Hazzman

Well in a strange roundabout way the Polish League has decided on a Wednesday for a set of fixtures. One of these fixtures contains the holy war of Torun and Bydgoszcz. It has been a strange season, unfancied Torun leading the table and its really close. Torun 6 (4) Tarnow 6 (4) Wroclaw 4 (4) Bydgoszcz 4 (4) Rzeszow 4 (4) Leszno 4 (3) Czestochowa 2 (3) Rynbik 0 (4) That is the current outlook of the table. Tonight's fixtures are: Bydgoszcz V Torun Tarnow V Czestochowa Leszno V Rzeszow Wroclaw V Rynbik is off due to the GP being there on Saturday, Ole wants his hands on it. The action starts at 1645 (bst).

It's been a while for Wroclaw to be tip-top. But it is a good track when the riders switch on. That 1999 GP at Wroclaw was a classic, let's hope its like that.

Ask Norbold, he lives there.

I reckon he just might, ya know. The recent GP sets up the season up brillaintly. Krsko left so many questions. Polonia will be there though

Does Poland believe Gollob can go a crusade this year, Matt?!?

Heat 2 and Heat 4 are quite evenly matched. Whats the odds on Jonsson making it back in time?!?

What is wrong with Grudziadz, some major hammerings.

The 8 man squad is not working. Last year's 7-man team with the juniors was good.

The Ref was non-existent on Saturday, didnt have to do anything in the first 10 heats. So he thought he will watch the meeting and put his feet up with a Cold Lech at a guess.

Well I sat down to watch this saying that Crump and Rickardsson are in a different league to every other rider. It was not the case, a great GP with decent racing. A number of the young guns I was impressed with Lindback and Zagar showed some determination. It seems the old guard is slowly going off the pace. The Brits was pleased and proud but not excited. Seems a different mentality from that of Nicholls and a better one. A more relaxed and calm approach but that will only be profitable, if he does the biz in the semi-finals. Richardson was like Nicholls last season, you have to avoid the O's. Pedersen and Crump in the final was a great sight as was Lindback and Iversen. Nice to see Gollob give it a go, he was gating superbly and Wroclaw I look forward to his performance. The other Poles disappointed greatly, how they could of done with Kolodziej in the mix. Nice to see the Krsko track staff give two up to Olsen, the locals know best. It's funny whenever it's rained at GPs, they have ended up good meetings. I wonder why? The track staff have to do it themselves, the Track manager should be someone different taking advice off the local track staff. My brother's mate who comes Cardiff got Nicki Pedersen in our sweepstake, he's been a fan ever since. I joked Pedersen to win the GP, he did and with great gusto.

I wouldnt give tips, I would say enjoy yourself and discover.

After seeing the AJ/TRick debacle go on and the many other mis-adventures of British Speedway. It needs a major overhaul. Here's my proposal to what should be done. 1. The BSPA should no longer be the top dog, a more independent source should be used with more clarity but with Speedway knowledge. 2. SKY deals to be kept at no matter of their demand, loses Sky, you lose mass audience. But in negotations, tip the boat with them, make demands. 3. Get Rid of the KO Cup, Riders Championship, Best Pairs. Or place them in a junior facility. The Elite League shall be simply, 12 teams (get a Northern team to come up with mass finicial help agreed), you ride the teams home and away. It makes 22 meetings. Then make an Elite Cup to replace the KO Cup, 12 teams into 4 groups, meetings home and away. Group toppers go through, to Semi-Final which we be a two legged basis, followed by a final at a neutral track. Makes the possibility of 30 meetings, we currently have 40 plus Cup way too much. 15 Home Meetings, One Home Race Night A Week, makes 4 months worth of Speedway and with a couple of invidiual meetings. Clubs must agree on two nights a week which the BEL can operate. 4. British Teams must be have three brits and before the EU argument is rolled out. Then how come UEFA are set to make a ruling meaning 7 of the squad of 18 must be from the county the Football Club orignates. 5. Points Limit is that of the champions Averages added up. My idea is rough but I think there are some fine points in there.

The second round of meetings is upon us for the Polish Leagues. In a strange fixture swap, the Polish Leagues are operating on Easter Monday, possibly in exchange for the Good Friday fixtures of Britain. It also means the Elite League Riders Championship remains strong. There is one clash of Coventry versus Peterborough and Ostrow have said there are going to PK. We had some extremely freak results at the weekend and it will be interesting to see if that was just 'blowing the cobwebs' from the bikes. On Saturday, we do have Rynbik taking Torun in a re-arranged fixture and I think it may well be the case in Liga II having re-arranged fixtures. Monday's Meetings go like this: E-LIGA Bydgoszcz V Leszno (Polonia looking for a good home start) Czectochowa V Rynbik (Surely, some points for the Lions) Tarnow V Rzeszow (Local Derby!) Torun V Wroclaw (Sparta to keep on destroying) LIGA 1 Krosno V Gniezno (Can Gniezno continue their great start) Grudziadz V Lublin (Things can only get better for Grudziadz surely) Gorzow V Ostrow (Gorzow need to recover and Ostrow are set to track 3 foreigners) Zielona Gora have a rest

