lucifer sam

Weather forecast looked much better for today this morning, but proved to be wrong. Just back from a 7-hour round journey myself. Need to beg an hour off work tomorrow, so that I don't need to race to get back up tomorrow night. All the best Rob

We're now top story on this is scunthorpe: http://www.thisisscunthorpe.co.uk/ All the best Rob

ALL SYSTEMS GO FOR SCORPIONS FOR MASSIVE MEETING! PLAY-OFF GRAND FINAL AT THE EDDIE WRIGHT RACEWAY THIS AFTERNOON! A MUCH IMPROVED weather forecast means all systems are go for this afternoon’s (Sunday, 4pm) concluding leg of the final of the Premier League play-offs – the biggest-ever meeting held at the Eddie Wright Raceway in Normanby Road. The Henderson Insurance Scunthorpe Scorpions are looking to overturn a five-point deficit against the Somerset Rebels – after a narrow 44-49 defeat at Somerset in the first leg on Friday. The aggregate winners will be crowned Premier League Champions this afternoon. Scunthorpe promoter Rob Godfrey said: “The atmosphere for the Workington match here three weeks ago was fantastic, but this afternoon, we want it taken to a whole new level. “There has never been a speedway meeting in Scunthorpe as important as this one. We urge people to come along this afternoon and be involved in what we hope will be a momentous sporting occasion for Scunthorpe. It’s one not to be missed. “Our lads really want to win this. We’re taking nothing for granted, because Somerset are a good side themselves, but with the crowd behind us, we can do it.” The postcode for the Eddie Wright Raceway stadium for first time visitors is DN15 8QZ. There is a late change to the Somerset Rebels side. Guest Craig Cook aggravated an injury at Berwick last night, and he is replaced by Richard Hall. Henderson Insurance Scunthorpe Scorpions: 1. Josh Auty, 2. David Howe R/R, 3. Sam Masters (guest), 4. Ashley Birks, 5. Nick Morris, 6. Michael Palm Toft, 7. Gary Irving. Somerset Rebels: 1. Richard Hall (guest), 2. Alex Davies, 3. Jesper B Monberg, 4. James Wright, 5. Claus Vissing, 6. Kyle Newman, 7. Lewis Kerr (guest).

Weather forecast looks much improved. All systems go for this meeting. All the best Rob

