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Too many officials ie referees and club officials and their friends think they are above rules like the one above. I find a lot of them arrogant. Too many freebies in the sport. He wasn't the referee so why is he allowed in pits area etc. Too many hangers on in this sport. Get your wallets out and pay like Joe public and obey regulations at the stadium.

Redcar really did lay out the red carpet for the Diamonds tonight with dozens of Geordies making the 1hr trip south to say an emotional goodbye in a hastily arranged meeting involving a Newcastle team made up of former Diamond's riders vs The Bears. After heat 15 the Diamonds supporters were invited to the start/finish line for a photo with the riders and as the tannoy system belted out Shirley Bassey's" Diamonds are forever" they were give a rapturous applause from the Redcar fans.

Nice one Tai first word he says when a microphone is put under his nose is F**k... the guy's in his 30's now, when is he going to grow up?

Very sad news......even more so given that the 'Comets' are now reviving, always liked my visits to BP. Just a thought though......Newcastle Speedway, down the many years, has suffered similar closures.....the 1929 to 2019 was not 90 years of unbroken speedway was it. I recall (memory test here) seeing Anders Michaneck(spelling error?) lording it at Brough in 1970 (?).....then the next season Diamonds were gone......came back again mid-seventies wow the 'Owen brothers' my Comets had there work cut out matching Tom and Joey around Brough.....although sometimes we did.....Comets went ti*s up and I lost track of Diamonds but I'm sure another closure happened (you'll know better)....anyway what I'm really saying is Speedway does so often have a phoenix quality....the Diamonds know this and could be back.....I sure hope so. BTW my forum mate THJ sounded off didn't he........passion galore from him.....nice to know he's helping at Northside.

I'm afraid the main reason clubs close is because of the people who run them and run the sport. Give people a good product at value for money and they will buy it, it has ever been thus.

Surely only if ‘on duty’?

I am a Bears fan and gutted to see the Diamonds go but if you stopped for a minute or two and took off the rose tinted glasses you will realise it is for the best. As much as you all loved Brough Park you were only tenants paying an extortionate rent for a below par venue I remain confident that Newcastle speedway will rise again but to succeed they will need a set up like we have at Redcar with a dedicated stadium/track with the ability to generate multiple revenue streams. Workington are in the process of doing just that so why not Newcastle? All you need is a benefactor with deep pockets and a Geordie accent The Bears managed to achieve a revival on Teesside so why can't you do it in Tyneside or even Wearside, imagine the fanbase for the Tyne and Wear Diamond Stars

Be interesting to know if anyone who had the slightest bit of sympathy for our esteemed owner still feels the same now, I've been going for best part of 45 year's but now it'll take a miracle of biblical proportion to keep the sport going on Tyneside, I feel the only way it's now possible is a Seaton burn scenario which, well meaning ppl, had already looked into and made a bit of headway until it was knocked on it's head when a certain somebody said "as long as he was owner speedway would always be at brough park" of course there's always hope but even that's looking extremely dodgy now. Of course miracle's do happen now where the f*** did I put that lottery ticket

I feel for the volunteers/staff whom were out in the past week prior to the announcement sorting the track out. The press release is more garbage now, doing now, so someone else can take over easily. Yet nowts gunna be left at BP for speedway once its all sold

Taught by Macgregor, that says it all .IMO.

Very lucky that at Glasgow, Edinburgh and Berwick you have each one or two exciting riders. Cookie on his day, Basso, Master, Pickering and Harris . Fantastic riders.

