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A familiar tale: 1. Speedway fans demand clear rule 2. SCB produce clear rule 3. SCB correctly apply regulation 4. Speedway fans winge 🫣

My heart skipped a beat when I saw the announcement, I have great memories of that place and missed it dearly. As soon as I saw they were coming back I got in touch to see if I could help them in any way - to which they accepted! I know the name isn't everyone's cup of tea but I'm the guy who designed their new bull logo (see below) I can't wait til tapes up now - I'll be there!

Social Media can massively mentally impact these kids today... Resilience and a "who gives a f**k what you say?" attitude are in much shorter supply these days given the kids are exposed to non stop feedback and, sometimes, trolling... Getting things "too easy" in life can also dilute ambition and sacrifice, which can also prevent growth, desire, and development... Any semi decent kid seems to be the "next Woffy" according to too many, with the reality being that to get to World Class level, by the age of 18 to 20 you are usually beating World Class riders if not regularly, then at least more than occasionally... It sometimes appears that any 16 year old kid that can beat riders of the same, or similar age, gets expectations well above what his level truly will be... Which can only put unrequired pressure on... Joe T in the play off final is a clear example of pushing these lads into top tier team places that they are not ready for, and can do nothing for his confidence, however, hopefully he will put it into context and continue to show gradual improvement to reach a decent level in the sport...

Scunthorpe 😂

The current attendance issues are due to fans not liking guest fests and doubling up. Both of these rider problems dilute the sports integrity for so many fans. Lots have abandoned ship because they have seen too many teams use three, or more in some cases, guests. I often talked with Workington rugby directors, who were anti-speedway, and referred to the sport as having a strong likeness to that comical one called WWE (or is it WWF?)...anyway they said guests undermined the sport big style - and yes they were/are correct. Personally I just think the one division would bring more variety to a quite stagnant round of fixtures. And so what if Poland claim the best, every race has a winner, and loser. We used to have wobblers yes fifty years ago but shouted encouragement to one and all....let's do it via one league again !!!!!!

A completely different time, sadly... Most of those riders had jobs, and rode for excitement, and the "good money" they could earn for two or three meetings a week.... Lads in mundane jobs by day could be "heroes" in the evening, and go home with more than a weeks worth of money from their usual job for just one meeting.. And admission costs made a massively lower dent in the fans' disposable income than happens today... Plus, many ran Friday and Saturdays rather than Mondays and Thursdays... Now it is "two top bikes" minimum, sign written vans, hotel costs, flight costs, tuner costs, and a travel schedule that Jet2 would go dizzy with... 100's rocked up to the many training schools across the country, some sharing bikes they purchased together,(old several owners kit so didn't cost the earth), some riding old bikes fhe tracks had, hence there was a conveyer belt of potential talent, and, most riders only had one team so they didn't block progression like the majority do now by having two teams each, which erodes places for others... The Poles have "dozens" of riders who organically travel through a development structure as they know that to keep their sponsors, fans and TV happy, it is important to have "new talent" coming through regularly... They don't want to end up like the UK with guestfests and doubling up and down rife, as that will end the same way for them that is has for the UK... One league unfortunately looks unachievable if you look at the numbers of riders, unless another 20 or so want to ride over here, and given Poland ride Friday, Saturday and Sunday, (with the odd Thursday thrown in for good measure), getting another 20 would be very difficult indeed, unless like some tracks have done, you sign riders who you know will miss quite a few matches, and just accept guestfests as being the only way the sport can be ran over here... If you don't get more riders to come over, and run with one league, then many riders at six and seven (if they stay with seven per team), would be well out of their depth I would think... I personally think having a "Super League" with six, six rider teams, could maybe work, using only riders of say 4.5 points and above averages, and then they also run a 2nd tier team alongside all other teams, with three or so of their top tier riders, plus second tier level lads making up the rest of the tier two team... It will keep the DU'ing for many riders that they say they need, and still have a top tier at a significantly higher level to sell the sport to TV and its viewers...

That's irrelevant. The rules cover a drawn match. They are perfectly clear. I agree it's not the best way to qualify for the final. But rules are rules.

You can say "end off" (do you actually mean "end of"?) as much as you like, but that isn't the rule, is it? Makes sense that two 4-2s are better than just a single 5-1.

