Leaderboard

At Arena with a full strength Workington team, the result was 56-32 to the Hammers! At Dry House against an under strength Workington team, it was 44-46 to the Comets...... enough said! You can thank the BSPA for losing us trophies though, as we were told we were NOT allowed to hold the finals at Arena if we made it through. The BSPA said 'you move or you stay', and as we couldn't get enough dates at Arena for all the fixtures, we had to hold everything at Rye. Had we been allowed to hold the final(s) at Arena we would have won at least one and would have been a great send off to the track. Still, I am glad we are losing to Workington rather than some other teams, as they were screwed over regarding fixtures this year too. The club needs a shot in the arm and let's hope this helps increase their support at home.

As others have said, theres the Klindt link, plus I do help Kyle Bickley. Smashing family too. Other side is of course Adam Ellis and I used to help Kyle Newman! Stood chatting to Keith most of the night. Proctor got his left arm caught between the back wheel and the spoiler.Nasty crash and full credit to Lawson, who also fell. He tried untangling Proctor from his bike. Depending on dates, I hope to be there for at least one of the Play Off Final meetings. Deserved their win on the night as well. I sincerely hope they finish the job on Saturday. So good to see one of the so called 'unfashionable' clubs coming to the fore. Up the Comets!!

Workington class this year, hope they win the lot

Speaking as a neutral (I support a Championship team) I cannot understand the annual whinge about the playoffs. Why do they do nothing for the integrity of the sport? It isn't cheating or anything underhand. Why are the "happenings difficult to understand"? It's there in black and white, top 4 teams into the playoffs, semi finals and final. Every U S sport does it this way, rugby union (all countries across the board), rugby league (both here and Australia), there are probably others, but I don't follow that many. Does it do "nothing for the integrity" of those sports? Fans don't just go to watch the final, the playoffs just attract more casual fans because the meetings are more important.

That was a horrible looking crash last night. I feared the worst when Richard starting frantically yelling for help for Ty. Such a relief to see Ty walk back to the pits eventually. As a Hammers fan of course I'm unhappy with the result, but full credit has to go to the Comets for a great performance even after they were down to 5 men. Still, it's not over yet so hopefully we can bounce back today and pinch the trophy from the Comets grasp. I can't help but feel that losing our home track advantage has been very costly to Lakeside. If we end up not winning anything I certainly wouldn't begrudge the Comets some silverware. Like us, their fans have had a long long wait for some glory.

There's been more books cooked in Speedway, than burgers in McD. Running speedway is more about a guys ego, than his financial brain.

What a statement. But every team strives to be the best team, wanting to win those spoils. With these playoff, now it all boils down to LUCK over those 2 matches This could be the reason why fans are losing interest and disappearing. Play-off may be a financial benefit to the winning team but it does nothing for the integrity of the sport.. If the public cant understand the happenings, what chance is there of them wanting to come and watch... The only reason fans come and watch the final, is because the rest of the season has been rendered unimportant... Probably if there were more importance placed on league racing, the support would be more favourable ...

I have to feel for my mate 'falconhammer,' who drove all the way up there from Hertfordshire. To suffer a rain off that far from home is a killer.

And I totally agree with you. It doesn't however mean that Lynn did anything wrong by booking Ellis which was in accordance with the rules. Doesnt matter how many times a certain Poole person says otherwise. i just like the truth

yeah but we all know that can riders carry on riding when they are not properly fit, sometimes they are a little too tough for their own good when they should really step back and say, ok I am not doing myself or my team mates any good trying to ride in this condition, over the years seen riders try and ride whilst having flu or on the back of some stomach bug, when really riding a bike with no brakes is the last thing they should be doing, no doubt they are a brave bunch, but with respect not always the smartest.

