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The health of the nation is far more important than a few speedway meetings. When this crisis is over, the sport will have to regroup and start again.

Such a move will impact enormously on the volunteering sector.. Many good people of retirement age and above freely contribute to the good of their local communities.

I genuinely believe this will kill British Speedway stone cold dead. As said, most attending are over 60 & have been going for their lifetime. Once the habits are broken the majority will not come back to Speedway. This virus may not kill as many of the elderly as first expected but it most certainly will kill this sport.

That would be discrimination, a lot of us oldies are fitter and take more care with our health than youngsters. I daresay they would be doing it to try to protect us from the Virus and relieve the burden on the NHS but surely us oldies are capable of using common sense, I'd rather be at a speedway meeting than being stuck in doors "waiting for God"

Depends who's asking. Are you a potential sponsor or the taxman?

Not much chance of many riders being behind on last season’s evidence. Can’t see this year being much different tbh

and THIS is precisely the problem. "We are not safe". Give it a rest.

However, Italy is the country that traditionally 'stays inside' the most at this time of year. And they have the highest death rate from flu every year.. And the same with Covid-19.

Too many read a headline and not the detail behind it. Hancock HAS said it is a measure that will be bought in. He has also said...it WILL be bought in if and when required at a time when it will have most impact. Politics (nothing to do with Party Politics) prepare people for the worst case scenario. In so doing you look good when you don't have to use that scenario but can also say you have a contingency in place. Also some over 70's and 80's will no doubt voluntarily listen to it now, they may not isolate but what they may do is go out once a week instead of 4 or 5 times. It suits the doom mongers to spread doom. Sells papers, empties shelves. The reality is somewhere in between.

They may do that but not this week, next week but at near peak POSSIBLY it's a contingency measure. Government are preparing and filtering out a "worst case scenario" so that when it doesn't happen they can say (a) we handled this better than expected (b) we had contingency in place. Why are people so gullible! As for isolating over 70's, are they going to arrest any over 70 who is seen out and about... good assessment when you read it without prejudice and blind panic some seem to have fallen for.

Found on Twitter from Professor Ian Donald. 1. The govt strategy on #Coronavirus is more refined than those used in other countries and potentially very effective. But it is also riskier and based on a number of assumptions. They need to be correct, and the measures they introduce need to work when they are supposed to. 2. This all assumes I'm correct in what I think the govt are doing and why. I could be wrong - and wouldn't be surprised. But it looks to me like. . . 3. A UK starting assumption is that a high number of the population will inevitably get infected whatever is done – up to 80%. As you can’t stop it, so it is best to manage it. There are limited health resources so the aim is to manage the flow of the seriously ill to these. 4. The Italian model the aims to stop infection. The UKs wants infection BUT of particular categories of people. The aim of the UK is to have as many lower risk people infected as possible. Immune people cannot infect others; the more there are the lower the risk of infection 5. That's herd immunity. Based on this idea, at the moment the govt wants people to get infected, up until hospitals begin to reach capacity. At that they want to reduce, but not stop infection rate. Ideally they balance it so the numbers entering hospital = the number leaving. 6. That balance is the big risk. All the time people are being treated, other mildly ill people are recovering and the population grows a higher percent of immune people who can’t infect. They can also return to work and keep things going normally - and go to the pubs. 7.The risk is being able to accurately manage infection flow relative to health case resources. Data on infection rates needs to be accurate, the measures they introduce need to work and at the time they want them to and to the degree they want, or the system is overwhelmed. 8. Schools: Kids generally won’t get very ill, so the govt can use them as a tool to infect others when you want to increase infection. When you need to slow infection, that tap can be turned off – at that point they close the schools. Politically risky for them to say this. 9. The same for large scale events - stop them when you want to slow infection rates; turn another tap off. This means schools etc are closed for a shorter period and disruption generally is therefore for a shorter period, AND with a growing immune population. This is sustainable 10. After a while most of the population is immune, the seriously ill have all received treatment and the country is resistant. The more vulnerable are then less at risk. This is the end state the govt is aiming for and could achieve. 11. BUT a key issue during this process is protection of those for whom the virus is fatal. It's not clear the full measures there are to protect those people. It assumes they can measure infection, that their behavioural expectations are met - people do what they think they will 12. The Italian (and others) strategy is to stop as much infection as possible - or all infection. This is appealing, but then what? The restrictions are not sustainable for months. So the will need to be relaxed. But that will lead to reemergence of infections. 13. Then rates will then start to climb again. So they will have to reintroduce the restrictions each time infection rates rise. That is not a sustainable model and takes much longer to achieve the goal of a largely immune population with low risk of infection of the vulnerable 14. As the government tries to achieve equilibrium between hospitalisations and infections, more interventions will appear. It's perhaps why there are at the moment few public information films on staying at home. They are treading a tight path, but possibly a sensible one. 15. This is probably the best strategy, but they should explain it more clearly. It relies on a lot of assumptions, so it would be good to know what they are - especially behavioural. Most encouraging, it's way too clever for #BorisJohnson to have had any role in developing.

