Ben91

Especially as his average is 9.22. Don't think Chris will have a PL ride, too hefty an average for teams to cope with and still put a good side together.

I wonder how the relationship is between the promotion and Nicolai Klindt after he signed for the Rockets for 2016 and then pulled out to take an opportunity with Leicester in the EL. Could see something along the lines of 1. Kennett 2. Robson 3. Harris 4. Watt 5. Nicholls 6. 2 pointer (Hume/Bacon/JPB/Smith) 7. Klindt While not amazing at reserve it certainly wouldn't be the weakest reserve pairing I reckon. Negatives of Klindt are that he seems to be a gater but he was Leicester's number one in the EL and knows the tracks we'll be visiting well. I'd like to see Rob Branford back but he'd leave us having to find a decent three pointer, tbh there aren't any out there so we may as well go with a two pointer and a rider like Klindt in the last slot.

Looks like it's going to be long year for Swindon.

Pretty sure Kennett will be staying at Rye and we'll just have to cope with a weak reserve pair all year.

Surely Bailey will get his 2.5% British reduction, would mean he starts on a two. I like Scunthorpe, it's always good to see them do well, I don't think this team will be one that brings success though. Klindt and Davies instead of Wallner and Wilko and the team would have looked a lot better imo, providing Bailey got his reduction.

Good to see Robbo back, he had a renaissance last year. I don't expect him to maintain a seven point average but he'll do a good job at second string. Looks like that does rule out Schlein/Jorgensen then, unless Eddie isn't coming back which I can't imagine being the case. Looking across to the Swindon team so far (our first round opponents in the cup) and I'm much happier with what we've got so far.

We have to remember it isn't going to be anything like the EL though. Rye will be an exception, not a rule by putting out a top five that could have been seen in the EL in recent times. Most clubs won't be tracking more than one, or two at a push, riders that rode EL only last year I'd imagine. It is going to be PL standard riders, against whom Robbo managed to average seven points across the season last year. If a seven pointer (Robbo/Schlein/Jorgensen) along with Kennett complete our top five then we're going to be seriously short of points at reserve and then end up tracking a similar pair of reserves to those that have been riding EDRs the last few years, if not weaker. The 50 point limit means most riders will drop their averages, the teams that do well will, rather than increasing total team average, probably remain around the 50 point total.

I'm pleased with the way the promotion are handling the announcements. If Watt had been first up it would have been somewhat disappointing, but knowing he will probably be a second string (Kennett must be a part of the team) shows how good his signing is in the context of team building so far. I'd expect Kennett's return to be the icing on the cake come Friday. As for tomorrow, I have the feeling it's going to be Schlein. Perhaps the Jorgensen rumour was just a rumour after all. Not that I'd be disappointed if it is Schlein. If that turns out to be right we could see every member of the top five wearing the number one on his back at some point of the campaign. That would leave 7.55 for the reserves. If we have a two pointer then we have up to 5.55 to sign our top reserve, there's nobody better for the role than Branford however between Branford's 4.6 and the 5.55 left realistically, leaving us with 2.95.

Could but shouldn't. Not a bad move as a second string signing Watt. Kennett and Schlein to come I reckon, no room for Robbo unfortunately by the looks of things.

That's the exception not the rule afaik, and he was a lot closer to home.

Back under your bridge, Robson averaged almost a point more than Newman last season. People forget we have had Davey Watt ride for us before I think. Sometimes from the outside he seems to have meetings where he just can't be bothered, Robbo on the other hand is a true team man. I'm not against us signing Watt btw, just trying to put some perspective on why people aren't going wild over him potentially signing.

My only worry is that it's been announced the top five are wrapped up but reserves haven't been signed yet. One thing I would fault the new promotion on from a team building standpoint with both the Raiders and Rockets in both of their seasons in charge is that the reserves have not been good enough, at least one strong reserve should always be included.

I'd be surprised to see Bridger last the year. Odd signing but hope it works out for the Bandits, always enjoy my trips to Shielfield, will try make one in 2017 even with no Rockets visit.

7.09, if Kennett is retained then I can see Robbo's average being too high to fit, especially if the Jorgensen rumours are true. It's all been quiet on the Robbo front, NBJ too for that matter, despite a number of fans wanting both back. With rumours of Jorgensen, Schlein and even Watt it's obvious we can't have all of them.

