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Steve Lawson on Twitter:

You are an Idiot, and not a funny one.

he will see 36 user names and one plum .

Speedway supporters almost certainly agree that the two Russians involved in the GP series are innocent of any political views v the Ukraine. However, they are Russian and as per FIFA’s actions & that of F1 the speedway authorities must ensure there is zero inclusion of Russians on the global stage until Putin and his cronies are put firmly in the box they need to be sentenced too.

...and getting back to Poole, the Poole REF tend to 'help' the younger (more junior?) riders first, as they tend to be paid less per point, have less of an attractive financial deal from the club and are likely to have less sponsors compared to the 'top' riders in the team. Despite suggestions to the contrary, Poole are not big payers but they are reliable, regular payers with limited sources of income. At Poole the only income the club benefits from - aside from merchandise - is admission sales, advertising (banners and programme) and sponsorship. Everything else goes to the stadium which is why the speedway management work so diligently to attract club sponsorship.

It's a shame to be hijacking the Poole thread but I am confused regarding riders finances nowadays. Most riders claim that they don't earn enough and yet rock up with 3 new bikes every season and have no job during the winter. And then they hire a brand new van at x amount of pounds a month.. And yet young Flint reckons he can earn a decent living and he's only just starting out in relative terms to a lot of riders...

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Surely their is a limit to advertising pages in a programme, as often its unecominic to increase by 2, 4 or 8 pages depending on the printing technique used. In addition there is limited advertising inventory in a stadium. So not actually limited by their imagination but by physical constraints. But hell what do I know - I just have 31 years experience in media sales and sports sponsorship.

Announced so far Tom brennan Brady kurtz Norick blodorn Tobiasz muslielak Nikolai klindt Niels k iversen Jason Doyle Robert Lambert Matej zagar And more exciting riders ro announce.

So it looks like Russia will be allowed to play football under another name with no national anthem or flags It looks like FIFA are still getting money from Russia for giving them the world cup, and looking at Sweden's, Poland's and the Czech Republics decision not to play against Russia this gives Russia a bye into the finals All the worlds Football Associations need to come out as one and say that they will not play Russia Hopefully this will be the end of FIFA in its present state

Could be argued that its relevant due to the unearthing of new talent and offering opportunities to them who might potentially fill team places in the future. I remember the Brummie buzz about the Thompson twins a few years ago and how they were going to be stars wearing the big red B in the near future (every other man and his dog knew they were Leicester bound but...)

arsehole.

See what I mean?

I don't know how, or even if, Emil and Artem voted and who for in the Russian elections but unfortunately at present they and all Russian sports persons need to be excluded from competing in other countries whether as individuals, part of a team or under a different flag. Yes it is hard on those Russians who don't agree with Putin but what about the Ukranians whose lives have been turned upside down. The sanctions being put in place against Russia have to be adhered to 100% as Putin seems to have completely lost the plot.

Thats not funny mate

Are you wired up right. Why on earth would you use that as an example. And to be so flippant as to say who cares. Amend your post

the point of any ban is to communicate to the World and Russian public that the actions of the Kremlin are not acceptable. if you then allow those athletes to participate just without a flag and anthem then that message is weak. again i'm short on detail but at the 1980 Moscow Olympics my understanding it Great Britain boycotted the event but athletes competed under the banner of the British Olympic Committee or some such moniker. But I'm certain Wells and Goodheugh were cheered on as Brits even though they weren't officially representing Great Britain. Not sure about flags and anthems when they won but essentially there was no boycott. if the message is to be clear then the ban has to be absolute no matter how unfortunate that is for innocent competitors or how ineffectual it might be. even FIFA seem to have finally tumbled to that.

At 6pm

I assume Sayfutinov and Laguna hold dual citizenship so technically are still Russian, if only 50%.

Danyon Hume has been told to be at every Ipswich meeting and he’s set to be heavily involved. Not surprising really, as he’s a real coup at number 8 and better than a lot of others main reserves.