Top meeting on a top track, racing was phenomenal.. who says you need world class stars for a great meeting.. well done all 17 riders and rob godfrey

Well of course he has but you can say that about the vast majority of riders of his age and experience. What people are saying is that the signs are there that one day in the future he will be of GP standard.

I'm saying your attitude to people in the way you reply is appalling and frankly unnecessary.

A ridiculously high death rate compared to most of the rest of the world. They also get a far higher death rate for normal flu as well. South Korea appear to have it right. The major key though is more testing... The more people are tested, the more the death rate goes down... the less scary figures can be used by the media... the less panic.

We go back to the old efficient days of it being delivered by horse drawn van, same way as they delivered beer and pop in my youth. And you even get free manure for your gardens if you follow the horse for long enough.

Goolie slicer.

Cheers Tap.I managed to find one. Agree, it does look dangerous. Apart from the point aspect, I can see elbows getting tangled up in it as well .

If the season goes ahead, it’ll be a massive year for Rasmus. Riding as a bonafied heat leader will put a pressure on him he didn’t have last season. I agree about Ellis perks. He kicked on last season and if I were to pick a rider in the Swindon team who I thought would deliver the most growth it would be him. 2 very different teams BV and Swindon, but imo the 2 strongest.

You've never had the media screaming about it either. And that's the point.. it's not the virus that is scary... its the panic caused by the media.. that panic causes places organisations to act.. Then politics comes into play and the opposition in countries uses it to their advantage and whips up people and criticises governments for inaction... so they're forced to act. The UK has actually been the strongest government in trying not to bow to this pressure... but as organisations around them such as the Premier League cave in, it leaves them out on their own and will soon be forced to do the same. The collateral damage from all of this panic is going to be massive... the damage from the virus, very very minor indeed (on a world scale).

I think we will have a very short season if any racing takes place at all. The Premiership and Championship are going to have massive problems with riders who race in other countries not being available due to fixture congestion everywhere. The only league that has a chance of running a meaningful short season is the NDL which the two top leagues seem to want to kill by next year so I fear they will say that if the top two can't run then the NDL is not allowed to.

And are these oldies the same oldies who are expected to care for grand-kids when the government closes the schools?

Will people be expected to prove their age if 'caught out and about'?

All sports have their own fans be it large followings or small. I follow speedway and want to continue, if it has to delay for a time be it long or short I'll be back. Promoters and riders have a tough time ahead and hopefully there will be light at the end of the tunnel. As a supporter I will do all I can to help, every meeting for my team I have to miss through cancellation I will put the admission money to one side so it's there for when they restart. I know the virus situation is depressing and the months ahead look bleak but for goodness sake all the depressing talk is not helping matters it's time to show support for Speedway and get behind the Promoters whatever hard decisions they have to make and let's hope stadium owners, sponsors etc do the same because they are running businesses as well.

Do many speedway clubs in the UK actually get 500 fans through the gates on a regular basis? Non league football gates increased yesterday as fans looked for a football "fix" Best thing to do .... quit social media and looking at the news as it's all doom and gloom. Remember those Chinese hospitals that had to be built in record time? Yesterday the final one was closed as there are not enough new cases of the virus to support them. The Chinese are now sending help to Italy. Italy have the biggest problem as they have the oldest population in Europe. The average age of deaths is 81 and of those that have died only 2% didn't have any existing medical conditions!

Speedway was in serious terminal decline well before the Coronavirus struck and I fear that the consequences of the virus could be the final nail in the speedway coffin. The sport does not have the vast financial reserves to weather this catastrophe out. The clowns in Rugby have spent any rainy day money they held on a hair brained engine scheme. The way the pay structure of speedway is, i.e. riders only get paid when they race and score points, this will mean the majority of riders will have to go away from the sport to earn a living to pay their bills...clubs have rent and fixed costs to pay and with no income will rapidly become insolvent and go to the wall. Will the government help, I very much doubt it as they will have far bigger problems to deal with than spending tax payers money to save what is a minor (bankrupt) sport such as speedway.

Interested to read that on 23rd January it was stated that half a million people had contracted the flu in Italy..... in one week. Now that is a virus that spreads quickly... It could also be another reason for higher death rates in Italy.. if elderly people have been hit with the flu.. followed by this in a short space, they're going to be weaker. It continues to be the lack of testing that means a true clear picture is extremely difficult to form. It will be interesting how the US testing goes as they're offering it free to all. A larger sample may provide a better picture. Germany continues to test to a higher degree than most countries... death rate 0.19% at the moment.

