Glasgow Tigers 2024

[SharpenRake 1,505]

4 hours ago, Nickinho said:

Any opinions on the Tigers moving up into the top league next season? Birmingham and Oxford have done it this year and it's not like Edinburgh bring over enough fans for those 3 derby meetings per year to be missed from a financial perspective so I'd really like to see a change of setting next season especially with fewer of the better riders like Basso able to be accommodated in this league even if he wanted to thanks to the new lower points limit which has been set at a measly 38.

Bit of a controversial opinion but I just wondered what other people's thoughts on this are. As we've seen from international meetings (especially the GP qualifier) the track would be very condusive to elite riders riding it so the racing would be even better than it already is.

Yes you have interesting opinions. I'm still trying to get over the fact that you posted on the Poole thread that they should sign Joe Thompson (already signed by Plymouth) as you were really impressed by him at the U21 at Ashfield earlier this year (Joe didn't impress, he wasn't even there, it was his brother Dan) and that he beat Tarasenko 'fair and square' in the play-off final (despite Vadim having bike issues). Definitely 'interesting'.

[Barabas 69]

5 hours ago, IanBrannan said:

I made a podcast with Peter Facenna and in it he answers this very question..

https://pod.fo/e/1f7be0

But in a nutshell, mainly race night. The numbers would probably drop and the lure of top riders wouldn't balance it out especially as said riders would want a lot more money for the privilege. So less fans, and bigger expense, and they don't think that saying Tai Woffinden is in town would really add to it enough. So it's purely a business decision, but have listen to the interview and Peter explains it very well.

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

[Fromafar 10,363]

55 minutes ago, Barabas said:

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

As Peter explained there is not enough fans to justify the expense.I”ll stick with his explanation .The fans will see decent speedway whatever league they compete in.

[Essex 67]

1 hour ago, Barabas said:

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

I guess the answer is in the first line of your response " they don't want to spend money " as it's their money they choose what they spend it on.Poole dropped down probably due to money and race nights and have still been pretty successful but if you want to watch better riders ie ex and current GP stars you'll have to travel to places like Sheffield if that's your nearest top league team.I thought as you have mentioned this league is getting weaker with points limit etc but after reading some posts on here I realise that it's a 2nd division of speedway so it will be a weaker product than the " top " league but it's still a sport I've followed and loved since my first visit to Wimborne Road and it is what it is and we've both still got a team to support unlike Exeter,Eastbourne,White City,Cradley Heath, the list is endless.

[MD 1,307]

10 hours ago, Barabas said:

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

Kings Lynn, Ipswich and Leicester are good tracks for the tv viewer? Even Sheffield outside the play offs is usually a bore fest. I gave up my Discovery subscription early this year as the PL meetings they had on were just awful. Watching Doyle win heats at Ipswich half a lap ahead and with many meetings having almost zero passing bar ef's isnt entertaining.

Diluting the CL this year is frustrating but moving leagues isnt the solution to it IMO.

[Ben91 1,743]

10 hours ago, Barabas said:

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

Before the Facennas came in Glasgow speedway was on its uppers as far as I remember. They’ve pumped money in, smartened the place up and improved the track. If the Premiership is a step too far then it’s better for them to stick to Championship speedway which they can sustain than go bust in the short term because they wanted to race in the top tier.

Don’t bite off more than you can chew being the moral of the story, it’s what happened at Rye House and now we have no team to support at all. 

[allthegearbutnaeidea 1,734]

12 hours ago, Barabas said:

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

Better tracks in top league? I disagree.

Bar Belle Vue, Championship has much better tracks and racing, even excluding Glasgow. Give me Workington, Redcar and Scunthorpe over any other top league track to Belle Vue. Oxford a good track, but in both leagues.

[IanBrannan 147]

12 hours ago, Barabas said:

I'm not sure Peter explained it well tbh ..they just don't want to spend money to go in top division & and feel that they are better of with edinburgh berwick Workington redcar etc northern tracks for meetings , they don't take into account our league now is getting poorer ie points limit every season tigers should look at this as a paying customer its about time tigers fans got the chance ofcseeing top end speedway I'm sorry but with due respect  starke complin Pearson pijper in a team of 7 come on look at Sheffield a club no bigger or better than our its night & day the difference ..I'm sick & tired of hearing about or derbies & bandits meeting their tracks are awful with very little racing passing the top league has good tracks one or two apart the set up in next couple of yrs might change with teams adding & others maybe closing but I think it's time the tigers gave the fans top drawer speedway 

The Facennas are very successful business operators, if they say it’s not financially viable in Glasgow, then it is not financially viable. I have no doubt that if Premiership moved to Friday then that’s the league they would operate in, same as Birmingham who haven’t gone up out of choice, they’ve gone as Monday is the only night they can now race. 
 

