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I'd have thought Plymouth want to hold the first leg anyway. There's a lot to ride for on the first leg and the chances of a decent crowd are high. If they got pumped at Wimbourne Road and had no chance in the 2nd leg, crowd could be down with little to ride for?

A select team that is operating R/R. sums up speedway that really doesn’t it.

Maybe not starting the flagship competition until June didnt help? And they havent finished the other one yet have they? The one that meant the flagship competion started so late... Not to mention the pairs havent been completed yet either... Maybe given it is only 6 meetings they should have done the pairs during October and tried to fit them in Mon/Thu for 3 weeks..? Would have kept interest too, unlike now where it has dragged on... And meant the league took priority as well as was finished by the end of September...

Putting aside bias, why would you want a team that built a decent 1-7 from riders who wanted to ride for them, and who have not made any changes, even when tempted, to be beaten by a team put together in the knowledge that their number one rider wasn’t going to last the first month, let alone the season, and who have chosen to ride out the league campaign using other teams’ top riders rather than finding a replacement? Yes, they’ve been hugely unlucky with injuries, but that problem has been exaggerated by the tactic of trying to go all year using guests. Oxford managed to get Summers, Birmingham Sedgmen - either could have done a job for Plymouth allowing the promotion to strengthen up further down the order. Their hope for success was having 7 specialists round the tricky track at the Coliseum who could then dominate home meetings so that away legs became unimportant. It’s my view that relying on guests has lost them much of that advantage.

That's exactly what happened in 2019 Brummies and Eagles went up and from figures quoted (certainly at Brummies and Eastbourne would have been similar) by time you've paid the Bond, the Asset List and other add on's that seem to be variable, you were looking then at around £30,000.00 before you are allowed in. I remember well the "pending" status Brummies were given all winter 18 in to 19 and then suddenlt in late February both Clubs were "in". No time really to plan properly and new entrants start on the back foot. It makes the success of Oxford all the more remarkable and praise worthy but in some ways they are helped by attracting Oxford, Reading, Swindon and Coventry fans. I know from what's been said the Masons struggled in 2019 but got through it, they struggled massively week by week in 2021 and were at their wits end by the end of the season physically and mentally . At least they made it to the end when Eastbourne didn't and Newcastle, who also had a new Promoter for 2021 and issues all 2021 and didn't finish in 2022. Kent had to pay over the odds too but had the legend that is Len Slver to guide them. Nigel (Tolley) has had to spend well north of £100,000 to set up and survive 2022 and by this time next year no doubt that could be double that. Money that enthusiasts who try to keep Speedway Clubs going once set up simply can't afford. Neila has hit the nail on the head. Only a very rich man or consortium can now afford to start in CL . They don't get Eurosport money like PL do and it remains to be seen what British Speedway Network can distribute, if its 10k a Club it would be a massive boost but you have to factor in if clubs have actually lost walk up on nights BSF are there? The new Workington set up looks superb and if it can go in to NDL and take small steps it can hopefully thrive. It's good to see Mildenhall and Kent hanging in there too at NDL level and whilst it would be great to see IOW v=back, why should they risk it, when their new product does well for them and they don't have the muppets at Rugby to answer too.

I think you mistake that for them responding to constant bullshine from one specific agent provocateur.

Which is a remarkably poor situation to be in. Acceptance of that enables the continued mismanagement and decline.

Congratulations to Poole well done no complaints we have just run out of steam towards the end of the year I’ll still be there next Tuesday but good luck to Poole for the rest of the season and keep that league title in England lol.

We'll agree to disagree, I'm pro NL as it was a few years ago, today's is such a poor product, as for Poole.....

for me its ££, and the reason i don't attend league football (although they don't seem to be missing me) at the risk of starting a whole new row - £12/14 max and find a way of making it viable through reduction of expenses - not easy i know. I don't care if they go round in rattly old JAPS. Its the market level and you can not sell something above the market value. Pubs are finding this out now - £5 a pint versus 4 excellent bottles for £6 at Tesco, people are staying in. Even cinemas are having to drop prices. Hard to coax people out and I'm one of them

I think you make my point for me - it’s expensive to set up a new promotion, and better to recognise that sooner rather than later. All credit to the four of you that you HAVE recognised that rather than carrying on only perhaps to suffer the same problems as the previous promotion (as well as the ex-Newcastle promoter). Speedway in UK is hanging on by its fingernails - or rather the deep pockets - of most of the existing promoters. They are much maligned but, if there was a magic wand to sort it, I think they’d have found it by now. But then, if running a speedway team was the licence to print money that was the case in decades gone past, the barriers to entry would be far higher. It may be that a multi million pound relaunch, used to give spectators better facilities amongst many overdue updates, might just help to rebuild the sport, but there’s no guarantee that crowds would return. So why take the risk?

