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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.

With the end of the season just around the corner I would like to thank Sue and her very special team for the magnificent service that they provide. For many many years we've maybe taken the updates site for granted, but believe me each and every texter and updater, and Sue's right hand people are really appreciated. Thank you guys

OK I accept that, but don't you think we all have a responsibility if we don't think things are safe.

Rye house could be good if the right people made the changes to the. track and other infrastructure there But the owners are novices at speedway and more interested in cars and other sports at the stadium..Hopefully it could still happen we need a track running in the area..

I liked those Nielsen leathers too. As a fan of black, I thought Olsen had some great ones, particularly when he was sponsored by SodaStream. Surprised nobody has mentioned Ray Wilson's yellow Bostik leathers... Steve

My club, your club, both clubs are knackered. Rye only benefited last year, because they moved up when lakeside dropped down to the NL. This season things have returned to normal. Like you say, crowds were poor during the final years of the len silver era. Rye have no fan base, and lakeside have no track. I'm a neutral that attends both venues. Do i see a future for the Hammers at Rye, if I'm honest, i don't.

All booked can't wait

Of course, but I'm sure many of us on here have. Yet very few of us would have refused to go to speedway just because we had to pay... Steve

You don't watch it thou ..you have it on in the background

thats a nice post from cliv clav . .. as you say , the result would have been very different had you been able to use the arena . hope it all works out for you and the comets as a speedway team carry on for at least another season .

British Speedway yes. World Speedway not so much. Of course British speedway was better, I'd love it to be back where it was in the early 90's even and even at that point it had declined a lot. I'm not referring to the quality of the racing or the ability of the riders.. just simply the fact we had the worlds best riders racing here, attendances were better, which made everything seem more exciting. I don't think anybody has ever disputed that...

Try at least 10 or so missed!!

Hard to imagine that at the start of the year Charlie Brooks was a complete rookie and struggled to even get a point. I wondered why they picked him as he only had a couple of youth championship meetings in 2017 and failed to score. Now look at him, must be the developer of the year from a zero base. Martin Dugard puts a lot of effort into helping the youngsters and it pays off.

But the mon and thurs was decided on last year but we changed to mon and wed, which caused problems Or if they want to ride on a thurs the top league has priority with DU riders

Without a doubt, it will be watered down. Weaken the product and increase the admission price. A recipe for disaster.

This is the only pic I have of them, it doesn’t show the back,this was around when they started using other material, I have SF raceware a rough idea and he came up with these, many similar designs followed

Everyone hopes that titles are won by brave and exciting overtaking moves and that you can heap praise on the champions Sadly the 2 moves most pivotal to Pooles success were Kurtz injuring Holder in the semi and Jackobsen injuring MPT in the final No intent for sure in either case but more important than any points won in the completed races that followed Without those 2 incidents no doubt Poole wouldve not won either tie

That was a cracking race. Havvy, Loram , Hamill and Hancock. Havvy to be honest kept messing Mark up but was great race. How I’d long to see 4 top riders in a race again in the UK

Loram v hamill that was classic at poole many years ago