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And Wright & Wilson Dean second strings, let’s be fair folks it’s a tidy looking side.

Panthers have a top class signing lined up according to Carl Johnson. That's an odd way to describe Rohan Tungate

ashtechs video with a few tip how to look after your engine including his say on the rev limiter

Of course, Buster's involvement with modern media is far from a happy one, even though he now has someone with qualifications in the family. His non-communication is more down to a closed mind ( "no need for comment" ).

Maybe given the demographic of its fan base, the sport would be better off letting fans train their own pigeon to take their selection up to the referees box attached to their pigeon's feet? Maybe there could then be a prize of two tickets to the next Cup match to the owner of the pigeon that has come from furthest away?... Think of the excitement it would generate... Maybe one of those representing the supporters clubs at that BSPA think tank thing could suggest it? Obviously it won't be completely straight forward, as if your pigeon is injured and cannot fly on any given night, something like a wing injury or damaged shank, or your pigeon is already competing in a race over mainland Europe on the same night. Then there would need to be some kind of 'guest pigeon' system required to ensure everyone has a chance... Based on speed, colour and weight of the pigeons, and their previous performances I would personally suggest.... However I am sure a workable solution could be found... No ideas a bad idea etc etc etc..

FIM confirmed it as 'injury'. @Conkers FIM will take live updates for their app from my live update page

Imagine how good it would of been if we could of had a Sunday afternoon match after the British GP. Don't know how possible that would of been with the council, but would of been a bumper weekend at Somerset.

Bobby McNeil signed for Swindon in 1975 I think. He spent the whole year at reserve and didn't do as expected until the final match of the season, when he suddenly top scored with 14 points. The following year, he continued as he left of at the end of 75 and became a good heatleader for the Robins for a couple of years until injuring his coccyx in a crash, which halted his progress. I remember it well, as it was how I learned what a coccyx was, so it was not only an unfortunate injury but it was also very educational. Pretty sure his average went over 8.00 at some point. I always enjoyed his spotty face mask in particular. He moved on to Hackney after that. I seem to remember reading he lost interest and quit speedway because of Vic Harding's crash.

Very interesting interview with Kym Mauger, so good to see that he made a success of his life in a different field. Must be so hard to be a son of a legend if you try to go into the same sport.

Biggest mistake British speedway made was to abolish compulsory junior teams.

In this day and age of modern technology there is absolutely no excuse for not communicating , even if you are 12,000 miles away.

If Taylour was at New Cross in 1948 it's doubtful any speedway fans would be aware of her Fascist past and her idolisation of the Nazis and Adolf Hitler. In its article in December 2003 the Irish Times noted " Amazingly, when she resumed her racing career after the war, this unsavoury episode was airbrushed out of all her publicity. The file on her in the Alexandra College library has many cuttings about her from all over the world, but nowhere is there a mention of the trouble that her extreme right-wing political beliefs got her into. " Of course MI5 files released in modern times show what a nasty piece of work she was. She was imprisoned in 1940 for her support for the British Union of Fascists. She appealed against imprisonment, but lost the appeal in August 1940. The MI5 files include some of Taylour's intercepted correspondence, including some that she managed to smuggle out of prison to avoid the censor. In one letter to a friend, she said: "I love Nazi Germany and the German people and their leader and this war seems terribly unfair." The Home Office released her from prison, against the advice of the Security Services, in October 1943 on condition that she left the UK and stayed in Ireland. In the minuting leading up to this decision in June 1943 Taylour is described as "...one of the worst pro-Nazis in Port Erin...she is in the habit of hoarding pictures of Hitler and had in her possession a hymn in which his name was substituted for God's." In 1944 she was in Ireland, staying at the headquarters of the Girls' Friendly Society in Upper Merrion Street, Dublin. By 1947, she was working for a Dublin company selling farm harvest machinery. She was also into farming herself at this stage, but in 1949, she was lured away again by speed, cars and glamour. She had an offer from a US car dealer to go and work for him in Hollywood selling Jaguars and MGs and she couldn't pass up the chance of meeting so many stars.

Do not think it would have happened under Horton unliked as he is. Buster it would appear has undermined the authority of those in charge

I know a few are disappointed about Harris as they enjoyed watching him during his last stint, but I honestly believe Panthers will be better off as a team with Tungate rather than Harris. Harris will drop somewhere in the 6-7 bracket, whilst Tungate will stay similar to his current average IMO. I also think once dialled in, Tungate will fly around the Showground just like he did at Belle Vue. The track will suit him.

