Arch Stanton

Of course it isn't. You've been boasting the "fact" that more people have been going through the turnstiles this season compared to last, but now you've decided to up the ante and declare that more people have gone through the turnstiles this season than any of the last THREE Elite league seasons. With the lower running costs of PL, i'm quite willing to go with the suggestion that the club have had a better financial year this year than the last three EL seasons, but more people through the gate? Behave!!

I'm not having that one!!

To be fair the question was previous seasonS, not last season. If you are talking about comparing this season on the whole compared to a window between August and October last year then the crowds this season are favourable. However, and this is my opinion based on how I saw the attendances, the Elite league crowds prior to August last year held up superbly despite the team being both shockingly bad and mind-numbingly boring to watch. When it became a mathematical certainty that the only position Ipswich could finish would be bottom (It looked that way from March!!), The crowd disappeared totally leaving only a few hundred on the terraces during the closing months of the season. Indeed, far worse than anything seen this year. But for such an entertaining team this year who managed a creditable third in the league, winning the majority of home matches handsomely, the crowd levels it has to be said have been disappointing. Chris Louis himself mentioned on radio Suffolk a few weeks ago, that one of the few disappointments of this year was the way the crowds dipped after it was known that Ipswich couldn't win the title.

I agree that a few people need to calm down a little here! Brian Havelock made comments that a club other than his own had thrown "silly money" at Rohan Tungate which led to one Redcar supporter to make the assumption he could be "Ipswich bound". That snowballed and led to others saying a deal between Ipswich and Tungate was nearly done and dusted. Nick Morris is a highly sought after young rider who a lot of Ipswich fans have written down on their wishlist for next season. So have many other fans of other clubs. All this is pure speculation and has led to sniping from supporters of other clubs already who are accusing the club of trying to "buy the title", "cherry picking the best young talent", and generally having a bottomless pit of money to throw here there and everywhere!! All this based on pure speculation. Up to now, the club have signed one rider that came as no surprise to anyone, Cameron Heeps.

Interesting to see a couple of Elite league fat cats at the meeting. I think the ultimate ambition for Chris Louis is to move Ipswich back up to the Elite league, and Mildenhall up to the Premier league.

Cameron is already signed up for Ipswich. It certainly isn't a waste of time him coming over either. Foxhall will be his home track in the coming seasons and the lad will be putting plenty of laps in after meetings. It's all helpful experience for him and certainly isn't a waste of time. John and Chris Louis, and Jeremy Doncaster have already spent time helping him sinced he arrived only days ago.

Birmingham have definitely moved in to the Elite League taken the place of Ipswich who drop down a division.