One thing I do notice out of this years final. Bar the odd one or two, Kings Lynn fans are the biggest load of bad losers we have witnessed on this forum. We’ve had the lot. ‘We are the real champs as we finished top”. ‘We are the best team”, “We deserve the title”, Poole got lucky”, “Jakobsen dive bombed MPT on purpose”, “Jakobsen should have been thrown out of the meeting as MPT got injured”, “ if it wasn’t for the ref”, “MPT missing”, “Iversen missing”, Ellis breaking the tapes”, “Wimborne Roads track”, etc etc etc blah blah blah de blah............ Truth is if they had faced either Somerset or Poole in the semi final they wouldn’t have even been in the final. Kings Lynn got LUCKY in the semi final as Belle Vue were without important riders. if Bewley and Cook were available it would have likely been a Poole v Belle Vue final. Kings Lynn caused a major problem in booking Ellis. It was a desperate move and Allit knew it was wrong and would cause the issue of bringing the sport into disrepute. Being legal or not, it was so bad the MC had to step in and sort out the mess. Poole use of Ellis was taken away from them even though they booked Adam first. Yet the whinging Kings Lynn fans ar trying to throw their clubs sory behaviour at Poole. Disgraceful to be honest. But karma is a wonderful thing. Stop the whinging, show some dignity and congratulate Poole on their 8th title this century.

At the end of the day Morris shouldn't of rode for Poole in leg 2.. It don't matter IF both teams agreed to it or not, it shouldn't of been allowed to happen. It's as simple as that. . How long has the average rule for guests been in place.... 10 years, 15 or 20 years I don't know, but it's a very long time.... Has the rule ever been changed for 1 meeting and changed back as soon as the meeting had finished ?? I would guess NEVER !!…. Will it ever happen again.... Probably not. Should it have been allowed to happen.... NO! Anyone saying it was ok to allow are either liars, on a wind up, or deluded imho.. A long standing rule should NEVER be changed for 2 hours, then immediately changed back to help one team. Lynn's booking of Ellis was LEGAL at the time... Ford and Middlo went bonkers and the rule was changed in the interests of Poole the sport. Somerset were severely depleted for the meeting at Lynn in the cup leg 2 and they wasn't allowed to use Wright for the 2nd leg at Lynn because he didn't fit, he would of done with the +5% Poole was allowed for Morris.... How can this be right ?? Not interested Blue Tint replys, unless they are sensible

So let’s assume the situation where Kings Lynn fielded an ineligible rider in one leg of the final and Kings Lynn went onto win by less than the points scored by the ineligible rider on aggregate. Do you think the likes of SS, Starman and Lisa C would just accept it and congratulate the “better” team? I think not - but anyone who thinks that of Poole is a hater, chomping on sour grapes or has an agenda! Double standards as always!

It's ironic that the Arena Essex track got a lot of criticism regarding the quality of racing. Those of us that were regulars know that it was usually far better than it was ever given credit for. Alas, Rye House is a long way from being anywhere near as good as Arena was. It's a real gate and go affair. It's fast, yes, but passing moves are few and far between.

Costs would increase because currently the points money paid by Championship clubs are subsidised by riders doubling-up at Premiership level. Therefore with one league, Championship clubs would have to compete with Premiership clubs for the signature of the same rider. For example, take Nick Morris. He rode for Swindon in the Premiership and let's say he received £100 a point. He also rode in the Championship for Lakeside and received £75 a point. Who would Nick Morris ride for in one big league? The answer is simple, the team who pays him the most. Therefore, Swindon already have a business model allowing them to pay a rider like Nick Morris £100 a point. If Lakeside want to secure the services of Nick Morris they will have to pay 25% more in 2019 than they did in 2018 in order to compete with Swindon for his signature. Couple this with the fact that one big league means there are potentially 19 clubs chasing the signatures of heatleaders and a reduction in the number of riders firstly due to the removal of doubling-up and secondly riders who can't commit to Friday, Saturday and Sunday racing in Britain dropping out. Whether more variety would boost attendances remains to be seen. What we know for a fact, as we have seen it happen over the last decade, is that if you reduce the strength of the league fewer people attend.

Reading the report on the BSPA site last night from Rye House it seems that Rasmus took another knock but kept on racing despite some discomfort! Whatever happens in the next few meetings this years Comets team have been fantastic, fixture farce, injuries and rain offs, for those about to race we salute you. A TEAM TO BE PROUD OF .

Speedway lacks passing as it is, throw rider's out for unintentional injuries will just encourage 15 heats of gating and just ride in the middle of the track. It was purely a racing incident and nothing else. If any finger are to be pointed, it should be the management for inadequate guests, not the opposition.

