crescent girl

Today's blog by the marvellous (I wish I could write as well as he does) George Dodds in "The Dirt Extra" on Bandits' website has opened the question of what it means to "support" the club. Drawing attention to the launch of the Berwick Speedway Supporters Club -- the new, officially-backed organisation with firm views on where funds raised in the name of "supporting" the club should be channeled -- he reminds us how the club has come so dangerously close to closure twice in the past three years and that monies raised in the name of supporting our Bandits should be used for just that -- securing the future of Berwick speedway. Let's get together, let's make it happen!

What other Wednesday tracks?

.....and only FIVE DAYS left to buy them at the bargain-basement offered price, folks!

So how many signatures have you received to date?

Agree 100% Every time the 'big league' gets in trouble, they lure clubs who were running successfully 'up' and put them to the sword.

Garcia and Castagna are both younger than Ben Hopwood

Maybe the supporters club could have a 'cretin of the month' award over the winter months, and help him out?

Nice words from NBJ on rejoining the Bandits: "It’s the first club I’ve ridden for in England where I felt everyone standing together! I was so gutted when I was made aware the club would be up for sale. I felt 100% I’d go back again for next year. Luckily enough Jamie rang me a little while later and told me he would make sure the club runs in 2019 and if I’d be interested in coming back he would be more than happy to sign me again!" "We made a major climb up the table this year, and with pretty much the same team we are capable of climbing even further up! I want to be a part of a winning team and that’s why I choose Berwick again! Even David Howe, my team mate this year will now step in as my mechanic. With an experienced man like him to give me that right advice . I feel more motivated than ever, not only for myself but also to give the club the success it deserves!”

Leon Madsen runs the risk of being caught cheating, of course

Which is the magic of speedway, because we can still recall the absolute fizz, buzz, whatever we got from Trownson's race nearly half a century ago and Warwick's over a decade back -- and others, at other times -- as they did the absolute impossible at Shielfield on summer Saturday nights, long, long ago. Another fifty years? Why not? Let's get behind the club, the promotion and see who they can beat, against all odds..........

Not like in the old days, eh? Peter Collins with Rochdale, Dave Jessup with Eastbourne, John Louis with Ippo and Phil Crump with Crewe, all coming to Shielfield and giving Bandits' raw youngsters of the day a good going-over. But folk piled in to just watch these great riders in action. Then there was the total mis-match of former World Champ Gary Havelock arriving with Redcar and having to go out to wipe the floor with Bandits' fresh-out-the-NL #7 Danny Warwick...... Oh, wait.......

Yeah, he's one of them all right......

To quote Mandy Rice-Davies............

Bloody hell! How thick can you get?

The overspend might have come in part from naively paying full-time staff, and even race-day helpers, for doing work that had traditionally previously been happily undertaken by volunteers.

Only one way to find out.........

Didn't Bomber ride for St Austell in the Amateur/Conference League while he was 15?

Club Facebook page promising a fair bit of news on Sunday - team building and team manager on the agenda among other stuff...

It was 42.5. Ryan came in after Luke Chessell bailed out at a late stage

There is no suggestion, other than in a random question tossed out by Taffy, that Berwick are going to demand £20, or any other figure this year. There has been no statement, on any matter, by the promotion, nor will there be before Sunday evening.

I think that question -- based, as you say on helping speedway survive -- is being asked the wrong way. Yes, a fair admission price for a night of Championship speedway might be around £16/17, as at the majority of CL tracks. But to ask everyone to pay £20 for the same meeting to help a speedway survive is quite different. The concept of a Trust, such as they have at Hearts, etc, is that concerned supporters who might feel they can afford it do pay more, in the way of a weekly/monthly subscription to the Trust, not at the turnstile.

Where is all this £20 coming from? Unlikely anywhere in current times -- BUT whatever Jamie's got planned, the way to find out is to hit the B&G on Sunday at five o'clock........

Edward Kennett would be reduced too.

Maybe we'll learn more on December 9th. Maybe Jamie will reveal why we're awaiting team news, which might be influenced by finance. Maybe more investment = bigger budget = better riders. Maybe no news is currently good news. And maybe the Cornhill Cretin (cue screams of horror at my choice of noun) will give it a rest?

Hunters would be a nod to the great past of speedway in Leicester