SCUNTHORPE ARE 15 RACES AWAY FROM MAJOR HONOUR FOR TOWN HENDERSON INSURANCE Scunthorpe Scorpions can clinch the Premier League title by defeating the Somerset Rebels by six points or more in the second leg of the Grand Final of the play-offs at the Eddie Wright Raceway tomorrow (Sunday, 4pm). If the Scorpions can win the league tomorrow, it will be one of the biggest-ever sporting triumphs for the town of Scunthorpe. Arguably it would rank alongside the achievement of football club Scunthorpe United winning the League One Championship in 2006-2007 and the Division Three North Championship in 1957-1958. The Scorpions trail 44-49 after the first leg at Somerset on Friday night. But for three broken chains plus other mechanical mishaps, the Scorpions could have taken a lead into their home leg. Promoter Rob Godfrey said: “The whole tie in the balance. We would have settled for a five-point deficit from Somerset before the meeting there, but actually we probably deserved more than that. We had some bad luck, but that’s speedway. “Nothing is settled yet. Some people would now mark us as favourites, but personally I’m taking nothing for granted – a lot can happen within 15 speedway races. There will be no complacency from us; we still have a job to do. “We had a great atmosphere at the Eddie Wright Raceway for our play-off semi-final against Workington, and the riders really responded to the crowd. “It was the same at the first leg of the final at Somerset. A good number of Scunthorpe supporters made the long trip down, and the noise they made matched the home crowd, and inspired our lads. That’s why we went onto the Somerset centre green after the meeting and went over to thank our supporters on the third bend. “Tomorrow (Sunday) is the biggest ever meeting at the Eddie Wright Raceway. We’ve never, ever been involved in anything like this before. I hope that we can get as many people as possible along from the town and the rest of North Lincolnshire, because this is very special. We want a big crowd that makes a massive noise, to roar the lads onto what we hope is the Premier League Championship.” The riders representing the Scunthorpe Scorpions tomorrow are as follows: JOSH AUTY A double British Under-15 Champion, he made his debut for Scunthorpe in 2005, not long after his 15th birthday. Helped the club to numerous honours at Conference League level in 2006 and 2007. Returned “home” to Scunthorpe in 2012, and has taken over from the injured David Howe as the club’s No 1. SAM MASTERS The 2011 Premier League Riders’ Champion, but the young Australian was surprisingly released by the Somerset Rebels in late August. Guested for an injury-hit Scunthorpe in play-off matches at Edinburgh and Workington in the first week of October and top scored on both occasions. Has accepted another guest booking for the Scorpions – and may have a point to prove to the Rebels. ASHLEY BIRKS (CAPTAIN) A product of the excellent youth policy at Scunthorpe, having progressed via the club’s amateur meetings and National League side, the Scunthorpe Saints. Won the play-offs with the Saints in 2011, and 12 months later, is hoping to repeat this feat with the senior side. The 2012 National League Riders’ Champion. NICK MORRIS A mid-season signing, who also rides for Elite League Swindon. The 18-year-old is incredibly looking for a FOURTH league title – having previously won with Buxton (2010, National League), Glasgow (2011, Premier League) and Swindon (2012, Elite League). MICHAEL PALM TOFT The stuff of fairytales from the Dane. Nearly dropped at the time of the introduction of Morris, but has transformed his form. Scored a paid 21 seven-ride maximum in the play-off semi-final match against Workington – the first ever seven-ride maximum to be scored by a Scorpion at Premier League level, GARY IRVING The second product of the Scunthorpe Saints National League team – and part of the Saints’ title-winning side of 2011. Released by Premier League rivals Workington Comets in mid-season, but then signed up very quickly by his parent club Scunthorpe. At 23 years old, he is the ‘old man’ of the six riders competing for the Scorpions tomorrow. Scorpions’ team manager Richard Hollingsworth said: “All our riders have done a marvellous job for us this season. That doesn’t only include those riding for the Scorpions in the final, but also all those others from earlier in the