Tigerblade

And mine too. But it's possible that some of those castigating him for not throwing the race, would have been Halifax fans who abused Penhall in 1982 for doing so!

I definitely remember reading about him being a landscape gardener. Sadly I never saw him at anything like his best, as I think there were only a couple of home league meetings at the back end of the 1977 season and I'd be surprised if he got double figures in total. Then of course in his first race in the first home meeting of 1978 he suffered a broken femur and his season was finished on the spot. But obviously I have read my Tigers history and realised how good he actually was at his peak.

Waihekeaces1, I once went to an Overseas Final at Coventry that Joe Screen was struggling in, and Jeremy Doncaster who had easily qualified before his last heat, gave him nothing when they met in their final heat. After the meeting I saw and heard some Bradford fans leaning over the fence at Donc and calling him all the names under the sun, for NOT throwing the race.

Ivan Mauger Ole Olsen Anders Michanek (can't remember if I ever saw him race "proper" but I saw him in a Golden Greats meeting at Coventry) Peter Collins Michael Lee Bruce Penhall Egon Muller Erik Gundersen Hans Nielsen Per Jonsson Jan O. Pedersen Gary Havelock Sam Ermolenko Tony Rickardsson Billy Hamill Greg Hancock Mark Loram Nicki Pedersen Jason Crump Tomasz Gollob Chris Holder Tai Woffinden I have also met Barry Briggs, he may even have been in the aforementioned Golden Greats meeting, but I can't remember.

What lottery numbers are you picking this week? Indeed it is good to see the track back to what it can be, it was dire the first few weeks. Some good tough racing from both sides making a most enjoyable meeting in the sunshine. Don't let them put you off, Kai I'm sure the respective promotions are really going to enjoy trying to fit the next round fixtures in.

Sheffield's worst team in the BL was 1980, I can think of 2 defeats of 59 - 19 (Ipswich and Swindon - and that was a Swindon without Phil Crump as well!!!) and a 61 - 17 off the top of my head away from home! Ray Glover had taken over and promptly fell out with Doug Wyer and Craig Pendlebury, although Doug ended up staying on for that year. We had injuries to just about everyone, some of his signings were a disaster - even Shawn Moran failed to score on his debut and we thought "What the hell have we got here", but happily we all ended up being proved wrong pretty quickly! The worst in the lower league era was 1994, we even ended up getting hammered at home to Middlesbrough who were at that time marginally worse than us!

With the possible exception of Belle Vue, and Hull until Ivan Mauger went there I would agree with you (bear in mind, I only started going in 1977) Perhaps because the 4 Northern tracks were large and fast paced and many of the southern ones were smaller and more technical.

I know what you mean about that, the 1981 Northern Riders Championship, featured John Louis, Billy Sanders and Larry Ross, all of whom had moved to Northern clubs for the first time that season​! Of course, we'd never had them in individual meetings before. Still on the subject, you could always guarantee our family holidays would clash with Ipswich's one visit to Owlerton, too...

I'm only speaking for me of course, but I think it depends on what meetings you saw them in - for instance Sheffield had League, Northern Trophy, Challenges, Individual meetings, so PC, Mort, Carter etc seemed to be there every other week so you knew how good they were. Whereas Wimbledon, Ipswich, Hackney, Poole etc would only be there once, so you only ever saw certain riders once a season. I daresay there's fans of especially Wimbledon and Ipswich who wouldn't have thought much of Doug Wyer or Reg Wilson as being a force.

I'm with you on that one - I know he reached World Pairs/WTCs etc, but Penhall, Sigalos and the Morans definitely seemed to outshine him. Having said that, you and I could write a book on top riders/potential world beaters who have been brilliant everywhere except Owlerton! Bo Petersen has been mentioned by other people, I guess I didn't take him too seriously either, as in 1984 Shawn Moran went unbeaten at home by an opponent until the 24th May against Swindon - obviously we'd had Carter, Sigalos, Morton (Chris) etc in opposition before this, and I remember thinking "he's beaten all of those and then loses it to Bo Petersen!"

