torpointfanatic22

Roger for once, I have to agree with you. The crowds have steadily dropped over the past 3 seasons or so, and the promotion not following through their promises has definitely been a reason for that. Im not convinced all would come back just by moving up to the PL, although I, like you think a number would. The key will be improving the product. Exciting team to watch, good track to provide good racing, and better facilities for the fans are all needed if possible.

LOL! I give up!

Scribbler, Ben thank you for your support but I expected such comments from this blinkered supporter. I type things as I see them. If the home or away team get luck, rub of the green or whatever then I will say so. As stated on this forum I have no problem with Plymouth losing, I just want to see good, honest speedway, no matter what the result. On the night, Plymouth deserved to win, I dont doubt that, my point was merely that had those refereeing decisions gone the other way, which as you say sometimes they do, then Rye could have got a point from the match. I was answering a comment raised by Shadders in the first place explaining why Kyle didnt score as many as he had anticipated. Yet you as always jump straight in and have a go! I have seen many posts from you on this and other forums and you change your opinion as often as I turn my lounge light on, so I take absolutely no notice of anything you say on here, so there will certainly be no offence taken!! You say all I do is moan about when we lose and never praise the team, I think you need to re-read my posts over the past 2 years as you will be proved wrong! My opinion on the current situation at Plymouth speedway unfortunately means i find it hard to make out positives sometimes, to be honest I think the club needs a total overhaul and the 'click' needs to be removed before the club can progress. Yet again though I dare say you will shoot be down as im being negative towards the Devils, however I think forward and the bigger picture, and think back to all of these broken promises that Mr Bowden has given the fans, and his reluctance to get rid of the old and use younger developing riders, which is what Rye House brought down to the SBA and gave it a ruddy good go, for which I take my hat off to them and their promotion. Unlike certain riders wearing the Devils colours that merely poodle around at the back if they miss the gate! But then being a 'good' friend of Mr Bowden I'm sure you are right and we are all totally wrong!

Kyle was very unfortunate in heat 13 as there should have been a re-run in my opinion as Seemond definitely jumped the start although Kyle was off the graveyard that is gate 4 anyway! Likewise in heat 15 he was off gate 4 again but actually got 2nd on the line although the ref gave it the other way. Those 2 heats were the deciding factors imo and both had dodgy refereeing decisions that could and maybe should have gone the other way!!

Dont worry the star never get it right, Newport will be up there this season, I have no doubts about that.

