Leicester Lions 2016

[Happy Hunter 370]

I think that last night was the first meeting since the Lions re-opened that we did not have one rider who won a race! Says it all really!

Nightshirt The biggest problem the Lions are going to face this season is staying operating as I understand that they are loosing around £3-4000 a meeting due to crowds dropping off due to the poor performances. The club can not continue many more weeks like that especially as still got to pay riders for the away meetings out of your home match revenue as if your loosing money at home the away has to come out of own savings.

DH won't be paying out much by way of points money will he?

[flagrag 704]

No DH will not be paying a lot out in points money but you still have all the travelling expenses,van leases,start money and often riders will do deals where they get a guaranteed minimum to make sure it's worth their while

[Gresham78 215]

Personally I think David and Yulia Hemsley have done a fine job in bring speedway back to Leicester.

The stadium is very good and shows what can be done when building a facility for the sport from scratch ( albeit with a slightly less than perfect track).

 

Unlike some other people here who think David lacks business acumen or is just plain stupid I think the club is well run.

 

The only thing I think you can accuse him of is a bit of over ambition and a maybe being a little stubborn.

 

As is patently clear you cannot run a successful EL speedway team with a Saturday race night (Eastbourne). However David has said that switching to a mid-week slot doesn't work as there is a significant drop off in attendance. Surely the best option then is a return to the Premier League where he can retain the Saturday night slot and with better rider availability in that league he can build a competitive team again and present a better racing experience.

 

I'd never criticise him for wanting to compete in the EL as I imagine it was always his ultimate aim when resurecting the club but it hasn't worked out so cut your losses and return to a model that works and most importantly the sport is retained in the city and the track continues to operate.

 

I'm a Swindon fan and intend going to Beaumont Park next Saturday and I wish the Lions all the best for the rest of the season.

[Daniel Smith 5,666]

It seems that people here are blaming Leicester for the situation, the real blame lies with the governing body which allows Polish Speedway to do exactly what it wants. I agree that Leicester could probably have a better choice of riders if they ran on another night. Meanwhile I'd forget about Polish Speedway, allow all uk riders to ride in both leagues and if any Poles want to ride here next year it should be under OUR terms.

 

What you're demanding is exactly the problem with the BSPA past.

 

We can't start again demanding what league foreign riders race in. It's why (rightly so) that the BSPA moved is stance on the Danish league.

 

Every teams promotion knows the risk of using Polish rider's. If the Polish team demands practice then that's what the Polish rider has to do.

 

Leicester were warned many times about running Saturday's.

The situation they find themselves in is purely and simply Leicester promotions fault only.

[Daytripper 1,123]

 

Every teams promotion knows the risk of using Polish rider's. If the Polish team demands practice then that's what the Polish rider has to do.

y.

Piotr Swiderski has never let Lakeside down because his Polish club demanded practice, and as far as I can recall Adam Skornicki and Magic Janowski haven't either,,to name but two. Edited May 28, 2016 by Daytripper

[Daniel Smith 5,666]

Piotr Swiderski has never let Lakeside down because his Polish club demanded practice, and as far as I can recall Adam Skornicki and Magic Janowski haven't either,,to name butt two.

 

The risk is still there signing them though. Depending on their form or clubs results they get called for practice at any time. Facts are, British Speedway can't start making demands on Polish rider's. If teams want to use them, it's at risk.

[screm 8,057]

Looks like Leicester will have to do without Wozniak for the foreseeable future.

 

http://sportowefakty.wp.pl/zuzel/604505/szymon-wozniak-bez-zgody-na-starty-w-elite-league

[weatherwatcher 664]

A question I have raised on here before, is about the big name riders, which the Lions never seem to be able to sign. Is it a fact that they don't want to spend the money to sign them, or is it a fact that they just have not got the money to do it.

I don't know what the clud has got in the kitty, but a few seasons ago they said the money side of things was very good, where does it stand now ?????????

