CHAMPIONSHIP PLAY OFF FINAL - SCUNTHORPE v POOLE v SCUNTHORPE (2 & 7 October)

[Paul Johnson]

Thats what replays are for,to help the referee.And its been explained that both wheels had gone on  the line he therefore left the track.

Edited 16 hours ago by Paul Johnson

[marko]

But is there scope in the rules for a ref to alter the result of a completed race? Take for example also recently when a race started and was completed with two riders off the wrong gates, the race was run and even though the mistake was later picked up on, nothing was done.

What would happen if a race was completed and no one noticed that it had been completed with a rider that had no dirt deflector, or wrong helmet colour until afterwards? 

[LisaColette]

3 hours ago, marko said:

But is there scope in the rules for a ref to alter the result of a completed race? Take for example also recently when a race started and was completed with two riders off the wrong gates, the race was run and even though the mistake was later picked up on, nothing was done.

What would happen if a race was completed and no one noticed that it had been completed with a rider that had no dirt deflector, or wrong helmet colour until afterwards? 

Doesn't look like it 

• Discretion and Review Timeframe: A referee has full discretion to review an incident before the result is officially declared. They can consult with assistant officials, review track side evidence, or take a moment to evaluate a crash before making their final call, but that power effectively freezes once the result is locked into the official score sheet. [1, 2, 3]
• The Post-Meeting Appeal Process: If a team believes a rule was broken or a gross misjudgment occurred, they cannot force the referee to change it during the meeting. Instead, the club must lodge a formal, written appeal with the SCB after the meeting concludes. However, even during an official post-meeting appeal, changing the actual recorded on-track result is incredibly rare due to anti-retrospective rules. 

[Fromafar]

It’s over and done with Scunthorpe have accepted it so should everybody on here.

[ouch]

5 hours ago, marko said:

What would happen if a race was completed and no one noticed that it had been completed with a rider that had no dirt deflector, or wrong helmet colour until afterwards? 

Or goggles. 

That happened once where a ref watched a rider throw them away whilst at the tapes but did nothing. What would possess him to do that£

Not sure which team benefited back then. 

[marko]

1 hour ago, Fromafar said:

It’s over and done with Scunthorpe have accepted it so should everybody on here.

It’s not about people accepting the result, it’s about what can be done to prevent such instances again and making sure the authorities have things in place accordingly.

[Sir Sidney]

11 hours ago, Paul Johnson said:

Thats what replays are for,to help the referee.And its been explained that both wheels had gone on  the line he therefore left the track.

So you are saying that on the line constitutes crossing the line?

Other than by just writing out the regulations again can you evidence that that is the SCB's interpretation?

Eg

is it documented anywhere ?

Is that the interpretation that referees are trained against and is communicated to clubs and riders?

And let's not go to the point about which part of the wheel has crossed the line. I suspect we all take that as the part of the tyre in contact with the ground, but that isn't what it says. 

I understand that you may think I'm being pedantic, but regulations should be able to withstand the scrutiny of a pedant! Plus, I don't want such an occurrence to happen again. 

I'm going to Belle Vue on Friday. Given that the inner edge is of a completely different construction at the NSS, I hope the referee, clubs and riders have been fully briefed and are clear about what crossing the inner edge of the track actually means. 

The SCB could clarify this today and give certainty, and I'm pretty sure the regulations will be modified for next season. 

Edited 4 hours ago by Sir Sidney

[False dawn]

6 hours ago, marko said:

But is there scope in the rules for a ref to alter the result of a completed race? Take for example also recently when a race started and was completed with two riders off the wrong gates, the race was run and even though the mistake was later picked up on, nothing was done.

What would happen if a race was completed and no one noticed that it had been completed with a rider that had no dirt deflector, or wrong helmet colour until afterwards? 

So if a rider has alcohol on his breathe and is tested after the meeting and fails - no action?

A bike is tested and found to be over size after the meeting - no action?

Sorry. I don't care who "moves on" and its not because its Poole, there is absolutely no justice in the way the rules are structured and how this has been handled.

[Fromafar]

32 minutes ago, marko said:

It’s not about people accepting the result, it’s about what can be done to prevent such instances again and making sure the authorities have things in place accordingly.

Mistakes have been made in many big Sporting Events.Lesson will be learned is the common answer.People do have to accept the result though ,how many BIG sporting events have you seen replayed.

[False dawn]

5 minutes ago, Fromafar said:

Mistakes have been made in many big Sporting Events.Lesson will be learned is the common answer.People do have to accept the result though ,how many BIG sporting events have you seen replayed.

But people want to know who was at fault. Your options are:

1. It was Poole, it always is.
2. It was Zach. He deliberately rode a tight line/crossed the white line to gain an advantage.
3. It was the referee who, with the aid of the replays, came to the wrong decision.
4. It the rule as written by the SCB.

1. Don't be silly
2. I don't believe Zach took to the centre green on purpose. Nor did he gain an advantage. Picko let him by with a view to trying to slow down Richard Lawson and get MPT into 3rd place.
3. The referee interpreted an ambiguous rule and came to a decision on that basis.
4. The SCB in its own post meeting announcement said they declared a breach of the rule after they'd reviewed it. So it was ambiguous. 

[Roger Jacobs]

Typically poorly written SCB Regulations, open to interpretation. There have been announcements that the Regs were being reviewed - clearly nothing much has been done.

Also, why do the Regs allow an appeal to be made, given that the Regs themselves don't provide options for the Referee's incorrect decision to be changed?!

The SCB has a lot to answer for.

[Fromafar]

6 minutes ago, Roger Jacobs said:

Typically poorly written SCB Regulations, open to interpretation. There have been announcements that the Regs were being reviewed - clearly nothing much has been done.

Also, why do the Regs allow an appeal to be made, given that the Regs themselves don't provide options for the Referee's incorrect decision to be changed?!

The SCB has a lot to answer for.

“Best interest of the sport” overrules everything in the rule book.😂👍

[SteveLyric2]

Anyway, Scunthorpe Promoter and BSPL Chair has now stated publicly on their website that he wants to 'move on' from the incident and bears no grudge against Poole. He looks forward to building a 1-7 to win the league next season........

[Neila]

36 minutes ago, Fromafar said:

“Best interest of the sport” overrules everything in the rule book.😂👍

Or the best interests of Poole 😜🤣

[mikebv]

3 hours ago, marko said:

It’s not about people accepting the result, it’s about what can be done to prevent such instances again and making sure the authorities have things in place accordingly.

But they do have things in place...

It's called the referee with rules for them to follow, and implement...

The ref either just didn't see that the rules were broken, or maybe didn't understand the rule given the "on the line/over the line" ambiguity...

What bafffles me more is why an appeal got held when, as was said in the statement, the result couldn't be changed anyway...

What a complete waste of time if that was the only course of (non) action that could be allowed....

Edited 1 hour ago by mikebv

[Fromafar]

On 10/13/2026 at 12:05 PM, Arthur54 said:

Perhaps all tracks should have a curb around the inside of the track, would stop any wheels going over the line 

Health and Safety probably comes into it.

[Paul Johnson]

People keep spouting football rules or tennis rules  so why not do what tennis does? allow 2 challenges each? 1 in the races to 8 then another to possibly ht 16, if u dont use one u lose it?,