CUFC_Brummie

Great final, last heat was an absolute cracker, shows just how good the Danes are that they probably didn't have their best 4 out their tonight in hindsight but still managed to win it, albeit with the help of the joker. Wish they'd make the World Cup every two years, it doesn't quite have the buzz it should do, and by making it every year you're almost forcing the hand of most nations and not allowing them to give track time to their youngsters. Make it every two years and schedule plenty of test matches in between, but of course that won't happen because test matches aren't as marketable as the World Cup. Don't have a massive problem with the joker myself, but 6 points is ridiculous, if they're going to have it then it should be at least when 10 points down, and not be allowed to use with a tactical sub at the same time. As for us, no surprise where we ended up at all. I didn't have a massive problem with the 4 picked this year, but I think now that it is time to chance our arm with some of the younger guys in future years, especially if we keep getting a semi-final at home which will be far less demanding. King and Stead hard as they try just aren't quick enough and never will be, get Lambert and at least one of the other younger riders in with Woffy and Harris next year, and then phase Harris out the year after for another youngster. In the meantime we need to be getting a lot more track time on the continent and a lot less of our guys sticking in the lower divisions in England, but regardless of Rosco's ideas, Wizzer's ideas, or Woffy's "statement" towards the BSPA, I just don't see it happening, it will be the same old for years to come.

Great effort lads, thought we had no chance of winning, let alone with two races to spare, and with Aus and USA getting 3 bonus points from the joker. Hopefully Sweden do the business Tuesday then we might have a shot at a medal. What has happened to Lynn though? Never saw a bad meeting there until 18 months ago, and since then the half dozen or so I've seen live or on Tele have been utter bilge.

Well done Tai!

Dull as dishwater meeting from Prague yet again but a great result, well done Tai.

Elite League is on Sky Sports, normally on a Monday but sometimes Wednesday. Occassionally they show Premier League (second division) on a Tuesday. Eurosport show the Grand Prix (individual World Championship) on Saturday nights, Team World Cup in July and Swedish League on Tuesdays. Useful websites, speedwaygp.com, skysports.com/speedway and speedwaygb.co. If you can get hold of copies of the 2006 Elite League Final, 2007 British Grand Prix, the 2013 Bydgoszcz Grand Prix and the 2004 World Cup Final, they're exciting historic meetings to watch. There are of course countless others but those 4 spring to mind to me, particularly as the last 3 all have some form of British success in them. As a non-driver as well I can appreciate that it is difficult to get out to a variety of circuits. Arena Essex is walkable from Chafford Hundred station but the racing isn't great there, if I was trying to introduce someone to the sport I wouldn't take them there. I've heard good things about Kent's track but haven't been. Overall I'd probably say the Grand Prix's are the best place to start watching whilst at home as it's a bit more of a spectacle and the racing is usually better (or consistently decent) than the Elite League, but you can't beat being at the track for me so I would try and get to a live meeting somewhere as well. Our round of the Grand Prix is in Cardiff on July 12th and is definitely worth a visit. You will be baffled and confused by many things you see, but that happens to all of us still whether we've been following the sport for 3 years or 30 years. Regardless of guests, tactical rides, average manipulation, there is still a great sport in here and you'll struggle to see a better sporting spectacle than a well contested speedway race. Like any sport you'll get a few duff meetings but persist with it because there'll be some absolute crackers in there as well, and once you've stuck with it long enough you'll be able to truly appreciate some of the downright outrageous things these riders can do on a track.

The lack of vocal support and non-segregation of supporters in this country definitely detracts from the ability to create proper rivalries in my opinion, it's just too nice, there needs to be a bit of bite to it and I've yet to see it anywhere really in the 8 or so years I've been watching the sport. It may well have been different in the past but it certainly isn't the case now. Going to watch the Brummies at Coventry and Wolves doesn't feel a whole lot different to going to watch them at Lakeside or Swindon for me despite the bigger number of travelling fans. Stick us all in one section and the atmosphere would improve tenfold.

The sport should be planning cost cutting measures without the Sky money anyway as it needs to be done regardless of whether there is a television deal or not. If Sky don't come in then the clubs are still being run sustainably on a reduced budget, if they do then it is essentially bonus money, but it should be handled by the BSPA (or an independent body) and distributed to clubs only when they propose to do something for the benefit of the sport, such as upgrading facilities, investing in young rider development, offering promotional schemes to increase crowds, rather than go on the wages of a some 6 point foreigner or second tier GP rider which quite frankly we don't need. Sky or no Sky, the sport can move forward either way but from a team building perspective at least, it should be being done without the Sky money regardless of whether a deal is going to be struck or not.

