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Such is the state of the sport. Too many early season meetings and it all finishes by mid August. The biggest and most unforgivable problem was Rob Godfrey pulling out fixtures that hag already been agreed, all because he wanted guests for his own club. I can’t conceal my absolute contempt for that man. Personally, I have already reached the stage of having no interest in the sport outside the league Lakeside race in, I will give Rye House a go, but the sheer incompetence of those currently in charge, especially Godfrey and Chapman, coupled with the amount of cheating certain clubs, especially Poole have been allowed to get away with, has just about ruined the sport for me. I enjoy it once I actually get to the track, but motivation gets harder and harder.

Honestly Tom Bacon and Kyle Bickley have been with their respective teams since the start of the season To be fair the changes made by Newcastle and Workington were forced upon them rather than either promotion dropping riders, Lewis Rose decided he needed some time out from the sport and went into "semi retirement" for want of a better phrase or description and Mason Campton was replaced by Bradley Wilson-Dean under a facility to temporarily replace Campton who had been injured and once fit; came back into the team. I also agree that Rob Godfrey (RG) can be fiercely loyal to his riders. Furthermore it must be said that the promotions of all three clubs mentioned Newcastle Workington and Scunthorpe do have a good reputation for supporting their riders through thick and thin; and possibly retaining them for longer than is beneficial to all parties when they invariably go through a rough patch for whatever reason; where some other promoters have been known to be a lot less patient and a bit more ruthless. I also accept and agree with the point RG made when he stated it was doing no one any good having Danny struggling in the team, the fans, the club in general, Danny's team mates and most of all the lad himself. IMHO this is probably the best for all concerned and good luck to Danny as its the knock backs in life that make you stronger and knowing Danny he is very pragmatic and will take this in his stride and keep plugging away in an effort to improve. Regardd THJ

Stirring as usual He jarred his back again in heat 13 against Nicholls, the same injury he incurred riding Pooles dangerous track the other week. Kings Lynn had already won, he didnt need to risk himself further. Somerset unlikely to top the table and wether they come first or second they would have the easier tie against Poole anyway. And no he cant win the world title but he wants to stay in the top 8 , he will undoubtedly get a wildcard but better to make sure Why would the travelling Rebels fans be fuming? You make no sense. Lets say Woryna picks up a minor injury in his first or second ride. Would you want him to carry on and risk further injury or would you rather he rested for the important play off matches?? Try looking closer to home for riders cheating their travelling support. You and other Poole fans were very vocal about Poole riders 'not needing to try' at Kings Lynn, but yet you come on here and say Doyle cheated Somerset fans...........you really are laughable

Like most on here, I too am gutted. I only discovered speedway 12 years ago and then totally by accident. I became hooked after watching my first meeting at Arena even though Hammers were on the run of about 20 straight defeats. Arena has been described by many as a 5hithole, and it is difficult to argue. However, as some of those with whom I stand have said, ‘It is our 5hithole and we love it’. Arena has provided my son (First meeting at age of 6) and I with some great nights, great racing, (Yes, really) and through standing in the same spot for the majority of those years, I have made some great friends. Sadly, many of them are from the other side of the river and a trip to Rye House is unlikely, which is a real shame. I am only 45 minutes from Rye but am undecided as to whether I will go once The Hammers are there. The reason being is that in those 13 years I have seen the sport disintegrate to what it is now. In 2007, my first full season, there was no doubling up. There were the worlds top riders coming to town, Crump, Adams, Pederson (The world Champion) et all. They were great days, in front of good crowds. Since then, the powers of be have slowly dismantled what was a great product as they have failed to view the picture in a bigger way than suits their own needs. A 25 minute trip to my local track is enough to keep me going, but to go further afield leaves me wondering if I will bother. I think it is unlikely other than for the odd meeting when I have nothing else planned. Sorry to waffle, but Arena has given me great entertainment and great friendships over the years and it saddens me. To Andrew, Shaun, Paul, Andy and Aaron, and the bloke with the huge road bike who always chats but I have never asked his name, thanks for the great evenings, and thanks to all The Hammers and opposition riders for doing what you guys do.

Pray tell in what way? No one knows what Barker would have scored or r/r will score unless you are clairvoyant But if you look at what happened on Saturday with Klindt having severe bike trouble for worrky against the moanrchs resulting in a lucky point - do you consider that convenient?

Yes as Chris Louis say's was a compliment to a great young talent the lad has it all, the tongue was firmly in there cheek with the comment.

If you keep getting passed and can't stay on ya bike, not sure they deserved anything to be honest. The amount of times we have a lead going into the last few races and then it going Pete Tong is pretty frustrating....but at least I can cheer for my second team now......come on you Comets

At least Kemp looks like a great newbie

Why would we give the lad grief? He's on a learning curve and the promotion have give him a chance to show what he can do. over last few weeks you could see his confidence growing, hence his first win in Comets colours and scoring more than his average at home.

