Halifaxtiger

Because they provide the funds that allows speedway to exist. If they are not entitled to be made aware of the rules of the sport and the reasoning behind it I am not quite sure who is. The alternative is the secrecy, backhander dealing and arbitrary decisions that we see all to frequently and which have undoubtedly led to some fans becoming so disillusioned that they simply stop going. We have already seen one such decision this winter : Bradley Wilson-Dean's PL average that is directly contrary to the rule book. And if someone did ask do you really think they would get a fair explanation ? We have already seen the response that is given to criticism. One final point : in 2016 there is one track that I definitely will not be going to. Its not because of the distance, the cost or the racing. Its the reaction I got from one of the promotion when I tried to have a reasonable chat about the track. Treating fans with contempt is one of the reasons why speedway is on its knees.

Not just your thoughts, I completely agree. There's far too many bigoted, biased, ignorant remarks made on here regarding which one of the leagues offers the best entertainment. I saw some cracking speedway (and some not so cracking speedway) in all the leagues last season. The only thing I would say is that most of the best racing tracks - Somerset, Plymouth, Peterborough, Scunthorpe - are in the PL. One final point: if the losses (and profits) made by EL and PL tracks combined are compared, I bet the PL loses more money per club.

Unquestionably true, but that doesn't give grounds to insult, criticise or abuse them.

Based upon Lakeside supporters opinions on here, I don't think that's true. They all seem to be defending, excusing or at least underplaying Cook's remarks and consequently its most unlikely they will stop going. As far as I can see (and I am sure that I have already said this) SCB was absolutely correct in his criticism of Cook's remarks but shouldn't have used the language that he did.

I agree, Mick. As you rightly say, a Brit being undisputed World Heavyweight Boxing Champion is unheard of so I'd say its the biggest achievement of the year. He might have made some stupid remarks but surely this is judged on his sporting prowess and his personal beliefs are irrelevant ? Given that no British rider has ever won the world title more than twice, if Tai wins again in 2016 and continues his fund raising activity it will be a sham if he is not nominated. As he himself said, precisely what does he have to do to get a place ?

Me too, Rob. I must admit I am surprised that Scunny are being tipped for the wooden spoon or near it. I think that's a good team.

If you count Kenny Carter's World Pairs win in 1983, he did it too. A debatable point for sure. As good as Collins and especially Olsen were, over 10 or 12 rounds I don't think they'd match Mauger. In 14 seasons between 1966 and 1979, Mauger qualified for every world final and only finished outside the top 4 once. In the British League, he averaged over 11 on 7 occasions.

Don't think you are being biased, MM. If the GP system had been in force from the late 1960's its difficult to see anyone beating Mauger for about 10 years.

British League averages for Nielsen: 1979 10.29. 1980 10.68 1981 9.79 1982 9.89 1983 10.81 1984 10.76 1985 11.34 1986 11.57 1987 11.37 1988 11.03 To suggest that Nielsen was overrated is without doubt one of the most ridiculous comments I have ever read on here. For me, he's one of the greatest speedway riders ever. At the end of 1981, Penhall was absolutely everything that world speedway needed in its champion. A fantastic rider, bucket loads of charisma and film star looks. By the end of 1982, that had been severely dented. It started in the England/USA test series, when he held the BSPA to ransom by demanding appearance money. Then there was White City. Riders cheat in such circumstances, but what they don't do is ram it down paying customers throats. Then he walked out on the sport, signifying that he only rode in 1982 to compete in the World Championship. On the day, he was. The question is whether he would have won it anywhere other than Norden, where it appeared it was totally set up for him to win. Great champions don't need that sort of help and any victory is at least partly hollow for others when they do.

That's a play off team.

I have no doubt that it was helped by the fact that the final was in the USA..... If memory serves me correctly, Tony McDonald commented in Tragedy that it wasn't easy to find any rider who was prepared to say a good word about Kenny Carter - again if memory serves me correctly, Joe Owen and Dave Jessup were the only ones. On the other hand, only one was vitriolic in his remarks - and that was Bruce Penhall. Peter Collins, who loathed Carter and who he blamed for finishing his career, simply said they didn't get on. There's no reason why Penhall couldn't have said the same thing, yet he chose to be particularly aggressive. If you read Tragedy, it is clear that Carter's actions in murdering his wife and then committing suicide were in no way planned or premeditated - he simply acted in the heat of the moment given the circumstances at the time. That in no way excuses what he did and it remains as awful now as it was then. The only thing is to commit an act of extreme violence in temper is something that each and everyone of us is capable of.

Not the same criteria that I (and I suspect a lot of fans) use. Of the top 5 matches I saw last season, 3 were at Scunthorpe which says it all really. For sheer quality of racing, nothing beats EWR. Having said that, Workington does deserve recognition. The racing was better last season than in previous years and generally well above average, the speedway is the cheapest in the PL (and indeed is comparable with some NL tracks) and there's the bonus of the Hogster on the mic. As an overall package, its right up there. I think you are dead right................and preparation, as we know only too well, is often in the eye of the beholder. Leicester was better last season, too.

I think you are right..... but I think Gjedde will be No 2 with Newman a strong number 3. Based upon that side, I think Plymouth will be a play off team.

Given that the UKVI have agreed to a 5.00 starting average this season (rather than the 7.00 last year) it seems as though they are accepting dumbing down already.

I think you are dead right. The trick is to try and combine the two - be competitive but have 3 or 4 in the team who are just starting out or have a season or two under their belts. Mildenhall have got that pretty much spot on.

So am I after all the noise and hassle the summer before last.

One consolation : I am absolutely lousy at predictions.

I'm not as impressed as some either. Stead's coming back from dreadful injury, so he'll do well to hold a 10.5 average. Bates spent most of last season at reserve, Howarth has been on the same average (or so) for 3 seasons and Greaves is one of the weaker 3.00 pointers based upon NL scores. Question mark over Berge improving. Hall should go up and Garrity might well do so, but 2 out of 7 isn't enough.

Really ?

Still one rider to go and depending on Gjedde, but that looks a good team.

I certainly didn't intend to be critical or insulting. The thing is though that as far as I am concerned speedway needs to get the basics right first and then move on from there, and most fans refer to the quality of the racing, the presentation and lack of delay as three things the sport simply must ensure are as good as they can be. No- other track across the sport comes as close to that as Scunthorpe.

He's had them. That's where he gets his reputation for unreliability and unprofessionalism from. Its all very well having better scores, but they are worth nothing if the rider isn't there. As I said, read the comments on the Rye House thread - after all, that's the last club Boxall rode for.

Brilliant news for my pals down at SBA that Holder has re-signed - losing him would have been a disaster. There's every chance that he could be one of the PL's top riders next season.

Read one or two comments on the Rye House thread. While Boxall has certainly got a better record in terms of points scoring than Nielsen, at least Belle Vue will know that Nielsen will turn up to every meeting and still be riding for the club at the end of May. That makes Nielsen a better signing.

I couldn't really care about any of this. What I would like to see at EWR in 2016 is pretty much what I saw in 2015 - cracking racing, good presentation and as little delay as possible.