If anyone knows anywhere in Cambridge that will be willing to show the GP then send me a PM, ta!

Now I regret not buying tickets for Torun! Going to be a cracking end to the season, pressure is really on Emil now, another good round for Tai in Latvia and the momentum will really have swung. Hope Nico's injury isn't too bad as well.

They need to worry about making domestic racing something resembling respectable first before promoting too much, it's all well and good showing people how wonderful Cardiff is, but at their first glimpse of league racing afterwards 99% of them would never return again.

Well done Tai! Can't wait for Cardiff.

Anyone going from Torun to this on Sunday morning on the train? Be good to have some company!

Can anyone point me to where I can get tickets for the first leg at Gorzow? Cheers!

Can't understand it. For the World Cup, I understood their decision, small teams, big stage, may have been a bit too soon, but it's matches like this where we need to be blooding some youngsters. 7 man teams rather than 4 mean that there's enough scope for someone to have an off night and for it not to have a massive hinderence on the outcome, exactly the sort of scenario we need for our young guys, where they can get the experience without having too much reliance on them having to score massive points. We'd all like to beat the Aussies but the reality is they're well ahead of us, it's no shock if we lose, and with it being a test match where the result isn't quite so important, we should've been using this, as well as a couple of other similar matches on the continent, to be putting these youngsters into a position where they get the experience required so that come next year's World Cup, they'd be ready to be thrown in there. Now it doesn't look like that will be the case, and I can already hazard a good guess that the team next year will be very similar if not identical to this year's, with an identical outcome.

They should just get rid of this farcical rule, it was very very clever from Nicki, not very sportsmanlike, but whilst the tactical rule is in place then this will happen, if it was England riding I'd have wanted our guys to do exactly the same thing.

And that is why the joker is a joke.

Great meeting yet again, fantastic effort from the boys, a real shame about those 2 mechanical failures, momentum definitely shifted after the Aussies first tactical. Take nothing away from Crump and Holder though, absolutely outstanding. We'll be outsiders again on Thursday but I expect us to be competitive at least now after tonight's showing. Hopefully the Poles will blow hot and cold again and the Danes will have an off night too and we might just have a very slim chance.

Those last two heats, incredible. Fancied the Russians beforehand, should've put my money where my mouth is. Looking forward to Monday.

If anyone is planning on driving back south after the meeting and can drop me off in Luton/Bedford/London/Somewhere inbetween, then can you let me know, thanks!

Sky Sports stream - http://www.coolsport.tv/stream3.php

I'm in the same situation with Sky Player, and what's even more annoying is they're not even showing anything live on Sky Sports 2 and 3 at that time! I sincerely hope the above post means they've bumped La Liga onto one of those channels and reinstated the grand prix on SS4. To have a live event on the red button when there are 2 channels not showing live sport would be a disgrace.

Don't hold it every year. Every 2 years, fine, but not every year. Joker can only be played once 8/10 points back. Hold the race off at a different track to the final (it can be in the same country though, and I would understand not changing this one because of the logistics, but it'd be nice). Job's a good 'un.

Boys did alright considering how poor our lineup really is, but it's very concerning for years to come. Harris is obviously the key to our team for the next 7 or 8 years, but outside of that it's looking bleak. Barker did himself no harm at all and if he can up his game a little bit at Birmingham now he can be a fixture in this team for years to come. Aside from that, bleak. Bridger, terrible, but the sad reality is we didn't have anybody else available who would've done a whole lot better. Kennett was poor and has been around long enough now that he should really be doing better on this sort of stage, the fact he isn't suggests he isn't really up to it. Woffinden is still young and is going to improve, but when you compare him to what the others have got in similar age groups, he's miles behind. We don't have a Darcy Ward or an Emil Sayfutdinov coming through, and that's the concerning thing. Tonight was a respectable effort but in the next 3 or 4 years we're only going to fall further behind. I can only see the 5 that have finished in front of us continuing to pull away, and a couple of the nations behind us possibly beginning to catch up, which would be absolutely disastrous. Something has to be done but I'm not quite sure what the answer is, it's going to have to be a long-term upheaval rather than a short-term fix I think.

My first grand prix, and after that, it will not be my last! Great view, great meeting, great atmosphere, and Chris Harris, you are immense! Well done Bomber.