season, including, of course, the two members of our 1-7 who are currently injured, Thomas Jorgensen and David Howe. “We just ask that our riders go out and give their best for the club one more time tomorrow, and we’ll see where that takes us.” Teams for tomorrow (English unless stated): Henderson Insurance Scunthorpe Scorpions: 1. Josh Auty, 2. David Howe R/R, 3. Sam Masters (Australia - guest), 4. Ashley Birks, 5. Nick Morris (Australia), 6. Michael Palm Toft (Denmark), 7. Gary Irving. Somerset Rebels: 1. Craig Cook (guest), 2. Alex Davies (Australia), 3. Jesper B Monberg (Denmark), 4. James Wright, 5. Claus Vissing (Denmark), 6. Kyle Newman, 7. Lewis Kerr (guest). Scorpions Info Following his maximum against Workington, Josh Auty has now scored the most maximums for the club (22 to date). Somerset Rebels at EWR Ave Ave Best Name Lge M R Pts BP (no BP) (w BP) Performance Craig Cook PL 8 34 51 1 6.00 6.12 16 from 6 rides (2011) Alex Davies PL 4 18 24 6 5.33 6.67 11 + 1 from 7 rides (2011) Lewis Kerr DEBUT PL MEETING @ EWR Jesper B Monberg PL 1 4 7 0 7.00 7.00 7 from 4 rides (2012) Kyle Newman PL 10 40 42 3 4.20 4.50 14 from 5 rides (2009) Claus Vissing PL 2 5 6 0 4.80 4.80 6 from 4 rides (2012) James Wright PL 4 20 37 4 7.40 8.20 12 + 1 from 5 rides (2008) Other Notes Craig Cook 2012 Premier League Riders Champion. 2009 National League Riders Champion. Member of Workington's Young Shield Winning Teams in 2009 and 2010. Member of Buxton's National League Championship, KO Cup and National Trophy Winning Teams in 2010. Rode as a Guest rider for Somerset in their League Cup Winning Team for the injured Jason Doyle. Alex Davies Member of Somerset's League Cup Winning Team in 2012. Lewis Kerr Has rode as a Guest rider for the Scunthorpe Saints on several occasions this season. Rode as a Guest rider for Somerset in their League Cup Winning Team for the injured Tom Perry. Jesper B Monberg 1997 World Under-21 Champion. Member of Denmark's World Team Cup Winning Team in 1997. 2005 European Champion. Has ridden in 20 Speedway Grand Prix Events. Member of Somerset's League Cup Winning Team in 2012. Member of Wolverhampton's Elite League Championship Winning Team in 2002. Member of Peterborough's Elite League Championship Winning Team in 2006. Kyle Newman Winner of Queensland State Under-21 Championships in 2011. Member of Somerset's League Cup Winning Team in 2012. Member of Weymouth's Conference League Championship Winning Team in 2008. Member of Bournemouth's National League Championship and KO Cup Winning Teams in 2009. Member of Newcastle's Premier Shield Winning Team in 2011. Claus Vissing Member of Somerset's League Cup Winning Team in 2012. Made his British League debut in 2007 at Premier League level with Stoke. Has plenty of Elite League experience and was named as a doubling-up rider for Belle Vue this season. James Wright 2004 CL Riders' Champion 2007 PL Riders' Champion Member of Somerset's League Cup Winning Team in 2012. Member of Swindon's Elite League Shield Winning Team in 2008. Member of Workington's Premier League Fours Winning Team in 2006. Member of Buxton's Conference League KO Cup Winning Team in 2002. Somerset Rebels League Cup Winners in 2012. Premier League KO Cup Winners in 2008. Premier League Four-Team Trophy Winners in 2005. Somerset Rebels in 2012 Qualified for Premier League Championship Play-Offs by finishing in 3rd position in the league table. Scored a total of 48 points during the league season. Won their Premier League Championship Play-Off Group, scoring a total of 8 points. Won the 2012 League Cup against Ipswich (95-90 on aggregate). Last 6 Results (prior to play-off final) 25 October 2012 LC A L Somerset 42 Ipswich 51 (On agg: W 95 - 90) 19 October 2012 LC H W Somerset 53 Ipswich 39 13 October 2012 PLPO A L Somerset 42 Leicester 48 12 October 2012 PLPO H W Somerset 54 Leicester 39 30 September 2012 LC SF A L Somerset 43 Newcastle 46 30 September 2012 PLPO A L Somerset 44 Newcastle 48 Somerset Rebels' Results at EWR 05 May 2008 PL L Scunthorpe 51 Somerset 39 13 April 2009 PT L Scunthorpe 53 Somerset 40 05 June 2009 PL L Scunthorpe 47 Somerset 43 03 May 2010 PL L Scunthorpe 56 Somerset 40 02 October 2010 YS L Scunthorpe 70 Somerset 20 25 April 2011 PL L Scunthorpe 49 Somerset 41 04 September 2011 PL Ph 2 L Scunthorpe 49 Somerset 41 27 August 2012 PL L Scunthorpe 50 Somerset 40 (stats courtesy of John Eyre)

