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Like 99% of the people on this forum I realise you are a bit ( lot) of a c0ck, but to tell a 2x European grass track champion that he should count himself lucky to do a lap on what is one of the shïttiest tracks in the UK, just proves you to be the first class cockwomble that you are. You obviously get a twisted pleasure out of trying to be controversial but that comment alone is really out of order. Give yourself an uppercut you waste of space

MFF you are an absolute imbecile. You are arguing with people who live in Poole about the weather they have had. Shov is the biggest pro Poole poster on here and even he knows they have f*cked up. Wind your neck in.

And before this thread gets into a slanging match with the usual suspects I just want to say well done to Steve Shovlar and Lisa Colette for giving honest opinions and actually not sticking up for Poole in this instance .. Well done

To me it confirms that we say goodbye to riders who are not committed to GB,even if the weakens Teams by bringing in youngsters and riders who are gaurenteed to turn up every week,it's p#ssing a lot of fans off IMO .Guests and R/r should only be for injured riders.

What a farce. Only the UK promotors and authorities could make an absolute hash out of fixed race nights.

Talking of mental

I work 1/2 mile from the track and can confirm that from 9am there was no rain. FACT as you like to say (although in this case it actually is).

Are you a natural pr1ck or do you have to practice? If no practice then I just can’t believe how out of 3,000,000 sperm you were the fastest!

Looking forward to MFF coming on here telling us it was dry in Swindon today

So you would be happy to be sacked by text? Fair enough if they have doubts as to his fitness that's their perogative but FFS do the man the courtesy of actually dialling his number and speaking to him. Remember this is a man who is proud to wear the Union Flag on his chest unconditionally, no ifs, no buts, no only if you do it my way. Cookie is red, white and blue right thro. Makes you wonder what price loyalty.

GREAT Britain international Edward Kennett has become Peterborough’s second mid-season signing as they look to avert their injury crisis.Kennett comes in for the T.Balfe Construction Panthers as a replacement for Emil Grondal, who crashed heavily in Denmark last week with his recovery time unclear at this stage.And with Bradley Wilson-Dean also on board to replace Nike Lunna, it means there will be something of a new look to the Panthers when they visit Glasgow in their next Championship fixture a week on Friday (June 8).Promoter Ged Rathbone said: “Once again, this is a case of us needing to act due to injuries, and we weren’t looking to make changes prior to Nike and then Emil getting hurt.“But having been in touch with Emil since his crash, it’s clear that he could be looking at longer than five or six weeks out, and we just can’t afford to run with rider-replacement given the number of matches over that period.“We have six matches in June and as we keep saying it’s such a short season this year that if you have a bad run when you’re not at full strength, it can virtually be season over.“Edward is an experienced rider who had been looking for a Championship team place, and the opportunity was there to bring him in without disrupting the rest of the side, which is also important for us.“I’ve explained the situation to Emil, who’s done absolutely nothing wrong – it’s simply a case of us feeling that a full team is very much the stronger option than doing at least six or seven matches, and possibly more than that, with rider-replacement.“We’ll continue to work with both Nike and Emil, and should they regain fitness prior to the transfer deadline then they have a chance of being put back in – and that should also keep everyone else on their toes.“We wish them both all the best for their recoveries and we look forward to seeing them back at the East of England Arena soon.”Kennett’s home debut will come up against Glasgow on Sunday June 10, which is the first of three Alwalton fixtures in the month – also including the potentially vital Shield clash with Ipswich on June 17.

If the contract demanded that they have priority then yes. On the wider point, he is a British rider and therefore that contract should not be accepted. When we were dominant in world speedway we acknowledged the principle that home federation fixtures took priority, especially with Poland. It would be good to see the same courtesy offered now in return. Just because a contract is signed it does not make it right.