To suggest they are being tight is a tad harsh when they have literally invested millions in the stadium and team, way more than any other club. But the day to day economics have to add up, they don’t feel there is a hidden community of speedway fans hiding in Glasgow who would only come out for Premiership speedway.

Also the notion of a “weak” league I don’t think stacks up, it is going to be a more even league with the bigger riders spread around more but opportunities for younger riders to break through. It should make for closer league, but it’s hardly like you had Doyle Woffy & Sayfutdinov in the Championship last year.  Sheffield’s traditional night is Thursday (they tried Sundays once and it was a disaster), that’s one of the reasons they are in the Premiership. And Lee Complin I seem to recall dragging Glasgow over the line to get into the Grand Final so I probably wouldn’t start by having a go at him lol. 
 

Different things work for different clubs due to various factors, Glasgow it’s Friday nights. It’s not lack of ambition, it’s good business. 

 

Edited December 16, 2023 by IanBrannan
Typo

[Bagpuss 10,780]

28 minutes ago, allthegearbutnaeidea said:

Better tracks in top league? I disagree.

Bar Belle Vue, Championship has much better tracks and racing, even excluding Glasgow. Give me Workington, Redcar and Scunthorpe over any other top league track to Belle Vue. Oxford a good track, but in both leagues.

Absolutely. I've long said that the reason the racing is perceived to be better in tier two is purely down to the circuits. We've now lost Peterborough which was one of the better ones too, although Brum and Oxford are potentially decent. But as you say Redcar, Glasgow, Scunny and Workington are better than anything the top league can offer excluding BV which in my opinion is the best we have in the UK. 

We can only imagine the top riders who race over here on those best tracks......

[magnus 80]

56 minutes ago, IanBrannan said:

The Facennas are very successful business operators, if they say it’s not financially viable in Glasgow, then it is not financially viable. I have no doubt that if Premiership moved to Friday then that’s the league they would operate in, same as Birmingham who haven’t gone up out of choice, they’ve gone as Monday is the only night they can now race. 
 

To suggest they are being tight is a tad harsh when they have literally invested millions in the stadium and team, way more than any other club. But the day to day economics have to add up, they don’t feel there is a hidden community of speedway fans hiding in Glasgow who would only come out for Premiership speedway.

Also the notion of a “weak” league I don’t think stacks up, it is going to be a more even league with the bigger riders spread around more but opportunities for younger riders to break through. It should make for closer league, but it’s hardly like you had Doyle Woffy & Sayfutdinov in the Championship last year.  Sheffield’s traditional night is Thursday (they tried Sundays once and it was a disaster), that’s one of the reasons they are in the Premiership. And Lee Complin I seem to recall dragging Glasgow over the line to get into the Grand Final so I probably wouldn’t start by having a go at him lol. 
 

Different things work for different clubs due to various factors, Glasgow it’s Friday nights. It’s not lack of ambition, it’s good business. 

 

Very well said . I wish I could like the comment too, but it wont let me.

[Bluenose 74]

James Pearson completes your team, good luck for the lad ,great little rider!.

[szkocjasid 3,027]

6 hours ago, Ben91 said:

Before the Facennas came in Glasgow speedway was on its uppers as far as I remember. They’ve pumped money in, smartened the place up and improved the track. If the Premiership is a step too far then it’s better for them to stick to Championship speedway which they can sustain than go bust in the short term because they wanted to race in the top tier.

Don’t bite off more than you can chew being the moral of the story, it’s what happened at Rye House and now we have no team to support at all. 

In hindsight it's so obvious what went wrong at Rye House. It's such a shame the promoters didn't realise too.

Obviously they would've been better staying in the Champ on Saturdays than going Prem on Thursdays, don't want the same to happen to Glasgow.

[Ben91 1,743]

3 hours ago, szkocjasid said:

In hindsight it's so obvious what went wrong at Rye House. It's such a shame the promoters didn't realise too.

Obviously they would've been better staying in the Champ on Saturdays than going Prem on Thursdays, don't want the same to happen to Glasgow.

I think most people were aware at the time which makes it all the sadder. The promotion made a silly decision. The fans had to deal with the consequences (and still are sadly). Maybe more could have been done to help but that’s a subject for another time and place. 

The Facennas have done right by Glasgow. Their judgement so far appears to have been spot on. As you say, we don’t want to see another club go to the wall, I don’t think the custodians of Glasgow would be foolish enough to overstretch thankfully. 

 

Edited December 16, 2023 by Ben91

[Skidder1 7,637]

7 hours ago, Bluenose said:

James Pearson completes your team, good luck for the lad ,great little rider!.

Pearson finished 3rd in the Hoskins Memorial meeting today behind Picko (1) and Dougie (2).

[ragdoll64 647]

6 minutes ago, Skidder1 said:

Pearson finished 3rd in the Hoskins Memorial meeting today behind Picko (1) and Dougie (2).

Do you have the rest of the line-up please?