I'd prefer if it didn't. All the best Rob

Not over by a long way.... but well done to the Scorpions for keeping it to 5 points, despite all sorts of chain breaks. All the best Rob

Ah, so overtaking is now an excludable offence. 21st CH, it seems to me that just about every neutral who has seen in the incident reckons the ref got it right. It was a racing accident, but IMO the correct rider was excluded (and let's hope Roynon is fit and ready to go again next March ) Move on mate. All the best Rob

Masters - on his converted EL average - guests for Jorgensen on Sunday. All the best Rob

Correct decision by the referee. Nasty incident - get well soon Adam Roynon. All the best Rob

21st CH, the ref (rightly or wrongly) made his decision. Live with it. Personally I'm more concerned about the welfare of Adam Roynon. Hope the broken leg heals quickly, and we see him back next year. He's been a revelation this year. All the best Rob

THIS IS IT!! - PLAY-OFF GRAND FINAL PREVIEW QUITE SIMPLY, they don’t come any bigger than this! The Eddie Wright Raceway plays host to its most-important ever meeting on Sunday (4pm), as the Henderson Insurance Scunthorpe Scorpions take on the Somerset Rebels in the concluding leg of the play-off final, with the Premier League title at stake. It is the culmination of the whole Premier League season, which has seen 13 teams from Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland, down to Plymouth in the south-west, doing battle for the league title. After 156 regular Premier League meetings and 12 scheduled play-off group matches, it all comes down to two meetings – at Somerset on Friday and Scunthorpe on Sunday. It would represent a first league title at this level for either club. The current incarnation of Scunthorpe Speedway is one of the Premier League’s newest members. Current promoter Rob Godfrey brought speedway back to the town of Scunthorpe in 2005 after an absence of twenty years. A new-purpose built stadium, the Eddie Wright Raceway, was constructed in Normanby Road. He initially entered the club into the Conference League (the sport’s third tier). With the late Kenny Smith as team manager, the Scorpions won back-to-back titles in 2006 and 2007, with a fantastic team of youngsters including Tai Woffinden, Josh Auty, Andrew Tully and Richie Dennis. Scunthorpe were elevated to the Premier League in 2008. Up until this season, the Scorpions were a solid mid-table team. Rob Godfrey says: “I had a feeling right from the off that the 2012 Scorpions were something a bit special, and could make a genuine Premier League title challenge. “It’s certainly not been easy, and we’ve had lows as well as highs. But we’ve come through and reached the final.” Injuries are sadly part and parcel of speedway, and the Scorpions have had their fare of share of these, with skipper David Howe (No 1 at Scunthorpe from 2009 to 2011) having competed in just nine official fixtures for the club in 2012 after a series of injury woes. At one stage during May and June, the Scorpions suffered eight successive defeats as their League Cup and Knockout Cup hopes came grinding to a halt. However, the mid-season signings of Nick Morris and Gary Irving turned the Scorpions into a very strong side from 1-to-7, and they won 13 out of last 16 regular league matches to finish second in the table, a single point behind Newcastle. That momentum was taken into the play-off group stages where crushing home wins against Edinburgh and Workington, plus a priceless away point at Edinburgh were enough to clinch a place in the final. Godfrey adds: “To me there’s no pressure on the side at the weekend. I consider us to be the underdogs. “All the pressure is on Somerset, because all the pre-season predictions had them to be up there. We were predicted to finish somewhere in the middle. “However, we are more than capable of going out there and beating Somerset over two legs. Make no mistakes we want to win the final and take some Premier League silverware. “It would be fantastic to win the Premier League in just our fifth season at this level.” There’s no doubt that the two meetings over the weekend are the most important in Scunthorpe’s history, but team manager Richard Hollingsworth insists the approach will be to treat them as normal meetings. Hollingsworth explains: “We’re not going to change our approach now and put any pressure on the riders. “We’re just going to treat it like another couple of meetings. “The riders have been doing a great job for around the last three months, so we don’t need to change anything. “The lads just have to go out there and race for 30 heats, and then at the end of it, we’ll see if we’ve got more points than Somerset. “If there’s any luck kicking around, I hope we get our fair share of that.” Meanwhile, Hollingsworth insists that the club is not satisfied with just reaching the final. He says: “I wouldn’t be that happy with second place. “For a long time, Scunthorpe Speedway had the Cinderella tag attached to it. In our previous existence between 1971 and 1985, during which I became a fan, we were nearly always the whipping boys of the league. “We’ve never finished above fifth (in 1983) at this level before, so expectations tend to be set quite low. But I want to see Scunthorpe to become a force to be reckoned with on a regular basis. “We’ll be going into the final very much to win it; it won’t be a case of ‘We’re Scunthorpe, so second will be fine.’ We want to win”, Hollingsworth stresses. He also believes that the Premier League title would be a fitting reward for many at the club; the riders, the supporters, the management and the back-room team. “To be crowned league champions would be the stuff of dreams, and would be the prize for eight years of hard work by everyone at the club. “And what would make it even more special, in my book, is that we have not bought the league in any way. “Rob (Godfrey) runs Scunthorpe Speedway on a sensible budget; we have never broken the bank to try to bring success to the club. It’s just been a lot of hard work.” Both teams are without two regular riders on Sunday. The Scunthorpe utilise rider replacement for David Howe, while Sam Masters will guest for injured Dane Thomas Jorgensen. Masters rode for Somerset until late August, when he was released by the Rebels, and may have a point to prove to his old club. With No 1 Jason Doyle ruled out, the Rebels have a fine replacement in Premier League Riders’ Champion Craig Cook. Tom Perry was injured at Dudley on Tuesday, so Lewis Kerr comes into their side at No 7. Sunday’s Admission Prices: Adult: £16.00 Student/OAP: £14.00 Child (10 - 16): £5.00 Child (0 - 9) Free (accompanied by paying adult) Family Ticket £37 (2 adults, 2 Children 10-16) Special souvenir programme: £2.50 Teams for Sunday (English unless stated): Henderson Insurance Scunthorpe Scorpions: 1. Josh Auty, 2. David Howe R/R, 3. Sam Masters (Australia - guest), 4. Ashley Birks, 5. Nick Morris (Australia), 6. Michael Palm Toft (Denmark), 7. Gary Irving. Somerset Rebels: 1. Craig Cook (guest), 2. Alex Davies (Australia), 3. Jesper B Monberg (Denmark), 4. James Wright, 5. Claus Vissing (Denmark), 6. Kyle Newman, 7. Lewis Kerr (guest).