Complin not a gamble on a 4.00 ave, more of a waste of using the 6+ available points for Newcastle's last rider! Congreve could certainly be a gamble!

After reading this statement from the IOC I don't think the FIM have any option but to exclude Sayfutinov & Laguta & all other Russians from any of their events. I would also assume they will issue a directive to all member federations to exclude any competitor or official from any events within their territory. I understand this is a tough call on the riders but it is my opinion that we are in a forced position that we must treat all Russian nationals in the same manner. Of course there are good & bad in all aspects of life & I bere no ill will to those mentioned but we must stand united against the actions of Mr Putin.

If Complin is on a 4.00 ave, Newcastle have wasted any potential improvement on that figure by building a team nearly 3 points below the limit!

The emilracing89 instagram account has a verification tick, and he posts his holiday pics with the family on there, so not something a fan would have access to. The twitter account where the new post with the Ukraine map comes from doesn't have a verification tick, so not certain that's him, but his clubs usually use that when discussing him and you'd hope they would check with him that they were using the right account (but certianly no guarantee of that).

I'm not sure that they are actually Emil. There is no blue tick to confirm it as real, whereas Tai Woffinden's account has that. They could be fan accounts. Edit - they could be real if you look at some of the people following the Emilsayfutdinov89, account (eg Kelvin Tatum, Jason Crump, Alun Rossiter, Jason Doyle, Darcy Ward, Natilie Quirk).

The clubs in nearly every sport - professional or otherwise - have 'supporters/fan clubs' which are either 'official' or 'unofficial'. The point being that most of them hold social functions or activities throughout the season/year which raise money to assist their clubs, team members and local sports communities. As others have stated, the decision whether to partake is an individual choice...!

Less than half the Prem matches will have PJL meetings after, so there is a good chance of number 8's sitting in the pits & not getting rides!

Gotta keep occupied somehow, while waiting for Birmingham to complete their side!

If the awful events in Ukraine continue the FIM will presumably have to toe the line with other international sporting bodies and not allow Laguta and Sayfutdinov to compete in this years GP series? Unfair on these two but there are more important things in life than elite level speedway.

Thank you Henry W. Will be a brave Polish promoter that lets them ride in Polish League speedway.

Both of them live in Bydgoszcz in Poland and have Polish citizenship.

They are not racing under the Russian flag nor is the Russian anthem being played at any sporting event This is nothing to do with the current situation in Ukraine but issues with drugs over a long period. Emil Sayfutinov & Artum Laguta were representing the Russian federation (MFR) in international events last season & are due to represent them again. My opinion is that The FIM should remove all Russian's from their events whilst the current hostile situation exists. I understand that Emil holds a Polish passport & Like Gleb Chugenov (Russian) & Rune Holta (Norwegian) could possibly represent Poland.

I doubt Putin knows who Laguta or Saifutinov even are, ridiculous to suggest removing them from competitions, it is not their fault

But it is. BSPL have given Birmingham a special dispensation to use Tai on a 13.5 average for home meetings only. They will be allowed to use up to a 9 point guest for away meetings

Hope Lewis Kerr has a great day and a big turn out. He deserves it.

Agree. Good line up. Plus the 125 and 250 youngsters, and an auction after.. Interesting

Us quiet Bears supporters are just surfing all the messages from other teams, then when the season starts, we will be happy to have a speedway team to entertain us. Strong top 5 but I have always said reserves win matches, and ours are not the strongest pairing, but we will enjoy what we have. I hope its a good safe season for all those who take part.

I bet with your 32 years experience, if you looked over Newcastle's inventory, you would find lots more places to bring in sponsorship and advertising.

If Emil is banned from riding in Poland, could BV pull off a sensational swoop? Maybe this has been Mark Lemon's masterplan all along.

Just seen a few topics regarding speedway on Fridays, you do know that Mr Godfrey does not like any team bar Scunthorpe riding on Fridays, Workington had lots of these issues in 2018 the H18TORY season