I took an express train on the way back, I do understand people's concerns on trains, there were a number of people on there what I could be easier intimaited by, such as a teenager reading a book about guns. Speedway in Poland has regions, the North-West with Bydgoszcz, Torun, Pila, Gorzow, Zielona Gora and Poznan. The South-West: Wroclaw, Leszno and small teams. The South-East contains the most teams of Tarnow, Czectochowa, Rzeszow. The North-West does have Gdansk has a beaufitul place to stay but it is a bit out of the way in comparison to the other teams. The North-West does not have the mass tourism that the South-West (Wroclaw) and the South-East (Krakow) holds. I enjoyed Poland immensely and was very welcomed by the people when I went there. Sitting on a Gdansk bar on its balcony overlooking the river with a wood fire drinking dark lager with taste and talking about Speedway new and old was brilliant.

I feel that the Polish train system is superb, although not the most newest, they are on-time and the cheapest in Europe. Most of stadiums in the 'speedway' cities such as Bydgoszcz, Zielona Gora, Gorzow, Gdansk and etc are in the city centre or in close distance.

Floppy is at Lublin not Torun. Steady is at Torun. Two teams I was tipping in my Liga 1 preview crumbled.

Line-Ups For Sunday's Matches (Subject to change) From espeedway.pl Atlas Wroclaw 9. Jason Crump 10. Piotr Swiderski 11. Tomasz Gapinski 12. Hans Andersen 13. Jaroslaw Hampel 14. Ronnie Jamrozy 15. Nicolai Klindt 16. Kenneth Bjerre Polonia Bydgoszcz 1. Andreas Jonsson 2. Kris Klecha 3. Robert Sawina 4. Robert Kosciecha 5. PePe 6. Kris Buczowski 7. Marcin Jedrzejewski 8. Emil Sajfutdinow ---------------------------------------------- Zlomrex Czestochowa 1. Greg Hancock 2. Slawomir Drabik 3. Ryan Sullivan 4. Broys Mitruski (Disputed whether Richardson will replace) 5. Seb Ulamek 6. Mateusz Szczepaniak 7. Christian Hefenbrock 8. Marcin Piekarski Marma Rzeszow 9. Nicki Pedersen 10. Maciej Kuciapa 11. Tomasz Chrzanowski 12. Dariusz Sledz 13. Rune Holta 14. Dawid Stachyra 15. Pawel Miesiac 16. Andriej Karpow ------------------------------------------------- Unia Tarnow 1. Lukas Dryml 2. Mateusz Trytko 3. Janusz Kolodziej 4. Jaceb Gollob 5. Tomasz Gollob 6. Kamil Zielinski They have up to now only named 6 riders but expect changes involving Burza, TRick and Hlib. Unia Leszno 9. Leigh Adams 10. Mark Loram 11. Damian Balinski 12. Rafal Dobrucki 13. Kris Kasprzak 14. Robert Kasprzak 15. Mateusz Jurga/Adam Kajoch 16. Robert Miskowiak

Rynbik is off against Torun, stops the E-Liga slaughter for one week. LIGA 1 These will be short I know less about Liga 1 teams GNIEZNO V GORZOW The newly-promotion team taken on the club with a great history but finicial differences. Start attempted to stay in Liga 1 and have quietly purchased riders who could perform the goods in Liga 1. Wolves KP Nuts one of the signings from the club of Gorzow. Gorzow have faced a winter of uncertainity, a club with a superb history and the potential for a E-Liga place. Definetly a speedway town, Gorzow despite money probelms have continue and look good for a play-off spot. With seven Swedes signed as foreign riders and three remaining harden riders. Gorzow look for team spirit and the spirit of Ed Jancarz to carry them through. LUBLIN V KROSNO Two teams whose first priority in the league will be stay up. Lublin another team to load their squad with foreigners including the Brits of Louis and Norris. Krosno are in a similar situation but they look particularly weak and my prediction is for them to go straight down. ZIELONA GORA V GRUDZIADZ ZKZ started their adventure in Liga 1, another club in the second division who have a great history. This season will surely be a vacation for them and a return to the E-Liga must be the season end. A team which is embedded with quality foreigners Hamill and Lindgren for example and I'm sure this team would have proved competitive than Rynbik. With proven seniors at higher level including Walasek. ZKZ should run away with the league. However Grudziadz could prove to be direct rivals. No flashy foreigners signed but a good bunch of seniors, Robacki and Krzyzaniak for example. Also Bajerski, if a junior can do well, Grudziadz will do well. OSTROW NOT RIDING?!? OR ARE GDANSK READY? Does Gdansk have two teams or not? Who is the Lotos backed team?

Yes, I have taken the info that Bydgoszcz and Zielona Gora fans do not agree with Leszno's existence.

Are you a man who supports the new Redcar club because its quite possible they will run a trip, that or Newcastle will.

Any confirmed line-ups yet?

