cowboy cookie returns?

Looks like who ever comes in to run the club will need to secure a new sponsorship deal.

Really where did you pull that from? Did make me chuckle

If Thompson does go it’s possibly the right time to be honest. He has been a real Trump card for us but could possibly struggle a little in the main body of the team with little chance of dropping back down. It’s true he had issues at home after his injury but up until that point had been on fire. Like Rew I’m sure the parting of the ways will be amicable to allow a return in the future.

And they say Ipswich buys the league 😂 Fair play to Thompson if that’s the case he has been awesome for us these last 3 years. Equally Louis stands his ground & won’t bust the budget so fair play to him too.

I am aware of someone who came on board in the last 12 months as a sponsor & he has been blown away by Louis attitude & professionalism.

2026 will certainly be interesting. The league currently looks a bit of a shambles. If true that the agm has been put back to January then something drastic must be going on. If the premiership runs with 6 or 7 teams are we looking at a rebuild at Ipswich? No Emil that’s been confirmed, rumours of Thompson going to Leicester & Brennan possibly up in the air. I think is certain that Doyle will return & most likely King. Are we then looking at 1 of Ellis/Rew with Edward’s as the R/S or number 7. Then 3 newcomers?

At the time they dropped down the club was at a low point. Several years of poor teams the club had gone stale. When Louis junior took over the day to day running was when he made the decision to drop down. The position Ipswich find themselves in today is down to the hard work put in by Chris in rebuilding the club over several years. The ironic thing is even when we dropped the attendance levels were still quite good but it needed a reboot. sounds daft but Ippo must be happy with their attendance figures I guess most weeks it 2000

It’s quite easy to do that in speedway to. Take Ipswich everyone who has an interest in going knows first race is 7:45 & it will be finished by 9:30

To be honest I’ve never totally understood the argument about weekend racing being the answer. If the overall product was decent & people wanted to see it live race night to a certain point doesn’t make any difference. League football outside the premiership runs on a Tuesday or Wednesday evening. My experience of that is the place is full of kids watching and the game doesn’t finish until at least 9:30. Also Ipswich seem to attract plenty of youngsters on Thursday. Race nights, GPs Poland etc etc have all been blamed for British speedways problems . GPs & Poland were not an issue 40 years ago when the the problems began to take hold. Make the sport something that people can buy into & want to attend.

Ipswich dropped down as they were in a bad place. Crap teams poor crowds. It was also the time that Louis junior took control. At the time he said it was done to stabilise the club. I think they got forced up when Chapman came a long and was going to buy the club. Subsequently thank god that fell though but Louis grasped the nettle to make it work. Louis has proved that with the right mindset & professional approach you can make top flight speedway work.

I keep seeing it written that the TV deal is vital. I remember reading that the Eurosport TV deal was only peanuts at best. In some circles it seemed that they covered the transmission costs & very little else. The TNT dealer was the final 2 years of the Eurosport dealer following the take over. Unless I am missing something the last TV wasn’t putting a great deal in the coffers.

I keep seeing it written that the TV deal is vital. I remember reading that the Eurosport TV deal was only peanuts at best. In some circles it seemed that they covered the transmission costs & very little else. The TNT dealer was the final 2 years of the Eurosport dealer following the take over. Unless I am missing something the last TV wasn’t putting a great deal in the coffers.

If that’s the case then surely the premier league sides have got to have 2nd teams in the championship?? Can’t run 3 home meetings a season

After years of poor quality top flight sides Louis seems to have nailed in over the last 4 seasons. From the emergency re direction of Harris in 2019 to the dodgy Jason Crump signing of 2020/21 Louis brought in Doyle in 2022 maybe he was a little lucky because Swindon closed there. He then followed that up with the box office signing of Emil & enticing Rew to Ipswich. Last winter saw the arrival of Brennan so I have no doubts we now have a guy who is no afraid to chase the best.

On the other in 22/23 Louis spent all winter chasing Emil when no body gave it a hope in hell of happening! Ended up doing 3 years as a witch. Louis & Ipswich are slighty different to Schroeck & Oxford.

Pickering. Never gives up & appears to be a good team man. Certainly steer clear of the brothers grim.

That would certainly be left field. I could see Bewley ending up at Foxhall to be honest. Maybe Zmarzlik & Emil here for Doyle’s testimonial?

Plenty of rumours flying around. The one that was doing the rounds for a few weeks was confirmed on Friday. The others I’ve heard or seen here are, Rew to return: I can see that happening to be honest. Thompson leaving: I can’t see it personally. Ellis not riding in the uk: I find this hard to believe & I’d certainly have him back at Ipswich in 2026. King going elsewhere: Now this one I could believe, a little bit like Emil in that it’s mission accomplished now. Maybe it’s a good time for this chapter to close, but I think much will depend on Danny. Depending on the regulations though if it’s a 40 point limit again then surely we can only go with 2 of the above if it’s a lower limit maybe 3 or possibly all 4. Its silly season at the moment so who knows what is going to happen, even Bewley has been mentioned. It seems certain that Doyle & Brennan will return & I can see Edwards as the R/S or number 7 if the RS is scrapped. Intriguing times however Louis & Hawkins now know that the public will turn out to support a strong side so I expect us to build well to defend the title.

I don’t think so at this stage. He came he to win trophies & has for filled what he & the club set out to achieve. I had a hunch that this season was very much about unfinished business for Emil & that it would be his last. He is a rider who likes to be well organised in advance so I think it possibly hints at the uncertainty that is going on behind the scenes in uk speedway. If the state of play for uk speedway was settled could Louis have offered him another deal? I suspect he could have & possibly Emil would have agreed. Currently I don’t believe that uk speedway is in the position where Louis could have offered Emil a deal to allow Emil to make plans for 26. Having said that honestly I believe it’s a case of job done & it’s a great time for this chapter to close. Clearly these is a massive mount of mutual respect between club & rider. It’s been a great journey & one thing is for certain Emil is a true Ipswich legend!

No Emil is a massive loss not only to Ipswich but British speedway in general. However I don’t think it’s a massive surprise. Emil has been nothing but pure class these past 3 years & I feel really privileged to have been able to watch him week in week out for the past 3 seasons. I’d like to think that we may not have seen the last of him on the heath.

I think as it opens with after 3 unforgettable years in British speedway & closes with once a witch always a witch it’s pretty conclusive.

Which riders are at the end of season do? Is Emil there?

Well the league structure is known for 2026 then. Pickering has sign for Scunthorpe as their number 1 Just remains to be seen what the full regs are & which teams are in what division.

I’d suggest it is if you are relying on parents to drive you to your home meetings.

Cooper & the team around him seem very level headed. I think everyone would love to see Cooper become a Witch. However I think if Coopers team decides it’s too early then he’ll give it a miss. If he is picked he doesn’t have to accept the rs position. Louis could well be one of those who is advising him who knows.