He could be just giving himself a couple of chances maybe! As for Ty, he needs to reach 7.00 to get his visa for next year as far as we are all aware! I’m sure there’s some way he can manage to work it out! Hey maybe one of us might have to marry him to get a visa hands up....THJ?!

I’m gutted for him! He’d just arrived at the meeting tonight as it was called off! Unsure how it will all pan out... can he swap to another state champs date? Be a real disappointment for him to miss out, and even worse for him to miss out on a visa for next season! Especially after the hoops he jumped through to race for the Comets this season We will see watch this space! It’s a crying shame we will be racing our finals with such a depleted team. No matter what, the comets have made us prour all season, and well deserved I say

The Rye House Stadium is a mess. A total hotch potch of viewing options, some better than others, Arena , by comparison, provided excellent viewing all round and with a well lit track and don't even start on the quality of racing. If the Hammers are serious about racing there next year, then major track changes are necessary or no one will bother to watch what is essentially a gating contest.

I would rather have the old Rye track complete with adverse camber on the second bend, at least there was passing with that one, I remember guys like Mark Courtney used to score quite a few points from riding the white line, he would be lost at the back there today.

Have to except what you say New era panther,,just the timing looks a bit dodgy ,he's been like this for awhile now .?

The booking of Ellis was within the rules. What part of that can you not understand? the rules that allowed it were crap but that's hardly Lynn's fault.

The riders interviewed have all said that there is only 1 line at Rye, and it is all down to the starts there. Hammers fans have been used to seeing riders being able to come from behind from all over their wide home track and use inside and outside lines to produce good racing, even if they miss the starts. This is just not possible at Rye. Rockets fans have been slagging off the racing, stadium, etc at Rye for long enough and voting with feet. Hammers fans are just finding out how bad it really is there. If the product is not entertaining and not an enjoyable enough experience to inspire people to pay the admission and travel all the way from Essex for, many will stop going. The locals stopped going in the 90's and have stopped again in this decade. We are trying to support the team and keep them alive until we get a new home. Let's hope Cook can persuade the stadium owners to rip the track out over the winter and lay a new one.

I heard u were changing youre username to Jason Doyle racing next lmao

He is more likely to have been dropped because they think Covatti will score more...Desparation if you ask me....

Well said, we are both clubs that need some good fortune at this time. The hardcore fans and promoters of our teams deserve some smooth sailing for a change, especially when they are true fans of the sport themselves Only Thurrock Council or Essex Council can give us the news we really need...... a new home for the Essex Hammers! Always find out for yourself Liam, never go by others opinions. Go along on Sunday and decide what you think. After all, you never know when it will be your last opportunity to see a Hammers team in action. Even if we aren't at home!

As someone from the steel city, I couldn't agree more. Starting out as an unfancied team you're now mopping up all the silverware. Well done Comets!

What a surprise, KL and other clubs fans start talking about Poole and we get the blame for replying!

Most would agree that losing MPT was bad luck, but to suggest Jakobsen should be banned is just silly, the League is being diluted every year, let's not sanitize it aswell.

I didn't realise we had to win by a massive margin to be a credible winner perhaps we should of tried harder in the second leg rather than just doing enough to make sure we won.

As a Somerset fan I got up this morning and saw 2 pages of more discussion and thought great as I really enjoy reading others opinions on meetings and outcomes. However yet again 90% of the comments have nothing to do with the subject. I personally don't post often as the criticism that people receive is very off putting. I would however say that the racing at Somerset on Wednesday was top drawer. Probably some of the best we have seen this season. Having Charles back for one night only was excellent and watching Gary and him going around on Charles's bike at the end of the meeting showed that all problems are firmly water under the bridge. The meeting didn't just finish after heat 15 and the fireworks, we were treated to some great interviews with Doyley, Nico and Charles who took rider of the night. How lucky I am to be part of such a wonderful club, the Hancock's make you feel part of their family and that is how speedway should be. So come on you Somerset and Stars fans who don't often post take the plunge and let people like me know your thoughts on the two meetings.