I have to say that the price that edinburgh charge( and i am an edinburgh supporter) is too high in my opionion. £2, car park, £18.50 at gate and £3 for programme thats £23.50 before you have bought a bovril and also i dont get the supporters bus as i drive but im sure thats about £5 as well so if you add that on its pretty steep indeed. Not everybody can make it everyweek so no point with a blue or gold card, and not everybody has or uses internet to get the discounted price however i think this is only around a £1 or so. As posted before away fans will turn up at the gate and pay the full price( i know i do when in do the away meetings). if they made the gate price cheaper this would deffinetly help the “non regulars” to pop a long and they may well come back as well.

Very impressed with how Connor has improved this season riding for Coventry and lately Leicester. He has come on tremendously well and must be one of the few riders who rides the Beaumont Park track really well. Pleased he has now been signed as an asset for 2019.

Surely it`s pretty obvious who goes first. the team who finishes top at the end of the regular season, we know chooses the opposition and also decides if they want their leg 1st or 2nd. The remaining match is between the other 2 qualified teams and the team that finished higher in the regular season has the choice of their home leg 1st or 2nd.

If it had to be done it shouldve been before the cut off and a permanent replacement named

In all honesty, when you came to our place recently, you were by far the weakest team we had raced against this year. Only half the team were good enough and the rest were way off the pace.... I said at the time how surprising it was to see them that weak. Their home form has been their saviour this year, but even then, the results have been much closer than they used to be. . It didn't surprise that we won tonight, I always thought it would be close, but the way Wolves folded, must have disappointed even the most ardent supporters.....

Somerset definitely threw the meeting tonight, not putting Doyle in heat 15!!! Shovlar style of thinking

Very enjoyable meeting Ipswich starting off very well with us coming back at them as the night progressed , Ipswich were good value for at least the point they got but were let down in the big heats with some strange manoeuvres especially from Riss which ultimately cost them. Young Kemp looks the real deal and a very confident young man also, came across very well on his pit interview . Ultimately I think Edinburgh will be favourites to join P'boro , Lakeside and Worky in the play offs they for me have a more balanced feel about them than either us or Ipswich.

Just wondering... we had gold on the race suits this year given we were the champions, do you think we will have wood grain next year given we've got the wooden spoon?

I would say Phillips scoring is on a par with Bickley, but haven't seen him getting much grief from Workington fans!

Craig Cook actually qualified so he's clearly a "GP rider" Woffinden NEVER qualified, got 2 x wild cards, then has stayed in top 8 since!

We don't need a excuse!!

Yep I was working 30 years ago but not now. Its like Morecambe and Wise a few years back when asked what they would be if they weren't comedians, Eric replied 'Mike & Bernie Winters.!!

All sounds perfectly plausible until you factor in 'The Ipswich Way" which is to make hard work of even the easiest situation and generally grab defeat from the jaws of victory

The word is flawed.............lol I ask you again......if Woryna aggravated an injury, would you prefer him to keep riding, do more damage, miss the play offs, or rest for the play offs?? Simple question that for some reason you cant answer. I use Woryna as he is possibly the only Poole rider they would struggle to replace 24 hours for an aggravated back injury he can have plenty of treatment. Not one Somerset fan is annoyed he didnt ride but i guess they see they bigger picture

So maybe Somerset are in the wrong and should of told their fans not to travel as they didnt want to win the match? this forum is a much better place without you anywhere near it, everyone thinks the same. Whats happened has your webcam broken or are you skint after the mrs ran away with another bloke and you cant afford the quid a minute twit shows on twitter?

From the seemingly strong position of being 10 points up, Wolves fans would have thought they would win in a canter but with Robert Lambert and Iversen in the team anything is possible. Kings Lynn seem to be the form team right now.

Honestly You could not be more wrong Regards THJ

I think you are right about the double up/down and removal of tactical substitutes. I think those running the sport underestimated how much a part of the sport the TS was. It was a major discussion point at matches - even between strangers. They got rid of that, and, at the same time, made the gaps between races seem twice as long as they did before. Speedway was not just about motor bikes. It was about tactics and the scoring system. They got rid of that and changed what the sport is.

I reckon Speedway in GB made a major mistake many years ago in not having meetings on a Sunday. Nowadays, speedway on a Sunday afternoon would probably double crowds at some venues as this is probably an ideal time to go to a speedway meeting. Instead, the top riders began riding on the continent on Sundays, and the Polish league took Sunday as its day. If the UK had Sunday afternoons as its fixed race night/day now, I reckon we'd be doing a lot better.

