Grachan

It's just a legitimate tactical discussion.

All the more reason for Tai to let Laguta go and try to block Emil. Lambert was all over Emil at the end. With a bit of help he could have got past. In any other race there would be no point Tai hanging back and getting passed by Emil, but in a one off final they may as well have risked giving away a 5-1 to give Rob a chance.

Hate to say it, but if Tai had hung back we would have won that.

If you look at the translated article, there is a dash where there should be speech marks. This is consistent throughout the whole article. Cieslak just speaks from... "I will not talk about the track....."

And there was me thinking Wales was part of Great Britain. Cieslak said nothing about the track in the article. Phil Morris' name was subtly mentioned in the article by the journalist who wrote it, to tempt readers into thinking the track might have been set up for GB, without actually saying it.

What a performance by Woffinden! That must go down as possibly the greatest performance of all time by a British rider. Stunning. Of course, Sod's law says that this is the meeting that goes ovrr 2 days and all comes down to a final, sonthere's a long way to go yet. Lambert was brilliant too, and his gating was top draw, making things a lot easier. I really enjoyed the meeting, but it's no World Cup. What a shame they can't at least call it a World Championship. The size of the crowd, even in Poland, must tell them something.

Correct. And very entertaining it would be too. I'm not sure what your problem is really. Many riders in the past have tried to slow a race to get their partner through. It's a tactic. What's the problem?

If I glance at Twitter I mainly get stuff posted by Piers Morgan - so I guess I'd better check with him then.

Oh well, at least I got the rest of it correct.

Nice, subtle piece of trolling from the editor of Speedway Star there, to get everyone having a go at Rosco. The fact is, Tai is back in the side and has said nothing negative, so maybe others should keep their gobs shut.

From a layman's point of view I don't see why not. Block one rider so your partner can pass. Let the other go past you. Second and third wins the race.

He wasn't necessarily first choice. I would say that Cook and Lambert were there as equals - and then given a ride each to see which one was better to use. Lambert won his heat so was kept in. It was a common sense decision. The only reason Lambert was at reserve was because his age gave us better options. Otherwise he would have probably been in the top two anyway.

Not sure I agree. Cook would probably be a better option than Bewley in Poland at this stage. Even if he wants to use Lambert he now, effectively, has Cook as a replacement.

The point is that Milik used bad tactics. Once he was well in the lead he should have looked round, seen his partner at the back, and slowed down to try and get him through to third - even if it meant sacrificing the lead himself. Not only would it have been better for the Czechs but it would have made for a fascinating race.

Don't be silly.

He should have slowed right down, let Doyle pass him, and try to block Fricke. It was a waste of time going of into the distance.

How can it be perfect team riding when they aren't on the same team?

Agree. Hancock, in particular, was disappointing considering the great American team riding of the past. For example, THIS is great team riding. Poor quality video, but great team riding.

It should be pointed out that Match of the Day is popular for one reason and one reason alone - it's football. For me a live speedway meeting is the only way to go on television these days, but I think they miss a lot in their coverage in terms of what they talk about. Speedway lends itself to tactics and statistics that really should be analysed in greater detail. It's a major part of its appeal. They should also bring back proper tactical substitutes, and get people on there who understand tactics to talk about it. I remember in the days of the old TS rule where there would be massive group conversations among the crowd about what was the best way to use the tac subs. This could be a major discussion point if it weren't limited to just one TS -which takes out much of the tactics. I would like to see that. Plus talk about, say, R/R and who could go in where and how it could benefit the teams. For me this would make for interesting viewing and I think it would open out the sport more to casual observers who can only see the "4 blokes on bikes doing 4 laps" aspect of the sport.

Good way of putting it. Also, of course, someone who finished behind their partner gets a bonus point - so in the event of a tie, bonus points are taken into account. In every way, the team that finishes second and third in a 3-3 should be the winner of a pairs event. Some pairs events even used to even have a 4,3,2,0 scoring system.

I think the idea of having a final works well in the GPs, as it all adds up over a series of rounds but also gives a definitive champion on the day. I don't see the point of having a final in a Pairs final. Even less so in a 2 day final. And, yes, as you say, nobody is going to be busting a gut to get points as there's little point to that, so the racing will be of league standard rather than World Cup standard - which was often exceptional as every point was vital.

Might that not give you a final where one team has already won the meeting?

He may have had his documents, including his passport, returned but not received a visa yet.

Batch has only just come in, though, at the expense of a Swindon asset who the rules prevented them from retaining.

How does the first prevent the second? Please explain. I just think it means more to fans if they can think of riders as belonging to the club.