Ben91

Think he may be a victim of believing his own hype to an extent. As you've stated SCB he had a very similar season to Kyle Newman. As a fan solely interested in watching racing and none of the off track politics etc you'd take Garrity over Newman any day because when he can be bothered he is spectacular and a racer. As a fan who wants a model professional and a team man you'd take Newman however. If I'd been asked 12 months ago which rider will go further out of the two I'd say Garrity without a doubt, now I'd swing my opinion in the other direction, purely because Newman seems a lot more professional and less likely to throw a wobbly.

Discussions as to who the greatest rider ever is should go no further than Mauger or Rickardsson. They have both won six World titles, that puts them ahead of everyone else. For me Rickardsson edges it, regardless of what anyone says it has to be harder to win a GP series then to win a one-off meeting where luck has a much bigger bearing no matter how good you are. TRick did both, Mauger naturally only ever raced in one off finals so only won those. Of course that is a debate for elsewhere. Hancock is a three time World Champion, in my book that places him level joint fifth in the list of all-time greats. The fact he is still going strong speaks volumes for his talent, to say that it is easier now is to do him a disservice. Last season he was consistently the best rider in the World, the fact that he wasn't in the era of Crump, Rickardsson and Pedersen's dominance shouldn't come into the discussion of whether he is an all time great or not.

Vitaly Belousov sounds like an STD.

As long as Woffinden is around Garrity will not be British number one. The only rider who really had the potential to match Tai at the moment is Rob Lambert. Garrity has the potential to be a good rider but the attitude clearly isn't there.

Will soon struggle when he's only racing EL and his opponents are riding far more regularly. Got the talent to be a very good rider but not the attitude. Only other thought that has crossed my mind, as mentioned here is that he has a move elsewhere in the PL lined up to replaces an Aussie without a visa. Sheffield perhaps? Lucky we've got Anders ready to step in, should have been in the side in the first place anyway.

Be very surprised to see the Eagles trouble the Kings at Central Park. Reserves will be key. Wouldn't be surprised to see the Kings win at Arlington either.

The way I read Gustix's post it looked as if he was saying the points limit is helping the decline of the sport now. Of course the teams who offer more money can afford the pick of the riders, the points limit means they can't have the monopoly which is in no way a bad thing.

No it isn't, teams need to be balanced otherwise chequebook speedway will take over.

He's either a Brit and as so eligible for a 3 point average or he's a New Zealander and therefore not eligible to race in the NL full stop.

No curfew at Rye. Pit area at Rye is plenty big enough for riders to park and change into race gear etc. Bikes are usually warmed up towards the end of the first meeting, then of course there is usually an interval after the first meeting for track work.

On the subject of the Potters team, assuming Chris Widman is the last signing it looks very handy in my opinion. Armstrong and Payne will win as many battles as they lose as a top two, while the engine room looks stronger than a fair few others as it is made up of three riders with NL experience in Phillips, Terry-Daley and (probably) Widman. Tedham has experienced a season at reserve in a stronger NL, that should hold him in good stead, the same goes for MacDonald. If they get a clear run with no injuries the Potters could have a good crack at the title.

The joke wasn't funny. What was even less funny was trawling through the posts of nothing but petty squabbling on this thread which I was trying to read with regard to the visa situation.

Are you taking the mick?

My reasoning for not wanting/expecting to see riders has been backed up by explanations. I was expecting to see Hopwood as he is an asset. I still expect to see Chessell as he is also an asset. I wouldn't be averse to Benji Compton and/or Chris Mills leading the line. Both riders are a lot better than Priest and have achieved more in their careers meaning they would be able to give more guidance to their younger/less experienced team mates, also they would score more points on track. Going down the route of signing a rider such as Sarjeant, Greenwood or Branford would also be a mistake in my opinion as they will only be picking up experience to benefit other Premier League clubs, we have to remember the Raiders should be seen as a feeder side for the Rockets. Perhaps these lads would score more than Mills/Compton but the two older riders would be there to serve the purpose of passing on experience and making sure the Raiders are competitive in the league. I'd be happy to see us field a team that just reaches the minimum points limit and give 4/5 training school prospects a chance to compete in a full NL league campaign and hopefully one or two may eventually become established Rockets riders.

Not problems, sensible reasons. Big difference.

Maybe the whole team is not signed but some members are, Rye teams are usually announced in one go rather than drip fed to the fans. I believe that is the simple truth behind the lack of news so far. Drip feeding news across the winter keeps fans engaged however, something that our promotion have always seemed to struggle with.

Priest would be a poor signing, not going to score enough to take pressure off the lower order and he's never going to get any better. There's plenty of time to name the team. We're not the kind of club that announces that we're running and then pulls out last minute. Riders are probably signed up already and awaiting announcement.

Hopwood to Buxton, interesting move. Perhaps the Raiders are going to go down the route of signing a Greenwood/Branford.

No.

You'll only get a reduction for Rose, been more than three years since Worrall and Kerr achieved their first averages.

I have a feeling it is but I'd hope not as I agree it is awful and not a great first impression of the place. The crater at the entrance needs addressing urgently. After the recent rainfall it currently resembles a ford!

Entertaining rider on track though never fulfilled his initial promise. Probably wasn't helped by taking a year out in 2012. Sounds like a less desirable character off track to put it mildly. Think Robin can do a decent job for us, possibly put his average up to the 7 point mark if he gets to grips with Rye.

There's no rush at all, three months til the season starts and there's still plenty of riders to go around. Would be nice to have some news though!

I meant three pointers around him in the league as a whole, should have made myself clearer in the first post. I agree that he should have delivered by now for sure. Lot of question marks around him IMO and that's not usually a good omen.

I'd say he's nailed on to complete the Potters side, which looks pretty decent IMO. Definitely improved last season and can see him doing the same in 2015.