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You might want to rethink and perhaps even delete that comment, unless of course you feel that mental health is something to laugh about?

This original match was rained off initially on the 8th April, early season competitions that result in rain offs etc should be run on the next date that team returns for a league fixture A/B, league fixtures left in limbo and with the play off date rapidly approaching soon get arranged with a little more effort and urgency especially if that team are desperate to make the play offs. Thus instances like this and Poole v Lynn would be avoided.

Individual meetings were popular in the one big league days because you only saw riders once a season. If, say Barry Briggs was injured when he was due to ride at your track your promoter could book him and more or less guarantee a crowd. Today, teams visit twice a season and some teams three times so the attraction of an individual meeting is much reduced.

You are a fool I have no need to dream it - I've seen it each week with my own eyes and have no reason to lie or exaggerate

Just because Poole don’t get those crowds doesn’t mean other clubs don’t

Didn't just win it but worked his balls off to do it with an overtake on the last lap, on a track which wasn't allowing much chance.

How can you base Jensen and Ayres on one performance?! Ridiculous comment although we shouldn't be surprised.....

We won't need to weaken our team as MPT will be fit for the 2nd leg in March 2020.

He looked pretty interested when he chased down and passed Douglas in heat 11

I think you are missing the point, John. I dont think JOS50 is referring to Split's speedway career (although I could be wrong), but the fact that he is commonly regarded as a "wonderful character" and it is often said that we "need people like him" in the sport today. Split Waterman is rightly regarded as one of England's greatest ever speedway riders, and we can't - and shouldn't - take that away from him. However, stating that he was a "luvverly fella" and "we need more like him" is stretching it. Same with Kenny Carter. I never liked Kenny, and in fact I thought he was a psycho tw*t. However, he too was one of England's finest. We know that there are people - even forum members - who think his name should be expunged from the record books, and nobody should ever mention his name again - because of his final acts. To me, that is ridiculous. His career and his final acts are totally separate, and in any case, we can't - and shouldn't try to - change or erase history. My own personal opinion of Kenny Carter is that he was not "evil"; he had true mental issues, and it was these that caused the problems. After all, who, in a normal frame of mind, would take their own life? Certainly when children are involved? Individuals who commit other types of criminal offence, though not as severe, but usually for personal gain, are not suffering from mental health issues, and just commit them because they want to. If they make those decisions, then they should not be looked up to or revered, or simply considered a "cheeky chappie". Again, that does not and should not be used to destroy their achievements.

Came across this video on youtube. Seems the fashion is knock engine builders/tuners these days but the good ones make a big investment in equipment and put in the hours for their money. Whether you should need tuned engines is a different argument. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuqwkM7_-P0

£10 off after 2 shambolic heats is a kick in the teeth Those 2 heats have cost the poor sods that turned up £8!!

I think what we're suggesting is that it won't happen with current league set up remaining in place

Amazing the number of people saying what will or won’t happen to Kent and Berwick without having any idea of what’s is going on behind the scenes. Also how is it the right of CVS to spill these particular beans?

The bspa should increase the PL team limit to 46.5 so that we can keep the same team

I makes as much sense as a bjcol post

The Berwick public won’t like this. No local derbies, a probable increase in admission prices and the fact that the local council won’t allow regular midweek meetings. It’ll kill the club off

I doubt Berwick will be in a league without Glasgow. Edinburgh & Newcastle doesn't make finical sense , why would you lose your biggest crowds ? It dam near killed the club the last time and that was when there where good riders at elite level .

Wolves end of season talk in. CVS said they have/are applying for the premiership. I told y'all you will be surprised by a couple of teams coming up. Although apparently berwick cant race weekdays and kent can only do Monday with an half 6 start. So still question Mark's on them

Jake Allen confirmed as returning in 2020 at today’s NLRC.

Significant difference in that Leicester have been challenging near the top, compared to there time in the top flight. Poole is a different kettle of fish. Also significant that only 70% have said they would support a Championship team.. so that could mean an immediate loss of 30%. Then when some of those 70% see what the actual side is... could be even more. I still believe Poole are hoping simply to get Wednesday back and stay in top flight.

A meeting that doesn't finish with a grand final? How absurd.

As has been said by many before and proved right, I don’t think it matters who shows it...(certainly not on some obscure network)...live tv coverage is not the answer and will not be good for clubs or improve the sport unless tv companies are paying a substantial fee in excess of £1.5m...and then plus a huge amount of money invested in stadiums and presentation and sadly that will not happen. Whoever thinks just being on tv will save speedway is deluded. It hasn’t worked before and all the signs are it won’t work again. The hard fact is the combined losses of uk speedway clubs must be running into millions of pounds.

You think? For years the 'southern tours' were the highlight of the year for Northern fans....... You should try it, you know - there IS life north of the M4!

Ah the 28th! Your resident brown noser didn't make that clear, fair enough.