This Sunday sees the beginning of the Polish season of speedway. This thread is for all the comments, line-ups, opinions and info. I'm sure the Tarnow, Bydgoszcz and Zielona Gora fans will pass comment. This Weeks Fixtures E-Liga RYBNIK V TORUN New-boys thrown into the league, Rybnik take on Torun. This match could well end up one of the relegation battles. This season will be a major struggle for Rybnik as they seek to stay in the top division without no GP rider, possibly only in the league on the gift of floodlights. Torun must surely look for win if they aim to do well, their squad looks very weak but if Zabik and Jagus click then maybe a decent season ahead. BRITWATCH- Rybnik contain Chris Harris and Simon Stead for Torun, it remains to be seen whether they will ride. Stead did appear in a few Polish meetings last week doing very well at a pairs meeting at Torun. WROCLAW V BYDGOSZCZ Two favourites take on each other in the season opener. Wroclaw look strong in their foreign selections (Crump, Andersen and Bjerre) and their seniors of Hampel and Gapinski but the stumbling block may prove the juniors riders where other teams have young heroes such as Zabik and Hlib, Sparta do not have one. Polonia look good this year after coming up against the Chelsea of E-Liga in the play-off, they can feel very happy with last season's performance. This year a championship win may be on the cards gone are Robacki and Krzyzaniak in come Gdansk team-mates Jablonski and Kosciecha. Klecha moves up to a senior role and this could be make or break season, the juniors still look strong with a spearhead of Pepe and Jonsson. Polonia look good. Should be a close match but Sparta to shave it. BRITWATCH- No Brits in either team's squads. RZESZOW V CZESTOCHOWA Polsat's choice for their televised match, their first visit to Rzeszow in the process and a derby match to boot. Rzeszow have tried hard to strength their team for E-Liga and with the inclusion of Rynbik, they have chance of staying up. Another team suffering from no having a superstar junior riders, they do have strength in depth. Nicki Pedersen joins from ZKZ and becomes their lone major foreign rider. Holta and Chrzanowski provide the back-bone and harden riders such as Sledz, Baran and Piszcz provide back-up. Czestochowa seek a new era as fresh the building of their new stadium is near complete. With three GP riders contracted Czestochowa look to be a good side, Richardson, Hancock and Zagar. Sullivan will be there as last year with Ulamek and Drabik still remaining despite Czestochowa's over-zealous foreign policy towards their riders. I think a near equal finish to next season for the Lions. BRITWATCH- Czestochowa have Lee Richardson signed up in their ranks expect outings to be small though. LESZNO V TARNOW Poland's most hated club taken on Poland's other most hated club. Leszno once again start the season as everyone hatred team, Adams remains to lead the club again as it seeks a new direction in success. Loram and Howe join the party and Leszno's strength looks to be in their seniors K.K., Balinski, Miskowiak and Dobrucki all there. I reckon a similar season to that of Czestochowa. Tarnow are once again back by the Oil firm of Trizebina (sp?) despite in a lesser capacity. The Gollob brothers continue their stint with the club which as a near-on 400 metres track. The Champions look as strong as ever as the club contains three champions, Rickardsson (world), Kolodziej (polish) and Nicholls (British). The Rempala brothers also remain. Tarnow's joker card so often last two season was Kolodziej's position as junior now promoted to senior, Tarnow done the next possible thing bring in Pawel Hlib from Gorzow. Although questions remain over his attitude, he could prove to be a championship winner. I expect Tarnow to nick it. BRITWATCH - Howe and Loram ride for Leszno, I think Loram may appear more than the odd occasion. Tarnow have the British Champ, Nichols who will appear when TRick is off.

I bet there will be a TV match annouced near the time.

Well after doing a fantasy league team building exercise this year with certain rules discussed I can vouch for people's concern. To address the balance in developing British riders, this would be my criteria. Originally start off next season with the rule, there must be three Brits in one team. Then warm all clubs of a new apprentice rider rule coming next season, this should develop and give youngsters some encourage for second halfs at respective clubs,in many ways making a mini-academy and establishing riders such as Bridger at Eastbourne etc. Next season starts, three Brits still within the main squad. No.6 spot becomes the apprentice jacket. The rider must be British and under-21. The No.6 Spot demands less from the no.7 jacket. Next season, three Brits in main body of team. No.7 Spot is where the apprentice rider goes and then at No.6 is a new British under-21 rider. Season after, if the orignal apprentice is good enough he goes into the three Brits in the top five. After the reserve thing continues. No the hardest part would be if a junior riders does exceptationly well,do you keep him at reserve. Well yes, he will be there for two years max. The Junior rider would come in the main body at 5 point reserve making it profitable for a team to keep producing rivals. If anybody is worried about Brits slipping out the team. Then dont, the rider would be good enough, for the country to develop riders time-wasters need do not apply. Another thing the BSPA must massively support the youngsters and other Brits to ride abroad and gain more knowledge. This includes open meetings and competitions such as the European Championship.

It makes me scratch my head as Kasprzak's Polish form hasnt been great and the constant ignorance of Janusz Kolodziej gives me more headache.