I was born in Wolverhampton and have always been a wolves fan and always will be but when I joined Berwick in 1999 and 2000 it became like a second home, I loved it there, the Berwick folk made me feel like one of theirs, often stayed up there with the meldrums and was often in the town or on the beach, loved the place and still do, so it definitely captured my heart

Kings Lynn 1985 was when it all started for me the Martin Rogers days, we were the whipping boys of the league without a recognized heat leader in the whole team but crowds as a whole were okay and the excitement of when we would nearly get a win but get clobbered in the final heat. We were that bad Colin Pratt wanted us chucked out of the league, then Bill Barker and Simmo took over, the first season we had a powerhouse team King, Peterson, Davis & Knight four Lynn specialists by the end of the season we were dreadful again. King picked up to many injuries, John Davis was more suited to longtrack than Speedway as he could only ride the boards, Knight did his job and Peterson went from unbeatable round Lynn when he used to visit to terrible when he signed for us. Bill then went with youth and got Loram and Henka Gustaffson in those were my fave days two of the most incredible racers I have ever seen , Bill and Simmo fell out and Bill carried on alone struggling more each season all ending when someone from memory stole all the gate takings at one meeting which was the end for him. I would have been late teens and went every week with one of my best friends, stopped going early 90's when I discovered nightclubs and women but hugely fond memories and have followed the sport from afar (like ten's of thousands of others) ever since.

neither of which have pulled up any trees really. Neila is spot on, only have to look at the current world champion.

I can't quite agree with that statement as we ultimately withdrew all our sponsorship in the sport as a result of the spiralling costs which over a very short time just became ridiculous . In the sport we went from half a dozen riders using Japs with the rest on two valve Jawas all of which could be home serviced by the average( Journey man) rider or an informed individual .You had Ivan & Co on works engines but to a large extent the rest of the riders operated at an affordable level . Enter first the two valve Piper Conversion ( not a huge cost ) then the Street conversion ( half the cost of a new engine from memory ) Weslake ,four valve Jawa and Godden in the mix as well all in a matter of a few years . Riders being as we know are influenced very easily chopped and changed at a whime ,we spent upwards of over 25k( on engines alone ) in three yrs and this was in the seventies . Imo that period is when the dynamics of the sport changed the riders took control to a large extent part of their reasoning was the inceased cost of being competitive .Up until this point the average rider didn't have a tuner lucky to have two bikes and went to a primary job the next morning .This was when the the sport was at it's peak now it has all but dropped off a cliff and your average rider wants to make a full time living out of it !

Because 2 4-2's are 2 heat advantages, and a 5-1 and a 3-3 is one heat advantage.

Whatever Workington race in next season I will support which choice they make even if it is the National league.

Plans for a 1,500 homes and leisure village development on the East of England Showground are like to be rejected when they go back before councillors next week. Councillors will be told that the failure of the applicants the East of England Agricultural Society (EEAS) and its land promoter the Asset Earning Power Group (AEPG) to put together a Section 106 agreement means the development would not provide the necessary infrastructure to make it acceptable in planning terms. So members of Peterborough Council’s planning and environmental protection committee, which meets on October 21, will be recommended by officers to refuse approval for the development. It comes after more than a year after approval was given for the first outline planning application for 850 homes and a leisure village on part of the Showground. A second outline application for 650 homes on an adjoining part of the site was initially rejected by later approved. Both approvals were made conditional upon a Section 16 agreement being put in place. The move to reject the applications is likely to be welcomed by hundreds of people who had opposed the development of the 164 acre venue. In particular, there was huge opposition to the fact the development would mean the end of more than 50 years of speedway racing at the Peterborough Panthers track. However, the refusal does not automatically mean a return to the venue for speedway. The meeting is being held after the developers missed a number of deadlines to finalise the Section 106 agreement which sought to ease the impact of the development on the nearby communities. Councillors will be told there has been a disagreement between the Society and AEPG A report to the meeting states: “At no point up to the Committee decisions did either set of applicants fundamentally question the section 106 requirements. "More recently however, it is understood that the promotion agreement between AEPG and EEAS was not continued beyond March 2025. "EEAS have since taken a more active role in the applications as the section 106 has progressed, and it has become apparent that there is disagreement between the applicants on the head of terms as carried through into the draft section 106 agreement.” It adds: “However EEAS, as joint applicants and landowners, accepted the fundamental terms agreed by Committee and are seeking to introduce clauses which significantly deviate from them or are not material. "The Council’s position has been set out clearly and Officers do not consider that there is scope for further negotiation on these fundamental issues and therefore that there are no extenuating circumstances which justify a further extension of time.”

