jenga 2,998 Posted March 10, 2019 oystercad , quality ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TotallyHonestJohn 3,078 Posted March 27, 2019 On 2/16/2019 at 11:16 AM, Norfolk Bear said: This is my view of positions Sheffield - VERY STRONG THROUGHOUT Newcastle - A SURPRISE PACKET Somerset - HEAT LEADERS & AFTER A FEW MEETINGS BWD Redcar - IF THE LOWER ORDER KICK IN Eastbourne - HOME ADVANTAGE IS HUGE Leicester - LOOK SOLID Glasgow - NOT AS STRONG AS PREVIOUS YEARS Berwick A LOT DEPENDS ON JAKOBSON & ETHERIDGE Scunthorpe- COULD PROVE PEOPLE WRONG Edinburgh - LACK OF TOP END POWER Birmingham - LACK OF HEATLEADERS Honestly Always hard to predict however IMHO I think this season will be very close and there wont be much to choose from between them all by the end of the season. The two Stand out teams for me are Glasgow and Leicester and both should be a shoe in for a top four spot; closely followed by Sheffield Scunny Newcastle and Somerset fighting for the other two places however with a good wind and staying injury free Redcar and Berwick could upset the form book and sorry I feel Edinburgh and the two new boys Eastbourne and Birmingham will be fighting for the wooden spoon without any changes being made, however stating all that Workington ripped the form book up last year and clicked as a team and I do think apart from Glasgow and Leicester the whole thing should be very close between the rest and I certainly wish the best of luck to all teams and for a good injury free run which can make or break a clubs season. Regards THJ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
allthegearbutnaeidea 1,735 Posted March 27, 2019 My predictions Leicester Redcar Sheffield Glasgow Edinburgh Berwick Eastbourne Somerset Newcastle Scunthorpe Birmingham Pre the mountain of team changes that will happen before summer. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gazzac 1,015 Posted March 27, 2019 6 hours ago, TotallyHonestJohn said: Honestly Always hard to predict however IMHO I think this season will be very close and there wont be much to choose from between them all by the end of the season. The two Stand out teams for me are Glasgow and Leicester and both should be a shoe in for a top four spot; closely followed by Sheffield Scunny Newcastle and Somerset fighting for the other two places however with a good wind and staying injury free Redcar and Berwick could upset the form book and sorry I feel Edinburgh and the two new boys Eastbourne and Birmingham will be fighting for the wooden spoon without any changes being made, however stating all that Workington ripped the form book up last year and clicked as a team and I do think apart from Glasgow and Leicester the whole thing should be very close between the rest and I certainly wish the best of luck to all teams and for a good injury free run which can make or break a clubs season. Regards THJ Can't see Eastie fighting for the wooden spoon, not with their legendary home advantage especially with a lot of riders in this league having never seen the track. Still I'm happy, can't remember any prediction over the last 20 years that Eastbourne were rated that highly for playoffs even in the NL over the last few seasons, and we didn't do too badly in that, or the ko cup. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HGould 2,213 Posted March 27, 2019 (edited) Somerset - very strong top 5 - need 1 of the reserves to fire that's only weakness. Glasgow - strong at top, need Bickley to not be passenger he was last season Leicester - strong 1- 7 and look most solid complete team - expect Mountain to kick on this year. Sheffield - be hard to beat at home and nice balance - Bates fitness and attitude a key and progress of Kemp will be most interesting Eastbourne - strong top 3 - strong at reserve - depend on second strings when not reserves - Brennan like Kemp one to watch Newcastle - Worrall signing saves bottom 2 battle but still look weak away Redcar - decent team, better than 2018, could surprise a few Berwick - lack top end power, lot will depend on how well Flint performs at home Scunthorpe - lack of top end and could be in for a struggle and hard to see much improvement in team - Birmingham - building a foundation is all it is about for me as a Brummie - don't expect any fireworks, win more than lose at home, run in 2020 I'll b happy Edinburgh - look to be in for a real struggle unless they can gain confidence in what looks tough Shield Group. Edited March 27, 2019 by HGould edinburgh comments added Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TotallyHonestJohn 3,078 Posted March 27, 2019 1 hour ago, gazzac said: Can't see Eastie fighting for the wooden spoon, not with their legendary home advantage especially with a lot of riders in this league having never seen the track. Still I'm happy, can't remember any prediction over the last 20 years that Eastbourne were rated that highly for playoffs even in the NL over the last few seasons, and we didn't do too badly in that, or the ko cup. Can't disagree and my only reasoning was I think Eastie may struggle on their travels... I feel my old pals Lewi Kerr and Rich Lawson will do well away from Arlington however the rest may struggle and I include Eddie Kennet in that reasoning