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I think Leicester might be the ones to beat. I haven't seen a much better pairing than Nick Morris and Richie Worrall around Sandy Lane. Morris has also guested for Oxford, so knows the track well.

Glad you’ve finally realised this is an irrelevant conversation. Just a shame you had to mention it in the first place. I just hope that people reading this thread don’t take what you’re saying seriously. This forum has enough doom-mongers, without people having to bring negativity to a meeting that should be a huge success. What the promotion has done at Oxford has been amazing this season, and they don’t deserve outrageous comments such as yours.

Has he taken photos of every meeting you’ve been to in the last 43 years? Otherwise it makes that comment irrelevant.

No, but maybe you should go back and read your comments on this forum when the meeting was originally staged. You didn’t even mention about the dust until Shovlar did, and even then you commented about how it happens a lot, and was similar as a Leicester meeting you went to. The ‘43 years’ comment just makes you look a bit silly - at least it does to anybody who was actually there. We know the truth. Stop being deliberately negative and trying to put people off.

What absolute nonsense. I was at that meeting, and stood on the third bend, and it certainly wasn’t that bad. It was dusty, but nowhere near the worst meeting I’ve attended this season (Birmingham v Oxford) - let alone in all the years I’ve been going to speedway. To say it’s the worst you’ve seen in 43 years is just ridiculous.

Sun will be in your faces around bends 1 & 2 and the home straight, behind you bends 3 & 4

Line-ups Group A Leicester: Morris & Worrall Edinburgh: Masters & Pickering Glasgow: Cook & Basso Scunthorpe: Douglas & Lambert Birmingham: Sedgmen & Morris Group B Poole: King & Worrall Plymouth: Andersen & Barker (TBC) Berwick: Harris & Flint Oxford: Nicholls & Summers Redcar: Wright & Kerr

Despite his relatively modest return at Sandy Lane on Tuesday, I don't think you can fault Troy Batchelor's effort when he was behind in any of the races. Certainly seemed to give his all in trying to pass (or defend in some cases), especially in chasing Steve Worrall in heat 11. Can't comment on the away fixture, though.

Yeah, it's quite strange. Poole fans seem to see it as some sort of badge of honour. But, from what I'm hearing, Oxford are probably getting larger home attendances than Poole. Plus, I wouldn't say the number of Poole fans that visited Sandy Lane on Tuesday was the biggest we've seen. Think there were more visiting Plymouth fans for the league fixture, and.... almost as many Glasgow fans, who would have traveled well over 500 miles more on a round trip. Now that was impressive! Poole definitely the loudest, though.

I'd rather, 1) not travel as far if I didn't have to for live speedway, 2) not pay as much for tickets when I don't have to (must have been almost £15 cheaper), 3) give what money I do pay to my home promotion. I think it's important to support both teams when they are at home. If everybody had gone to Poole, those poor kids would have ridden in front of an empty stadium.

I'd imagine most Oxford fans who would have potentially made the trip to Poole normally, went to the Chargers meeting at Sandy Lane instead. That's exactly what I did. The Chargers have been getting good crowds (and good results), so I didn't want to miss it. Oxford also offered heavily discounted prices if you bought tickets to both meetings together (just £24 for both - kids free).

Absolutely, couldn't agree more. It's been a fantastic relaunch, but would have loved to see some merchandise for sale. I'd have happily bought some stuff. Jamie Courtney talked about the fact he was wearing the new club jacket when interviewed at the Plymouth meeting, I was then expecting to see some merch for sale on the site (or at the track) shortly afterwards, but nothing as yet.

If Oxford move up, then I'm sure Scotty would stay in the top league. He rides Sandy Lane well and would come in at a bargain average - win-win for both. It's a big IF though.

