Paulco

That has come out of the blue , i hope it's not health issues resurfacing .

Apparently Stewart Dickson is going to be a guest on Radio Scotland's Off the Ball programme around 12-30

He's hampering his own career , once during a meeting going through the tapes can happen to anyone , but twice isn't good and it has to be stopped somehow . Cause he can be a decent wee rider on his day but he's no use sat in the pits excluded or going off 15 metres .

Looks like Parkinson Blackburn's decision not to ride for us could turn out to be a blessing in disguise

If last night is anything to go by , the lad is going to be a firm favourite in Glasgow . It was an astonishing debut at Championship level . He looked as if he had been riding Ashfield for years rather than his first time on the track . Obviously it was just his first meeting and you don't want expectations of the lad to get too high , but he looks a star in the making and its going to be exciting watching him progress throughout the year

Cause he wasn't very good . Decent enough meeting , still a bit gate and go , but that was only the first meeting and it has the scope for improvement . After a mediocre first ride , Paul Starke certainly attacked the track and he looks a brilliant signing who will entertain us royally . A big criticism levelled at Claus Vissing , after we signed him , was that he was too much an individual rider and not really a team player . Well he certainly killed that myth stone dead with his ride to shepherd young Jack Thomas home for a meeting clinching 5-1 in heat 14 . The legendary Shane Parker would have been proud of that ride and he was the master at team riding . And on the subject of young Jack , all you can say is wow . He looked so steady , smooth and fast with none of the wobbling you expect from a two point novice . We look to have stumbled onto a real gem in young Jack . All in all to beat Edinburgh by 10 points without Bomber and Richie below par having blown his best engine on Thursday was a satisfying beginning to the season . Edinburgh had one or two plus points . Wells and E Riss delivered what you expect , Ruml looked steady enough and Williamson again showed his liking for Ashfield with a useful return from the reserve berth . Better is sure to come from M Riss and Pickering and time will tell if Andersson is capable of better than he showed last night . But it was bloody freezing in the Charlie Monk stand , my texting finger wasn't enjoying it too much lol

There was a certain amount of the novelty factor for us both times the SKY cameras were at our place , top league clubs don't have that

Thanks for your views , i wish you and your club all the best for the coming season

The point was that r/r has been used in the past for an injury sustained before the start of the season

I understand the logistical difficulties which forced them out of the second tier in the first place . I think back to the Chris Holder inspired side which knocked us out of the play offs in a terrific meeting at Glasgow in 2006 . They would be a tremendous asset to our league , but the northern bias in it would probably prevent that from happening .

Isle of Wight seem to have the type of forward thinking promotion set up that the sport needs . Any chance of them bringing their energy back up to the second tier again ?

There is a precedent . Few years ago my own team , Glasgow , had signed Ross Brady . Couple of weeks before the start of the season he broke his collar bone on an indoor ski slope during a team bonding day out . We were allowed to use r/r until he was fit enough to take his place in the side .

It can to a certain extent . Few years back i saw a race at Ashfield where James Grieves out gated Lee Complin and blocked his every move for four laps . Complin was exciting to watch , but one dimensional . James knew he would use the outside line . Complin was all over James' back wheel and looked to have much more speed , but couldn't get past James as he covered the outside run every lap

Agree . Seen some good racing at Redcar , but the final of the fours last year was just incredible . I'd be quite happy going to Peterborough for the fours every year , but i get the argument of spreading the big meetings around .

Hmmm it must be too very , very nice for him to know obviously

You're such an old cynic Jenga .

Can Ricky Wells not become a New Zealander again ?

Obviously it could go either way with Edinburgh this year . They thought they had pulled a rabbit out of the hat with Becker , but that move was scuppered and that was a huge blow . That could have been the signing which could have turned them into serious contenders . As it is , it's still not a bad side . Wells , while not an out and out number 1 , is a reliable enough top end performer . And there's no reason why Erik Riss cant improve again and possibly even challenge for the number 1 race jacket . The younger Riss struggled after moving out of reserve last season , but he has not reached his level yet and you would expect a point or two onto his average . Big season for Pickering , and starting at reserve will help . Likewise Williamson improved at Workington last year and no reason why that cant continue . Andersson is the unknown and could be anything . 5.25 left for the final rider will maybe mean another foreign newcomer will fill the last position . They don't immediately strike you as a top 4 side , but it wouldn't need too much improvement from two or three riders for that to change .

He's all action , which makes him more vulnerable than most on the injury front . But he's still only young and got plenty of improvement in him .

That surprised us , I thought he'd be a cert to be back in Tigers colours this year . Obviously something happened behind the scenes to prevent that from happening or it was just the numbers game

Once he gets dialled in the Peterborough track will be perfect for Nike . If he can stay injury free this season he could easily put 2 points onto his average .

It would be , but unfortunately the days of Jim McMillan , George Hunter and Bert Harkins competing , and reaching the podium , in a World Pairs meeting are long gone . We don't currently have any speedway riders at a competitive level

It's just the twilight zone between teams being named and the tapes going up in March .

Who cares really . Do we want to watch the racing or a start girl wiggling her arse in front of the tapes ? Apart from the odd cameraman who tries to get as close their arses as possible , they are a bit of an irrelevance . Yes they are easy on the eye , but I wouldn't lose any sleep if they weren't there .

Boxing wont be bowing to the snowflakes , you're still going to have a dolly bird holding the round board . Who'd have thought the fall out from a Hollywood film producer not being able to keep it in his pants , would cause the darts walk on girls their jobs .