TotallyHonestJohn

Honestly You couldn't make this up.... NEWSPEED 2003 LTD the company behind your beloved Speedway team Newcastle Diamonds are going into Liquidation Yep that's right liquidation; I bet when Rob Grant bought out the club from the old promotion he didn't reckon on this "Pan of Pony" As a sponsor I have had the heads up and I was asked what I wanted to do with regard to my sponsorship monies I have paid and I have (of course) just asked to "let it ride" for the next season we run as Rob has apparently started a new company called Newcastle Diamonds Limited... I would assume this offer will be the same for season ticket holders who will be offered either their cash back as a refund or given the opportunity to let them role over for the next full season we have; with not only the new promotion but a whole new company. More on this later... It is the Liquidators duty and role to look after creditors of the old business and a report will be going into the London Gazette (I think its called) which identifies the company and the reasons as to why they have been liquidated' and what happens next. Now I cant go into to much detail yet as everyone is being diplomatic and not giving much away when I have asked for further information and there are of course the "Libel Laws" to consider; however it would appear that in the operating and day to day running of the club it was brought to Rob's attention that there was a bit of an anomaly (so to speak) in the previous accounts and HMRC wanted a word. When this "anomaly" was explained to the new owner he had no other option but to fold the old business to protect himself and his good name; however I am expecting certain people to be interviewed from our friends at HMRC and possibly under caution... You can see the NEWSPEED 2003 LTD accounts on line on the Companies House web site... I am certainly not a happy chappie for various reasons but I bet Rob Grant is bouncing... So remember the old tag line and in "whom" we were asked to put our trust in... looks like they have left an absolute mess financially. But never mind I have the fullest confidence in Rob and his team to pull this around but after all the rhetoric from the previous promotion it certainly leaves a bad taste in the mouth that's for sure... and especially after I was called worse than a pick-pocket by one or two of them and their cronies only for 1. to be not only proved right to what I was saying but 2. totally exonerated after pumping thousands into their pockets when I thought I was helping the club it looks like I have been funding other things not always speedway related. What a shower I for one am totally behind Grant and his new regime; its a breath of fresh air compared to the previous lot... Its maybe a good thing that swear words aren't allowed on here as the whole post would have been redacted... Once again it looks like I am the harbinger of doom and gloom however its isn't that bad for the club as a whole as Rob Grant is doing an awful lot of positive work behind the scenes.. "What for" I am not sure but fair play to the new promotion for sticking with it as they could have just pulled up sticks and walked away cutting their losses... Regards THJ

With Jenga haunting everywhere else on the Forum...

Ginger....

Honestly Just like Pavel "Ivan was a Geordie" Regards THJ

Honestly Funny that as it's the second time in 24 hours ave heard a holliday anecdote about the spot... last night in a pub in Maryport one of the locals said to his girlfriend soon as this Covid carry on was finished "we'll gan LA lass soon as lock down is owa" so I said "That's nice taking ya girlfriend to America for a holiday have ya been before" he said "America? A was talkin aboot tekin a Lang Allonby Marra not fekin Los Angeles do ya think am med of money" apparently it is a big deal to get a Twentymans Ice Cream... and that is a true story... Romance is alive and well in Cumbria like eh.... Regards THJ

Dunno about that Geoff I've been well looked after in Maryport... Regards THJ

Dave has got a big house in Titley Bay he could do a Gary Lineker and put a few up... Although I did here that he was coming back from a meeting at Kings Lynn a couple of years back and coming round the end of the M18 from Hull where it meets with the A1M Dave passed a refugee on the motorway and the guy was eating the grass just off the hard shoulder and up the banked side of the road... So Dave being a good Samaritan pulled over and asked the guy what he was doing and the guy said "I am a poor refugee from "Iraqistan" and I have nowhere to go" Dave said "that's awful if you have nowhere to stay you must come home with me" the fellow immediately ran up the bank and whistled and 35 other refugees came over the top of the banking and he said "my family" Dave said "whoa lad hold ya horse's how big do you think my lawn is?" True story that (cough cough) absolute gent Wor Dave... Regards THJ

Listen... Am sorry to break even more bad news... in fact a should have told everyone yesterday but a was busy... so this lock down thing has pipped me a bit on the news front but never mind... So here goes... ONLY 99 DAYS TO CHRISTMAS.... YEAH.... WHOOP WHOOP.... SANTA IS COMING.... GET IN... I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it I'm about to lose control and I think I like it... Yeah... as The Pointer Sisters once said... Get in eh!!! 99 days... bring it on... Regards THJ

Not sure Ruff!!! Sorry... but again its privately owned so there would be a lot of hoops to jump through if it was to go forward... however the council have said they wouldn't be to upset if that's were they went ultimately... so having the council on-side is a big plus... where as they wouldn't support an application for the Siemens site I don't think.... but this is just one of several sites I believe Rob has looked at... Regards THJ

I am led to believe the site is the last patch of ground as you go through Seaton Burn on the B1318 to the A19 roundabout on the left hand side that picks up on the A1 southbound slip road; sort of between the two large roundabouts... however; and again this is one of the problems... this land does not belong to the council it belongs to a third party so there are a mountain of issues and I would suggest you are right in that the test drilling will have nothing to do with the Speedway... although it does give some idea as to the type of sites that Rob is looking at/for.... How very dare you... No I would go to Speedway again... just not in Snuderland... there isn't enough Dettol to wash in to get the stink off after a visit and to be fair there is always Northside... That's official... definitely unofficial... Regards THJ

Here goes.... av got a phone book down the back of me pants... Forget the Siemens site it won't happen... not as long as you have a hole in your posterior... you don't get a licence to create noise... when you apply for planning you tell people what you will be doing and they either put up with it or object... the council will consider whether the noise is acceptable or not and base it on the amount of objections they recieve... and may uphold the objections... it's complicated but again once you start the process there could be post objections then you run the risk of abatement orders that may be applied... Honestly forget Siemens... far to close to housing and difficult to suppress noise, smell and dirt... Rob Grant has been very open and honest as to what his options are and where he is at with various local authorities... he has always stated that he wants to run as a "training track"/"practice track" during the week to generate funds so the noise could be daily not just three hours on a Sunday... (Or Monday) What also needs to be noted is that it won't be a Stadium... you wouldn't call the Redcar or Scunthorpe venues Stadiums they are "Motor Parks" or "Raceways" not Stadiums like the NSS in Manchester... where ever the club ends up think Redcar and Scunthorpe... Not Brough Berwick Ashfield Sheffield NSS and the likes where there are fixed stands and a Stadium format... it won't be the new Brough Park to start with it will be the original New Rough Park... and possibly quite basic... however it will be a new home offering security and longevity for the club and the promotion has to start somewhere... he's called Grant not Abramovich... monies will be tight the first few years I would suggest... So where to... and the outskirts of the city are where we will end up without a doubt... and again Granty has been open with what his options currently are... on the outskirts of Newcastle a couple of sites have been mentioned and met with positivity from Newcastle Authority... these sites are located near Throckley and Seaton Burn... North Tyneside are looking at a couple of more sites with one on the A19 tunnel approach and one or two more out on the coast... although they are struggling with the site size requirement and a site in Gateshead towards Kibblesworth through a Farmer that Rob knows... again it needs to be remembered that the local authority may not own the land... it may be farmland or land owned by a third party but the whole process is a complicated one... this can't be stressed enough... You have to empathise with Rob Grant and his promotional team though surely in these wretched times with this poxy Covid coming along when it did... he bought the club and was late to the party but managed to pull a team together and then wham Covid kicked in... lock down.. and Granty and his team don't get to turn a wheel in anger for a whole season... then the Dogs through ARC start getting a bit bolshie after he has pumped money into the track... it has certainly been a tough start to his promotional career for sure.... If (when) we get to move and wherever it is I hope we draw in some new fans... I know it will be hard to move but we won't be the first side to find a new home and sure some folk will take the losing of Brough Park hard and as the last straw but if you want a viable club it could be the only option the promotion have and I'm sure these decisions won't be taken lightly but if you want to watch Speedway then a change could be imminent and the only answer... Good luck to the promotion and hopefully every one will see the issues with Brough and get behind what the promotion are having to do to ensure the future of the sport in the region... As long as we don't end up in Snuderland cos a couldn't bring me self to go there.... anywhere but Mackum land... Regards THJ

Fresh off Twitter... breaking news!!! Joe Appleton has posted the followng NEWCASTLE owner Rob Grant has provided a fresh update on the club’s search for a new stadium site. Meetings with local council next week. A long-term lease necessary. Plans to base structural ideas on tracks like Redcar and Scunthorpe. So there ya go.a bit of good news for a change... Regards THJ