First of all for myself, I was one who gave Rob more slack than most, the way I seen it was that he put his hand in his pocket (twice over if things are to be totally believed) when others were not prepared to and essentially gave Newcastle the stay of execution that would have been 3 years ago or whatever it was - and to be honest for that fair play to him he was prepared to give it ago when it seemed that others would not, so to keep an argument somewhat balanced and constructive I think he needs credit for doing that. And in business / life it is always far easier to spend someone else's money than it is your own... ***HOWEVER*** (before I get my head detached before people read to the end of this post ) 1) I cannot stomach what essentially feels like totally lies now in an attempt to essentially liquidate the assets whilst under the guise of "doing it now to give Newcastle the best chance later" this is utter rubbish - as what is well documented now and proven with the sale of track equipment and such like, seems to me like he said one thing to keep the heat off him whilst doing something totally at odds with his statement in the other all underhand and devoid of transparency and integrity. 2) What boils by proverbial urine to be honest and probably leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of fans (which I suspect Rob probably does not understand) is the air fence debacle. And this cannot be sorely put onto Robs toes and the previous ownership need to bare some responsibility, however (and please correct me if I am wrong but this is / was my understanding) the air fence was afforded through a just giving page and whip round at the time the regulations came in (or this is how my memory serves me anyway) meaning all clubs had to have one to operate. That and I believe a few large singular donations from individual fans allowed the air fence or a vast majority of it to be bought. Therefore to sell it off to try and recoup monies lost just seems unethical and wrong to be honest and this is a point I will further explain further down in looking to any future we may have. But for the ownership that Rob bought from to use the gesture of the fans and such like to inevitably increase the sale price as its another asset with value to purchase that is integral to running a meeting is kind of wrong in my opinion - however seems like Rob also sees it as fair game. 3) Given the very publicised sponsorships the club received from various generous business, families and individuals - I am sure this would have been done on the understanding that essentially sponsors and people putting their money in, heat sponsors, race day programme advertisements etc etc that they were doing so expecting to get March to Septembers worth of advertisement (race day banners, pictures, website advertisement etc etc) in return for their hard earned money... Surely given the debacle they should be looking for some sort of pro-rata refund on what they did not get against what they initially put in? 4) What are the ramifications on the other co-owners / an or promoters who put money in? Do they get anything back? Surely this cannot be just Robs decision to make, they must have some course of action they could take? 5) All the actions talked about in this thread seem to me to be the actions of a person who has no intention of speedway running again at Newcastle, selling the assets to run a meeting removes any / all value, the only thing it seems he could sell would be the name? Not to hard to get around in the future I'm sure..."Newcastle Pheonix's" (for one year only as its a crap name but would be great before reverting to something more akin to the Diamonds or Diamunds ") The Future Going back to further explain point 2 and why I think it is extremely important is I think we all feel totally short changed by the various cash injections and donation fans have put into the club over the years for promoters and owners to essentially use it somewhat. However I do think we can learn an important lesson from it. Given that the club (if anything is left of it) will or will be near as dammit asset less I think now more than ever the idea of a supporters trust is vital to any possibility of speedway running again in any capacity at Newcastle. Anyone who went to the last meeting at Gosforth and listened to the excellent explanation to the complexities of running a fund and giving the club money by @TotallyHonestJohn will understand it is far to complex, and legally a nightmare to attempt / do. However I do think this shower of rubbish scenario we find ourselves in shows giving the club money and continual whip-rounds does nobody nor the supporter any favour in the long term. However I do believe that this gives us an opportunity to re-think the idea of a supporters fund where by the supporters fund can purchase such things like tractors and track equipment and effectively loan / lease these items to a club/ owner/ promoter for a basic / minimal fee. If this were the case for the air-fence for example it would give the club stability through changes of promoters and owners etc where the assets needed to run a speedway meeting essentially transcend any ownership change. Maybe @TotallyHonestJohn this would remove some of the complexities you so brilliantly talked about and explained in running a supporters club giving / purchasing stuff on the clubs behalf. I do beleive if there is any chance of someone wishing to put speedway on again in Newcastle this would make it hugely more do-able as it is going to be a from scratch start therefore it would surely make it more achievable to a new venture if such items were covered by a supporters club given that any ground up startup costs will be immense! Whilst we have no speedway this could be the time to try and set something up - £10 per month when we are not going to be spending £20-£30 per week as we have no speedway to go to. Such an amount would sharp build up and allow the purchasing of vital assets when / if a new venture were to happen. If nothing happens in the next 5 years all monies to be returned plus any interest generated. Whilst it is ambitious I do think the above issue of supporters money and gifts / cash injections / and fund raises we've had over the years are clearly not handled with the respect and integrity they should have. WE have essentially purchased assets for the club for them to be used to get a outgoing promotion an increased sale price or in this case asset liquidation when in reality there investment in the asset was minimal / non existent yet the promoters / owners are then the beneficiary of the value of the asset. Therefore I think we can think smarter in the future and in the same time provide the club with assets that stay with the club thus increasing long term stability and remove this utter debacle we now find ourselves in. Whilst I fully understand Rob will have lost a shed load of cash in this venture stripping the assets to try and recoup some of his cash / investment just seems totally short sighted and on the above points quite immoral given the statement put out by the owner, and the fact that the main asset was purchased by the fans (albeit under a different promotion and many years ago) it still feels like a sucker punch and such a nail in the coffin to any chance of speedway starting again as to buy a new one is such a large sum of money. I apologise if this is wordy it is my second attempt at typing this - I am sure the first one was better written however I managed to delete my first attempt prior to submitting and this is a hastily wrote and heavily streamlined version. Lastly whilst I am full of ideas and I would love to try and get such an offering of the ground sadly my career would not allow me to hold such a financial position and I simply do not have the time to do it either. But hopefully someone reads this and think it makes sense and could be a go-er and runs with it. Cheers

