entertainment on a good track with decent riders supporters will follow the team even if success is not as we would want.

In my opinion when this all changed and the decline started was with the arrival of the current promotion, initially it seemed D/T was a bit of a saviour for Stoke having stopped it closing but after the first year it soon became clear that poor teams apart from some fantasic individual riders was going to be the order of the day. To some extent the great riders we had helped cover the cracks of the rest of the team failings year in year out, (it must be remembered that all teams lose riders at all stages of the season it's how the promotion respond that determines the season.)

It soon became clear from the promotion that any supporters who dared to be critical of anything concerning Stoke speedway were threatened either physically or verbally with the threat of legal actions, the ending of the supporters club was another nail in the coffin.

It is quite easy for people to make comments on this or other forums that certain supporters have an axe to grind against the promotion and maybe to some extent this is true but you will find this is because of the treatment they have received from the promotion.

I would put most but not all the blame for the failures at Stoke at the promotional door, the list of failings is endless but one of it's biggest mistakes is the alienation of so many supporters that is not acceptable under any circumstances.

It's hard to see any future for Stoke speedway even if this promotion left, the loss of support will in my opinion be virtually impossible to recover though I'm sure some would return but that would only be for P/L racing, people move on like myself with not going I no longer miss it and will not return as is the case with all the people I used to go with

With finances as they are and the decline of speedway in general in this country I personally can see no future at all for speedway in Stoke regardless of who is in charge.

For the supporters who still go I wish you all the best for the future and hope that by some miracle or someone with money to spend speedway can survive at Stoke.

Edited November 7, 2014 by boozer

[Baldy 69]

Some very interesting comments about Stoke and their issues and problems. Whilst not able to go back as far as Boozer at 1973; I can take 1978 as my start and I must admit I for very many years enjoyed my time watching the team; the fact, for the majority of the time we were not the strongest team in the league helped the racing for me as we always seemed to be close to winning or losing in loads of meetings. I used to have a jacket with happiness is 40-38 (old scoring for the younger ones) and to have a team romping meetings "loads" to "not many" would not of attracted me, and we have to be honest that with our local football teams, we have not been used to winning silverware in the city. Speedway and not Stoke in particular stopped me going for the last couple of years but with the financial issues throughout the sport, it is going to be hard for quite a few promotions to keep the sport alive in their cites; let alone Stoke. It is sad to see the Potters (and speedway in general) in such a state and they obviously need people in through the gate to put back into the "show" but this is just not going to happen at present. I only pop on here now and again, so someone may have posted this elsewhere, but my question is "how is James Mcbain" as he got injured in the season, will he be riding next year?

[TMW 533]

Some very interesting comments about Stoke and their issues and problems. Whilst not able to go back as far as Boozer at 1973; I can take 1978 as my start and I must admit I for very many years enjoyed my time watching the team; the fact, for the majority of the time we were not the strongest team in the league helped the racing for me as we always seemed to be close to winning or losing in loads of meetings. I used to have a jacket with happiness is 40-38 (old scoring for the younger ones) and to have a team romping meetings "loads" to "not many" would not of attracted me, and we have to be honest that with our local football teams, we have not been used to winning silverware in the city. Speedway and not Stoke in particular stopped me going for the last couple of years but with the financial issues throughout the sport, it is going to be hard for quite a few promotions to keep the sport alive in their cites; let alone Stoke. It is sad to see the Potters (and speedway in general) in such a state and they obviously need people in through the gate to put back into the "show" but this is just not going to happen at present. I only pop on here now and again, so someone may have posted this elsewhere, but my question is "how is James Mcbain" as he got injured in the season, will he be riding next year?

He wad good in himself but because of the head injury couldn't get clearance from doctors to ride. Which was a shame

[Baldy 69]

He wad good in himself but because of the head injury couldn't get clearance from doctors to ride. Which was a shame

Thank you. I remember him going head to head with Ben Reade for the number 7 slot at try out for Stoke a few years ago and thought he had talent. Strange I have gone from going to practice to not going at all in such a short time. Hope James gets the all clear and a run of good fitness so he can continue the talent build he has already shown.

[big lad 7]

The Chesterton home of the Potters Speedway team has suffered thousands of pounds of damage in a suspected vandal attack.

Damage at the Potters Loomer Road stadium has virtually destroyed the referee’s box and audio equipment.

Promoter David Tattum was the first to discover the extent of the damage yesterday, which he says has left forthcoming amateur meetings and the future of the speedway itself in doubt.

Mr Tattum said: “It’s like a major disaster took place here.

 

taken from the STOKE-ON-TRENT SENTINAL

[Shadders 4,135]

 

The Chesterton home of the Potters Speedway team has suffered thousands of pounds of damage in a suspected vandal attack.

Damage at the Potters Loomer Road stadium has virtually destroyed the referees box and audio equipment.

Promoter David Tattum was the first to discover the extent of the damage yesterday, which he says has left forthcoming amateur meetings and the future of the speedway itself in doubt.

Mr Tattum said: Its like a major disaster took place here.

 

taken from the STOKE-ON-TRENT SENTINAL

Hope they have adequate insurance cover

[greyhoundp 990]

Here is a copy of the article

 

http://www.signal1.co.uk/news/local/stoke-potters-speedway-loomer-road-home-damaged-by-vandals/

 

Worrying times for Stoke Speedway, lets hope they had Insurance to cover it.

[vog 200]

Here is a copy of the article

 

http://www.signal1.co.uk/news/local/stoke-potters-speedway-loomer-road-home-damaged-by-vandals/

 

Worrying times for Stoke Speedway, lets hope they had Insurance to cover it.

 

Probably the same insurance we had in 08 when we were broken in to.

 

Or 2011 when we were broken in to. Both of which caused "Thousands of pounds of damage"

[Eddie 7]

Probably the same insurance we had in 08 when we were broken in to.

 

Or 2011 when we were broken in to. Both of which caused "Thousands of pounds of damage"

Edited November 19, 2014 by Eddie