Never say never as the guy running Northside has some great ideas and even more ambition (and all the shale off DP) it wouldn't take much to lay a another track at the back of the training track and run a National League team... Regards THJ

His Grandad isn't Ozzie and mum Kelly by any chance? Av not seen the Osborne's for a while... Regards THJ

Hello Singy me old pal... how you doing in these Covid impacted times... hope you are well and all the family are good too... now Shielding has been lifted I hope your not doing to much socialising as it's still not fully safe yet... but we will get there. On your question and mine for that matter on the NSSG... well I doubt I will get an answer on here however after doing some digging I found out the craic... The NSSG is run by a young lady and I will withhold her name to be poite and the handle NSSG refers "I believe" to the group she updates on Facebook that has over 1500 followers... and where she keeps the more modern "Facebook set" up to date with the latest happenings at the club... Apparently she does a lot of hard work promoting the club on Facebook and other forms of electronic media and works on the commercial interests of the club... so kudos there on what she is trying to do as it's a thankless task... So the group is an electronic one rather than a physical one run like a fan club... and I will stand corrected if I am wrong... There were one or two other things raised re: the NSSG... but out of deference I will keep my own council on those... It may be more helpful if she chose a different name or used a different non de plume on the Forum as it can get confusing and some comments can be misconstrued in there context in; or to; a response... (if that makes sense) Never mind a might start me own supporters trust over here... have to see what happens or what the interest is like... but I won't be on that Facebook thing any time soon... Finally I definitely miss my Saturday nights at Derwent Park.. an I even had a "toby" around Northside on Saturday just to see what it was lookin like but there was nothing on unfortunately and the place was locked up... Never mind singy one day maybe and hopefully soon we might see a Comet fly high again... Regards THJ

Why? You expecting an outbreak of Dickies? (head lice for the posher folk) Regards THJ

Well if I knew they were doing requests how about the 2009 PREMIER LEAGUE PROMOTION PLAY-OFFS and the meeting on FRIDAY OCTOBER 9th 2009: which was the SEMI-FINAL 2ND LEG of the competition which ended up Edinburgh 52 Newcastle 43 (Agg: 93-93) and the meeting went to an exciting sudden-death Golden Heats match decider. This was I believe the first ever time Golden Heats had been used and unfortunately (for me anyway) the result went the wrong way. Would love to see that one again... Also it was the first time that season that I had seen the Diamonds loose in all my travels that year... Regards THJ

Aye but as ever it will turn out nice again won't it... Regards THJ

So where are they all on a Speedway night... you get 1500 fans through the door and we are running in the Premiership rather than the Championship... Oh and any further forward on me request for information? Regards THJ

Good Morning NSSG As you previously mentioned last night that everything is hard work; therefore so as not to undermine your hard work and not give you to much to do please be advised I have recalled my email to save you the effort of clicking on it to access it or reading it which will give you more rest time before you start the real hard work of typing out another post to stick on Facebook... after all I thought my emailed suggestions were going to "The Management" or "The Promotion" not a Supporters Group as I was under the impression the request came from them rather than the NSSG... However following your post last night you have spiked my interest and I would be grateful if you could find the time in your busy schedule to answer a few questions for me please... First off if one wanted to become a member of the Newcastle Speedway Supporters Group (NSSG) how would one go about this? as I have not seen anything advertised anywhere (unless its on Facebook and as advised I am not on; nor can I have access to; that medium) and I was a former fully paid up member of the Newcastle Diamonds Fan Club both as a Junior and Full Member in the past... So following on from that how much is membership of the NSSG and who do I need to contact to be a member? When does the membership year run from and to; is it January to January or the regular speedway season? Does the NSSG have a Charter? what are they trying to achieve? and what do they do with the funds they raise? and how do they raise funds? and how many current members do the NSSG have... Who is the Chair Person of the NSSG? furthermore who is the Secretary and Treasurer of the group? Are the NSSG a voluntary or non-profit-making organisation and do they follow good auditing practices? Do they have their accounts audited and do they make them available to members to see where the members monies are being used? Is there a process for advising members as to where their monies are being spent? do the club promotion make requests to the NSSG for support? Are any of the Promotion/Management involved in running the NSSG or are the NSSG fully independent of the Promotion/Management? What benefits do NSSG members get once they become a member? Just a few questions I would be grateful for a response to before I consider becoming a member as you will appreciate having open and honest communication leads more quickly to a mutual understanding and respect for a difference in views, interests and needs. ... Simply put, being open and honest builds a sense of self-worth. It is about being moral, truthful to yourself and with others. However stating all that I am not sure if I would want to be a member of something that had me as a member... something for me to consider I suppose... however if you could take some time out of your very busy schedule that you work very hard at and recognising your hard work I would be most humbly grateful if you could give me some answers to my questions... Regards THJ