Incorrect. The result only stands IF a re-run can't be staged. Most promoters don't bother re-staging a league match if it reaches heat 10 (for obvious reasons), but the British Final can be re-staged, so the result of Monday becomes null and void. 'someone' (literally) posted the regulations yesterday, but here's the link again: http://www.scbgb.co.uk/regulations

So you're saying Chris Harris would have finished THIRD because didn't race either of them? I've heard it all now.

Yeah, but Harris beat Worrall, and Worrall beat Brennan. But then Brennan beat Nicholls and Harris didn't, it could go on forever. Couldn't agree more about the run-off, though. Would have been the perfect outcome, but I suspect the riders spent so long arguing over it in that little room that the track soon become too wet and it couldn't happen.

If the meeting had been declared after 12 heats, how can you possibly say that Tom Brennan would have been the logical winner? So, he beat Dan Bewley, but he didn't beat Chris Harris. Fine remove Bewley from the reckoning if you want, but the meeting would have to have been declared as joint winners (not the first time this would have happened in history). But that certainly wouldn't solve the Cardiff issue.

Or maybe Bewley will win it, and then they can just say there are no prizes for second place.

Adam Ellis has literally got the fourth highest average of all British riders in the Premiership this season (Premiership and League Cup only). Now, while I'm not sure he's 'deserving' of the wildcard spot based on his performance last night, it's hardly an outrage that he's got it - plus at just 26 he's hardly over the hill. Chris Harris (8.43) Steve Worrall (8.05) Charles Wright (7.95) Adam Ellis (7.78) Richie Worrall (7.22)

No surprises with the line-ups tonight. Nice to see two teams at full strength with all that's going on at the moment. Oxford Scott Nicholls Paul Starke Jack Thomas Aaron Summers Troy Batchelor Cameron Heeps Dillon Ruml Poole Steve Worrall Drew Kemp Danny King Ben Cook Richard Lawson Zach Cook Nathan Ablitt

If you want to hide behind the statement of fact argument, feel free. I can see now you're a Plymouth fan, who definitely isn't defending Ben Barker, but just stating some facts!

Nope, haven't got the wrong post. You're banging the 'innocent until proven guilty' drum of somebody who produced a 'non-negative' sample - i.e of somebody who had a banned substance in their system. It's not like a 'maybe it was' in his system, it 'was' in his system. I'm pretty sure that would construe a defence in most people's eyes.

I appreciate what you're saying, and I don't mean any disrespect by this, but a lot of this is based on what 'you believe'. Do you know for a fact that speedway testing is not at that level? You're probably right, but it's all speculation isn't it unless you know otherwise? And I'm not saying Barker has necessarily done anything intentionally wrong, it might be exactly as Plymouth describe, but that doesn't mean he's innocent. He's still guilty of taking the drug, whether he knowingly took it or not. And I can't understand how people can think otherwise. It's like the situation with the skiier Alain Baxter that somebody else mentioned on here before.... he tested 'positive' for using a Vicks inhaler in the US. It was an accident, he didn't know it differed from what was sold in the UK and he his ban was overturned - but that didn't change the fact he was guilty of using the product and producing a positive test result. He never got his bronze medal back for the simple reason that he should have declared he was using it - just like Barker should have declared he was using Co-codamol. The Barker situation will mostly likely go something like the following. His 'B sample' is positive, but the SCB will accept his explanation of the use of prescribed medication and he'll get a 'slap on wrists' and be allowed to continue racing. And if his 'B sample' is positive, he's guilty. End of.

What's not complex is the fact you're defending someone who produced a 'non-negative' sample. It's extremely rare for a 'B sample' to produce a different result from an 'A sample'. So rare in fact that the former Director General of WADA - David Howman - wanted the whole 'B sample' process scrapped when he was in power as, in his words, "the number of times the second sample contradicts the first is almost zero". What's up for debate is actually whether he knowingly took something banned or not. That's what Plymouth are arguing, not whether he'll be positive or not...because he will be.

If that's the case he would have been allowed to race at Oxford on Wednesday!