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I love these threads. Elsewhere we keep being told there are no characters in the sport, how great it used to be with controversy, riders throwing punches, brawls and more.. Yet as soon as anything happens everyone is up in arms.

Yeh and getting some abuse aswell.

Absolutely, have chatted to my in laws and then parents about these goings on this morning and both said how in the seventies it happened pretty much every week. I’m not saying that there wasn’t stuff last night which might have crossed the line but you almost feel like there are people around the forum and social media who are champing at the bit for the first opportunity to be outraged by something.

ONLY just joined the conversion, having been lucky enough to be in Wroclaw for what I consider to be the greatest speedway meeting I have witnessed. 23 outstanding races, fantastic atmosphere inside the stadium. The skill, the speed, the courage, no better form of motorsport. Sat with former F1 driver Mark Webber and he was drooling at the spectacle. The track at the Olympic Stadium must now be consided better than even Torun and the renovations that have taken place (first went there 49 years ago to see Ivan Mauger complete his World Finals hat-trick) are tremendous. What a night...

Just got home from the meeting. Going to 'try' and put an unbiased veiw on the meeting. Yes, I am an Eastbourne fan but I like to think I am pretty pragmatic and not afrais to say if our riders are out of orsder or if the track is not up to standard Got there tonight ready for a cracking meeting and feeling a little nervous despite only having a 4 point deficit. First thing I heard that there was issues was when the announcer said that the away team had complained about the track and did not want to ride it. There were several people down on turn 2 discussing and kicking dirt around so to speak. Then Jon Cook was interveiwed, he was seriously annoyed and dismayed that the fotness of the track and been called into question and clearly put the blame on Craig Cook (and his mates). At this stage I has no ill feelings about Glasgow or Craig Cook. I am no expert and certainly, I am not one to judge if the track is rideable by veiwing it from turn 1, on the stock car track, which is where I stand. That started to turn a bit when Martin Dugard explained that Jason and Alfi had been practising on the track that day. I must admit, I was less than impressed when we were told there would be a delay as the Glasgow riders had not yet changed. But still, no real drama. It was on the rider parade that it all started going a bit sour. For those of you that dont know, the way it done at Eastbourne is, the bikes are wheeled on to the track, then the riders are paraded out to 'Sussex by the Sea' and then introduced one by one, the away team first. This all takes place on the back straight as thats where the main stand is. When both teams have been announced, the riders are pushed off and have a few practice starts and the opputunity to slide into the turns to get a feel for the track. Tonight, after the Glasgow riders had been announced, some of them pushed off, before the Eastbourne team had been announced. They came down the straight and into turn . With people still on the track and the infield (including kids, who are the Eagles mascots) the track staff held out red flags to stop the Glasgow riders. Craig Cook ran straight into one of the track staff and then kicked off at him. Ot then all kicked off with several people involved. My lad went round the pits to see what was going on and saw people pleading with Craig to go and ride heat 1. He was refusing, talking about his injury and saying why should he ride an unsafe track! So, heat 1 started without him. As much as I feel he should be banned from the whole meeting, thats not what I want. I pay my money to see the likes of Bomber, Scotty and Craig Cook riding. I love them all, they are Brits and I support British riders through and through. The track rode fine. Even the reserves in heat 2 looked comfortable and were not struggling, Yes, there were some fallers but certainly was not more than you can often get. Someone on the updates site said its unusual to see 3 falls in 9 heats, really? I have seen 3 in one heat at times, and not just at Arlington. And Ed Kennet did not fall. He tagged the air fence riding a high line, stayed on and carried on, the air fence started to deflate and the race stopped, thats why he was excluded. Craig Cook, when he finally took to the track, rode it fine and looked classy and smooth. The races that he did not gate were the races of the night as he looked brilliant trying to make the pass. It was a real shame that the controversy ruined the night as it was great for Eastbourne to go through but I feel Glasgow were just deflated after the whole thing, it was really meeting over after a few races. Could have been so much better if Craig Cook had popped out and won heat one. I always think there are two sides to everything but the Glasgow manager having the guts to go on the mic and apologise afetr the meeting said it all and hats off to him for doing so.

He is quality. We must have the only managers in league who when they have a rider of that ability and when 5 or 6 of your other riders are struggling for consistency don’t give him 7 rides! The other lads are struggling for consistency at the min unfortunately and a lot of pressure is on Worrall, Wethers and Clegg to win us meetings as Jorgensen and bjerre generally only score 5 to 7 points a match.

I'm not sure Pedersen ever attacked an innocent member of the track staff, that's not right in any decade imo...

Anyone else enjoying this thread?

So? Does that devalue the meeting in any way? Of course not! The meeting shall be remembered (and rightly so) for the racing, not for any commentary. Is it really that bad for commentators to get excited? Anyway, I can't really say I noticed anything wrong with their commentary, as I couldn't hear them over my own "whoas" and "wows"!!!