You might think so but after pleading abject poverty at last years AGM, and being one of the prime movers in bringing the team building points limit down to 38pts (they allegedly wanted 36pts), on the grounds that anything higher would possibly lead to them not running, that's exactly what they did!

Nothing wrong with the way the tapes were going up from where I stood.

I agree that Newcastle are NOT to blame. Bad weather is not Newcastle's fault. If however you wish to apportion blame to Redcar for the farcical situation we find ourselves in due to the delay in running the SF against Eastbourne then I would just like to say that it takes 2 to Tango, and 2 teams to run 2 semi finals. Perhaps Redcar were NOT entirely to blame either!

If you consider Garrity a good signing then you're utterly delusional. Absolute unprofessional.

Fun night with the Tiggerati on the back straight. Need everything to go our way on Tuesday, hopefully lady luck will even up Cookie's blow up. Only 'dubious' decision mentioned was that the tapes went up unevenly for the exclusion of Claus but I had no view of that. Heat 15 was just the boost we needed before heading up the road. Nice setup at Leicester and everyone we met was friendly and welcoming apart from Lawlor and Perks.

I think the comparison is unfair. Dan Bewley has improved his skills riding on the speedway tracks around Europe , whilst Darcy Ward "honed his" by riding around Aussie streets dodging the local police.

You put in a pairing in heat 15, who don't ride together, and possibly in the wrong gate positions, it's going to give a few percentage to the opposition. Looked like the Lions pair left half the track open for Vissing and he took the open goal especially with the dirt having gone to the outside by then. You can't beat having two riders who are used to each other in that situation, or if not then two who have the experience to make the first turns difficult for their oppoenents.

Cook didn't look interested??? Blows his best engine yet still wins his next race aye right

Why “quite rightly”? If Swindon can re-sign the team for next season, why not set the limit at 46.34? All of the other teams, except Peterborough 37.83, are at 41 to 44 so it shouldn’t be too hard for them to top up to 46. Boro would need two big signings to compete, but that of course is down to them.

I am sure that all speedway fans would want the world's top riders to ride in the UK but we can't afford them. In the same way, I doubt if there are many - if any - Poole supporters who would actually want Championship racing but its not just a matter of that, its also a question of finance. Poole, apparently, simply can't make Premiership racing pay so they have no choice other than to drop a league. Even by the most optimistic of standards, this isn't Poole fans voting to go down. Its them saying they will accept Championship speedway rather than - at least potentially - nothing. It always surprises me how a change of race day can - on occasion, dramatically - affect attendances but experience suggests that in most cases it does.

A bit late to the party but wanted to add some observations to my first visit to Blunsdon for a while due to moving from the area and work commitments. I make no apology for the self indulgent post either! Thursday was my first ever experience of the Robins winning a trophy on home soil. It was tremendous. I saw a group of grown men dancing together, plastic cups of lager spilling as they danced their Dad dances in a circle. The atmosphere was terrific. Chanting at speedway? Never have I heard that before. Jeff Beck’s Hi ho Silver Lining was belted out several times. Another group of young lads (teenagers this time) all singing together, laughing and smiling) Before the meeting began, dark clouds circled overhead, looking menacing and threatening. Worryingly , one massive cloud began to empty its cargo. At the time, I was stood inside having a cheeky beer. I watched as the home straight crowd staring anxiously at the sky. Fortunately, the clouds passed over and although the track looked wet, it certainly looked raceable. I watched the first 3 heats from the grass bank entering turn 3: I must admit, I felt nervous as Ipswich edged ahead. Even after The Iversen exclusion. They looked sharp from the starts, and Chris Harris ( for the first two laps in heat 3) looked hungry and committed. But then I witnessed an absolute steam roller of a side. Jensen was aggressive and fast Musielak, smooth and slick. Doyle was as expected. He’s a terrific leader and a real winner. Batchelor ( who I have criticised many times, mainly for when he opens his mouth) really does look high class these days. His pass of Doyle in heat 13, ( yes it was a pass too rather than any kind of team riding between the two) was superb. Ipswich were simply annihilated. Jake Allen gave a gutsy performance, but tired after Hawkins threw him into as many early races as he could in an attempt to contain the rampant Robins. This was the best Swindon team I have ever seen. And, in my opinion would beat any of the other 3 championship winning teams. There seemed genuine affection for the team from the packed crowd, and a pleasing team spirit. I liked the blend of orange/tangerine, ( I’ve never seen so many reflective orange highway maintenance jackets worn by supporters!!) Finally, I’ve supported the Robins from the days of Martin Ashby, Killer, Bouchard and Jan Andersson. I would have given anything for one of the mid seventies Robins teams to win the league, or even win an away match! I followed them everywhere on the coach, only to see them get a hammering at places like Cradley, Halifax and Wimbledon. The Blunsdon track in those days was excellent. Always passing, always good racing. These days, I like the shorter version. Huge compliment to the track staff who have worked wonders with it. In order to get a quick get away to travel back to my home in Cornwall, I left straight after heat 15. As I reached my car in the car park, I heard another rendition of Hi ho silver lining (Hi ho Swindon Robins!,) I sat in the drivers seat and caught a glimpse of my face in the mirror.......I was absolutely beaming!!! As I reached the M4, it was pouring with rain.. But the sun was shining on another triumphant season for a super speedway team.