[wandersome 281]

 

to quote foamfence - It seems that people here are blaming Leicester for the situation,

 

Well, The situation, as it appears to me, is that the club is in trouble because of a series of clueless decisions made by clueless people and backed by an equally clueless bunch of hangers on who have backed the club owners to what would likely seem to be the end.

 

Of course the owners of Leicester are to blame. DH has made clueless decision after clueless decision, pretty much since the day Beaumont Park got it's planning permission. The error with the track being the most obvious and damaging. I was at the track the day they were concreting in the posts and everyone there that day could see the stupidness of that mistake, it was obvious to every single person working at the track.. I'm not saying all DH's decisions are clueless, just an awful lot of them. DH appears to have spent the last few years surrounding himself more and more with a whole bunch of Yes men and Yes women, many who appear to reside on here and other social media, backroom staff who have allowed him to make crass judgment call after crass judgment call without daring to lift their collective head above the parapet and call those decisions out. Unfortunately most people who have highlighted the cluelessness of DH's decisions, track being the main, have been hounded out of the club either by DH himself, or by the equally clueless bunch of cliquey hangers on. Unfortunately, it really does seem that most of Leicester core supporters have now given up on their 20 odd year dream due to the lack of entertainment the track produces coupled with the increasingly poor teams the decision to ride on Saturday has produced.

 

Shame on the management for not making the right decisions for the future of our sport in our city over the last five years. Whether that is just correcting their mistakes or allowing others to do it in their place, I wouldn't care a less. And Shame on all those hangers on for defending those stupid decisions in such a righteous way on the likes of BSF and other social media during that time. Still at it now.

[crazyb 156]

It's really not that hard to understand.

 

Race Saturday in the EL and have poor team. Alternative, stay in EL, but change your race night.

 

Go back to PL and keep Saturday nights.

 

With the team Leicester are currently putting out they will not win a meeting home or away, they simply aren't good enough.

 

I agree' The Leicester side tonight wouldn't win a Premier League meeting. Most or all of the riders have struggled at one time or another to hack it in the so-called second tier. Drop down and lets have some good local derbies with the likes of Peterborough.

[hagonshocker 1,956]

Leicester has had no luck with the teams they have assembled since being in the EL but for me most of that is the clubs own problem Belle Vue Swindon Kings Lynn and Lakseide was all Saturday night clubs but all soon realised years ago if you want to put together a better team you can't race Saturday nights so really Leicester only have there selfs to blame for sticking with Saturday nights and having weak team .

Dont wish to nitpick but going to anyway Swindon were moved off saturdays by the stadium owners due to wanting the doggies running on a Saturday instead

[Haza 1,774]

Dont wish to nitpick but going to anyway Swindon were moved off saturdays by the stadium owners due to wanting the doggies running on a Saturday instead

that may be the case but don't you think Swindon Speedway would have soon hit on the idea running during the week you get more choice of which riders are willing sign for the Robins ? It's sad as Saturday's there used to be so much speedway in the UK much as Poland use Sunday - Saturday race day more chance to get away fans better for parents brining there kids with no school the next day ,Saturday race day is such a big loss to EL speedway but while the SGP run every other weekend and polish league every Sunday - Saturday is a no go for EL clubs Edited May 29, 2016 by Haza

[ouch 1,191]

The Aces ride on Saturday, be interesting to see how it goes attendance wise for us.

[robert72 845]

Saturday should be the race night for a family sport.

 

If it means no GP riders then that's the way forward.

[TesarRacing 1,825]

 

I agree' The Leicester side tonight wouldn't win a Premier League meeting. Most or all of the riders have struggled at one time or another to hack it in the so-called second tier. Drop down and lets have some good local derbies with the likes of Peterborough.

 

Of course they would. They only lost to a good Lakeside team by 2 pts. I do take your point though about the viability of running in the El on Saturdays.