Leaderboard

Nope. See for yourself: Rule 14.7 (b) - Club Superiority Exemption A club may approach any rider contracted to another club where it can demonstrate that it has: A. a superior racing track; and B. more handsome supporters In such circumstances, normal restrictions on rider approaches shall not apply.

We’ve been putting our case forward since closure. They are aware of this, some councillors desperately want us to naff off, we’re not going anywhere. If anything our case is getting stronger. I can’t wait to speak in front of a proper independent knowledgeable government planning inspector, our council are going to get their backsides kicked hard. They have massively under estimated us and our supporters who I must say have been magnificent throughout this process. I am more confident now since closure that Speedway will return to Peterborough.

This made me think we’re coming up to a year since our happiest hour for many a year, quickly followed by our darkest when we headed in to the winter not knowing whether we even had our club to support anymore. This time around, we go in to the dark winter months knowing we’re in very safe hands, WILL be coming to tapes next March, having our track upgraded, a GP to look forward to, and the promise of a much more competitive team in 27. Been a whirlwind 12 months and a huge rollercoaster of emotions, but bring on 27.

You go to a pub on Friday night. You walk to the bar where the barman is in conversation with three other customers. What is their history? What have they done together? Have any of them been to prison? You don't know them or anything about them but you stand next to them & drink your pint without question. The difference is Jason Garrity is someone who's name you know & you didn't like him before he went to prison. if you want to use him as a reason not to attend speedway events thats your choice but you don't need to share your hateful message with the rest of us. He done the crime & he's done the time. Now live & let live

I think Richard must come on here… Best of luck to him... Others have gone before with pretty much exactly the same observations and plans... Hopefully this fella gets the cut through needed...

It's also disgraceful to force someone to ride in a league that they may feel is financially unviable.

Has anyone seen Godfrey & co since Coleman’s interview on Friday or are they still trying to get up after that knockout?? Coleman clearly knows the issues & with a very successful career in motorsport knows what’s needs to be done. That interview was worlds apart from Godfrey in his caravan.

Could you ask Poole why they scored 57 points against Edinburgh? I would have liked a 8-10 point lead for Poole to make the second leg more interesting.

Would that of been the reason the start marshall stood in a dangerous position to hold the broken tapes back the other season when Poole riders were in the lead because the ref told him to via his headset.

If its true that they are looking to increase the points limit All clubs must run an U21 British Rider at reserve All clubs must also run a Foreign U21 Rider at reserve If they can get the ITV4 deal over the line which sounds like the more lucrative deal being worked on Perhaps that's enough for the likes of Glasgow to give the top flight a chance, and I think if the TV deal goes through, you may see Oxford move up again but obviously not do the Championship aswell this time around. Could see the following strength sides, put together for example purposes

I always cringe when clubs make such threats to the fans. Seen it at Newport with Mallett nearly every week begging for more fans through the gate and it honestly usually made the crowds for the next meeting worse. Clubs should be able to provide everything required to operate without making threats. An insult to the paying fans who have attended all season.

Could you elaborate please, Steve?

Rushen did nothing wrong there, he’s due an apology from Staechman, who was babbling nonsense that he’d done something really dangerous (and who didn’t have the guts to correct himself when the replay showed him to be way off).

I attend few domestic meetings, but do attend the play off finals that the Aces are in.. Why?.. Not because I see the winning of a UK Team Speedway title has any major relevance in its current guise, but the finals do provide some atmosphere which you associate with a team sport... In short, they are something worth attending if you like live sport... 400 or so Aces fans at Sheffield, stood on turns three and four, a few years ago, meant a superb night of watching sport, with the racing only being "OK" at best... Standing with 200 or so at Leicester a couple of years ago on the first turn also made the evening a great spectacle... Plenty of banter between rival fans, plenty of pee taking of the opposition managers, and riders, and no malice in sight... If UK Speedway had that many away fans at EVERY meeting then it would be in a hugely more successful position..... Your Team. Your Riders... Win, lose or draw, that is how a team sport should be if you want people to emotionally engage with it... Glad the Aces got Sheffield as several hundred will descend on Owlerton next week... Should be a great atmosphere...