Good to see Robbo go a whole year injury free. If we can have him back next season I'd have no problem with it at all but he could be a victim of the numbers.

I don't think age is of any importance, we're potentially building what would have been a solid enough side in the EL in a league that is a slightly stronger PL. Watt wouldn't be on my shopping list personally but if he did sign on I wouldn't look at it as a bad move. Schlein's name has been mentioned as has Jorgensen's, I'd be happy with either of those. I'm hoping that we don't sign Morley, he has improved year on year and is pretty loyal to Rye I'd imagine, but he has no chance of maintaining his average in this division IMO. We'd be better served either having Rob as our lowest averaged rider or signing a two pointer to give us more scope for the rest of the main team/final reserve. On his average I suspect Morley won't be short of Championship offers, if he can go and become a second string in that league at a different track to Rye then he could be in with a shot of a reserve berth here in 2018.

I'd rather a two pointer and a stronger rider in the 1-5 as opposed to Morley and NBJ. Branford would be the 7th averaged rider in an ideal world.

9.22, converted averages are rounded up. Good signing, not as impressive as that of Nicholls as Harris can't trap and that's half the battle round Rye but he's an out and out racer, knows all the old EL tracks and generally does well on the domestic scene. We're showing signs of intent, looking forward to the rest of the announcements this week.

Poland is one race day a week, better from an organisational standpoint than riding in the Championship. As said above, it's a shop window opportunity, Polish promoters don't care about the British Leagues, they're more likely to pick up on a top rider in their third division. He's 18, he's doing well enough for an 18 year old rider, he's head and shoulders our best rider under-21, he'll probably be Britain's number two by the time he is 20. Some would say Ellis has shown more ambition, some would say it is more of a gamble because he'll barely get a look in over there if he struggles in his first appearances. Lambert is going about things under the radar somewhat, I feel that Ellis is being set up for a fall with his high average for 2016 and the fact that he's had to look abroad for rides because of that high average he is now saddled with here.

You've said it yourself, it isn't the EL anymore. Kennett isn't an out and out number one perhaps but he's a heatleader for sure and his starting average is realistic. Compare us to Swindon for example, Doyle (13.42) and Ellis (7.84) add up to 21.26, Eddie (9.27) and Nicholls (9.23) add up to 18.5. I know which pairing is better value there from a team building standpoint. Harris' average from the EL is less than Kennett's EL figure if we do have to use that as a reference point. Furthermore if Kennett was to come in on a converted EL figure rather than his PL figure he'd be on a 10.03 average, that suggests his 9.27 average isn't a bad one to sign him on at all.

Eddie Kennett, if signed as expected, comes in on an average just higher than Nicholls'. Strength in depth will be key in this league, the promotion at Poole are known for building winning sides, not employing riders out of a sense of loyalty (releasing Chris Holder being a prime example). If they are going down the strength in depth route too it's encouraging to see us approaching things in the same manner. There's lot of talk about Thomas Jorgensen, there's usually no smoke without fire, I can see something along the lines of: 1. Kennett 2. Robson 3. Jorgensen 4. NBJ 5. Nicholls 6. Branford 7. Kasper/Heeps. Not how I'd have done things perhaps but doesn't look like a team of whipping boys.

He'll get regular rides out there and put himself in the shop window for higher tier teams. It's not as odd as it sounds, I'm sure he'd rather be riding regularly and getting a regular paycheck than signing for a bigger club and not getting picked every week. He's still young and developing, the more he races the better for him.

Good signing. Wasn't too sharp around Belle Vue last year so his average obviously suffered a little because of that. A max at Lakeside in the play-offs showed that he can still do it on a small track. A big name signing in British Speedway terms and not one on a ridiculously high average. Starts on an average lower than Eddie and I'd expect them to be the top two. Both should hold their averages, still gives us scope to have sufficiently string reserves too.

Miles better than Strudwick but never going to be more than an NL three pointer. Been around for about ten years too.

The sport is too expensive to watch, there's no adequate justification for it either. 15 heats of Speedway at £18 works out at £1.20 a heat. You can watch a football league match just up the road at Stevenage for £18, that works out at 20p per minute of entertainment. The new Premiership is marginally stronger than the old Premier League, paying £18 for it is too much. Paying £16 for Premier League racing, especially with the team we had last year, was too much as it was.