Oh get me the "Aloe Vera" av just been burned by the NSSG... aaarrrggghhhhh!!! Honestly If you posted information on the Newcastle Speedway Website first, which is where most people look and have free access to, and give them the gist of what's going on or tell them where on Facebook (with a link) they might be able to find your additional information... instead of wapping it on your little clique(y) group on Facebook then you wouldn't get posts on here which maybe are at cross purposes... Information for the masses please... or you can do the "Secret Squirrel" routine aka like the last promotions "modus operandi" and leave people to find out what's going on through the rumor mill... your choice of course... yes? By the way... most of your first paragraph is spot on but totally contradicts what you say you are trying to achieve... also in the last line am I to assume you are part of the management? And can I ask when has anyone from the management run a supporters group... don't tell Mike Ashley or he will be putting Lee Charnley onto the Newcastle Supporters Trust Committee.... So after everything you state in the first paragraph on how no one has Facebook you tell us in the second one this is your best medium of contacting fans... Yes? Well who are you contacting then if no one is on Facebook... then you state it helps you make decisions as a club again this infers that you are part of the management or promotion so how can you make impartial decisions as a supposed supporters group if you are part of the management... Then finally you state all your hard work is being undermined... what hard work? Typing up a post and sticking it on here or on Facebook... wow... hard work that like... ya must be knackered... one post yesterday and one today on Facebook and a post on here... Wow... should take a lie down... Tell ya what a don't want to wear you out so when a get in the office tomorrow I will recall my email so you don't have to read that... I would hate to be responsible for you suffering occupational burnout syndrome... And yes it's a thing according to the World Health Organization (WHO), "occupational burnout" is a syndrome resulting from chronic work-related stress, with symptoms characterized by "feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; increased mental distance from one's job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one's job; and reduced professional efficacy... Sound familiar... Yes?... then ya doing to much hard work... And yes still laughing my toggle off... Regards THJ

If it belongs to Ridley it will be getting houses built on it for sure it's all he's about these days... however in my email to the club today I proposed a site in Cramlington between the Banks open cast site and Nelson industrial estate... Your Dean can drive man ya not thinking reet... Regards THJ

Good guy Nick Brown and I know him from way back in his council days and no pun intended he's as straight as the day is long... he is a politician who is true to his word and if he said he would help he would do just that... one of the very few... On that Facebook thing Steve... I can't see the relevant post without logging in or creating an account and not that I would want to anyway but I can't at present due to my job... It may work for others but I have just had it sent encrypted so I have now read both posts... Still laughing... Regards THJ By the way and just for information. . Not Everyone Is On Facebook.... and certainly not all of the demographic at this Speedway Club that's for sure...

Hahahaha LMFAO The Newcastle Speedway Supporters Group have posted on their Facebook group within the last hour the latest sites they have looked at which include Seaton Burn Gateshead and Wylam to name but a few... Steve Park may be able to set up a link... Wonder if they got my email today with my suggested sites on? Regards THJ Oh... and there was a one on yesterday apparently asking "how far would you travel to watch Speedway" FFS why does the Supporters Group assume everyone has Facebook.... Well I used to go to to all of the away meetings when I could so as long as it's not the moon (Or Sunderland) am in... and I reckon Tsunami, Ruff, Terrace Grumbler, ArsonFire, Pienpeesman and anyone else with a car would say the same... Regards THJ

Cash will be the problem and getting council backing... in the late 40's the 50's and early 60's when Speedway was second only to Football for crowd attendances it wouldn't have been an issue... but now... getting enough cash and local council support will be very difficult I reckon.. and it won't be a stadium... no NSS or Gateshead Stadium... more Gateshead Tip... An some French bloke screwed the other plan a had up me sleeve when he won the euro lottery last night... Regards THJ