There will be some changes, but I doubt that Tom will be one of them...

Exactly why it’s important these young riders have someone to help them build the right mindset rather than break their existing one down. I’d argue mindset mentorship as opposed to skillset mentorship would be more beneficial to those naturally talented youngsters. The current Rushen or Cairns debate is interesting. Of course it’s natural to discuss who is better, who will be better etc. on the forum and social media, wouldn’t it be great to see both make the absolute most of their potential though. They can learn from each other now and push each other through their careers if they have the right mentorship. We’ve all been kids of that age, there can be a certain end of the world feeling to even the most minor of setbacks. That’s where they need an arm around the shoulder to tell them it’s all about the experience and to keep their feet planted and chins up. That goes for all young riders.

After seeing both ride, Cooper Rushen does look the better prospect

Cooper Rushen for me🏆

My profile photo says it all. #ComeOnYouDons

While I agree with all of that it had no real bearing on the decline of the popularly of the sport, 95% of the fan base past and present couldn't tell the difference between a jap and a offset GM let alone how many valves it had, what changed was the riders and teams and the bond with them by the fans, it became them and us instead of one of us

Another reason why Ipswich is well run, all riders very social with the fans and will stop and chat and take photos after meetings, not just in the van and go. Even Doyle and Emil who are too boys give a lot of time to fans. When Ipswich won the title I would bet if you speak to a lot of fans it was so positive because it’s like a family club and everyone has time for each other, win together and lose together.

The scores over the 2 legs were of ‘equal value’ so they use heat advantages… are you thick ?

Don’t need any suggestions,the rules were there.

Crazy isn't it that all these repeat fixtures happen at the end of the season, BSN should have been done and dusted at the end of spring, the KO Cup mid Summer and Pay Offs now.

Yes sport teams have many varied structures for sure. And in many ways speedway is unique. But the sport in the UK is sadly going down a whirlpool of despair and something drastic is required to avoid a complete disaster - and in my view I see one division as worth trying. Worth trying is all I'm saying. BTW I think one bad influence is the GP system. One example of how it affected Workington was when Stoney qualified as a GP rider. We then realised that for several Saturday nights a guest rider would appear at Derwent Park to cover for Stoney - I think we got very accustomed to seeing Sean Wilson as a regular Comet. OK he scored well but personally I missed my fix of Carl Stonehewer speedway and I wasn't alone with that.

It's almost pointless worrying about riders for next year, given how obscenely different views seem to be on league structure and points limits for next year right now. I'm not sure they've even agreed when to have the AGM yet.

The team that started my love of speedway was Bradford Northern at Odsal stadium. My dad used to take me from the age of 6 onwards. We used to stand on the first bend and got splattered by the shale on every lap. And that smell !!! Nothing like it . My team included Alan Knapkin, Dave Baugh , Alf Wells . Robin Adlington , Dave Schofield, Alan Bridgett, Sid Sheldrick ( in his white leathers) as well as others . Also the mercurial and sadly missed Gary Petersen. Wonderful days that started it off. Still love the sport now though that’s tested a lot more these days but that’s a different discussion.

There are a lot of stupid, complicated rules in Speedway. This way of deciding a tie and the countback system used in most individual meetings are not in that bracket. They promote racing to win. If everyone races to win then the racing should be more entertaining and the overall winners are the paying public.

Correct.That what Isaid

There have been several bikes go over the fence, Greg Blaire on the first bend (pre air fence) Daniel Nermark, again pre air fence, and Vinny Foords landed on top of the fence 3rd bend, although fortunately none of them went into the crowd.

