Sings4Speedway

Not sure how much longer the promotion or fans will tolerate this? I understand and accept that riders have jobs but for planned fixtures arrangements should be made. Twice a season unavailable perhaps but twice a month? Think the Cradley big hitting heat leaders will all find double figures but who else will chip in? Kings Lynn are a strength in depth side so i think this will make a very interesting match this evening.

Is Kingston working again or still getting over his crash? Would be a bit alarming if he cannot get the time off again?

All seems very quiet from Stoke regarding the reserve situation? Was Millar dropped & MacDonald refusing to ride in support? Have they both been given the boot? Doesn't sound like the two brought in were the answer either (although everyone will struggle against Brum). Alarm bells must be ringing in the Potteries.

Got it (i think) "Guest in PL" is the key piece of the wording. For once it appears that the rules are there (just badly written).

On the Rye site it lists Bowen & Hopwood as the Brum guests which could point to a hammering. Woods is definitely out with Banks in and Bowdrey still recovering from injury means a baptism of fire for Macauley Leek. Also a humorous comment about other clubs wanting Locke for guest bookings........must be some teams who want to practice replacing their air fence panels.

Just had a look at the green sheets and noticed the number of riders that are not eligible to guest in the NL this year. Can it be right or am i misreading them somewhere? As it stands NEG PLR Not Eligible to Guest as NL only Guest in PL, as rider declared in PL 1-7 Matt Williamson Lee Payne Zach Wajtknecht Tom Perry Darryl Ritchings Liam Carr Max Clegg Danny Ayres Nathan Greaves Josh Bailey Ben Morley Danny Phillips NEG Not Eligible to Guest as NL only Guest in PL as has achieved 4.00 or above in PL Adam Ellis Kyle Hughes James Cockle Luke Bowen Dave Mason Luke Clifton Jon Armstrong Ben Wilson Tony Atkin If this is the case then guest options are very limited this year......

Very much so because if im reading them right there are hardly any eligible guests for heat leaders this year?

Green sheets have Bowen as not eligible to guest in NL however im sure he has had one guest booking already? That said it also has Carr & Ayres down as not eligible who have also taken guest bookings? Is the sheet wrong or am i going crazy this late in the day?

TBC? Have Stoke lost faith with Millar already? I know he was my tip to be dropped first but didn't expect it that quickly!

Good spot. Also green sheets have Harvie Banks in the 1-5 so im guessing Woods has been given the push? Not an inspired replacement but he cant do any worse!

That will be a huge miss for Birmingham even if both are not particular fans of Rye House? Depending on the guest it would clearly give Rye the upped hand with the heat leaders as i suspect it will have to be RR(grr) for Perry. Even so the strength in depth should take care of the long wild and mechanically unreliable Raiders tail. In a brilliant twist Priest will be riding for Brum at Stoke the day before...........

Looking at the latest averages with all the Ispwich riders in the top 5 upping their aves it really does give very few options to replace Paco. Even Branford on 3.40 is too high i think? Turns out i cannot read the small print properly did think it was peculiar! Konopka would fit but i think he has had enough chances. If changes are made it might have to be for another NL 3 pointer. The Greenwoods both have PL experience, local lads Mountain or Kinsley are in good form as is number 8 Hume. As a supporter i would rather see a rider gain experience for next year and return on a flat 3 or just over rather than an overseas rider who would have to return on a 5.

Other than wrecking the averages and deciding the result of several meetings before they have begun have the FTR changes actually helped in any way? Its pretty common knowledge that the FTR rates of pay were ignored in the first season they were introduced and i cannot see any reason why that is not still the case now. In addition heatleaders will know their points will be harder to come by this season so any with half a brain will have been asking for enhanced deals. Have the halfwits in heir attempts to cut costs actually driven up the cost of running an EL team?

I think its Buxton that are missing a trick here. £12-13 seems to be the going rate for NL speedway these days (although i think it should be £10 across the board) but as posted above most places are free for children under 12 and some up to under 15. Not sure how you would get on putting your children on each others shoulders and employing the long coat technique? In all seriousness im very surprised Buxton operate this way in regards to children charging as they come across as a down to earth family friendly club.

Glad the Island got their first "proper" meeting off and running. Whilst the dust sounds like an opening night issue the lack of dirt could be a concern over the season? Tough for them to come up against a very in form Kent as an opener and im sure better results will come. The middle order riders will all deliver better points tallys than they achieved last night and the reserves should develop a home advantage. The season will swing on how Compton performs but i still think this can be a decent mid table side.