Well done to the Fen Tigers - well deserved, as final won without advantage of a home leg. Commiserations to Dudley on getting so close and hope that Roynon is OK. All the best Rob

Old Timer, you never know, they might want to cover the story of you finishing runners-up in the Premier League. All the best Rob

I'm sure that there was a statement from Rye House on the BSPA website explaining the situation with the PCT. All the best Rob

The "greatest team of all-time" does not lose one of its league meetings by 46 points to 32. You did Under the 13-heat-format, Oxford '86 would beat Cradley Heath '83 by using tactical subs and then grabbing it at the death. Remember our second heat-leader in '86 (Wiggy) had a 11.01 average in league meetings, better than Erik's '83 figure for Cradley Heath. Man-for-man, Cradley do have the edge, but put the two teams out under the 13-heat formula which suited top-heavy teams, and Oxford '86 would come out on top. Not that we were that top-heavy in '86, Per Sorensen and Nigel De'ath were both riding out of their skins and had averages of near 7.00 in our league meetings. As soon as Oxford moved up in 1984, Cradley didn't win another league title. You met your match, ironically in your "nusery side" from 1978 to 1982. McCormick treated Oxford well, but the moment Adams came in, Oxford were stuffed by Cradley. So it was great when we moved up, and got the chance to stop you guys winning any more titles. 21st CH, look what you've started up again All the best Rob

Cheers. As we've discussed before, it's impossible to split Cradley' 83, Oxford '86, Belle Vue '72 and Ipswich '98. All were fantastic teams, who completely dominated the opposition in the years in question. Although only one of them has a 100% league record. All the best Rob

Al, I don't think some people realise how restricted the rules are for guests for the lower PL reserve. To the point that I think Steve Worrall's injury hit Newcastle more than that of Richie. IMO there was nothing wrong with Tommy's inclusion on Friday. It would be daft getting a rider to drive across half the country (especially given the forecast) when there's a lad who lives just down the road who deserves a chance. Right, enough of all that, back to Somerset v Scunthorpe. All the best Rob

I see your point to an certain extent, but then again, you did release him. Tero Aarnio rode his bits off against Scunny in the Play-Off matches against us, to demonstrate we'd done the wrong thing in letting him go. Maybe Sam wants to prove the same point. Maybe he wants to score big time over the course of the final, to make the Somerset management realise that he's indispensible in 2013? Or maybe he just likes the idea of two more meetings to earn money from. All the best Rob

How is it Scunthorpe's fault though? We didn't have anything to do with the Edinburgh v Workington meeting, or the subsequent decision taken. Everyone was on tenterhooks until mid-morning on Saturday. Scunthorpe finished their play-off matches in good time on Sunday, October 7th. We couldn't do any more than that. It meant doing 3 meetings in 3 days, which is not ideal, but at this stage of the season, you have to accept every date you're given; so Rob and Richard accepted the October 5th date at Armadale when offered, even though we were already riding Workington on the 6th and 7th. Why there was a match scheduled to take place on the 19th in the first place is beyond me - it was much too late. Until Edinburgh v Scunny was rained off on Sept 28th, the October 5th date was free - I'm perplexed why the Edinburgh v Workington match had already not been confirmed on this date. Maybe you should ask Keith Denham why you weren't already there on the 5th? Maybe Workington didn't accept every date they were given, perhaps? In the meantime, this thread is about the final. I'm sorry you didn't get your 100/1 shot to win at Edinburgh, but that's life - the weather has messed things up in other competitions as well this season. I wish Workington Speedway the best under the new promotion - Keith Denham did everything he could but it just didn't work out for him. I'm sorry your team didn't win any of the major team competitions in 2012 (although the PL Paris is a very nice consolation and was very much deserved), better luck next year. Time to move on. All the best Rob

Sam Masters booked as a guest for both legs of the final, although his use on Friday is conditional on whether he rides for Poole that night. Poole MAY be in the KO Cup Final at Coventry on Friday (they still need to overcome Peterborough in the semi-final), and then the Pirates will select from their doubling up pair (Sam Masters / Ludvig Lindgren). If they plump for Sam, then Scunny will need an alternative guest. http://www.scunthorp...?Team=Scorpions All the best Rob

I've had my suspicions about Squall for a while. Hopefully Tubby will be coming along to do his streak as well. (Rob G has made mention of it every week ) All the best Rob

Edinburgh are only allowed to run on Fridays and Saturdays. And next Firday is too late - it's Somerset's date for the final. It's sad that Wokrington didn't get their 100/1 shot to win at Armadale. But a decision was needed in the light that the match hadn't been completed on time. All the best Rob

Not our fault if you couldn't complete your fixtures. We completed ours two weeks ago. All the best Rob

Edinburgh are a professionally run club. The loss of JDC is a big blow, but I hope they continue for many years to come. All the best Rob