There is not - and never has been - an anti-Mike Bast undertone on the BSF. Now move along, there's nothing to see here... Steve

That was American Bobbi Hunter. Others appearing at indoor events were Julie Cross (Simon's sister) and Maxine Hill. I used to work with Maxine. She rode for the Hackney junior team, and was a VERY good grass-tracker. Lisa Whibberly rode for Arena Essex juniors, and there was another girl at Exeter around the same time, although I can never remember her name... Steve

I think your team is good enough, thank you very much

We had and have a few girls racing on our speedways and longtracks here in Germany. Our current number one is 17-year old Celina Liebmann. Nadine Frenk was quite a usefull long-track and grass-track rider until a few years ago. In the 1970s there was Petra Lange, to the best of my knowledge the very first German female solo rider in long-track racing, and in the late 80's-early 90's Tanja Jöckel rode speedway at senior level. She even rode Overseas in the Argentinean Championships. Currently there's plenty of girls competing in the youth classes here iin Germany.

Here is what you wanted Kelvin. MIDLAND DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE RIDERS’ POINTS 2011 (Includes Guest Rides & Tactical Rides) (Unofficial) Lee Geary 83 Luke Chessell 46 Chris Widman 45 Ricky Scarboro 41 Conor Dwyer 40 Oliver Greenwood 38 Adam Kirby 36 Jordan Tyrer 31 Daniel Mitchell 29 Ben Holloway 27 Liam Rumsey 27 Steven Jones 22 Adam Kenyon 20 Michael Mitchell 20 Ben Hopwood 17 Tom Woolley 17 Rachel Hellowell 13 Andrew Blackburn 12 Connor Coles 12 Tom Hill 11 Adam Wrathall 11 Wayne Carter 9 Tamas Sike 9 Lewis Blackbird 5 Adam Briggs 5 David Holt 5 Trevor Bebbington 4 Benji Compton 4 Alex McLeod 4 Ross Walter 4 Adam Portwood 2 Paul Chester 0 Compiled by Mike Moseley MIDLAND DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE RIDERS' POINTS 2012-2018 David Holt 403 Lee Geary 371 Layne Cupitt 337 Alex Wilson 270 Adam Portwood 258 Conor Dwyer 251 Shaun Tedham 245 Sam Chapman 234 Tom Bacon 223 Max Clegg 219 Andy Mellish 205 Rob Watts 200 Adam Sheppard 197 Luke Whitehead 194 Stephen Whitehouse 193 Tom Woolley 191 Adam Kirby 186 Josh Bailey 171 Sam Ward 154 Connor King 153 Jeremy Pestell 146 Jack P Blackburn 144 Ryan Terry-Daley 139 Robert Parker 136 Niall Strudwick 135 Michael Neale 131 Danny Ayres 127 Sam Darroch 123 Danyon Hume 122 Sam Woolley 121 Daniel Phillips 120 Lee Springthorpe 119 Jamie Halder 114 Connor Fletcher 108 Rob Shuttleworth 106 Oliver Greenwood 103 Lee Payne 103 Kean Dicken 102 William O’Keefe 102 Kyle Roberts 101 Ben Basford 98 Sam Wright 94 Ryan Kinsley 91 Cameron Hoskins 89 Matt Williamson 84 Taylor Hampshire 83 Ben Holloway 82 George Hunter 82 Tom Spencer 82 Martin Knuckey 81 Mitchell Beckett 79 James Chattin 75 Connor Mountain 74 Sam Woods 73 Scooter Webster 72 Andrew Blackburn 70 Arran Butcher 70 Sheldon Davies 68 Danno Verge 68 Chris Bambury 63 Andy Mountain 63 Ben Hewitt 60 Dan Gilkes 56 Daniel Greenwood 52 Joe Alcock 51 Nathan Greaves 51 Chris Watts 51 Liam Rumsey 50 Bradley Andrews 47 Paul Bowen 47 Chris Hay 47 John Markham 47 Ryan MacDonald 47 Andrew Braithwaite 44 Ben Rathbone 43 Alec Wright 43 Lewis Whitmore 43 Jack Thomas 41 James Shanes 40 Reece Downes 39 Jake Isherwood 37 Connor Coles 36 Lloyd Ditchburn 36 Lewis Austen 35 Carl Basford 35 Luke Harris 34 Arron Mogridge 34 Sean Phillips 34 Henry Atkins 33 Ryan Burton 31 Craig Osborne 31 Jason Garrad 29 Sam Bebee 28 Martin Wrathall 28 Ben Woodhull 26 Josh Embleton 25 Luke Crang 25 David Morgan 25 George Rothery 25 Alex Spooner 25 Alfie Bowtell 23 Adam Extance 23 Mark Baldock 22 Ross Walter 22 Dan Miles 21 Liam Sanderson 21 Chris Widman 21 Adam Barber 20 John Gaskell 20 Ellis Perks 20 Gavin Parr 20 Bradley Seal 20 Charles Wallace 20 Lawrence Fielding 19 Josh Bates 18 Tommy Fenwick 18 Bailey Fellows 18 Nick Laurence 18 Rachel Hellowell 17 Jordan Jenkins 17 Joe Lawlor 17 Jack Kingston 16 Luke McKenna 15 Lewis Rose 15 Paul Quarterman 13 Lewis Millar 12 Martin Pearce 12 Tom Stokes 12 David Wallinger 12 Michael Faulkner 11 Tom Sipos 11 Callum Walker 11 Danny Wright 11 Tim Colley 10 Kevin Whelan 10 Saul Bulley 9 Luke Chessell 9 Corban Pavitt 9 Luke Ruddick 9 Jamie Bursill 8 Joe Exley 8 Lewis Griggs 8 Dale Lamb 8 Jake Williams 8 Trevor Bebbington 7 James Hitchen 7 Alex McLeod 7 Harvie Banks 6 Simon Allan 6 Tom Braddock 6 Jack Hall 6 James Jessop 6 Rikki Mullins 6 Jamie Sealey 6 James Spencer 6 Kurtis Scarboro 6 Stefan Farnaby 5 Damon Hall 5 Stuart Freeman 5 Tyler Govier 5 Dan Mitchell 5 Brad Tokley 5 Stevie Anderson 4 Jamie Couzins 4 Emerson Jones 4 Harry Jones 4 Freddie Owen 4 Russell Barnett 3 Jamie Collins 3 Daniel Hunt 3 Simon Pearce 3 Ollie Rutter 3 David Speight 3 Luke Woodhull 3 Ronan Atkinson 2 Jacob Clouting 2 Connor Dugard 2 Callum Harris 2 Craig Hancock 2 Kevin Keay 2 Chris Neame 2 Blair Smith 2 Jack Smith 2 Daniel Woodward 2 Haydon Ball 1 Lloyd Barrett 1 Adam Briggs 1 David Lidgett 1 Steve Cook 0 Liam Carr 0 Compiled by Mike Moseley.