With that attitude it certainly will be. There are however, people who still believe in the product (Richard Coleman the latest) who are trying hard to pull the sport up by its bootstraps and get it upwardly mobile. Your club and others like it, may well be happy with their slippers on, reduce costs annually and see the sport descend even further in to the abyss as an amateur sport in front of a couple of hundred people. Mr Campbell and the rest of the OAP dinosaurs are entitled to have that mindset. Others, like the mentioned Coleman and Mark Lemon, would prefer to at least try and get the top tier moving back upwards as a serious sport. You may think they’re wasting their time, but they obviously don’t so let them get on with it. Enjoy your thriving product in the lower league.

On Socials good to see that the fans turned out in good numbers for Woffinden's Testimonial. Whatever you think of Tai , he is a modern day speedway superstar and 3x World Champion - wish him well in his next chapter !! 🤘

That is absolutely awful from Plymouth.😂 I’m laughing, but that’s so poor. It’s the biggest meeting of the season and Gladiators’ fans will already be gutted about the first leg, but instead of a galvanising article, it’s: we need £46K or you’ll have no speedway next season. What a prospect, walking into the Coliseum; about a 2% chance of winning the trophy and faced with the prospect this will be the last meeting at Plymouth. P*ss poor from the powers that be at Plymouth and a prime example of why British speedway is in the state it’s in. In other sports, sensibility prevails. In British speedway, it doesn’t. Remarkable that’s been given the green light for release. At least two grown adults have read that and thought “yeah, that’ll do”.

I would've said similar...until my club shut down. Watching a very good meeting as a neutral is good, but watching an average meeting in a stadium with 20k people and an electric atmosphere is miles better. People absolutely care about it.

Not unusual but a p!sstake nevertheless.

Funny how a rider who failed to get in the play off with his contracted team from the start of the season can now knock out another team in the semi-finals. It’s surprising really that anybody watches speedway anymore with genuine love for their team. Nowadays it’s just for everyone to watch the sport. Coleman is right, tribalism of cheering on your team is completely dead in this sport and exactly why speedway won’t get new supporters through the door. First time in 4 years I couldn’t be bothered to watch the play offs. Good meeting or not it’s just beyond a joke. Rules need to change next year with a lot of other bits too. I’m an Ipswich fan but to be honest even if we build an awesome team what’s the point when other teams can’t follow suit and have good and fair competition. Surely everybody wants to win a competitive league and not this current state of affairs. Saying that, good luck Sheffield and Belle Vue and I hope you make some brilliant racing in the final!

It’s also disgraceful that British riders don’t ride in Britain, for British speedway to survive and recover (if it can )its needs riders to understand the battle is a 2 way street and riders have to do their bit

My own thoughts are what a waste talent and a life ,Jason is not alone in his chosen path his crime was deplorable to say the least .Whilst many on here feel he should never darken a s/way track again it would appear to be the only thing he is any good at and he has been punished for the crime .Would it not be better if he were able to pursue a career that may help to keep him on the straight and narrow ( the rehab of offenders leaves a lot to be desired ) if for no other reason than the financial burden on the state .

Well, if the shoe fits, Arthur. You’ve had a cheating incident as recently as your last meeting. You’ve also got a Rushen riding for you. No-one else has been allowed one since the Ukraine war.

Small part of an interview with Jamie Courtney on BBC Radio Oxford lunchtime news today. He confirms its Championship for Oxford in 2027. Full interview will be on the Heat 16 podcast at 6pm tonight. You can listen again afterwards on BBC Sounds.

Racing is only a small part of it though. The racing in the 70's was no better than now and if it was just what happens on track then Workington, Scunthorpe, Glasgow and BV would be bursting at the seams for every meeting. It's a jigsaw puzzle with loads of bits missing - irregular meetings, doubling up, guests, flimsy call offs, lack of variety, poor presentation, no atmosphere. Most people will want a professionally presented, VFM, enjoyable night out and that really shouldn't be difficult to deliver.

I can 100% confirm Luke will be leaving after 3 years at the club . It's time to move to pastures new to help him in his progression as a rider.