I take it this is a reply to my post? I would of loved to Driven at speed on a bike with no brakes, it was an ambition of mine as a youngster. I’ll answer the question I think you were trying to ask, I would not like to be driven at by someone on a bike with no brakes. However I would not be stupid enough to put myself in that position. You are wrong on both counts I have not yet reached 40 and I have a fairly mature head on my shoulders. I don’t have any kids so I don’t have any responsibility to shield anyone from anything. I am saying that kids are exposed to a lot more violence/blood/guts during their internet/gaming escapades than I was. The internet is ruining children’s childhoods. I don’t condone it but I am wise enough to realise what is happening in the world and nothing we can do will change it. i am in no way part of a cult, I have not been brainwashed by anyone. I merely appreciate my speedway team and everything that the owners have done for us. The same way you appreciated Laura before she buried your team. you should really take a day off of hating Glasgow and enjoy the sport from afar. Everyone wants to moan about our great sport even when people are investing in it. Your backward thinking country bumpkin views are chronic, all they do is show bitter jealousy towards Glasgow. I sorely miss my trips to Workington but there is a tiny(minute) bit of me that is happy that you don’t have any speedway to watch as you blatantly don’t deserve it

Jon Cook has always been a slimy wide boy, and Craig Cook has always had some screws loose. Let's face it, sane people don't go for a drive whilst naked and drunk...

Oh well i like pearson and tatum But i am old and easily pleased

When riders assault track staff(allegedly) ,that’s a different ball game though.

Well done to the Gems - 2019 NJL Champions

Just back after a thoroughly enjoyable night down there as a neutral. Others have described the events well, and it was directly in front of us so we had a ringside seat of it all. Cook pathetic frankly and should get a ban, although there were a few swings and a few kicks aimed by others. I thought one of the boot swingers was Martin Dugard but it happened so quick it might have been someone else similarly dressed. The comments made pre-meeting over the mic by Jon Cook, Dugard and the announcer wound things up definitely tho and i even said to the person i was with, that Craig Cook is unstable at the best of times and i forecast some kind of kick off with him at some point. That some point was about a minute later tho which was a bit quicker than i figured tho. No idea what went on with Cook and his 2 mins exclusion but instead of perhaps winning his first and shutting the crowd up for a bit, by the time he came out the meeting was pretty much gone. it was as if the whole team had lost their nerve and the tie was a dead duck very early really. Lovely day in general tho - fish and chips, ice cream, few lagers and the speedway all made for a good day out. Kudos to the glasgow fans who travelled - and also very sane words from their promoter chap who spoke and spoke well after the meeting. I was a neutral tonight and loved every minute of it tho.

Blimy I would have thaught his nose would have got in the way

Yeah slick. Grip is a myth Grip might have been perfect for the old japs and uprights, but the new laydowns cant handle grip. They perform better on slick tracks. As u say.... buster take note

Somerset were much sharper out of the gate than us tonight even making Harris look like an unreal starter... that said Jorgensen and Bjerre were pretty pathetic. Worrall wasn’t much better and he looked really slow and wasn’t making starts at all. 1 win off 13 rides from your heatleaders at home and it’s not hard to see why we lost the meeting. Luckily we had Clegg if we didn’t who knows what the score would’ve been.

I did not attend this meeting, but have viewed the video of the Craig Cook incident, I am not a Craig Cook fan but the footage clearly shows the marshal step into the path of Cook and his bike (with no brakes). While none of the ensuing mayhem can be condoned, none of this would have happened had the marshal not stepped in front of Cooks bike as he went to pass on the left hand side of the marshal

You seem to be relishing at the prospect of a ban - having raised the subject on at least 3 threads that I’ve looked at

Loving it. First meeting i go to in years and finally i can take part in a decent discussion that doesn't involve me calling starman a pillock!

First, who pushed the Glasgow rider off, was it themselves? Second, why was the trackstaff member standing on the track? H&S dictates that they must stay lnside the markers {3mtrs}{?}

If people are saying Glasgow were wrong in initially complaining about the track, then why was there work carried out on the track after the complaint and before the start? Just curious.....

Nearly but not quite, poor from kennett and extremely good from redcar, i would like them to win the league tbh

Except you

I gather at Eastbourne you can get a battered sausage with a chip on your shoulder and a Glasgow kiss!!

Of course we do. As Steve says above, we attend many events and shows with a top class stand, including a running TV with a meeting on to show people what it's all about. In addition we have usually 3 bikes on show, one a current riders league standard bike, the second bike a working Westlake from Alan Roberts and my show bike which also has a reaction machine for starts timing. It's good fun. We issue flyers to the public, and concession tickets to encourage new people to give the sport a try especially if they have young family they can bring. By issuing special tickets we can monitor if they were used, and who uses them. We occasionally have riders with us. Ludde was always very accommodating and was good value for his appearance, often taking the mic and also being asked to make presentations to the organisers choices. We also visit schools if we are asked, and have also been at the Heaton Music Festiva as well as many local schools. We are currently trying to make a visit to the Metro Centre or the Eldon Square complex. We are always up for more suggestions and if you or anyone else needs to contact us, can you see either Dave Rowland or Steve Brock. If we can we will. NB. if anybody is interested, we usually post a photo of our stand on Facebook as soon as it is erected. This is to tell everyone where we are on that day in case existing fans want to come down to see us or join us. Look for 'Newcastle Speedway' posts.

