RobMcCaffery

I've just tried again using Google Chrome and the web stream is still coming through superbly . I am lucky enough to have a really fast Virgin Media connection which may be helping though. Hope R&R can sort things out. Might it be a case of clearing the cache?

Just tried it and it's working fine, which is odd considering it hasn't before for me. On the other hand the telewizjada link on Kodi has been almost 100% reliable since I discovered it. Dedicated NSport+ streams rather than just those for individual matches have always seemed tricky to find - but not so much as CMore Sport in Sweden, sadly :-( The advantage of getting a reliable 24/7 channel stream is you can watch the repeat showings if you're busy on Sundays.

It would help if he kept one back and read it, all of it, not just the Poole article and the pictures.

Oh I had a period of mild importance. It's not what it's cracked up to be - it can lead to delusions of adequacy as I am sure you will be aware. I've done my 'bit' and happy to let others be 'important' now while I just pass on some of what I learned in my time. Anyway congratulations on being important, doing a minor role (piss-poorly if you are who I think you are) in a minor sport. I do hope you and your ego are very happy together.

Poole were caught with their 'hands in the till'. Don't play the innocent - that horse bolted long ago. A very sensible suggestion - so no chance then.....

I do wonder if some hope that the Belle Vue promotion can be forced out so they can get their hands on the NSS. It's unlikely but you never know with speedway.

Most of them will be too busy working out whether they get an advantage out of the current farce. Paying a heat leader FTR rates? 'Lovely Jubbly'. (I know they have to pay a reserve proper money in return but can you trust them to see the full picture? )

Charles has gone from being totally shielded from heat leaders to facing them in every race, sometimes three of them at a time. Is he on proper pay rates now or still on the FTR pittance?

Typical, blame it on the triffids....

Okay, we've finally broken him. Our work here is done

I think the asylum's tightened up its security.

Skidder1 appears to be very important - but thankfully only in Poole

I've already argued elsewhere that the moment it was decided that FTR riders could move into the main team the protected heat format had to go since averages are totally meaningless while meetings are staged using it. FTR riders are achieving similar averages to many heat leaders simply by winning the two reserve races and taking a few points off second strings and fellow FTRs. According to one of the Poole mouthpieces the riders aren't concerned. I don't think that situation will last for long. So, tonight Charles Wright scored 1 point from number 3 for Swindon while Rohan Tungate scored 9 from reserve. Was Wright still on FTR fixed money? Was Tungate suddenly confronted with FTR pay rates? It's ludicrous, but what is sad is that it is no surprise that this sad situation has been allowed to happen. Does nobody in the BSPA think these things through? Either way, I'm pretty sure we will have the sad inevitability of a Poole star rider in the reserve berth in the Grand Final. He might even wear his goggles ;-) Thank goodness we have two other leagues - imperfect but at least not ga-ga.

Yes, but not necessarily by enough to pay for them.

And Poole fans think people can't stand them just because their team wins? Slagging off the rest of the EL isn't good enough so you have to start on the other two leagues? Thank goodness there is an EL - it keeps you people from polluting those two levels as well.

What a wonderful night's speedway that was for the paying public! Poole got what they wanted so that makes it okay though. Pathetic piece of arrogance.

So, a ludicrous event ends in farce. Quite fitting really.

They'd be banned for life in Britain!

I can't speak for ITV, having had no involvement in that area, unlike the BBC. At Nations and Regions level in the latter I found that an appreciation of the sport differed widely regionally and often was down to the personal views of the relevant heads of sport. I once had a discussion with the head of sport at Nations and Regions, the guy in overall charge of sport on the regional TV shows and local radio. He was very open to speedway being covered, a refreshing contrast to the attitide at national level. Clearly with Poole's success BBC South and BBC Radio Solent are keen to include reports while my own local BBC region, West will give coverage if Swindon or Somerset are in an important meeting. With no BBC footage of actual meetings obviously they have to obtain access rights to footage from Sky. BBC Wiltshire has a strong involvement at Swindon while I believe the same is the case at Poole. Then there is the superb coverage by BBC WM. Equally I'm sure there are many here who will tell you that their region or local radio give no coverage at all. In my past life in the London area the coverage was pitiful, apart from a brief spell in the 70s when Norman de Mesquita was in charge of BBC Radio London sport. I fail to see the point in your posting though. Obviously coverage will be given if the relevant sports editor believes it to be in the interest of his viewers. What other criterion would apply? Is there something we should know?

Odd how so few are actually defending it. Oh, and after 45 years of involvement in the sport as a supporter, official and broadcaster I don't need to justify the label 'fan'. It is an indefensible situation. I can only guess that your lack of concern must be due to it favouring Poole in some way. If there is a lack of concern in the 'official;' world that you obviously believe to inhabit then that is no surprise. If they're stupid enough to let the situation happen they're hardly likely to be able to see the result! Time will tell, especially after we see FTRs hopelessly out of their depth in all heat-leader races. Oh, I forget, Poole rigged the FTR system so they got two riders who will be able to cope with this ridiculous situation. Complacency rules on the south coast, but then you're alright, sod the rest of the sport eh? You'll be running out of opponents soon enough given the state of the EL.

Have we got a date for this year's annual 'Farewell' meeting yet?

'Mostly'? There's plenty who aren't on final salary pension schemes who have only the pitiful state pension to live on. There's a lot of people on here who really should stick to speedway rather than just spout what they read in their daily rag or hear down the pub.

In my day, which was a very long time ago now, there was a system of 'news access' that gave other broadcasters the right to show short clips of sports action. No doubt today that has to be paid for.

As many contributors have said (perhaps you should try reading them), it's the not the moving up, into the team that's the problem, it's the retention of the protected heats meeting format that's the problem since it will give the FTRs false averages and then trap some of them (for only a while thankfully) in a heat-leader role where the easiest rides they will get will be against second strings, several of whom will be heat leaders on equally false averages, and face often two opposing heat leaders in a race. The whole point of the protected heats format was to protect - to prevent FTRs from facing heat leaders. You cannot have vital team positions determined by totally false averages. The protected heat formula should have been dropped the moment it was decided to let FTRs rise out of the reserve berths. It is emphatically NOT about riders being given the chance to progress - it's about doing it in a sane and fair way, not that sane and fair exist in your part of the world.

The whole point of the revised EL heat meeting formula was to protect FTR riders from facing heat leaders. Now, because of their 'protected rides' some have a false average high enough to move into the team and face heat leaders in every race! When the decision was made to allow FTRs to rise into the team the 'protected heats' format should have been immediately dropped. Does anyone in the BSPA hierarchy have the ability to think anything through logically? What a mess!