BSN was complete and utter pants for me last night, freezing and cutting out regularly during the whole presentation, I lost it finally just as the riders were selecting gates for the final, I never got it back. The track looked lovely and smooth but provided nothing in the way of racing with riders strung out and little if any passing after a start which gave the yellow gate a ridiculous advantage that trackstaff were unable to rectify. Northampton as a racing circuit is dreadful that’s four meetings I have watched this year and the racing has been poor all year. The only plus last night was a good crowd for Tai, the fans however deserved better.

Pretty alarming that some folk can't distinguish tribalism from abuse and violence.

I still remember "The War Of The Roses" meetings against Sheffield as kid.. Brilliant racing? No idea, can't remember, but what I do remember is the several hundred Tiger fans in attendance making for a tremendous atmosphere.. Wolves in the early 90's too always brought many away fans to Kirky Lane, and we the same to Monmore... Was the racing brilliant? Again, don't remember, but the events themselves were... The lower number of tracks, and the constant sharing of riders, has diluted rivalries to almost nothing these days, with a decent away fan following now being a rare thing at most meetings.. The Scottish Derby is often mentioned as being "fierce".. So "fierce" in fact that Edinburgh's best rider guested for Glasgow a few weeks ago.. That cannot do the sport any good if you want to build up some rivalries that actually engage fans.. I've said before, let away fans in for free, or a very nominal fee, and provide them with a section of their own for them to sit or stand in.. Travel costs are high these days, streaming is available too, so let then in for nothing and, hopefully, some atmosphere can get generated that ensures more regular visits from more of the home fans going forward, and, who knows, word may get round that a night at the Speedway is "a good night out"...

When we beat you in the semi final at your place, the cameras shown alot of your fans leaving the stadium at heat 14. I out on my belle vue Facebook group that you seen the aces now f off home. A little joke, and the response from people was wild saying this is not football. That that attitude elsewhere we dont need this in speedway. Well yes, yes we do need this. It needs to become tribal. Ive always said get rid of the family sport image because end of the day its bikes with no brakes, with riders risking there life every single heat. Thats extreme. And should be sold as an extreme sport. I said to one speedway club owner. I wont name sorry, we need to bring in betting firms on race nights. More people will come if you can bet on races at the track. And his response was we dont want that type of people at speedway. Crazy Bring tribalism back

Ask the Indians about the benefit of the British Empire. Next time you throw stones at Russia, take a closer look in the mirror.

This is the trophy which Cami has targeted all season, he even went so far as to throw away the BSN series, the KO cup and the Championship just so he could focus on this fixture and claim the bragging rights in Scotland. I fully expect to see his tactical genius on display tomorrow night and i confidently predict a Tigers win (in a heat 16 run off).

And why do you think most people wouldn't say it to face? Go on....have a guess...it might just make you realise why most people don't want him anywhere near the sport now.

The FIM put out their calendar in advance and then UK Speedway plan in fixtures knowing 100% that there will be a clash for their riders.... Hardly the FIM's fault... And, as well, tracks go several weeks without a fixture on nights with no FIM meetings that would impact them... UK Promoters even plan in meetings on the nights of UK Championship qualifiers.. The issue is a lot closer to home than the FIM...

I’d also like to see them implement a rule which British riders have to put their British club first over any other league or even FIM meetings and it’s up to the ACU/SCB to make sure Poland, Denmark Sweden and the FIM understand this rule, when Poland realise how important British riders are to their leagues and we are serious about it they will show respect and honour, at the moment we are a joke of an organisation and who is going to respect that ?

Not quite right. The Chairman for the majority of the National League's (extremely successful) independent run in the '80s was actually Danny Dunton. Mervyn Stewkesbury took over for the 1988 season -- elected after a contest with Martin Rogers -- but was promoter at Poole by then, having moved from Weymouth in 1985. Mervyn headed the NL for three seasons, before engineering the re-amalgamation of the two leagues for 1991. This moved Poole, Ipswich, Berwick and Wimbledon (who became Eastbourne mid-season), up, but left the NL in bad shape and led to the disastrous "one big league" of 1995/6. History thus warns us of what can happen when the top league pulls successful clubs out of a well-run second division. In conclusion, were the current Championship to go its own way, run its own affairs, this might not be a bad thing at all.