as he notoriously catches a cold every time he goes north of Watford... Regards THJ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cue Ball 416 Posted March 27, 2019 1 hour ago, HGould said: Sheffield - be hard to beat at home and nice balance - Bates fitness and attitude a key and progress of Kemp will be most interesting I don’t think Bates’ fitness or attitude will be a concern for Sheffield. He’s riding for Leicester 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HGould 2,213 Posted March 27, 2019 46 minutes ago, Cue Ball said: I don’t think Bates’ fitness or attitude will be a concern for Sheffield. He’s riding for Leicester whoops.....fail to prepare prepare to fail 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Fromafar 10,375 Posted March 27, 2019 Sheffield Leicester Redcar Newcastle Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SomersetBlue 212 Posted March 27, 2019 1. Sheffield - power throughout the team and probably the most exciting youngster from the NL. 2. Leicester - experience, youth, talent, depth. They have it all. 3. Glasgow - best no. 1 in the league and a decent top 4. Lower end could be a gamble though. 4. Somerset - biased opinion obviously but still powerful top trio and young reserves who will improve and know the track better than the experienced guys. 5. Newcastle - A lot stronger now with Worrall, Bjerre and Jorgensen. Weathers adds experience and a strong reserve in Clegg. 6. Redcar - good top end with MPT, Wright and Barker and promise from the rest but won't be enough for this season. 7. Powerful heat leader trio, easily the best in the league but also the weakest lower end from Morley down. 8. Scunthorpe - weak tail end imo and Eastbourne have a better heat leader trio. 9. Edinburgh - Wells apart lacks top end strength. I wouldn't put it past them to surprise though. 10. Berwick - just doesn't impress me tbh, NBJ and Etheridge are key players to finish higher. 11. Birmingham - Shanes/ Wajtknecht are exciting talents but a real lack of top end power. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
00000 1,279 Posted March 30, 2019 (edited) On 3/27/2019 at 8:14 PM, SomersetBlue said: 1. Sheffield - power throughout the team and probably the most exciting youngster from the NL. 2. Leicester - experience, youth, talent, depth. They have it all. 3. Glasgow - best no. 1 in the league and a decent top 4. Lower end could be a gamble though. 4. Somerset - biased opinion obviously but still powerful top trio and young reserves who will improve and know the track better than the experienced guys. 5. Newcastle - A lot stronger now with Worrall, Bjerre and Jorgensen. Weathers adds experience and a strong reserve in Clegg. 6. Redcar - good top end with MPT, Wright and Barker and promise from the rest but won't be enough for this season. 7. Powerful heat leader trio, easily the best in the league but also the weakest lower end from Morley down. 8. Scunthorpe - weak tail end imo and Eastbourne have a better heat leader trio. 9. Edinburgh - Wells apart lacks top end strength. I wouldn't put it past them to surprise though. 10. Berwick - just doesn't impress me tbh, NBJ and Etheridge are key players to finish higher. 11. Birmingham - Shanes/ Wajtknecht are exciting talents but a real lack of top end power. No 7 - the team they dare not speak of, for they fear us so much Edited March 30, 2019 by Richard Weston 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
M.D 463 Posted March 30, 2019 5 hours ago, Richard Weston said: No 7 - the team they dare not speak of, for they fear us so much I think we are just about to mirror 1985 onwards.. It could take us half a season to get going, the experienced top end is there and the youth is certainly coming through, we will be the stand out team second half of this season and then dominate thereafter.. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
00000 1,279 Posted April 2, 2019 On 3/30/2019 at 2:07 PM, M.D said: I think we are just about to mirror 1985 onwards.. It could take us half a season to get going, the experienced top end is there and the youth is certainly coming through, we will be the stand out team second half of this season and then dominate thereafter.. If we get into top 4, the other teams will fear the Eagles over 2 legs. Confidence grew week by week last year and we all know who were champions and who were not. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jenga 2,998 Posted April 2, 2019 17 minutes ago, Richard Weston said: If we get into top 4, the other teams will fear the Eagles over 2 legs. Confidence grew week by week last year and we all know who were champions and who were not. didnt lakeside and rye have big home advantages last season and dont they have a very similar look about them this season .?...... just saying lyke . a Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TotallyHonestJohn 3,078 Posted May 30, 2019 (edited) Why did this contenders thread go cold? However I still stand by what I said on the 27th March 2019 "The two Stand out teams for me are Glasgow and Leicester and both should be a shoe in for a top four spot" Regards THJ Edited May 30, 2019 by TotallyHonestJohn missed out key words 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites