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Do the promotions really listen ? I remember about 7 years ago when Adam started riding in the UK one of these “how do we gauge public opinion” threads came up on here and I suggested a simple questionaire slipped into a program and a suggestion box near the exit. Most if not all people who buy a program have a pen (or can borrow one). A few questions filled in with their contact details at the end isn’t the hardest thing in the world. 1, you know really what the punters think and can maybe act on some of the suggestions 2, with their contact details you straight away have a database where you can contact people with offers etc. its really not that hard eh ?

So far as I am aware the Newcastle promotion have a similar reputation, yet still struggle to attract riders. The point is that, whether it's Poole and/or Glasgow or not, there is a disparity between what some clubs can afford. Not the fault of those clubs, they live within their means. My point is that their isn't sufficient clubs left to sustain the three tier structure so the Championship needs to be a sustainable standard for the majority, which inevitably means less professional and featuring less expensive 'international' standard riders. But whilst clubs with larger budgets remain in the Championship the rest will try to be competitive on the basis that if they're not the crowd levels fall. Either way is unsustainable in the long term unless you can reduce costs. You could argue that if speedway in Newcastle is unsustainable (due to a Sunday race night and/or high stadium rental etc) then they should drop down to the National League but that's the problem. Even if Belle Vue and Cradley continue it's a maximum six team league which just isn't viable and not great news for the development of young British riders who struggle to make Championship level pay (Thomas, Wood etc). With only 22 tracks in operation, now would have been the opportunity to have restructured to two tiers, widening the gap between both and getting rid of doubling up for all bar British development riders. Workington's demise last season should have been the tipping point. How many more will fall before it's inevitable?

The only thing Poole's money does is always ensure that riders are paid correctly and on time! The main reason to go SGBC is to recoup some losses from sponsors going bust mid season and to get back their traditional raceday ie Wednesdays. Not sure that any of that affects the Diamonds situ which I hope is sorted asap.

Fruitcake

The new system for the Championship is based on how all American professional team sports work bar MLS. The leagues are split into conferences and a team's results, while including games against teams from other conferences the league is split into several sections and a team only competes with the teams in its own conference for play-off spots. There's nothing to say in the AGM report that the following is due to happen which is worrying, but if not they are iin trouble.. So we have 12 teams, including either Newcastle or Plymouth. These are split into two conferences/sub-divisions. All 12 race 32 matches, 20 against their fellow conference members and 12 against sides from the other conference. Here's the key - you run two league tables, one for each conference and the top three from each qualify for the play-offs. Now, if we only had an odd number of teams it still works. Say if we have five in the north and six in the south the northern teams ride 28 times, 16 against fellow northerners and still 12 against the southerners, making 28. The southerners will still race 20 times against their fellow conference members, but only 10 against the northerners, making 30 matches. So, at season's end, five northern teams will have ridden 28 matches but the southerners 30. If there was just one table that would be ridiculous but if all five teams competing for the three play-off places are only compared with each other it doesn't matter if the third placed team qualifies with fewer points than the fourth placed team in the south it's probably due to the latter having ridden more matches. Run two league tables, one for teams that ride 28 times and one for those who ride 30 matches and take the top three from each. Whether the north division races 30, 32 or 132 matches, as long as in league terms they're only competing with teams that have ridden the same matches it'll be academic. Running one league table is where the problems start. And you thought the match points system was complex..... The logic of Edinburgh travelling twice to Glasgow but only once to Kent is obvious. The alternative is to run a one home, one away league plus a pair of early season regional leagues as we have before - and what was the verdict? Dismissed as 'meaningless. Realistically the only way to prove the point is to run the season, let people realise that it's only the teams in their own half of the country that they're initially competing with in league terms - until the essential play-offs. One thing that gets avoided here is, say we run with 12 tracks in 2020 then by some miracle we get an application from a revived Rye House, or Oxford or even a better funded and planned Plymouth bid for 2021 they wouldn't have to be rejected for fear of running a league with odd numbers! As far as the supporters are concerned until the play-offs they are competing in a five or six team league with extra competitive league matches to give a 14 or 16 match home schedule which is a damn sight better than the paltry 10 in 2019!

The second option makes a stronger team than the alleged one.

The problem as I see it is that fans & sponsors have lost the feeling that the 7 riders representing your club are yours. We have almost completely lost this connection. Most if not all of 2019 championship teams consisted of 7 riders that also represented another U.K. team. This is also a huge problem with credibility when trying to convince newcomers to support our sport. Equally wholesale team changes during the season do the sport great harm as do the huge changes season on season. Question: As a sponsor would I buy rider X (my local team favorite) a new bike, only for it to be used while riding for another team? NO.

The proposed regionalisation is different to the previous incarnation in 2014 when " Teams will meet all other Teams in a League table on 2 occasions, 1 at home and 1 away and by ballot additional Teams to make a total of 14 home and 14 away fixtures. ". The proposal for 2020 is " Clubs race opponents from their own section twice at home and twice away, and opponents from the other section once at home and once away. " That removes the lottery element and gives each Club 16 home league fixtures; meeting the five same Group Clubs twice, and the six other Group Clubs once.

Barry Bishop does that every week and I have seen Adrian Smith do it, too

Hopefully we won't need to replace anyone!!

Me too but it would be welcomed if he did. Whilst he didn't set the world alight during his short stint he certainly showed enough to convince me that with a full season he would be the No1 you would hope and expect him to be

It may be about right but I would still say it should therefore be declared that he has been assessed that way as opposed to using the 2011 average That way if another rider returns to the league after such a long break he can be reassessed fairly rather than a precedent having been set of using such an old average It's not just about NP but thinking a few steps ahead as to how someone else may use such a decision to manipulate a future change to gain unfair advantage

As there has been no attempt to address the situations of doubling-up and guests, the tinkering with the format will make little difference to the dwindling and ageing band of spectators.

Indeed. If anyone is interested, that blog is connected to a Facebook page I run. It's called Continental Speedway and all are welcome to join. It has mostly Polish stuff, particularly livestreams of all televised matches - not the same type of links as provided on here, along with YouTube videos afterwards. Please note I'm not trying to pinch anyone from here, merely to provide an additional method for folk to follow leagues across Europe.

Some people are just going to moan whatever - and we have several really good examples here on the BSF...

Same as when Long Eaton were fighting to survive, and one of the major issues was that residents didn't want speedway as it attracted the "wrong sort of people" (bikers). Really? If people have a legitimate concern, I have no problem with that, but when they simply manufacture these concerns thanks to ignorance and prejudice (or simply resort to downright lies), then yes, I do...

Wouldn't have Tungate in a month of Sundays and to be honest the way he left the club I doubt Louis would even consider him

One thought, don't bother

Let us hope the NL can move forward next year with The real job of developing young British riders for the future

Another agm which does not take on the real problems of Speedway moving forward. essentially status quo and the promoters burying their heads in the sand once again. i despair with the BSPA

Stefan has not let the Scorpions down but has been beset with injuries(again) & confidence. He is always there at the post meetings in the clubhouse & is honest. I truly believe he is a better rider than Simon, who performed well on his return, with it showing that the sport is a confidence thing, being in your head & on track. I do not think Simon will up his average but Stefan would improve his to around the 6 mark.

Don’t be daft, they’d need seven.

Incorrect, BW. I seem to recall it being said that he wouldn't go even it was free To be fair, he is anything but the only one that this thread applies to. For my own part, I really don't understand why someone who doesn't go to speedway, has no interest in watching (even on the box) and wouldn't go if he didn't have to pay is a member of a speedway forum and comments regularly.

He only has one. Free Entrance.

There you go people a thread just for you.Whinge away and leave the other threads to people who still like and enjoy talking about the sport.You have helped drive a good few away from this forum so let us please keep the ones we have left. Thanks in advance I live in hope (well at least until the first reply).

no need think the team is already done and dusted

Kyle and six Aussies, 1.Brady Kurtz 7.54 2.Kyle 5.58 3.Josh G 7.29 4.Jake Allen 5.56 5.Jack Holder 7.49 6.Ryan Douglas 4.66 7.Zaine Kennedy 4.00

Poole fans should defo put scunthorpe and Redcar on the list of tracks to visit.

It's obvious that Iversen had to come back on his 7.38 average,as this is what he attained last season.When was the last time he missed a full season?

Or even (1) Nicki Pedersen 8.61 (2) Charles Wright 6.52 (3) Chris Harris 6.01 (4) Erik Riss 6.61 (5) Adam Ellis 6.33 (6) Ricky Wells 4.00 (7) Broc Nicol 4.00

I hope the AGM have addressed the farcical double-up situation where your very own 1 to 7 are all riding for different U.K. teams the following night! this has gone completely out of control & unless addressed our sport will never have any mainstream credibility.

problem is, the questions need to be asked of the people not there. I've put this forward countless times but if you offered free tickets in return for email addresses or mobile numbers you would be able to contact both your existing customers and anyone with enough interest to take a free ticket. You could then inform them, advertise to them and generally involve them. I. mean this is like marketing 101, the basics.

Esp when the league was a lot stronger then!! Sweden and Poland averages need to be looked at!

You are probably right but using an average that is 9 years old is crazy IMO

Yes. The only way such a system makes sense is to run it on a conference basis, in the style of American sports. Anything else would be madness. My expectations that speedway has chosen the sane option are fairly low.

Didn’t think Ostergaard would be the type of rider Glasgow would go for.

Nothing on the BSF should surprise you....

With a confirmed 41 point limit leaving 6.99 to play with I now cannot see beyond Aarnio ? Thing is he is a Scunny asset and a scorer home and away. I think Robs looking at "track specialists" to hopefully defend the EWR. Then looking for them to gel at least some of the time on their travels. Certainly Tommy and Tero have it in their locker to get big numbers. Bit will depend on fitness ? Tommy and Danny coming back from injury. We need to get condistancy from Jake and better from Josh away from home for sure. Jordan Palin needs some support in his debut season and Simon Lambert gives that. I can see that Stefan Nielsen also offers that. But Lamberts heavy scoring from reserve v Nielsens battle against injury and inconsistancy from that edges it for Lambert. All in all with a 41 point limit a team with Scunthorpe in its DNA on 40.85 should please "the homers" and gurantee more great action at the EWR in 2020. We might not win the league but we can certainly give it our best shot !

Thoughts? 1. Brady Kurtz 7.54 2. Jack Holder 7.49 3. Josh Grajczonek 7.29 4. Chris Holder 7.16 5. Aaron Summers 4.87 6. Dimitri Berge 4.14 7. Ricky Wells 4.00 Team Total 42.49 Remaining 0.01

Farewell, Mangotsfield United of speedway.

Tobi is a bargain on 6.21

Saving money on travel costs? Can't the riders arrange with supporters to take them to matches?

They’re saving money on travel costs and hoping they might get 100 away supporters at the “local” derbies. A couple of grand a meeting is big money these days.

It really not for me to say, but I hope so. When we restarted it in 1997, we had to rebuild from scratch with a new track, fence. shale, pits, fans and of course a new team. Those things, except the team, are already in place so it's just a case of reassembling it and look for a new Nicki P. George must be involved.

Compared to some of the stuff you have stated on this thread they are positively complimentary.

This is a very wierd championship. How can British riders and German riders enter this? Makes no sense at all. Should be limited to Oceania countries licenses.

Dont mind having wildcard selections but 5 is 2 to many IMO.

Sums up the state of our beloved sport when a good topic has been taken over by a debate on chocolate !!!!

It's never ideal when you miss the first couple of months of the season, you're playing catch up from the start. Both Nick and Jacob suffered in that respect. I would certainly give them another chance. Nick is a much better rider than his current average