I'm quite happy with my wording and note that both criticisms come from two people who I have 'crossed swords' with in the past. Perhaps we should be debating what is a serious problem rather than make playground-style attempts at point-scoring? Yes the BSPA may have upset Harris as well. I could have written a paragraph or extended sentence as thread title but I follow a basic principle - 'Keep the headline brief'. The rest can be included in the main body. I know nothing of Harris' position regarding this nor was it speculated upon in the story. I therefore left this out since there were far wider matters at issue than an individual. Whatever the theoretical position of the 'slot system' Britain is already in breach by using Wednesdays and what I considered the most significant part of the story was Poland claiming that our lower tier also only was allocated the Monday and Wednesday slots. This is all semantics. Poland are drawing another line in the sand to claim Friday to Sunday running, excepting international weekends, and no doubt in the long term would love to see those either under their (via One Sport?) control or bundled away on nights they don't want. This is not a case of 'teething problems' of a new, acceptable system. Sweden and Denmark have long worked with a one or two night a week allocation. Britain's needs are different due principally to stadium access and ownership and a need for weekly speedway from March to October, not fortnightly for a dozen weeks or so mid-summer. We've lost that and we've lost our way. Our successful years were based on weekends. We've virtually lost these crucial weekends and this latest Polish muscle-flexing will make that problem far worse. The present PL supporters may be happy to watch 'stars' racing midweek but what we need to re-grow is to recapture the weekends and if that relies on lesser names then fine - I really, really doubt whether the new supporters who we need to attract would even notice their absence. We need to be selling a good night's racing on the right night and regularly. This 'new order' and its 'teething' pains are in direct conflict with this. Is that now clear enough for you? I've written enough professionally over the years to accept critique by those who are qualified to so obviously hope to also meet your demanding standards, Anyway, apart from having to deal with such inanities I'd suggest that Hawk127 has it exactly right. British speedway is fighting for its future and despite the limitations of the BSPA it doesn't deserve to be treated with the contempt it is now receiving. We have given a huge amount to the sport over 90 years - until recently being the only serious place for riders to earn a full-time living for one or to race at the highest levels of team racing. Yes those days are over for now but we deserve a bit more than simply being told to "Go sit in the corner we've given you and don't dare to speak". I'd be a lot happier if I could trust the business controlling Polish speedway. I don't. A rebuild here is required but I do fear that the scale of rebuild will be too much for many 'supporters' to accept.

If practice is more appealing in Poland due to, I presume, not wanting to upset the 'geese that are laying their golden eggs', then surely it now makes even more sense for British Speedway to now "go it alone"? Let's be honest of the GP riders who are willing to ride over here, the only top 10 rider in the world is Doyle and if he wasn't an Aussie, over here for so many years, and as WC able to pick up good money without too much competition, then I would suspect he may have given Britain a miss too.. Ride on nights when you can generate the biggest crowds rather than when your employees tell you when they are available, only pay out what you can afford and let those wanting more carry on earning more overseas if they so wish, and fill your teams with riders 100% committed to British Speedway, meaning they are always available when your business can bring in the most income... Sometimes I do feel that some Promoters enjoy having their ego massaged by dealing with (and becoming friendly with) World Class talent... I would suggest that the income their sport generates is often a lot smaller than their egos in some instances.. Time to face reality for some I reckon....

I was in Poole overnight. No rain at 11pm. Car and roads not even damp at 7am. No rain between 7am and 6.30pm when it was called off. I was at my Fathers, whose house backs onto the school and Stadium. You can watch the riders go along the back straight from the pits into bend 3 Unless the rules have changed, I believe the home promoter can call off a meeting right up to 2 hours before the meeting. After that, only the referee can call it off. I am with SS on this. A massive balls up and one which will have a profound affect. Embarrassed to say the least.

Looking forward to Starmans version of events.

IT is also a kick in the teeth for those fans (already many making their voices heard on social media) who bought tickets for BV on the basis of seeing Cook there.

"holes on the first bend are dangerous" - hasn't bothered them for the last 10 years

Was out and about at 8 am and the roads were dry then and have been dry all day. It did rain overnight but was over by the time it was daylight. Just sounds like a total ballsup with the track and an extremely expensive one judging by the amount of people at the stadium.

Pedantic........ You're welcome.

Our track must be the biggest joke in speedway

How about the regulation that Poole were going to smash everyone this season? That’s been totally flouted.