Bad jokes are not "laughable". Neither are jokes which you've heard so many times, are just plain embarrassing. In neither of these cases, does the person telling the "joke" realise it to be the case, and so keeps on doing the same thing, over and over, until he's still performing but everyone's long since gone away and found other things to do

Sheffield’s “inactivity” on Thursdays through the summer: 9th June - home v Wolves 16th June - Pairs at Ipswich 23rd June - away v Kings Lynn 30th June - no meeting 7th July - Pairs at Kings Lynn 14th July - home v Peterborough 21st July - away v Ipswich 28th July - SoN 4th Aug - home v Wolves - called off due to work on the dog track 11th Aug - no meeting 18th Aug - home Pairs - rained off 25th Aug - home v Belle Vue - rained off 1st Sept - home v Wolves 8th Sept - away v Kings Lynn 15th Sept - home v Kings Lynn So there were two Thursdays when it might have been possible to run a meeting if an opposing team was available. Hindsight is a wonderful thing when you’re sat behind the anonymity of a keyboard and a made up Username, but the reality is without the unfortunate and unforeseen issues with the stadium and some terrible bad luck with weather we wouldn’t be in the position we are in. But you knew that before you posted.

I would think around 30,000 or so in total still follow the sport given Cardiff usually gets around 40,000 with some who attend the event as partners of followers as "a one off" and overseas visitors.. I would say more than double who attend each week still follow the sport closely, and if the promoters had vision then they would create the infrastructure to get them back attending regularly again.. Much easier to get them to return than get newbies to become regulars I would suggest ..

Its not just the BSPL fees that I won't quote but its the other start up costs needed at Arlington Air Fence (£30000) Tractor Shale Possible track equipment (including new starting gate Rider sign on fees Upfront money for medical cover insurances the list gos on to start out new in the sport However, The BSPL and the Dugard family have both been very helpfull and encouraging in trying to get us to tapes in 2023 but we have lost most if not all of the old clubs sponsors so sometimes one has to admit at this point, its a bridge to far..

The rules for joining the leagues are the same for everyone. Championship requires an entry fee, a bond payment and either riders on the club’s retained list to a certain level or else cash to make up the difference. The four supporters trying to relaunch Eastbourne said they needed £150,000 so they must have understood the costs involved. They also said they could raise £50,000 between them so must have tried, and failed, to find the other £100,000. Better they save their money than going into an underfunded venture that has the potential to go the way of the previous promotions at Eastbourne. Full credit to them for trying but even more credit for admitting defeat before any harm was done. Perhaps promoting speedway is much harder - and more expensive - than us Forumites realise. UPDATE - HGould beat me to much of that!

That was the prime reason they were introduced.

This is getting beyond a joke are Plymouth going to keep postponing until they can get better guest & can host the 2nd leg ?

At the time, it was just the National League, in effect a Third Division. The racing was just as good as the higher leagues; indeed the Eastbourne/Birmingham playoff final were some of the best speedway matches I have seen. However, the BSPL in their (?)wisdom have destroyed the (invaluable) MDL/SDL and downgraded the NL to the NDL.

I was a regular at Lakeside from 2001 (aged 7) to 2018, but with my nearest team now being 50+ miles away, the only meetings I see live are Grand Prix. Would absolutely love a local track to pop up again, I'd be down there every race night, but sadly I think that's fanciful. A real shame, I'm sure thousands of Londoners are in the same boat.

I don't know about any other team but Sheffield's league campaign started in May. However I think the TV coverage and their requirements may well dictate when the league starts and, especially, when it finishes. Given that in reality every club currently has circa 13-14 home meetings, not counting Playoffs, to schedule over a 20-25 week season, had they run everything on a week by week basis the season could have been done and dusted by the end of July. Had that happened I'm pretty sure the usual suspects on here would have been complaining about not spreading the meetings out over the whole season. I completely get the frustration though, however we are where we are and complaining after the fact doesn't help.

70-20 to Poole then .!

This post like a lot of other posts about Plymouth in recent months is massively over the top around the fact that Plymouth played within the rules in using a guest facility. Many other clubs have done it over years gone by, it's the rules that are the problem, not the club. I'd have loved for us to have signed a replacement ad the club tried, for the record Sedgmen and Summers wanted crazy money to ride for Plymouth and I stand by the promotion for not going there, neither rider imo is very good at Plymouth. We approached a host of riders one of which agreed terms only for the Chairman to block it (nothing to do with the rider's links to Scunthorpe of course). All of that being said, guest facility or not, no-one could have foreseen the injury crisis, none of which occurred at Plymouth's track and it's a real shame for the fans that they won't get to see what promised to be a very competitive side in the playoffs.

Havelock as Poole TM must be worth 10 points to Plymouth ?

