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And IMO this is the major point Yes it is extra expense and yes you dont win because of a fancy suit and covers BUT any future upturn in the sport will be down to attracting quality higher profile sponsors They would only want to showcase themselves is this kind of professional manner

I went to a British Basketball League match today.... Plymouth Raiders v London Lions. It's not my favourite sport, but it was a good afternoon's entertainment. What's really striking about it compared to speedway is that not a single minute is wasted. Even when it is time-outs or the end of quarters, there are dancers, the mascot is up to something, kids competitions, lights, music..it is a full show. In short, it's light years ahead of speedway. And surprise, surprise, it is packed with families and the sort of demographic everyone on this forum would love to see at the speedway. I've said it before and I'll say it again...and again and again. Speedway's problem is not that it isn't what it used to be. IT'S THAT IT HASN'T CHANGED ENOUGH!

Lets hope all 3 teams see regular features on Look East through the season that help boost the crowds and add to the atmosphere - make matches places that people get a buzz from and want to return for

This years team suits did not cost the northern club any money they are sponsored same as last year

Press and Practice will herald the return of the Witches to the top table Looking forward to some outstanding action and pictures that will make all around the country take note

This is what I’d assumed about these track changes, the club needed to push on with things and change the track layout to try and rejuvenate the project a bit. The old track certainly wasn’t fit for purpose any more and the entertainment value had gone through the floor. If the club can keep going with healthy enough attendances and general support, it makes it harder for the council to say that the site needs to be put out of its misery because only a couple of hundred of people are turning up a week and no one cares any more. I’m almost certain thats what would have happened with the old track and was Osbourne’s plan to bleed any support for the speedway dry. Hopefully with a better track and a competitive team, attendances and support will stay healthy....it’s then up to Osbourne and his cronies to fulfil their side of the bargain and put some sort of new stadium. If not, the elephant in the room over osbourne and this mythical stadium just keeps getting bigger. Sadly I think the club and council are still ultimately just being strung along though. I don’t know why Geoff58 is sounding off as if he’s just uncovered some inside scoop.....we’ve known all this for years mate... it doesn’t need rubbing in any more.

That’s True Baggy who wants to hear about top of the League Norwich, or indeed Tractor boys fans looking forward to welcoming the likes of Accrington Stanley to Portman next season

I think the Jacob injury is a huge blow for Wolves . In my opinion you are losing a heat leader and replacing him with a second string. As much as i like Scotty and i am not having a pop at him i just feel that Jacob is a superior rider to him these days.

Well done to the witches. Racesuits and covers look great. What ever happens this season its good to have you back in the prem.

All he does is post stupid stories on here with no substance behind him, not the first time. Just ignore him.

The only main differences between the riders own suits and club ones will be the team colours, each rider tells the manufacture where he wants his own sponsor logos on the suit so basically no real difference , the only time I can remember a club insisting on putting a non sponsor logo was last year when Glasgow put the Greg Mackie training academy logo on all the suits which all the riders were happy about , and it also saves the rider £6/700 before the season starts Glasgow have had individual fans sponsor each suits and they got to keep them when the season is over not that there's much left of it after a season and this year it's Grant Henderson Tankers who has sponsored all the team suits

Track work progressing.

And superb they look too!

Isn't that the point - Big sponsors more than likely won't sponsor at all with an amatuer look. With a more professional image they are more likely to. I still can't believe more teams (if any now actually) don't try and get sponsorship for fork covers. That is prime spot for every photograph being taken and is cheap to get manufactured. Win-Win!

The builders have NOT got planning permission for the houses on the east of the stadium, so ignore all the rubbish being posted.

I don't recall season tickets ever being advertised on the back of a new stadium being in place. Lots of fictional facts being thrown about at the moment, so perhaps I missed this originally

When team racesuits are made for each rider, all their individual sponsors go on to that individuals racesuit.

Best of luck to all teams, and fans, in 2019......ENJOY...

Indeed, Mr Wagstaff started it at Lynn in 2000 when the riders all have silver bike covers to go with the black race suits.

you will have to have a look at this thread they are on there somewhere - also here https://sportowefakty.wp.pl/zuzel/784378/sklady-druzyn-pge-ekstraliga-2019

Good piece on Look East, kevlars and bike covers look awesome. Refreshing to see speedway as the local sports news, makes a change from boring people with yet another Norwich win

Easy to confuse the riders, otherwise yes very professional........but the big whammy 2 guest riders in your team & the whole thing look's a shambles!!!!

Bank holiday as in thursday, May 30th this year. Also the only place of the ones mentioned that Ive been to, went there for swc quali. Has a unique shape for the LT and with cheap beer and 15k people might be a good place to see longtrack racing.

Interesting that Terry Russell talks about "his" contractors and "the clubs" contractors. It certainly gives the impression that the club are paying for this rather than the stadium owners.

At Hull in 2005 each rider was issued with 2 fork covers & 2 rear wheel spoilers both of which carried the team sponsor who also featured on the front and back of the body colours and extensivley in the match programme. Just sayin'....

Delighted to confirm that our FAN FORUM on Weds night (20th March) in the glass grandstand will feature three Promoters, three riders and the Team Manager. Starting at 7.30, we will hear from Matt Ford and his two new Co-Promoters, Anthony Tilley and Dan Ford, in the first half of the presentation. After an interval and opportunity to mingle, we will then be pleased to welcome, 2019 Pirates, Josh Grajczonek, Jack Holder and Richie Worrall along with Neil Middleditch. The event is held on behalf of, and for the benefit of, THE RIDERS EQUIPMENT FUND. Admission on the night is £5 with REF members benefiting from a £1 discount. Doors open 7.00pm

Do you mean here https://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/15898083.work-on-new-stadium-could-be-underway-by-may/ or here http://www.swindon-speedway.com/news.php?extend.2871 Think most of what you quote has again come from the Stadium owners rather than Rosco & Russell. They have passed on info as told in the past which has proved incorrect and have since not made mention of the stadium, just the track alterations.

but the team race suits take the eye and not the riders sponsors . riders sponsors on a race suit take time to look for on a jazzed up suit . sponsors logos can be as big as they want to be on their own suits because there are no restriction as to how big they can be , where as they are limited to size with team suits . as HGould says , they have had their day and the built in body colour is the best option . plus they can keep the race suits when the season finishes . it belongs to them and not the club .