The Edinburgh match on June 1st which was originally scheduled as a league match is now the KOC meeting.

Jan Andersson is definitely one I would put into this category - I began going to speedway at the same time as the Americans were emerging in the late 70s, and Jan was one of the least flamboyant riders of that era. Although I took him seriously, Dave Jessup also fell into the unflamboyant category - how I wish Team GB had 4 like him now, though. Don't get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for him, but the summer of 1982 apart, Les Collins never really struck me as being consistently world class, and had he won in LA, for me it would have been a bigger shock than Jerzy Szczakiel or Egon Muller. From more recent times, I grant you I have only seen him at Sheffield and Cardiff mostly, but I always thought even at his peak that Chris Harris seemed to have a fall or a last place in him at least once during a meeting.

He certainly is, as Steve Roberts says. Ian was one of my early favourites when I began going - Simon had exactly the same riding style. Simon at Berwick would have been a serious throwback to see, as Shielfield's track is very similar to what Halifax was.

Indeed he did, and I know I've mentioned this before, but Lee was in danger of going out at the British semi final stage at Sheffield - he'd been struggling badly and needed points in his last race, which he won against the previously unbeaten DJ... Re Scott Autrey, definitely a contender at his peak, although I'm not sure about a World Champion with the quality around at the time.

He did, I think it was primarily Bobby Schwartz and Bruce Penhall he had the problems with. Edit.... as some other people have also said! His dislike of Hans Nielsen came from the crash where he ended up with a broken jaw in 1981. Apparently Hans doesn't recall it at all, just goes to show how something that festers with someone for years doesn't even register with someone else.

Sheffield do seem to whizz through the majority of their meetings, sometimes it is a bit of a culture shock if I go somewhere else where it's more drawn out. Of course people can't legislate for crashes, and I totally agree with sun breaks.

Bumpety Bump again, as it is one of the books in today's Kindle Big Deal.....

I went for the re-opening meeting in 1998 (don't think I still have the programme, sorry Compost) which unfortunately was held up as there was some issue with the fence, and the SCB official (David Hughes I think) eventually gave the go ahead. The thing I remember most about it is that it was Olly Allen's debut just before his 16th birthday and he rode brilliantly.

Eric Broadbelt often spent at least part of a season injured, in the 1980 Yearbook Peter Oakes stated that it was pleasing to report that he was ever present for Sheffield in 1979. Maybe he went for gaps that weren't always there, but very often his falls resulted in a hospital trip, as opposed to being able to get back up after a few minutes.

I suppose he does now I look at him again! He plays Clem Beckett throughout, and an older chap plays several characters during the play. There is only the two of them, apparently they'd never even met before working on this play!

I didn't either, but again in hindsight I guess a 4 point plus average in not only his first season, but in the top flight as well, bearing in mind the standard at the time, is not to be sniffed at. Obviously some of it was the Dave Lanning influence at Reading as well as being Briggo's son , but he just seemed to get more hype around him than any other rider of similar ability. But I guess that wasn't really Tony's fault.

It's coming to Hull in March if you want to catch it..... http://www.townsendproductions.org.uk/

I saw it in Sheffield in November, and thought it was excellent. Obviously it did help having speedway knowledge, but I would recommend it to anyone. The guy playing Clem was happy to chat to anyone afterwards about the play as well. Anyone in the north Sheffield area, it is at the Labour HQ (can't remember the exact place name, but locals will know where I mean) at Wortley at the beginning of March. I highly recommend it from both a speedway and historical point of view. Edited: Wortley Hall!

Anders may have been a favourite of Mick's full stop, whereas Billy may not have been. Sam Ermolenko gets into my Sheffield side on the basis of being one of my favourites overall, not because of what he did in Sheffield colours, he only rode a season!! If it's best riders in Witches colours, then I don't get his thinking either.

I thought they were still pretty damn competent in 1977 and 1978 but of course that is why I stated "Riders Who I Have Seen" on my own post, as Arnie Haley would - quite rightly - be considered by many as a favourite or a great, but I only ever saw him two or three times at the back end of 77, by which time he was in serious decline.