Oh yes, the Krays were wonderful people; they loved their mother and didn't at all threaten, torture and murder people to get their own way. A lovely pair of cheeky East End chappies, unlike all those dark skinned foreigners - every single one of them - who have come to London to be specially violent to old foks. Just go away BOBBATH and take your Fascist insights with you.

Reserves should be riders from the commonwealth only

not to say more than a cursory glance at his bank balance!!!!!

Thanks very much to Racers & Royals for keeping us all updated with this thread, been a brilliant source for checking out the coming week's tv and internet coverage, most of which I would not have been able to find if it weren't for the links provided in other threads (international section), invaluable! Thanks again Tim, very much appreciated.

Why ? It's only a few weeks ago that Redcar apparently wouldn't come to Brough aa it meant 3 meetings in 3 days. Southern Tours used to be longer than that.

A bit unfair on the last minute riders BUT now Newcastle is off wouldn’t it be better to have Max clegg and Danny Phillips back in.Max is at top of the NL averages after all...

So Tom Perry can manage to guest for Peterborough today, so why isn’t he in this meeting? I still think Perls is favourite but it’s not that clear cut but Kinsley & Kemp are going to be there or thereabouts. Best of luck to Morley and Verge and of course Ben is a double winner so you cannot write him off!

Poole won the Premiership Shield....That’s one Swindon don’t have

Bruce Semmens from Cornwall enjoyed success on the grass tracks and in ice racing. His most successful years as a speedway rider were with Sheffield in Division 2 and he also represented Belle Vue, Wimbledon and Ashfield before 'retiring' after the 1952 season. In 1949 Charles Ochiltree of Coventry offered £2,000 to Belle Vue in a vain attempt to secure his services. Bruce's retirement was unfortunately enforced. It was reported in the national press and speedway press that Walter Bruce Semmens, aged 37, of no fixed address, described as a speedway rider and café proprietor, was arrested in Tewkesbury and remanded in custody at Wincanton, charged with breaking and entering a farmhouse in Somerset and stealing £5,000 in notes, together with a bottle of whisky and a bottle of brandy. In March 1953 at Bristol Assizes he was found not guilty of breaking into the farmhouse, but guilty of stealing the money from a locked cupboard there. He received a 4 year prison sentence.

Just read the match report on the club website. Is our team manager always going to blame bad luck and poor refereeing desicions, it is not very gracious in defeat and not the first time. He should congratulate his opponent on there victory then get the boy's fired up with his comments in private. Just my opinion.

if domestic speedway is to be shown then surely it would make sense to have a highlights show instead of live. with all the moaning and compaints about the live meetings it has to be better to compile the best races from various meetings and show what the sport CAN offer, rather than letting people sit through 2 hours of boredom. if that encourages people to go watch a live meeting there is always the chance they will stay as regulars, any sport is better live

There wasn't enough footage time for the riders to get to the 1st bend.

We all are aware of the credibility issues in speedway. The way in which rules are ignored, interpreted differently in similar situations, brought in without understanding fully the implications and then ignored or revoked etc. We all want to see the support run professionally with sensible rules applied consistently and impartially. We can see that the way that the sport is run devalues the credibility of the competitions but I do not for one minute accept that winning the play offs or even the cup is regarded by most on the terraces as worthless. I doubt there are any Swindon supporters saying this morning that their victory is worth nothing or Ipswich supporters who weren't bothered whether they won or lost. At the beginning of every season we all discuss and comment on the strengths and weaknesses of the teams. Why? Because we all want our team to win the trophies. With regard to the argument that you see basically the same riders in the CL as in the PL there can be no dispute that team strengths in the CL are significantly lower. In the PL teams have riders who do not race in the CL, Doyle, Fricke, Holder, Lambert etc., often 3 other riders who are CL no. 1's, a CL heat leader and CL second strings at reserve. The odds are that any team built to CL standards would languish adrift at the bottom of the PL.

1. Rasmus Jensen (turned Swindon from potential top 4 to league champions) 2. Ellis Perks (he isnt going to be world champion but is 100% trier and every team wants those) 3. Jaimon Lidsey (did very well in his first season and by the end was really flying....heat leader potential) 4. Luke Becker (same as Lidsey a great little rider) 5. Cameron Heeps & Jake Allen (jointly because without either Ipswich wouldnt have made the play offs and both were the big entertainers at home) No snobbery but ive only used riders from the top league as ive not seen the others ride