Remember all of the same negativity surrounding the NSS before it all finally happened, and look at it now. I appreciate the circumstances are completely different in Swindon. The Club have only been able to pass on info they're told, a lot of which has proven incorrect hence why they have stopped saying anything about the new stadium. The Club commented that an altered track would be in place for the 2019 season. Again, nothing about the stadium. The new track will be in place for the 2019 season. I very much doubt money would be being spent on all of the alterations if it was for one season. We'll see I guess.

And until more notice is taken of those that no longer attend than the happy clappers,the downward slope will continue.

...and we are back where we started. Doing anything well is not easy. The plodding on-same as last year-don't change too much-too much hard work attitude is why league speedway finds itself where it is. Scratching its head and scratching its bum.

I think racesuits have had their day to be honest. Especially when you see young riders coming in to the sport with numerous sponsors and those sponsors crave space and profile. A team race suit limits space, an individual racesuit and body colour allows more space and a rider his "individuality" and sponsors like that. The modern trend also seems that those who have individual race-suits incorporate the body colour in to the suit. I am told a race suit costs north of £600 and a body colour costs about 10% of that, if Clubs can blow around £4500/£5000 of sponsorship money on suits, good luck to them, I suspect most would rather bank the £4000 and have race jackets that can give one big sponsor just as much exposure??...

Someone has been on the sauce

I went to the Basketball play-off final a few years back. It's a great show, but they do, of course, have the advantage of the indoor lighting/facilities and so on. Interesting, also, that it attracts their biggest crowd of the season, but the play-off winners are not also league champions.

But only if you stay to long, apparently you’ll be pulling out ya hair, drowning in despair.

Think you are wrong, & typify what is wrong with a lot of speedway fans. We need to make the sport more professional, & racesuits are very important to improve the image of the sport.

Ah nice to note such optimism!!

Didn’t think for a moment I’d get a sensible answer but for what it’s worth that’s a very negative way of looking at it. How about trying to look as professional as possible to gain more sponsorship? Speculating a bit to accumulate? Even some National League teams have them. Why would a team want their collective photo in the paper on online with everyone in different gear? Looks so amateurish. Unfortunately too many people in speedway are like you and have a can’t do attitude rather than trying to drive the sport forward.

Well done Sir, Very well done. I take my hat off to you for finding that one. I bet you got a little stiffie when you came across that page and had to sneak into the kitchen for a crafty pocket shuffle. £2 a year - what was I thinking??

Exactly, there are a million and one things for people to do with their leisure time and money nowadays, and unfortunately speedway hasn’t moved with the times to make people want to come. Add to that the way the sport is run and the often dreadful customer experience and it’s little wonder crowds are so poor.

Anyone with half a brain knows Ford is behind the Poole success, who do you think was texting Middlo during the matches.

I love it when Alex Ferguson's reign is described as being easy as the richest club. The majority of the winning under Ferguson's reign was with players coming through the ranks of the club which is where the club's wealth came from. For me, Middleditch has just been Ford's puppet. Ford says who rides for him, who's sacked, which replacements are needed etc. Middleditch for Poole is exactly the same as a team leader / supervisor in business, powerless in hiring and firing and just there to fire up the staff employed by someone else. Matt Ford is the reason and only reason for Poole's success.

Just received my latest edition...and as usual a great read. Was particularly impressed with Martin Rogers' honest opinions when answering questions put to him (my own included) A great column and I only hope that others make the efffort getting in touch. Such a breath of fresh air reading a Promoter's point of view when discussing speedway's last 'Golden Era'. I used to enjoy reading the late John Berry's comments in said magazine and Martin has filled that roll admirably.

Poolebolton doesnt have a clue as usual. Just continue to ignore him.

Not sure the work on the track changes the new stadium position one iota. Internal work within the existing stadium doesn't prove Gaming International's commitment to build anything.

I've always looked back on speedway with such affection. It seems to be an enjoyment that was always there. In my late teens a gang of us would first go to the meeting before hitting the drinks and dance floor, we use to plan our holiday around fixtures away, we even interrupted our honeymoon not to miss a meeting. When our 2 kiddies came along they joined in and went to most meetings, it just seemed the natural thing to do. Time moved on and your circumstances change, your children get married and the grand children arrive. They in turn are doctored into our beliefs in the hope they will continue our love for the sport. Its a wonderful experience seeing the complete family of 3 generations at places Cardiff and other big meetings. but it is unfortunate that the younger element don't appear to have the same enthusiasm as us old ones do. Please to report our son accompanies his ole man regularly, and both can be seen at most of the Stars meetings, Our grandson picks and chooses his meetings, but it gets harder to persuade the others to attend.... It appears the best days of the sport have long gone. The spectacle of seeing 4 men racing bike with no brakes is still the same but the environment has completely changed. Where once the terraces were packed enjoying a full nights entertainment, now there are just a few die-hard fans watching processional races that are over in no time at all.. I look back with envy of those wonderful times and am so pleased I was privileged to have been there...….

Surely that song would be sung about all the holder clan. Oh and don't forget one for Jason Doyle