Pleased to see Connor put in a strong performance. Was very disappointed when Ipswich released Connor but it seems to have been a blessing in disguise for him, securing team places at Sheffield and Leicester. It's clear he never enjoyed riding the Ipswich track and being released enabled a fresh start. Should the league set ups stay the same, Connor should have Championship and Premiership speedway next year and make the move up from the National League, hopefully as a National League Riders Champion.

Racing was just as predictable in the past as were the matches. The top riders used to be miles clear of other riders in the old daysand have cma of 11 plus where now you get nothing like that now .As for the racing just like today 90 % of it was from the gate and most meetings were crap but made to feel and look better because the crowds were bigger .

ALL those words are true .a good post .

Its only convenient when it's not going for his team of trick track experts , when it is they are superb and there track is magnificent. He spins more sh*te on here than Jenga which shows how much he spins.

I live in Surrey, but work in London. I always go by train to Arena straight from work. It's no hardship, much better than tackling the tunnel and the M25. Although it wasn't very pleasant walking back to the station after the Newcastle rain off. Having just one meeting to say goodbye is my biggest gripe. We should be seeing the season out at our home track, not squatting somewhere else. More effort should have been made to rearrange meetings earlier in the season. The whole episode has left a lot of us Arena regulars felling very bitter about the way it's ending.

If you had won tonight it would still be impossible for you to make the play offs.

It's better to save one venue, than lose two.

I think after that result Kings Lynns bubble is well and truly popped. Lucky Nicolai was riding. Scored the same as Iversens average so the Dane wasn’t really missed. Somerset clear favourites for the title after laying down that drubbing.

Because she didn't even notice that Robson came 3rd in heat 2 lol

A few of my memories are, the awful fenceless track of the 1980's, the all conquering team of 1991, the year in the CL, after the promoters had cleared off to Hackney. The return to the top flight in 2003, and the massive crowd for Lee' Richardson's memorial meeting. This season started with such optimism, and will end with sadness and disappointment. RIP Arena Essex, you will be missed by those of us that really knew you, not by those that criticised you at every opportunity.

Is he called that because everyone walks all over him?

Can't believe Doyle is getting such a hard time for missing heat 15. With more important fixtures coming up, it's right to be cautious. King's Lynn are still all guns blazing and are picking up knocks. This could end up damaging their Play-Offs. Tonight, I'd prefer the Stars to go their tonight and get done 75-15 and just do some testing tonight. In some heats, a bit of gating practice then pull onto the infield and in some heats, let the rebels go from the tapes and just ride around half a lap behind.

Spot on from start to finish , farcical is the only way to describe it.

Honestly You couldn't be more wrong either Regards THJ

Tom Bacon`s performance earlier in the season at Scunny was one of the best performances ive seen by a visiting rider this season,the lad was excellent

Thankyou for finally posting that you were wrong. We got there in the end.

Was never a huge fan of Cookie before this season, but was delighted when he made the GP's last season meaning two Brits were permanent members of the series. Having followed Cookie over the season and seen the way he has interacted with his fans and given opportunities to those who have helped him has been absolutely superb and people really shouldn't forget that. It's nothing to the riders to give these opportunities to people but for the fans it's a huge memory to treasure. I am gutted for him that it hasn't gone to plan this year and he has struggled. Whilst his self confidence isn't the highest, his lack of track craft and experience have been his downfalls in the Grand Prix and it was a huge shame he didn't secure his place in the run off with Lindback in Germany. Track craft again was a big example of his issues there! However, moving back to Cookie, what he has also done for his fellow riders is fantastic and he has used his position within the sport as a GP rider admirably and whilst at times he has let himself down this year according to some, the majority of his actions have been superb. I'm all for British riders riding in both leagues personally, there isn't a huge difference between the leagues and if someone wants to ride, let them. I'm sure many fans go to tracks specifically to see Cookie now he's back in the Championship. Congratulations to Cookie for the win yesterday and hopefully he can have a good end to the season in the GP's.

History will show that Craig Cook is a champion. It will also show he was a GP rider. How many other riders will history show as both. Not that many. Well done Cookie.

I know you meant to put 'steroid spray' mate. 'Steroid spay' could be a whole different procedure Take it easy. See you Wednesday.

Isn't it amazing how folk can decry riders who put their life on the line for our entertainment? Yes there are riders we wonder why they are in the team or even allowed on the track but they do it because like real fans they love the sport. Yes I questioned Cookie's involvement in the meeting but at the end of the day he beat the other 15 riders and that's what it's all about. If you want to slate riders then maybe you should find another sport

As a smallbrook regular, last thursday was my 7th visit of the season. I never thought speedway would return to the island after it closed in 2013. It had too many things going against it, the Solent being the main obstacle. The new promotion have done a fantastic job in turning the track around, and it has a real feel good factor about the place.