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The fact Edward Kennett has been quoted as saying he talked to Scott Nicholls about going to Rye makes me wonder if Lakeside pulling out of the top flight and Rye moving up was known well before the AGM? Funny also how Edward will not be attending the Hammers end of season diner & dance yet Swede Kim Nilsson can.

The only way i can see Hammers making a go of the NL in a viable fashion is to have a team of real prospects, not career reserves or riders who have been stuck at this level for quite a few years and in all honesty, will never likely amount to anything more than very average third tier rider. There are three on Falcon Hammers list that easily meet that criteria and Lanham is not one of them. I don't know much about Verge, Saul or Kirby so I'm guessing they are youngsters in their first season or two of racing, Zach of course would be a shoe in and Lanham would be acceptable because whilst he is on the way down, he has experience of racing at a high level both competitively and personally. There are one or two kids in the academy who will be worth looking at once they are old enough to ride at this level, Jason Edwards is definitely one.

If Davey and Rory never return to something like their old selves it won't be for a lack of trying, Batch on the other hand, different story altogether, he only tries when it suits him and that's not very often.

Wishful thinking by some hoping that prices will be slashed but it will be said by the bspa no doubt that the dropping of the FTR system counters the lower standard, in other words I doubt prices will come down even by a penny, more likely they will go up.

So if in 12 months Rye House or another team finish mid table but decide it's better for business to run at second division level they won't be allowed to drop down? How would it have affected Lakeside if it had been in operation this season? As others have said the principle is ok but there is no way this will work in reality because the sport is too unstable in terms of movement of clubs opening/closing and changing how they operate.

Had a wry smile yesterday when passing over the A12 at Bow a couple of times (I drive trains) the roads heading to and from the Blackwell Tunnel were just a giant car park as they always are on a Friday, always the same every week, never changes and I heard the M25 was even worse with queuing traffic along the whole of the Northern stretch, and you can bet the local roads would have been as equally bad, just further proves running speedway at that venue on a Friday night is akin to burning money, a later start helped initially but even that does not help now.

I would not blame Stuart Douglas for walking away, it's his toy but he never gets to play with it and through one thing or another speedway at that venue has become almost unviable on more than one level. National League or whatever they wish to call it won't likely draw enough fans in, I think the speedway track will remain but it will only be used for training etc the same sort of setup as Iwade has with two distinct tracks. So yeah I can see the Hammers winding up and the place taken over and used solely by the Hagon Shocks academy and the ride and slide people, OR it could be 1996 all over again with the current promotion walking away or moving elsewhere and a new management taking over and trying their hand at seeing if they can make NL speedway work with a view of moving into the CL in 2018.

It's not often I agree with Jon Cook but his comments Re: the traffic on a Friday night are spot on, and this is coming from a fan who lives in Essex so doesn't require the tunnel, the only night we're the M25 is not a joke is Saturdays, even Sunday evenings can be a pain in the neck, I've learnt that the hard way after visiting family in Oxfordshire at weekends. National League might be a hard sell for some fans as the Hackney Hawks experiment did not go well but PL racing would still attract crowds, a lot of fans who only started going in the last few season would have never witnessed that level but the last season I can say I really enjoyed from start to finish was 2003 when we were racing in the second tier.

So long as Lakeside continue to run, be it outside the top tier I don't see it as sad news at all, quite the opposite in fact. Running at a lower level would make far more sense in tying up the training school and progression to league speedway. I would love a return to local derbies with Rye and Ipswich, I would miss AJ but wouldn't miss some of the other "stars" who are only interesting in racing when it suits them. I watch non league football, and there is nothing wrong with the grass roots stuff, it's the same with speedway.

Personally I thought the actions from the Aces fans was pathetic, this is not football! The only time I have known riders be booed in the past have been when they have been involved in an altication with a rider from the opposition, not simply because they bothered to turn up to help their team try and win a match. I recall couple of seasons ago Eastbourne were at Lakeside and booed Lewis Bridger on the introductions and Jon Cook told them to stop it on the basis that Hammers fans showed respect for the Eagles riders please show the same. I was pleased for Wolves that they won because the Aces fans, a lot of them admittedly are johnny come latelys have no class, terrible losers, just because you have the best stadium and arguably the best race track does not entitle you to win.

Yes its because Sky feel guilty from creating this situation, they engineered a system to bring the outcome of the league down to a couple of meetings knowing it was going to cause a melting pot of emotions and tempers would spill over making for great telly but they don't want to align themselves with it when it goes too far which it will do because that is the nature of the sport. They create this situation then wonder why riders swear on camera and get into altercations, you cant have it both ways.

Pete Adams sums up our sport, April to September is pretty much worthless and no point bothering with. Aces fans will you be clubbing together to buy your club a shield to recognise the fact you finished top of the table? No, didn't think so.