Take offense Poole fans if you like, but here's another Ipswich fan with an opinion From the outside looking in, so to speak, Poole have been most successful because they were, notice were, able to bring in successful riders to their teams, trick, loram, ward, holder, all riders who cut their speedway teeth at other clubs before Poole came calling. Just using shanes as an example, they never stick with anyone who they "feel" isn't cutting the mustard. British boys have no future at Poole because they aren't allowed to progress naturally, which is such a shame, because they seem to like Aussies better I could say more but won't

Why would i put you on ignore? your opinion is valid you are entitled to it but you are not consistent Poole have had a great run success wise over a long period.Middleditch did not win all those trophie's by luck and by the way handling big stars keeping everyone happy is not easy.As for the Shanes debate you are totally WRONG would a team in trouble believe replacing a two pointer would be the end of there troubles just be truthful Shanes was shafted how is MS still there?.Even with Nielsen in the team the problems were still there replacing Shanes did not make a lot of difference do you think James scoring 4 rather than 2 was the difference I don't.

Time to stand up to the Poles who seem to want to rule the speedway world. This should be the final straw but cannot see the U.K. authorities doing anything other than roll over and let the Polish clubs treat the U.K. with contempt. Unlikely to happen but someone ought take the ‘fight’ to them. Change the format in the U.K. to one main league and the NL. Meetings to be run Thursday,Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday (for TV). Overseas riders permitted except Poles who cannot commit to league racing over here because their association will not allow them to ride on these days. Look towards internationals with the likes of Germany, Latvia, Czech etc. Have two parts to a meeting. The reserves in any team must be NL riders who double up. Squad system if necessary for all clubs. Something needs to be done to defend British Speedway.

I don't think he has been particularly harshly treated by Redcar - changes needed to be made to Redcar's team with the priority trying to win at home and Theo has been the worst performing rider in home meetings. He's not a youngster or a Bears asset so was the obvious first rider to replace. To fit Theo in Berwick have dropped a rider too - it happens! Maybe John will be sticking two fingers up to Berwick.

Kennett on a 5.27 Premiership average for a reason, he's on a downward slope. In Lyager, we saw glimpses of what he could do & since having a year & a half riding in other leagues against riders of a similar ability, he has done very well. Against the Polish leagues big boys, he is not starting many meetings & when he does, he is, maybe, just out of depth. He would be a good acquisition, again, for the Scorpions & should get a true average after a new 4H4A meetings covered. He would, also, take Stefan's place at no2 & ride with Steve when he returns.

I've said it before already but I'll say it again - The Premiership is the top division and therefore should take priority over anything else and the rest should fall in line. Promotors should of been ruthless at the AGM and hammered home the Monday and Thursday fixed race nights and not been put off by Ipswich, Redcar and Sheffield. The fact that Denmark is taking priority over Britain on a Wednesday is an absolute shambles position to be in. I read on here somewhere the other day that Robert Lambert is meant to miss Kings Lynn visit to Poole because he is due to ride in Denmark. How has it come to that? Shambles.

MFF totally owned.

Okay but as Wolves have shown you can dry a track out in 12 hours! It's just ridiculous. You are only making a deal out of this cos you are obsessed with Steve, get over your crush and move on FFS!

JETTISONING Cook at this stage is extraordinary but sadly symptomatic of the appalling state that British speedway now finds itself in.

That's ballsed up our plan to reduce the averages - it was going quite well this week

Apparently the initially disgruntled Pirates fans have just left in a more understanding mood now that Middlo has confirmed that they even tried tilting the track to drain off the water. Although Grajczonek still fell off

I am not blaming the ref.

Is the tide in at the minute?

Apparently there is a 'wet patch' between 1st and 2nd bend? When you consider all the water Wolves had to deal with on Monday, it is pretty shocking!

How anybody could have expected James to do more than he did is beyond me ..... only his second season in the Premiership with only NL experience before that with Kent. A classic case of the numbers game ..... he got the team place as he fitted in with the others/Sundstrom and it is as simple as that. The fact that he could be replaced was purely down to others (including Sundstrom) not performing. It isn't that difficult to understand.

Just a quick question if all the Poole rider's had rode to there averages who would you have replaced James with ?

Thats the joker. Terrible decision.

Matt wouldn't want any of those anyway. Only way any of those would get a team spot at Poole is if British Speedway bosses forced Matt Ford into using one of them.