Thanks. now that's a disappointment. I like Cookie as he's a real BV Ace. Sadly BV wont be the same without him. .

What went wrong is that Belle Vue had to lose almost 3 points from last years team. That is why we have Bjerre and Wells in place ofCook and Tungate.

Hands up - shoot me!! In my defence the BSPA site wasnt listing the draw in the cup section so without trawling through the fixtures I didnt know who was against who Im glad it seems a proper draw after all - I hated the planned local set up

I think this side is bottom two material without changes, but yes it might surprise and we shall see.If Puk comes back???? fitter refreshed and rearing to go then it might be different as we all know what he is capable of.

People (including me) thought that last year, as they did about Swindon the year before. I’m quite happy to be unfancied again, not saying this team will finish top but certainly be in the mix come September and riders will improve and be a side greater than the sum of its parts.

No longer. It is up to the TM, Rider and mechanics to make sure the rider comes to the line with the proper colour on. Same goes for dirt deflector.

No, it's to add 200 Charles Wright supporters to the Oaktree gate!

I don't believe that is the team, Buster owns 3 teams surely his most cherished team would be the best. Scott Nicholls would improve that bunch.

surely the most famous Irish rider ever was Fay Taylour?

Jan O'Pedersen

...what basically finished Bobby was witnessing the terrible crash at Hackney that left Vic Harding dead and Steve Weatherley paralysed. He has admitted since that he took it hard.