Depending on who tunes the engines and how hard they raced a service is required anywhere from 30-50 races. If there are no issues in between then an engine can last a lifetime hence old Goddens & Westlakes still in existence however if the engine blows up during a race it could be terminal. Ive seen engines blow holes in the casings etc and with such damage that they are not financially viable to repair. As for tyres they will be ruined by the end of a meeting. Clutch plates will vary due to the compounds but a couple of meetings as a rule but longer for the alloy plates. As a general rule a speedway bike spends it life trying to shake itself to pieces via the vibrations and stresses it puts through itself and require constant maintenance.

Sadly i think the tie will be over after the meeting on saturday night. Adam Ellis, Wood & Knight will probably fill their boots and if the reserves remain steady should score decently too as Parker has some speed to find and i suspect its too early for Bebee to be thrown in. If Perks kicks in early it could be a massacre. Not sure how the two Connors go around Arlington but i can only see the real resistance coming from Halsey & Armstrong and neither are a match for Ellis. On Sunday Mildenhall should provide a sterner test as they look a lot more solid at home providing they dont prepare a stupid track. Although Eastbourne have a good guest in Blacklock who may well top the score charts but i will go for a 48-42 home win but Eastbourne safely through to the next round.

Feel sorry for the Colts riders. Should have been an exciting opportunity for them all signing to ride at a state of the art stadium with a top notch track and a decent home advantage. Currently that are sat around getting rusty as meeting after meeting goes by the wayside and haven't even been out on their own track yet.

My 50p is on IOW next........

Think the big difference this weekend is that Kent are aiming for another win whilst Eastie are aiming to avoid another defeat. Whilst it certainly doesn't decide the season for each team a home defeat for Eastbourne would set alarm bells ringing whilst an away defeat for Kent would be no particular hardship. Danny Ayres might be a little sluggish but i suspect Jamie on the spanners will be feeling worse. Its a fair shout although im not sure how easy it is to check two bikes in as hand luggage

From the Buxton website THE club have been hit hard by the news that the BSPA have not issued the relevant licences to our skipper Jade Mudgway which prevented him taking his place at Birmingham on Wednesday. Despite Jade becoming a British Citizen and having official confirmation of his status the speedway authorities have refused him permission to ride until he is in possession of his British passport. This has obviously hit the club hard especially as we had been led to believe that he would be allowed to ride whilst his application was being processed. At the eleventh hour we were told this was not now the case and were left no alternative other than to operate the r/r facility at Birmingham. We are currently considering our options and will issue any further news as soon as possible.

I fully accept that most riders do/should work as well and that time off at short notice for rearranged fixtures is not always possible. However riders do also represent the club and therefore the fans and as such should take the responsibilities that go with signing on seriously.

Funnily enough ive just had a rant on a NL thread about the very same thing. RR gets up my nose. It slows the flow of meetings down and is often abused by teams. Limit it to twice at home and twice away to cover for late notice withdrawals then use unattached guests (within that league i.e NL riders for PL) to cover. Teams can shuffle the order if they like and put a reserve in for the missing rider and then the NL rider at reserve or whatever. Whilst they may not score the first time out they will gain experience and improve for later appearances. Lets not forget that next season there is a chance teams will be on the lookout for 3 pointers again so makes sense to build contacts and assess ability levels early.

The MDL is chock full of riders who are unattached and champing at the bit to get a ride. They may or may not score the first time out but if they continue getting bookings they can only learn and improve. Lets not forget next year teams will be looking for these 3 pointers again so why not develop an association early? As for rider availability i agree that this is a rearranged fixture but Phillips knew he was signed up over the winter and therefore should have avoided booking holidays within the season. You will find most others don't (with the exception of Aaron Baseby obviously).

Doesn't really bother me if its Harris or Phillips at reserve and in fairness i doubt many Kent fans will be that bothered either. As rule manipulation goes its relatively small fry. What does irk me is RR in the NL. Its abused by some, slows up the flow of the meeting and wastes an opportunity for a rider on the fringes to get some NL experience. I know i sound like a stuck record but limit RR to twice at home and twice away to cover for genuine short notice instances. Then book and use an unattached 3 pointer / clubs number 8 for the remainder. Fans complain of disjointed meetings, clubs complain about lack of track time/experience for progressing riders and yet the RR rule remains in place.