Just been looking through those few clubs still racing and struggling to rearrange meetings because of the weather. Here we are on October and despite having had a very good summer their have been plenty of teams who failed miserably to get fixtures on when the weather was fine. Excuses will be many but the reality is that no one who is running this so called sport is in control or can manage it. What is wrong with those who own teams that allow this regular annual event to take place? Rules need changing and must be robust. Race by a specific date or forfeit the match. Neither the owners or administrators seem up to the job and they wonder why those who follow the sport are leaving in droves . Has anyone in a position of authority at BSPA level or running a club the balls to come on this forum and explain why come October the fixtures are still a shambles. Clubs at a least two levels have unfinished business and are rapidly running out of dates but I suspect that the usual excuses will be trundled out. Most fans are fed up to the back teeth with the clap trap that comes from the authorities. You have no respect for those who put hard earned cash into your coffers If you are one of those owners of a club and have the balls (and I doubt that no one with voting rights at BSPA level will stand up and be counted) it would be interesting to hear, (and please don’t try and tow the party line,), why you individually or collectively as a member of an exclusive club, have allowed the sport to have almost reach its nadir. Why you cannot be honest and tell the most important contributor, the fans the truth and convince every one of us why we should turn up in 2019 is something I doubt has even been considered. Furthermore what do you intend to do to win back the support of those who have long since drifted off into the sunset. You owe every supporter past, present and future an answer. I would put money on it that none you at club or BSPA level will come on here and tell the truth but I am happy to be proved wrong.

Can someone who goes to rye house / Lakeside confirm that the 20/20 draw normally only wins £20 or was it due to a comets fan winning you have another envelope to give to away fans, just asking ? As most other places 20/20 draw is £100-200 mark

Does remind me of the classic Standard Liege trick from the old Danny Baker radio show on how people get into football for nothing.Two guys brought themselves Liege club ties and then used to announce at top football clubs that they were club scouts from Liege and wanted to attend the next game.Seemingly they all fell for it lol

Your obsession with Sarjeant is pretty boring now , if you want to fantasize about him thats your prerogative but do it in front of the mirror in private and spare us the obsession.

I'm sure they would but the problem might be the PL not wanting to lose another one. I don't think it's possible to just drop down without permission and with the possibility of only 5 or 6 clubs left I can't see that being given. I would much prefer to be in the Championship as there is a bigger variety of teams, or failing that one big league.

So in other words 'I'm still bitter and can't take it..' Plus we were 8 up when we actually won, H15 didn't mean anything!

I think lakeside need a shot in the arm as well. With no home track and no real future. Racing a full season at Rye next year could financially cripple the club. Poor racing and poor facilities has seen the fans vote with their feet. Last nights attendance for a national final on a lovely sunny day, was awful.

Gutted for Ty forecast looks okay on Met office let’s hope this drizzle does one ! And the stomach starts churning last Sunday was bad enough it’s fantastic to be a Comets fan at the minute but very stressful , lol !! Best of luck boys we right behind you , let’s start the treble

See he couldn't even say"sorry i messed up there didn't i".First thing he makes it out as your fault,read the post again will you.

Wow I have heard it all now! A rider attempting to make a perfectly legal pass might have to have second thoughts, in a split second in a playoff final, incase the rider he is passing might fall off. This isn’t tiddly winks. MPT left a big gap and Jakobsen did what any other rider would have done. MPT was at fault for leaving the gap. Had he stayed on the inside Jakobsen would have been blocked.

Sarj ?

I quite agree to an extent, those of us left still attending league speedway.. and I count myself in that as I still attend when I can and indeed yourself as well.. must either be gullible or just downright stubbornly refusing to give up on a sport we grew up with and loved. The wider public though that's not the case and what worked and appealed back in the 70's and 80's no longer works. That isn't necessarily a good thing either.

Good luck

What a silly post.

Steve, don’t make yourself look silly. I congratulated Poole on the victory when it happened. would you like to apologise now or shall I show you up with the quote? Choice is yours. edit.. it’s on page 23 of the 2nd leg thread. Even liked by you. Think before you accuse someone of false information in future. An apology will suffice tho.

Lambert already agreed to sign for Swindon as a full asset with Doyle signing for Stars. Will be announced next week.

Love to watch James riding. Great style and was lucky enough to see him quite a bit when he was a member of The Storm.

Easy one for me. The great Barry Thomas chasing down the team-riding Ivan Mauger and Scott Autrey before flying past them off the final bend, winning the meeting for Hackney and the league for White City.