Enjoyed it… think its time to admit that Tai is now GB’s third best rider, bodes well for GB that

Really? The rain offs at the EWR have all been vindicated by the locals. If you want to travel and don't heed the forecasts or look at websites to check events are on, then reap what you sow. I get it you are another Godfrey key board hater, but if you actually talk to the guy he is a proper speedway fan and wears his heart on his sleeve. It will be interesting if any other promotor puts their head above the parapet and takes on the poison chalice Chairman's job.

Anders Thomsen rode like a man who is desperate for a Panthers spot.

Insane how far bewley has come in a short space of time. Remember him looking so out of his depth when he started at wroclaw. Very impressive.

We're all married to the same woman...

Blimey that camera shot on lap 2 of heat 20(from drone/wire) made me feel pi$$ed.

Dan Bewley, stunning ride in Ht20.

Dean Douglas

Alls Wells that ends Wells

Well Geoff there's a thing... a full lighting specification has been done for the track but as you are aware the power to the site was removed when the pikey mob decided to.remove the transformers from the site... Probably the biggest cost involved for the whole project will be the stadium lighting however it may have to come down to running it from generators which wont be ideal however the guys are working on various options... Regards THJ...

Super heats are a get out of jail card for the home team, imo it's just another micky mouse rule that should have no place in league speedway...

Absolute coward he is.

I think Berwick announced the signing of Harris last October, I would be amazed if Harris was planning to be at a grass track meeting in Denmark at that time.

And told his pal to post it on here, which he did in early hours in the morning. Then the press release came out.. so professional!

Fans haven't taken away that emotional attachment to their team that a team sport has to have to have any chance of success, the promoters chose to do this... Fans haven't decided to run meetings on nights that their employees dictate they run, rather than when the fans can turn up, the promoters chose to do this... ,Fans haven't decided the admission fee.which is designed to pay a good number of riders to not have to work for six months of the year, promoters chose to do this... Fans haven't decided the ludicrous operating model that brings such very little credibility, and media coverage as you cannot take it seriously, the promoters chose to do this... This year's PCMM at the NSS, last year's SON at the NSS, the GP Challenges at Glasgow, and obviously Cardiff's crowd every time they run shows just how much of a following the sport still has in this country... Therefore, it is clear.... The 'SPORT' retains a reasonably large following in the UK... But the domestic leagues don't have the same number following them.... And for that to be the case, it definitely is not the fault of the fans....

Stunning Drone image taken by Gary McKeating @4020pix.

Stunning insight from Louis at the end. Cardiff hasn't always been kind to Zmarzlik. 4 appearances, 4 finals. He must be on about 2017 when he only finished 4th.

First Glasgow asset/ former rider to win a GP since they replaced the world finals? Where's the statto's?

Humble apologies blobby must have got him confused with someone else - cardinal sin I know to make an incorrect post on this place!