Well you did steal boughen from Oxford and look what happened there 😜

Exactly the sort of mindset Coleman & Lemon are up against…..no idea about how the modern sporting world works & what today’s consumers want. As Coleman said they can all argue about the time line but the current path leads to extinction of the sport.

I have no problems with Ipswich staging a GP at all. Quite refreshing in actual fact. I was never a fan of the two GP's back to back at BV, I understand the lack of capacity and cost element etc but thought it was a bit daft. Admittedly, the track is awesome though. Ipswich has a much bigger capacity and hopefully will be a sell out. I'm sure those in charge will do the work that needs to be done. People are saying it's in the sticks/middle of nowhere but aren't the Swedish locations similar? A great climax to this year's GP series but generally the whole thing has become stale and any new track like Ipswich or Glasgow should be welcomed to mix things up and rekindle interest.

Will fit in well with the rest of the pensioners in the stadium 😜 hope you've got him a rug 🙃

To be fair I get why the Ford's are cautious they have proven multiple times they can replicate what they have done at Championship level also in the premiership. They currently operate on roughly 30% lower operating costs and by all counts crowds are comparable to the top league days. If they did go back up to an eight team top league the speedway bosses need to somehow avoid a repeat of the Sky days where the number one's hoovered up all the extra cash with nothing left over to reinvest in the clubs. The risk is we tempt 5-7 top liners back over for 2027 who get paid huge wages crowds don't go up much and rather than eaking out a small profit your looking at a 50-100k loss for the season. I still think Richard is the best chance of saving the sport in years and he seems to have his eye on making the sport financially sustainable but I do get why the Ford's are uber cautious, equally if they came back up I don't doubt they would put a great side together.

Don't let Burnham here you talk about bbq's

I think you might find that the local residents behind the pits area of the stadium and East Suffolk council who are very strict objecting to music and bars added to which the curfew which in itself is amusing. The bikes can race but I believe they cannot use the tannoy system to announce results. Years back the meeting overran and while they raced to the end of the meeting no announcements. It is amusing though that the bikes noise lasts minutes whereas a stock/banger meeting races go on relentlessly for several hours(with short breaks to clear the track) but it always seems that the complaints are about speedway. The plus points are the planned changes to the stands and track and historically the fact that the speed weekends have regularly attracted thousands of supporters, so a GP can easily be accommodated albeit hotels may be an issue for overseas travellers as most are in the centre of Ipswich and i don’t believe that they have direct public transport links to the stadium so that is something that needs to be considered for punters staying in the town centre or arriving at Ipswich Station. I believe that it can be a decent venue for a GP and those who have a downer on Ipswich holding the event should wait and see. Don’t base views on what has been, RC has ambitions and he has a point to prove so let’s give him and his team a chance. Remember he only rents the stadium from Spedeworth and if he has convinced them to make the changes then don’t under estimate what can/will be done.

Because they know you need that tribal emotional attachment to your team, if you want a team sport to be successful... Injuries happen, and bad luck happens, in all sports... Jeopardy and consequence being fundamental to any successful sport.. Bringing in guests would see fans, sponsors, and TV all disappear rapidly...

I think the difference with Richard is that his career has been built in motorsport. He understands what’s needed commercially & also has the contacts to make it happen. The big IF is it can only happen if the BSPL are going to listen. He is last chance saloon for the sport. He appears to have the ears of the FIM & the poles so I am optimistic.

The frustrating thing is these are not even earth shattering things that are difficult to do. I even liked his comment that if guests are needed, the manager should have a spare set of club fork covers in his car so they seamlessly blend in. Again, really not difficult to do. There just seems to be a “can’t be @rsed” attitude amongst far too many people involved in running clubs in this country unfortunately.

Here I am sitting in a tin can I couldn't give a flying f☆ck what he wins I'd only want to know if he is riding so I could ensure not a penny of mine goes to a promotion that gives him a place

Welcome to Glasgow, Luke Harrison. 🤑

So did Scunny for the cup final in 2023. But a play-off final isn't a cup final. It's bigger than that - it decides the league championship

Yes he committed a heinous crime and has now finished his time, but what about the crimes committed by a couples of Aussies and a Brit that was swept under the carpet with money in front of it. Did they learn, have they ever been punished or continually berated.