Why do fans sit at home when it's on telly? Because unlike other sports most of the stadiums are s**t holes and so it's easier to stay at home and watch rather than have to make the effort to stand on a terrace open to the wind and cold, that and the fact the product is overpriced so why pay to leave the house knowing your attendance won't make any difference because sky are subsidising the fact many stay at home anyway, plus Sky TV always hold its meetings on a weeknight so the majority have to be up early the next day, especially those with children, also don't forget petrol costs, if you support certain clubs the only way to get to the track is by car and for a track like Arena Essex I would guess most live more than a 30 mins drive away.

Just out of interest what is the capacity of Monmore Green? As there is only that limited space on the home straight, when it's busy it looks like it would be uncomfortable viewing and with everyone thrown in one space I'm not surprised scuffles break out when things get heated. Well done to Wolves by the way, Belle Vue fans will you be the first to step up to the plate, club together and buy your team something to commemorate the fact you finished top of the league table?

He who lives by the sword shall perish by the sword, congratulations Wolves

yeah buts its like the boy who cried Wolf, after the second time no one believed it was true and its the same with everything Poole, even if something is genuine most people will believe it is not because of what has gone on before, the whole sport is potentially corrupt and so open to abuse, probably why no promoters even complain is because they know its their own fault for creating a rule book with more holes in it than a sieve and they secretly all desire to exploit that fact, just that some are more clever than others, its not cheating, but it is manipulation.

It's blatant short sightedness by the promoters to allow a system where by a rider on an inflated average from riding at reserve or second string can be replaced by a rider on a falsely low average from riding as a heat leader.

All this talk of guests, I thought you could only have a guest for a number one or maybe a heat leader at best? how on earth is Bjarne suddenly a heat leader?

Will sky bother showing the restating? Will they bother show Belle Vue tonight if it goes ahead?

And history tells us if one semi is postponed and the other runs, the one called off will not be shown on telly when it's restaged.

Hammers fan might go up there to see the new stadium but would they have gone if Aces were still riding at Kirky Lane? there goes another flying pig. There is more chance of Pope Francis becoming the President of the United States than Lakeside winning at Belle Vue, never mind on aggregate.

Biggest disappointment for me about Kelvin was that i expected his involvement would lead to making sure the riders had their setups and engines the best they possibly could yet unfortunately the likes of Robert Mear still appeared at times to be riding on a lawnmower engine, or maybe it was a case of the riders telling him, leave me alone mate i know what im doing? in which case what's the point? I think Kelvin would be far better suited to tutoriing younger riders who are more willing to listen and take advantage of his vast knowledge. It will never happen while the current promotion is in charge as they have made it more than clear they want to race in the top flight only, but it would for me anyway make far more sense for Hammers to be in the 2nd tier creating a more natural step for the youngsters they are looking to build via the hagon shocks academy.

Thing is as much money as Man City and Chelsea have they have no say in the rules of the Premiere League, why should speedway be any different, its like John Berry used to say, its a close shop, the promoters act like they are in their own little Masonic lodge and no one is allowed to come from the outside, judge them or suggest what they are doing is wrong. Speedway will not die, it will always exist in some form, especially in countries like Poland, but over here it is dying a very slow death and they just can't see it or refuse to see it, crowds are falling at most tracks season on season, we all know it, we all know plenty of people who used to stand with us that no longer go, and now even the ones that used to be the ones who would say I will never leave are doing just that.

Yep i would say Poole vs Belle Vue, which is in line with my prediction made before the first legs, i had Hammers to draw or lose by 2 which the Aces abliet by six points more and i had Poole to win by 14-16 so wasnt too far out, Wolves could still turn it around but i think its firmly advantage Pirates.

Now i will admit i have never been a fan of Mr Cook since his exploits at Eastbourne but i really do think he has mugged the loyal Hammers fans off for the last time, he had no intention whatsoever of making a fist of the play offs, he wanted the semi final for the money, claimed he had a plan to replace AJ which was nothing more than a rouse so he could subsequently come out and say because AJ wanted to ride the second leg (guess what KK is now confirmed as the guest) so he could not bring in a new face, just total lies so more of the purse would likely fall into his own pocket and not that of a guest rider or proper replacement. Its one failed promise after another with the man, and the whole thing stinks of its his toy (actually its Stuart toy Jon) and if you don't like it tough, in fact we should be honoured we are allowed to pay to come in and watch, that is the feeling from watching this and recent seasons I have got (even at the start of the this season when things were seemingly going good) its just not the same as back in the Arena Essex days when I felt part of the club even if at times we led a very humble existence indeed. I have no intention of returning there whilst that man is still holding the fort, I can live without Lakeside Speedway, but he can't live without the fans.