Boz stole my thunder - utterly ridiculous to claim Redcar deserve bad luck for daring to change a losing team.

I'm struggling to see why anyone would see that. People are acting as if we are the first team to ever drop a rider. We are a struggling team. We are getting heavy defeats both home and away. We dropped our lowest averaging rider at home and replaced him with a proven heat leader at this level.

I know but when you look at the teams Poole had when they won those league titles it's completely different to now. Look at Man City for example they've won a couple of premiership titles because they had the team......But before the money was invested in them they were only in the Premiership to make the numbers up. Steve McLaren could manage Bayern Munich and they would still walk the Bundesliga.....Because they have the team.....But the fact is McLaren is not a good manager. So my point is that Middlo might not be as good as people think he is. I'm not saying he's a poor manager because he isn't. People say look at Middlo's record but when you look at the teams we had those year's as well. It makes Middlo's job a lot easier to do. For example the last 4 league titles. 2011 - Holder & Ward were in the team. 2013 - Ward, Hancock, Holder, Pawlicki 2014 - Ward, Holder, Janowski, Pawlicki, Milik 2015 - Janowski & Holder as a top two. Its different times now......Middlo's skills are being put to the test now. Just like every other manager in the league. Poole have not got the best out of riders in the last few years. We are not talking about 1 or 2 riders we are talking about quite a few riders. So you have to look at the bigger picture and think why is this happening. Who is to blame for consistent underperforming riders. Just like any other sport you have to look at the manager. Then you look at Swindon and how well Rosco does with the resources he has and how well he does with his riders. Middlo has done well when he had the teams consisting of riders above. I'm spot on regarding Shanes.........Stand by everything I said on that debate.

It would be the worst thing for any young Brit to sign for Poole. They have an atrocious track record with discarding them. there are some very exciting young kids coming thru and it’s a pleasure to watch their development. Hopefully they will choose very wisely when selecting who to sign for.

But you have never quite grasped the fact that most people only expected James as a two pointer to score his average.If the rest of the team had been doing there jobs James would not even of been mentioned.Last year as the year went on James got better the simple fact is James was made the scapegoat but plenty have over the years.Loyalty patience it does work at Swindon we have Adam,David,Zach all riders that Rossiter believes in and they can be part of the future for years to come.

No offence taken here, I knew what he meant!

Totally agree with you Mike and I think many of the problems started way back in the early 80's. Up until then Promoters were generally just that "PROMOTERS" who relied on the sport for their income, and as such actually promoted to get the crowds to come in. Then in the coming years you had supporters, who thought that their business could support speedway, become promoters to get their ego fix. I think some of them soon realised that, especially with the introduction of the Danes and Swedes to the 2nd division, it was far more expensive than they realised. I think a lot of the many clubs running in that time have suffered from this. Also the lack of second half racing has hindered the development of local talent over the years, much of this was local riders who developed and moved into their local team, something the local team supporters could relate to. I'm just glad that I was able to enjoy that period!

hopefully we will see the team that will see the season out.in two weeks time maybe waited to long for chris one more change would give us a good chance of making the playoffs imo

The track was set out by David Hemsley and he went ahead despite many good and knowledgeable people imploring him to change his mind and pointing out the errors. He then spent 4 years trying to fool people into believing that it was producing top class racing. To cut a long story short he eventually gave into pressure and agreed to some limited changes which had very little effect, and later to more significant changes but only what was possible within the scope of the arena's footprint. He presented the BSPA with an open goal to ban him as a Promoter, and thank goodness they took their chance although I think he was also becoming a thorn in their side by having the cheek to suggest better ways to run the sport, many of which seemed to make sense. What I'd suggest is that if you can come up with realistic proposals as to how the track and the arena could be changed, preferably based on calculated and researched Engineering & Design, and which is affordable within a very, very (i.e. nowt) budget, give Damien Bates a call. I live in hope (not the place near Sheffield)

At the after match press conference at Swindon both Ellis and Morris said that there were some tracks they didn't like. Both said Lakeside (Eastbourne and Rye house) and they are both now riding for Lakeside and scoring well. So just because a rider doesn't like a track doesn't mean that they can't get used to it.