Andy Downes

1990/1991 close season was the beginning of the end of my love affair with speedway. As a NL fan, it was decimated by the Stewkesbury Plan and within 2 years, Milton Keynes, Mildenhall, Wimbledon and my own beloved Hackney had all bitten the dust. Apart from a few matches during the London Lions season of '96, i haven't regularly attended since and living just outside Bristol as I do now, I probably never will again, merely following the sport through this site and the updates for results.

Think something similar happened to Jamie Luckhurst at Canterbury

Think something similar happened to Jamie Luckhurst at Canterbury

Just tried to enter site via their last newsletter dated 28/1/2025 - that seemed to work OK If you're really stuck, PM me and i'll send you the newsletter

Reider Replacement???

No, it gives the outward appearance of wanting to be a trendy fun city but they only seem interested in building houses and more houses. A few years ago they looked at building a much needed large concert hall/sports venue (10,000+) by Temple Meads Station but changed at the last moment to housing. They have closed down the Ice Rink and show no interest in helping Bristol Rovers build a new ground to replace the antiquated Memorial Grounds. The plan to move the Basketball team to a new stadium has been put back again to 2025

Bristol Council - appalling record regarding closing sports and entertainment facilities and failing to replace them

Plymouth was in the West of England last time I checked ...

sorry but no rider who gave his life for our sport and entertainment should ever be forgotten

was arguable an even greater Kestrel; the team captain when I started to follow the sport in 1980 and probably skippered Crayford in more matches than any other rider. He had seen his best days before my arrival but was still capable of some good performances at London Rd.

Sorry for being a bit of a pedant here, Crayford Stadium was replaced by a much smaller Greyhound Only stadium, with about 75% of the land being sold to Sainsbury's. Absolutely no way of shoe-horning a track in there, in fact many of the dog owners complain the track is too small

Ah the 65-12 against Worky.... trying to remember which Kestrel it was who finished a heat with a flat tyre but kept the 5-1's going ... or is old age playing tricks with the old memory.

Martin Goodwin at Arena Essex 1984. I remember Martin as a junior at Crayford in 1980 - very hairy style(if you could call it that) and although a member of the Crayford junior team that year, there was nothing to suggest he could step up to NL reserve; if anybody looked likely, it was a lad named Tony Brooks but he sadly never made it. Martin disappeared from the Crayford scene from 1981 to 1983 before resurfacing at Arena as a 3.00 reserve and ended the season as a heat leader and went on to be the foil for Neil Middleditch/Andrew Silver before becoming the main man himself. I remember being told by a notorious story-teller (so probably true!) at the time that he asked to come for a trial at Hackney in '84 but was advised to try his luck at Arena. If he had had a trial, I'm sure he would have being given the reserve spot instead of Mark Terry and who knows, we may have finished higher than 4th that year.

I remember Billy Lellmann riding a challenge match at Hackney and he looked pretty decent - I heard he left as he was homesick

There was a meeting at the London Arena in winter 1990 (or 91, can't remember the exact date) - another former London Speedway venue that's bitten the dust. Seem to remember there was a problem halfway through - could have been a leaking roof but the memory is too hazy - hopefully someone out there can remind us more about that day