Woffy certainly given him plenty of support, machinery and mechanic wise... So must have been so pleased to see him blast past him and take that point off him that stopped him from qualifying for the semi ....

Berwick do everything by the book.

And tbf there's been passing even early on; just progressively better racing in each block of four. Have to say the racing has been very good - certainly better than any of the 80s world finals.

I blame Chris Harris and his rain dance in Denmark.

Just wondering if I’m the only one who remembers Tatum having tantrums when asked to ride on anything wetter than a slightly damp track

I've often said that because the tracks need a few races to settle, juniors should do a bunch of laps before the racing starts. With the weather today, I really think that would have helped...

He does seem to be becoming a bit of a knob when doing interviews doesn't he...? Poorly advised or too large headed maybe? I hope it is the former as currently he doesnt have too much to be large headed about given his form... Seems to want to be "down wiv ver kidz" a bit too much... Comes across as being far too "look at me" and not genuine.. Get back to being "normal" Tai, and dont alienate your fan base...

Last night was just superb. After Cookies crash I thought here we go, the Lions are going to fluke this. But the fight and determination from the remaining 6 riders was just brilliant to watch. Just a pity Benjamin wasn't 100% fit . Hope Cookie is OK and takes his time to recover properly and comes back stronger than ever.

Should av took more notice THJ gave us a clue

You'll know about 8 30

The only ones who seem to like these golden heats are the ones who have benefitted from them.People I have spoke to think it's a waste of time and effort,especially for the away side. We never get draws in other sports do we,oh hang on,only the biggest sports in the world.

Well I have just seen the "Bill of fare" and I can confirm that if you made an offer for the shale it would probably be accepted... 7000 grand for an 8 year old old air fence... honestly the clown has lost the plot... that air fence has been popped more times by Dean Douglas alone than a kid with a roll of bubble wrap... Of course he is making the club better and securing it's future... but never mind I am selling a car if anyone wants to buy it... Good runner... come and look and make me an offer... but in the mean time I have flogged the wheels the doors the engine and the windscreen but it's a good runner... The PA system is even on there... containers start tapes the lot... absolutely every solitary thing used to put on a meeting he's just picking the bones dry... Some of it is just scrap and hes asking silly prices... but if it doesn't go the the local pikey will come in with his pick-up and give him 2 quid a hundred-weight for it and take it away... What a tosser... Regards THJ

I think (I could be wrong), but he still is the Club Owner, so whoever (if anybody) wants to take over, they will have to buy him out. They would also have to apply for a Promoters licence and, similar to when Rob took over, if they have not been a promoter before (or, indeed not currently a Promoter), they would have to have someone with Promoting experience to 'oversee' the operation. If any of this is wrong, I am sure someone can correct me.

If Dishington wasn't on duty then he is just an ordinary punter and surely is subject to the normal rules. Why did he need to go into the pits anyway? Other refs have been in the pits with their dogs, again a flagrant breach of stadium rules, which these guys seem to think they are above.

Well I will be in attendance as will a good number going by local social media

Well done Glasgow. Fair play.

Ben Basso will be a GP rider.

Being grateful to have a team is not killing the sport it's keeping it going. We know absolutely no rider is happy to race and score no points, no promoter is pleased losing meetings, no passionate fan is happy losing meetings but afa fans go it's no good staying away from your club if things aren't going good because that's a sure way to lose ya club!!!! Let's keep supporting our club, riders and management, as we know all the stars have to be aligned for club success, it will happen again, I'm there!

Proper spanking tonight, fair play to Glasgow. One of the top riders in the league takes a bow after one race and it doesn’t make the slightest bit of difference. The points distribution in the Lions team tonight is a true reflection of how this team is built. Top of the league but when second strings and reserves collectively don’t come to the party, this is what happens. An away defeat without points had to come and in terms of play off standings tonight doesn’t mean that much, but Dickson must be looking at the business end of the season and thinking, could we do Glasgow over two legs? Perhaps it’s a much needed realty check after recent fruitful travels. Absorb, learn and move on.