Not necessarily as it`s 2 days before the Extraleague final 2nd leg and he might do the meeting to test his ankle. if he doesn`t ride Jacob Thorssell takes his place.

20-30 point home win.

more and more you read our sport as a whole is slowly becoming more and more a dead duck .i fear for next season .what will be left

Absolutely agree with this.

You've been around speedway long enough to know that won't be the case with the Dugards, it may be a final consequence if the stock cars go, but I think it's the unworkable structure and costs of the current leagues, all 3. NL is at such a low level now , where attendance will be so small any return will be minimal, another failure and it's definitely finished, can you imagine NL at Poole( the Man Utd of speedway who should be Premiership ), would disappear in one season.

I don't think it makes an iota of difference to be honest. It is what it is, the injuries are what they are and the Plymouth seven that started the season may well have won tonight but Poole can do what they can to market it and play it down but this has 30 point win all over it. Unless some serious mechanical gremlins occur (possible of course) sadly the Glads are going struggle to win a heat tonight. Complin, Morley and Coles despite their efforts are unlikely to score more than 4 between them, Hans given his injury struggle and lack of form will do well to beat the Pirates 2nd stringers let alone get close to the top 3. Summers (if he gates) and Flint will probably top score but again seeing them beat a Poole heat leader is unlikely. I'd love to be wrong as I'd like nothing more than to see the Pirates mess this up and the Glads boys do the business but reality is these are two very mismatched teams with only one winner.

Gotta say I think Plymouth have got their riding order correct, it's hard on Morley (at 3) but sacrificing heat 12 to be strong in heats 8 & 14 makes sense. Especially as their aim is to keep it as close as possible!

Run it on another night.

If you were people at Eastbourne or wherever and planned to revive the sport, your business plan would be to break even or better, on limited crowds the sport attracts. But the bspa are wanting this figure above the initial costs to start the sport up in a new location, It does not encourage anyone taking a chance to restart speedway somewhere.

Think Belle Vue need to get out and about with something like that set up. Just seen yet another comment on social media form someone saying they used to enjoy trips to BV but its closed now isnt it!

Points difference. Assuming Sheffield win both of their other home matches, then they will be worthy Champions, sorry, first place in the League. The Pools Panel and Duckworth Lewis would give Sheffield a win against Ipswich. Also, the Witches have three bonus points from Stupid Heats, so they're currently on 40. I know "rules are rules", but the Stupid Heat really is the most pointless rule since the Tactical Joker.

It did but I have never seen so many fans of one track before so delighted every time they are deprived of seeing their team race.

Yeah agree, there never seems an urgency yet every1 nos the bad weather is sharp arriving

Cut off isn't the problem, it's the weeks on end with no speedway tht should be filled with a fixture

Clearly never been too Brighton then?

Would not surprise me if Plymouth doesn’t stage another meeting this season, and come the end it will be announced that the sport is no longer viable at the current location and the promotion will move lock, stock and barrel to Eastbourne for 2023

Jeff not Geoff!! Seeing as that quote is said to Jeff Stelling.

Havvy to gee-up the Pirates this week as Middlo is away!!

Bar Bandits were very welcome, as well as noisy, visitors to Berwick last month.

Delighted to say that I’m making my first trip (for speedway) to Wimborne Road on Wednesday evening with the rest of the Bar Bandits from Plymouth, minibus of us coming up to Dorset for what should be a good meeting. Can’t promise we won’t make noise though

Good old twitter.

Comets 1-2 it is then

An update on a member of my family who did start out having a go at speedway at Isle of Wight and Iwade. Now got his eyes on a different sport, but maybe if he is ever famous might drop a word in for the sport . Remember reading his mum had nothing but nice things to say about Barry

Mate Steve Shovlar is a complete moron who sadly gets his kicks in life from trying to be funny and in his own warped mind enjoys trying to wind people up for his own pleasure with his trousers round his ankles as he reads the replies Sadly he doesn’t know eff all about Speedway it doesn’t exist outside Poole The man thinks MPT fenced himself when the whole speedway world saw the evidence Now Ben Barker we know is a bit of a fool in speedway circles but you have to laugh at the Shovlar comments …. Saying he was lucky not to get 2 years This from a man who backed Darcy Ward and everything he did wrong …. That was ok pirate pride lol

Once again you make completely unsubstantiated comments. Legal substances taken to excess are not illegal drugs. Legal substances taken to excess is stupid, dangerous and wrong. Hence the ban of way less than 2 years. Where is your evidence that illegal drugs were taken. People in glass houses should not throw stones. That applies to the past and present of riders you are quite happy to support. Riders you are happy to support have done far worse and been accused of far worse. No need to go further on that matter on a public forum. People who know do know, people in the sport do know, people affected do know, no need to name names, let's leave the hypocracy to you.. and you are a complete hypocrite to not see that fact.

They will stand by him of course