So with just 4 starting spots remaining to fill for the 2010 NL season I wondered how people saw the league this season, here is my opinion... Bournemouth First up then, last years champions, well it was always going to be tough to emulate the side they put together last season and there was next to no chance of replacing Jerran. I was also surprised to see Kyle Newman left out, but team building is a tough job. Either way they still have a very powerful top 3 this year. Herne and Mark Baseby are exceptional around Wimborne road and will also score well away. Marks brother Aaron will have a tougher job in the main body, but I expect a big season from Danny Halsey, he has been a bit stale over the past couple of seasons at Rye and needed a move. I also see a lot of improvement in young Howarth. Key man: Dan Halsey Prediction: Were never going to be as strong as the all conquering 09 side but will still be there or there abouts, should squeeze into the top 4. Buxton I predicted them to be dark horses last year and so it proved, and with Cookie back this season they have one of the top riders in the league. Although the Hitmen have had to pretty much rebuild from scratch they look decent so far. Allot should score well on the big tracks and young Morris is tipped for very big things. Buxton do need another big hitter though and if Birko fills the void then their top 3 will be outstanding, even if the team would end up a touch top heavy. Key man: Nick Morris Prediction: Much depends on their final 2 and how good Morris turns out to be, could be the dark horses again but I think they will just miss out on the playoffs. Dudley Well im just delighted we have another team in the NL if im honest. On a serious note though, what a team the Heathens have put together. A quality heat leader trio, backed up by youngsters all looking to achieve big things in the sport. They're final rider needs to be a good one, as its likely they will start at reserve. I also worry about Mckinna missing matches as they can't have a guest for him. But for me this side impresses me and it should be a good debut year for Dudley. Key man: Ashley Morris Prediction: I worry if the PL comes knocking for Taylor and Smart, but on paper I fancy this Heathens side to have one of the better away records and for that reason could well top the pile. Top of the tree. Isle of Wight What a nightmare 09 for the Islanders with injuries galore!! The team for 2010 doesn't really excite me im afraid. Simmons will lead the side well as ever, but i worry about his commitments with Berwick which may take its toll as the season goes on. Hopwood and Johnson dont look particularly strong as heat leaders based on what i saw of them last season and Warwick has gone backwards at a pace recently. The reserves dont do much for me either, so although they will compete well enough at home, I feel a disappointing season on the cards for the Islanders fans. I hope im wrong. Key man: Brendan Johnson Prediction: Not enough top or bottom end strength to be challengers for me, they could struggle. Kings Lynn What a signing in James Brundle, I would be surprised if he drops a point at home this season! With Davies in the side I fancied them for top 4 but unless their replacement is a very good one i think they will just miss out. Mallett and Courtney will give Lynn a good spearhead, but as with last season I see this side being exceptional at home but poor away. Key man: James Brundle Prediction: Unless their last signing is a top one, bottom half for me. Mildenhall Jerran Hart is a cracking signing and will be one of the top riders at this level. Its also great to see a young, all British side and a very good one at that! Strong top 2, with Priest and Bates (who I wanted back at Plymouth by the way) giving good back up. Priest though probably needs to step up and push towards an 8 point average which he is certainly capable of. Jacobs at reserve could be a trump card too. My only worry is Harts availability as he will be crucial for the Fen Tigers success. Key man: Jerran Hart Prediction: Good all round side for the Tigers which should see them maintain a strong reserve throughout the season. Top 3 contenders. Newport I like this Newport team a lot. Plenty of youth, with the helping hand of the evergreen Tony Atkin. Newman is coming back from a nasty injury so may struggle early season, but I expect the lad to come on well this year. As for the rest, I dont know much about Mark Jones but Kurtz has bags of potential and could even be the Hornets number 1 as early as the first set of greensheets. Tim Webster is ever improving and the fast gating White Williams will do well at reserve. Key man: Todd Kurtz Prediction: Plenty of improvement in this side and for me it will be between them, Buxton and Plymouth as to who takes 4th spot. Being totally unbiased I will tip Newport to just miss out. Rye House Arguably the best top 2 in the league, and in Morley and Owen they have some quality youngsters coming through. My problem is the middle order, I just dont know if Mason and Strudwick will be strong enough. Either way they will be a very entertaining side. However if Hughes is unavailable they cant have a guest and therefore may struggle early in the season when he isnt there. Key man: Ben Morley Prediction: Like Newport there is plenty of improvement in this side, I just worry about the middle order. Bottom half finish for me. Scunthorpe Simply cannot fault Scunny for their development in British talent. They have not only lost a lot of their young stars, but have also had to contend with other teams all looking stronger than last season. Isherwood and Irving should improve a lot and Wrathall looked useful last season. They will probably get some hammerings away from home, but as the season goes on the Saints will get better and better. Key man: Gareth Isherwood Prediction: Think this season will be hard work for the Saints, but great experience for the youngsters. Bottom of the pile im afraid. Weymouth The poorest Weymouth side i have seen since they returned to the league in my opinion. Bekker will be consistent everywhere and score quite well. I saw Tom Brown at the New year classic and he looked a shadow of his old self and he will need to be a big scorer for the Wildcats for them to do anything this season. The middle order doesn't look particularly strong either. Cockle will need to get back to his form of mid season last year to trouble the top riders and at reserve they look very very weak. Key man: Tom Brown Prediction: I simply dont see the top or bottom end strength in this years Wildcats side and like the IOW could be the biggest disappointments this season, hope im wrong though as previous battles with Plymouth have always been great. Mid table at best. Plymouth Well i haven't hidden my disappointment at Plymouths side this year and the lack of good youngsters is frustrating. Saying that with the experience of Simmo and Seemond, Plymouth will always be strong at home. Losing Kyle is a massive blow and we haven't really replaced him. Wright has never been good at Plymouth but away he could be stronger. With a poor bottom end, the key for Plymouth will be whether Paul Starke can step up and Lee Smethills can find his old Oxford form. If they do, then despite being very top heavy, the top 5 should be strong enough to be around the playoff spots. Key man: Lee Smethills Prediction: The top 5 is on paper really strong but the bottom end is so very weak. Hopefully we can sneak the final playoff spot.

Thank you all very much for info, im very grateful.

Hi guys, I was after some info. Back in the 70s in one of the world finals held at Wembley there was a crash involving Barry Briggs or Ivan Mauger or maybe even both im not quite sure myself as im only 25, but have heard people talk about it. I wondered if anyone could tell me what year it was in particular? And also if there are any dvds or footage of this meeting? Thanks in advance (i know im being vague and hopeful but thats all i know) Regards, Mike

Interesting discussion this one. Well other than the top 8 and the qualifiers who we already know are in, my 4 w/c's would be Hans and Freddie who for me are certs to be back. Personally if we are talking deserved then no Brits im afraid. I would go for 2 of Pepe, Zagar or Lindback. Having said that the SGP authorities will have at least one Brit maybe even 2. In which case Hans and Freddie will be joined by Harris and Tai. Unless Tai turns it down. Harris gets it for me because he is British Champion. I know there is an argument of whether he deserves it or not, but he is by all accounts the best in this country by name so should be in. (if a brit gets in)

A big well done to the lads, thought we were actually going to make the final for a minute, unlucky but we will be back! Oh and Rico was awesome tonight!