I got hooked in 1964. Speedway, of which I new little or nothing, arrived in Sunderland in 1964. The Sunderland 'Saints' were born. I attended the first Meeting not sure what to expect. From the first race I was captured by the noise, the smell (Castrol 'R') the excitement, the thrills and the spills. What a Sport, I thought - this is for me. Nine weeks later it was all over. Granted the weather was not very kind to us, however we had no rain offs. The 'Saints' closed because of weather and lack of support, so the Promoters said. However, the Gates were not that bad - I know because I was there at all of the Meetings. The Promoters though had a hidden agenda. Newcastle 'Diamonds' who were third in the League took our Ken Sharples and the Wolverhampton ''Wolves' who were bottom of the League acquired Jim Airey, Gordon Guasco, and Colin McKee. That Season, Newcastle finished as League Champions with Sharples scoring well for them and Wolverhampton finished in third place thanks to getting our riders. Promoters Bridgett and Parker claimed that the crowds were too low. The penultimate Meeting had an attendance of 6,000 (source - Sunderland Echo). No, it wasn't crowds or weather that closed Sunderland, it was the fact that both Promoters wanted to strengthen, what they regarded as their premier Teams. Sunderland was sacrificed purely in the interests of Newcastle 'Diamonds' and Wolverhampton 'Wolves'. Am I bitter - well the answer to that is a resounding YES. Even after fifty six years, it still leaves a sour, nasty taste in my mouth.

1 league would see a good chunk of rider's knocked off that list as they'd be unavailable due to Swedish and Polish demands, maybe also Germany & Denmark. I personally feel 1 league will be disastrous

The part re guestfests and DU's, I 100% agree... And "one league" would bring variety... Unfortunately fans of teams used to watching Kurtz, Emil, Bewley, Holder, Fricke, Doyle etc, and paying around twenty five quid to do so, are going to have to see a significant reduction in admission costs to watch some of the riders mentioned, (if the riders who ride in Poland are not there).. And even if they do sign these riders up, they will miss so many meetings every week on Fridays and Saturdays, that it would make the league a complete farce... The top two division clubs seem to average between 500 to 1500 or so, and their rents won't be dropping, nor will their expectations of their riders to spend quite frankly ludicrous sums to compete, therefore admission costs cannot drop too much I would say... And any reduction in admission wouldn't see enough increase in attendances I would suggest to cover all the costs, given the dilution of the riders on show... A true conundrum for people who have demonstrated many times that they may not have the skill set required to sort out the issues...

Absolutely 💯

Love watching him ride, I just hope the leg off the footrest style doesn't hold him back. Bridger used to have a similar style. I'm not saying that's what stopped him becoming world class, but I don't think it helps a rider at times.

Poole clear favourites to any non Poole supporter Ipswich were clear favourite in the top league but Leicester made them work hard and Glasgow might do Let’s not kid ourselves how much the Poole reserves are better than Glasgow It will take a monumental effort from Glasgow over 2 legs to win this

They are both good riders, nobody has said Cairns is gp material.

No for me The recent play off which between RR for a second string and tacticals enabled a team to use the 3 top riders in 20 of 30 heats across the 2 legs doesn't sit well with me

theyre probably just as well sticking with Perry and Hodder again, two years experience in the championship, both should raise there averages next year in theory.

Not when you can name somebody in your top five and not give them a ride.

Absolutely correct, speedway riders come in all shapes and sizes, you dont have to be Dan Bewley size to become a decent speedway rider.

Who is Nigel?

Did you ever see Michael Lee ride

To many knockers of the Poole track. mainly on this forum though .It no better or worse than most.

I'm not denying it's heat advantages, I'm not saying the rule isn't simple. I'm asking, why are two 4-2s better than a 5-1 and a 3-3 to decide a tie? Normally they are of equal value.

It is total heat advantages, if they were 4-2 or 5-1 or 5-0 or whatever doesn't matter. The score achieved doesn't matter. It is heat advantages, it cannot be any simpler than that.

I am most certainly not having a dig at him. I am calling his ability as it currently is for a 16 year old. Talented but a long way to go. If Will misses the start he struggles to pass and tends to follow the rider in front around. Next season will see improvements.

Not as boring as you, same old tripe

Yea but with a big ego . Heard shouting #### I've been beaten by a 15 year old when Cooper beat him