Excellent performance from James Wright this afternoon at Scunny. Far better than I was expecting I have to admit.

Just read the BSF; EVERYBODY is an expert on here...

Could it have something to do with the fact that some expertise in medical matters are needed at these large gatherings, and they could be better utilised elsewhere within the NHS - staff shortages

Of course, it's tough, and a lot of people are going to be affected. I am not saying sport SHOULD continue, but whatever happens, life goes on, and people will still want to do things, either as a participant or as a spectator. Don't forget that, even though we are talking about "sport", sport/entertainment provides a livelihood for thousands - probably millions - of people around the world. From participants to bar/restaurant staff, from cleaners to maintenance staff, from ticket agencies to journalists. I'm sure you wouldn't want to lose your job for weeks (even months), and of course, the way things will be if everything shuts down, it is more than just simple damage to the economy. Does a flu-like (and no, I'm not attempting to trivialise it) virus necessitate the whole world shutting down everything that someone may consider "non-essential"? Think about it...

I had two women literally fighting over the last packet of paracetamol in my shop last night.. One woman picked it up and another snatched it from her as she had gone for it at virtually the same time.. They kicked off an argument and the one who got there seconds late wouldn't give it to the other woman so the one who had got there first gave the other a proper good right hander to the head, knocking her clean over and she landed like a snotty heap on the floor.. I would suggest she needed the paracetamol after all.. A certain irony. .

Because this thing has barely hit. We are talking months worth of damage. For a number of people I am coming across this virus and it's upcoming implications still hasn't landed with them. The severity for British speedway is that there will not be a season. Full stop. That's how I see it at the moment.

Darren will bring more than that to the table. He is an ex rider who still has a runout occasionally, knows all the other referees, well acquainted with Newcastle as a club and will know most of the riders. I welcome him to the club, he's straight forward and a good guy.

Hans Nielsen Godden

You were mocking me for pointing out 17,000 die annually from a virus some are saying is 'nothing'. Interesting. I'll mock you for thinking 35 lives are more important than 17,000. The answer is, they're all important.

That 1974 side was one hell of a side i remember seeing Sheffield at the Abbey in 1973 in a double header with Reading.Wilson, Wyer, Paulson, Haley were all terrific servants great team men.After Cradley 1983, Belle Vue 1972 that Sheffield side would have to rank really high up of the list of great sides.

If by some miracle the season does start. They could scrap the cup fixtures and run A league matches only. It's not ideal, but could be a solution.

I personally don't understand all the fuss. Some of it,ok. But children aren't badly affected at all as far as I know. So let them carry on their education. Maybe you'd have to stop certain teachers from attending if they have underlying problems and you would have some staffing problems. But as long as the children aren't visiting grandma and granddad, that should be one problem we don't have to deal with. Isolate the kids from the eldery,as they might have the virus without showing any symptoms. But closing schools seems to cause more problems than it solves imo

The Italian model is the absolute worst to follow.

I'm not to good with computers, and I can honestly say that not a single person on the close I live in, either has a computer or would know how to operate one if they had, and I'm being genuine with that comment.

Lots of areas are setting up residential care systems to look out for aged residence. If you are in an area of aged people then it’s likely you will be contacted.

You certainly don’t need World Stars just going through the motions.

Probably you have secured your bog roll supply already

I fear this season will be a washout. Maybe a curtailed season starting in July.

What I don't get is why specific numbers are used. Why is 498 people acceptable, yet 502 not? People are still going to be together in a confined area. Over here, the states and cities are imposing their own limits. Some, it's 100, and lot are 250. Weird thing is some of the extra policies... There is a small darts tournament scheduled in San Diego. Public gatherings in San Diego are currently restricted to fewer than 250, which is fine, as they wouldn't even get close to 100. However, while this would be permissible, the city states that no individual may get closer than 6' to another! I can see the logic, but it's totally ridiculous, and besides, who the hell is going to go around measuring???

Rubbish. If he sneezes or coughs he could affect all those in front of him....plus if he sneezes whilst in the queue to get in he affects all those around him, then sneezes whilst queueing up for a burger or beer, all those. Then sneezes or coughs on the way out all those without any visits to the toilet. And that is only if there is one among those 60,000. What if there are two or three affected......

I would prefer to see a much reduced league fixture list, just to keep things somewhat meaningful..

Nope you're reading that right. It's just word play. Technically they haven't excluded anyone from attending but if the promoter's remove a longstanding reasonable adjustment managed by all previous promotions over the last 15/20 years and consequently any of their disabled customers can't attend because of that then that's an exclusion whether they like the term or not!

I'm a bit worried as I find myself agreeing with Geoff!! I like the look of Lidsey and do think he has as good as chance as any of pushing on this year to a strong 2nd string/3rd heat leader level