Congratulations to the Bears getting into top 4 hope you can stay there till the playoffs

Been sat here for three quarters of an hour.... It opens at 11.... Going to use Tesco's website next time...

The Redcar management should be congratulated on their recent team changes, they now look a very handy team.

Wouldnt be a loss either... incredible arrogance from such an average rider.

There were plenty of SCB lovers on here let’s not forget....Shaun this, Shaun that. Could never stand his high and mighty attitude personally.

I might of been tempted to put him in heat 13 in place of Jorgensen but that would of gave him 5 on the trot ( including heat 15) .. Who would be a team manager

Home promoters have always prepared their tracks to suit the home riders. It's been going on since the sport started.

MPT looked very, very quick today - was getting good speed of the slick inside that no-one else seemed to really get. Riss an excellent home debut and Andersen continues to impress. Best wishes to Jordan - horrific looking crash. Fancy we would have won by more with him in his last two rides. Lawson was superb for the Eagles. Kennett started well but faded and Edwards was very good value. Disappointed in Kerr and Newman though.

Good win for the Bears - MPT was superb, Riss very good and Wright his usual self. Andersen chips in with useful points and if Jordy hadn’t got injured (hope he’s ok after a very nasty looking crash) might have won by more. Lawson was excellent value for the Eagles and featured in all the best races, Kennett started well but faded and I was impressed with Edwards who won a very good battle with Greaves.

It's such a shame that when anyone looks back at recordings of what was one of the greatest GPs ever, those incredible moments will have those two with their whoas and wows as the soundtrack, unable to produce real commentary to match the high quality of the racing.

And re-appeared pretty quickly. You cant push new material into a crater then expect it to pack in like the rest of the track. Expected better.

It would seem there was two many Cooks there last night. Jon is very stupid at times and not always fit to be a Promoter IMO, whilst Cook gets involved in too many altercations at tracks, including my own track when a couple of years ago he deemed the pits gate helpers didn't get the pit gate fence open as quick as he wanted. Difficult combo him and his Dad.

Not spiel it was said by someone at the match on one of various threads. You clearly aren't busy so will let you troll the various fora and Facebook pages

So good to be shared between so many aliases.

When was the last time an Eastbourne thread went to 10 pages? suggests we need a bit more than 15 x 4 laps to stir up interest

I agree but it was a bit more than that. Handbags between two helmeted riders is one thing but a helmeted rider against track staff is another. Plus it was everything else and in my mond the refusal to ride in heat 1. I do agree with some comments that the ref could have handled things better. I was amazed that after all that took place, he put the two minutes on without go back down to talk to riders and staff to calm things down.

Too many riders moaning about track conditions nowadays ,the fans are getting fed up with these delays.Tracks can be different, the riders just need to adapt.Unless it’s dry and as slick as a Motorway the riders don’t want to know.The fans are voting with their feet nowadays.

Spot on. There were several all out brawls back in the day with Wolves... messrs Dugard, Barker and Norris usually at the centre of it.

That little bit of instability from Cookie is part of what makes him great when he is racing for you....I loved it when he was a Monarch. Now he is a Tiger, I agree he should get a ban There is always something going on at Eastbourne and always has been....I still have memories of visits there in the 80s and 90s where we came away infuriated at how things had gone down, usually with Bob Dugard at the centre of events. It's nice to hear that Martin is keeping the family tradition alive!

Who did Jon Cook head butt?

What a load of tosh. What the Tigers management will have learned is what a good track preparation team they have, what a good professional announcer they have, what a good set of fans they have who applaud opposing riders for there efforts. The Tigers reputation is earned by the product they put on at Ashfield - riders, staff, volunteers and fans. The team have tried to entertain on there travels on a variety of tracks, surfaces and shapes. We lost tonight - most Glasgow fans predicted it including myself - so well done to the Eastbourne riders and I stress the riders. Reading various posts the promoter, track staff and announcer don't appear to be blameless and some of the eagles fans should be ashamed of themselves. Tonight the Tigers management also learned another approach to speedway as they were up against an old hand in the promotion game - he made sure that the track, the track staff and the fans got into Tigers riders heads. So the owners will have also learned who coped with the aggravation and intimidation and who didn't. They should now ensure that the riders be made aware that these things happen and other teams will produce crap tracks and all the other things that can influence a result and learn to stay focussed and deal with it.

See? When people like us say that - and between us we have seen nearly everything and everyone - it shows that speedway is still an incredible sport. The thing for me tonight was not just passing and close racing; the riders were literally all over the place - at flat-out speeds - looking for the best lines, and some of the moves were absolutely breathtaking. And at times plain scary!!! Of course, it was great to have much cleaner starts, and not have multiple reruns... Steve

That’s it in a nutshell .