Yes I'm only including riders I have seen ride and unfortunately Pander was before my time although when mum worked at the local health centre she recalls that he was a regular visitor!

H.Nielsen, J.Rasmussen, Sorensen, B.Petersen, J.O.Pedersen, Rosenkilde...no way Olsen would get on any favourite list of mine!

I'd love Magic... More chance of Buster pulling a rabbit out of a hat whilst twerking though

Joonas being pedantic doesn’t really fit as someone who changed nationality.I think he always had dual nationality and just used whichever he fancied in his favour One or two of the Argentinians like Sanchez or Covatti might also fall into that category of having dual nationality? Ferjan is someone who did change nationality There is a good chance some of the Poles were born in Germany.Plech was born in a former german town that became part of Poland a few years before he was born.Wyglenda for instance was born in Rybnik in 1941 when it was again after a gap of 20 year a part of Germany.In fact in the Bote after WW1 as to which country the people wanted to be part of,Rybnik voted with a good majority to stay in Germany,but the surrounding area was massively in favour of being part of Poland.A similar thing happened in Vojens with Germany/Denmark,where Vojens wanted to remain German,but the surrounding rural area held the majority for Denmark Some Yugoslavians or Soviet riders changed nationality due to their former country no longer existing.Trofimov was I think Soviet and later Ukraine

We can keep this really simple : Beaton, Beaton, Beaton, McKinna, McKinna, McKinna, McMillan, McMillan, Templeton, Templeton. Steve

Unless a shock signing appears ( i.e.) a Laguta,Magic, Barty( all no chance) it is not surprising he delayed naming the side.

Surprised no one has included Tai in their lists! Alright, I'll get my coat.

The carpet has a slight ridge which is disappearing slowly!

Absolutely correct. Another piece of fixture planning straight out of the compost heap ...

Swindon at home on the Thursday before & then Ipswich at home the day after. I can't see many Panthers fans being at the fours.

No relevance but let them have there little digs...you make a valid point but let's face it mate it's just typical of the poor way fans are treated and all i can really say to them is baaaah

Saturday date now confirmed by BSPA - bring it on!

Fricke, Thorssell, Doyle, Lambert, Masters i would put that group in front of Bjerre maybe not Masters but he can be decent away.

Firstly I am of an age to remember when we had a team full of local riders. My mum first took me to Foxhall in 1976. Although I’ve been going to speedway for over 40 years I still remember the past but I don’t live in it. On here I read posts about how teams should be built and wonder if some posters know what is going on in speedway nowadays. On the positive side I believe the Witches will surprise a lot of you. I’ve compared the teams rider v rider and there is not a lot in it.

Thanks to everyone who has replied so far. Does anyone know the best places to look out for the Wally Loak recordings? I too recall Colin Richardson winning his first race of the night in 1977 in 60.0 and this was greeted with a huge roar when the time was announced over the tannoy. I also remember the final race of the night which was effectively a title decider between Colin, Martin Yeates and Tom Owen. If my memory serves me correctly, Yeates made the best start and led for about a lap before Colin lined him up on the home straight and overtook him on the bend where the pits used to be. The race was effectively over then and nothing could stop him from winning the championship with a brilliant 15 point maximum. As a regular at Crayford, I was also lucky to see Colin Richardson break the track record there twice in 1977. The first of these was in June 77 and the second took place a month later. The track record was broken for a third time that year in August by the then current World Champion, Peter Collins who visited Crayford with his Belle Vue side in a Challenge Match. Happy Days! Paul Elford

Apologies Leander. Took my own advice and read the article again. What you say is correctly quoted. The misunderstanding on my side is that Mason states he will be 27 in two years, getting too late to start over again. He will be 26 for the 2020 season so wrongly assumed he would have to miss two seasons. As you say, great shame he has been forced into this situation, again.

Bringing up the Swindon situation is totally irrelevant, the strange thing is if the team is known why not announce it.

I was told by delaying the team announcement it creates added interest, It my mind it does exactly the opposite, fans get fed up waiting and lose interest altogether...

Being a Ipswich fan myself I would ask aII of the people that it would be a good idea to stop all these negative posts regarding the team etc and save any negative posts until the season has started then we will all be in a better position to judge based on the teams performance.

It's called the digital age. Most outdoor sports have suffered from the 'sit on your backside' multi billion dollar technology and gaming industry...