Haha no i heard that too. But for those who think pearson should go, you need to have a serious word, some of the EL speedway at times is so boring its unreal yet he does his best to make it interesting even if it means telling lies by saying things like 'great speedway' when it was actually very tedious! Tatum on the other hand Now put Pearson alongside Sid Waddell with Louis and Charlie in the pits, and we are talking a team!

I can think of a number but she isnt one just yet! She clearly came into her role as someone who knew little about the sport but is obviously doing her homework and she is improving. She will get better and personally i have nothing against her, infact i have seen and heard much worse. People like her who are new in their roles need time so yes get off her back, but she still needs a lot of time in the job! Mmm i wouldnt say all the riders in fact most of the senior guys like Leigh Adams and Crumpy look really uncomfortable when being interviewed by her as they know that some of the questions she asks arent particularly good. But again she is improving, she just needs time!

Do you not think this is a massive step backwards? Lets think back to what Rob Lyon has been saying about giving the youngsters a chance and building for the future! The bottom line is that we are not going to win this world cup! If we do anything but finish last tonight in my opinion we will have had a successful world cup. Rico deserves to come in based on his performances this season. But your comments about inexperienced riders and pressure is a little strange. King, Bridger, Kennett and Woffy have all raced in competitions such as the British Final and U21 events as well as Grand Prix qualifiers where there is pressure. The only way these guys will get experience is do be thrown in and told to just ride their bikes. Now i have nothing against Scotty but despite the last couple of weeks his form has been awful this season and he wont be much better if at all then our younger guys. My team for tonight would be... 1. Rico 2. Lewis 3. Bomber 4. Tai 5. King

Tai has been performing fairly well in Poland where has Ed hasnt, but then Lewis only scored 6 why isnt he mentioned in this discussion as the one to give way, especially as in Poland he has done very little this season! However Rico for Ed would be my only change!

I honestly do understand the sense in Rico but the guy is nearly 30 and aint going to get any better now, he had his best chance a few years ago and didnt do a lot. If GB are going to be successful in the future in world cups etc, we need the youngsters to be riding in the GP series. Its nothing against Rico he is a top bloke and if it were between him and Scotty for the wc, well there is no choice, if Rico had gotten in through the qualifiers fair play but the future is the likes of Sayfudtinov, Ward, Holder, Woffinden and co. So i would hope the FIM look at how the russian has performed this year and give the younger guys a go!

Dont get me wrong i agree that there are riders out there from other nations that probably do deserve a wc ahead of the young brits, but i just think the FIM may opt to have 2 brits like the past few seasons and given that i cant see Scott or Rico getting it, it could well be young Tai or Eddy. Tai especially has picked up his form on the continent well in Poland at least and IF he wins the world u21s i think he has a good chance at being offered it! Also talking of how they did in the qualifiers i believe Chris Holder went out very early last season but still got offered a wc (although he turned it down). But hey until the final gp qualifier, world cup and world u21s have been raced as well as the world champs who knows?

There is no way that at least one Brit wont be in the series! It would make bad commercial sense for the FIM! I agree neither of our Brits this season will make it, but i think Bomber will be in it next season either by qualifying through the final qualifier or as a wildcard. I also think we may get a second rider in through the wildcards! Tai or Eddy i believe will be offered a wildcard.

I believe Nicholls is still captain so will he not still be there in a 'non riding' capacity?

I would like to thank Rob Lyon for actually doing the right thing for the future of british speedway. I was quite shocked to see Danny King in, as i thought Rico might have got the nod. However im delighted that he is giving the youngsters a go. Bottom line is we aren't going to win the world cup this year, or next for that matter so give these guys the experience now and we will find out if they are good enough or will be good enough in the future. It irritates me when i hear kelvin tatum saying things like "theres a lack of experience there". How are these guys supposed to get it? Other countries give the young lads a go so im glad we are, it wouldnt surprise me to see young Darcy line up for the Aussies for example! Nicholls hasnt been good enough and i do expect to see Rico come in for Leszno (as long as we get there) probably for either King or Bridger. However i wouldnt bring Nicholls in! All in all well done Mr Lyon!