Hunters

Really looking forward to this and that first meeting 'smell' from the bike fuel. Unfortunately CL meeting looks rather lopsided, It was 59-31 in 2019 and whilst I think Eagles are stronger primarily with Brennan and Kemp for Morley and Bowtell Newcastle are much weaker losing all three heat leaders and only recruiting Ben Barker at that level. They have done the right thing to try and ensure survival and I hope they can spring some surprises. The NL should be a much better match with three clashes between Clegg and Knight very much the juiciest. I also fancy Kelsey Dugard to put on a bit of a show with a certain amount of 'feeling' and something to prove.. I am particularly looking forward to seeing that tiny tot who used to hesitantly ride round on a small machine for years before the Elite League matches. I have not seen him since he turned 15 but I understand Nathan Ablett is now quite a prospect and this will be his home debut. The weather forecast is sunny with showers so looks promising.

Does that mean that they can bring in George Rothery in for Tigger ? Why is any team allowed to declare an uqualified (for age) rider in the team ? Eastbourne have e really good prospect in Vinnie Joe-Foord who will also be 15 in July but did not declare him instead they have declared Nick Laurence who was allready booked to 'Spanner' for the championship. There is a strong belief that he is filing in until Vinnie is qualified when they can re-declare.

1 J Edwards 7.53 2 K Dugard 3.35 3 H Atkins 5.86 4 D Thompson 5.50 5 J Thompson 6.48 6 H McGurk 3.00 7 N Ablett 3.00 Total 34.72

If Kelsey Dugard has matured and sets his mind to it he could keep Newcastle of the bottom and I expect JPB to be a big success at Belle Vue Kent look a bit vulnerable 1 Eastbourne 2 Mildenhall 3 Belle Vue 4 Leicester 5 Kent 6 Berwick 7 Newcastle 8 Armadale With the tight restrictions on Guests the real winner will be the one that avoids injuries and does not need to have a guest..

The Mildenhall total is over the limit now so presume Jason Edwards will fall away and be at Eastbourne as he will be at the venue with some meetings double headers CL/NL

Glasgow are not alone Eastbourne are already on record fully supporting them. Has any other championship side acted similarly?

Tom Brennan in Australia in the Jack Young cup won his first two races but fell third time out and missed his last ride, so he is up and running. Dan Bewley won it with 12 point max .

Make no mistake the real driving force is Ian Jordan. Read his latest statement on the eagles web site on how the side were put together and you realise how much he communicates and relates to the supporters. If all clubs operated like him the sport would not have the problems it does.

He does not need to try to master Arlington probably the smallest 'technical'track. In the various finals between Eastbourne and Mildenhall at end of 2018 his races against Brennan and Wood, who were at the peak of their form at home, were legendary. He lost some but he also won in some very aggressive heats for the league title. It has been a disappointing year for him in 2019 particularly in the NL where he was expected to do big things but finished up lowering his average by a whole point. I think this is the perfect move for him as part of an all British team with no language problems, 2 other teenagers and good technical support who will help him to release his potential. I expect him to average over 5 next season and as his confidence grows it could be 6. I have a good feeling about this team, solid heat leaders, and bags of young potential. Not too worried about winning the league though I think top 6 could be on but they are all racers and are sure to entertain.

Have no fear, he is fearless. Been back on his bike for a while and now down in Australia getting more big track experience working with the Jason Crump training camp.

The Spiller parents have quite rightly said education before speedway which is why they have made limited appearances for the eagles, however having now signed as Assets they are getting close to 'available'. I think Daniel has now finished university and is a distinct possibility this season but Ethan is 2 years younger so is likely in 2022. Big question is what average. They both have NL averages with us and Danny was 6.6 Does he come in as an NL rider on 2.0 ? If he gets assessed at say 4.0 he would get a 2.5% reduction as British. Similar case to Robert Lambert but I cannot remember how he was treated.

The 41 point limit changes the ball game, now they can run with 7 of the 9 riders they used last year. 1 Kennett 8.62 2 Newman 5.16 3 Kerr 7.53 4 Brennan 6.05 5 Lawson 8.32 6 Bowtell 3.10 7 Edwards 2.00 40.78 This excludes any 2.5% allowance. I would have preferred Wood to Bowtell but at 3.77 Georgie just takes it over 41. even if three of them got the 2.5% NL allowance They were a well connected group last year and although the Heat leaders are probably at their limit there is a lot of improvement potential below them particularly the two teenagers Brennan and Edwards. Now we will see how many return but the BSPA site confirms three so it would appear Poole did not want Newman or he preferred to stay at Arlington.

I don't get involved with Facebook and the others , not my cup of tea and I am afraid I have never heard of Ian Smalley. I did however participate in the 21 question survey on the Eagles Web Site of which this was No19 I would like to have put Bradley Wilson Dean at no 3 but don't know whether his average would be based on his PL last year or Cl the previous year.

Another innovative idea from Ian Jordan, an interesting survey and the opportunity to suggest preferred signings for 2020 based on a 40 points limit. Does this mean he knows 40 is the limit. My contribution was 1 R Lawson 2 K Newman 3 ?? (7.17 points available) 4 T Brennan 5 L Kerr 6 G Wood 7 J Edwards Josh Pickering would be great at 3 but unlikely. I don't think Tom is any risk at all and will not be fazed by his accident, he is so enthusiastic and has been itching to get back on his bike for a long time. Another month in Australia and more big track experience will see him improve on last years 6.05 and provided he has no more injuries will be in the 7's . I know some will be doubtful of Georgie but he was coming on well until his back injury and if he can stay in the reserve slot he will be invaluable at home and should start getting some good points away . At 40 limit most teams are going to have to shed a heat leader and bring in another NL lad which could be food and drink to Georgie. If his average increased too much then Kyle wood drop down to reserve with the same effect. My main doubt is whether they bring another 2.0 pointer (Danny Spiller??) in for Georgie, giving enough points to have Ed Kennet back as third heat leader. Interesting days.

I have been thinking of next year's team for a while and came up with Wood and Bowtell at reserve and Brennan and Newman as second strings. The big question for me was No 1. Kennett may be local but I would go for Lawson. Signing Kerr rather restricts options for me as those six will be around 33.5 points and unless the limit is increased not leave enough for the final heat leader. Of course they could sacrifice Wood for Edwards which might let BWD back. The important thing is to get a more balanced side next year

And Eagles now a 5 man team , Looks easy for Bears now.

Marson for Bowtell is a big concern, Going to be tight now.

Good report I was stood not far from you and would only add the following points:- Kennett came out in heat one and rode this claimed 'unrideable track' in only .6 of a second slower than the fastest time this year, which was also over 1.0 second faster than when Cook won the equivalent heat during Glasgow's success in the league match in May. When Cook did come out and win in heat five he was faster than that ride in May. The races between Cook and Kennet/Lawson were superb on this alleged bad track. Only 3 Glasgow riders rode round during the introduction, being lead by Cook were No,s 3 and 6 (Vissing and Bickley). The other three stayed where they were and were not involved in that particular incident. Vissing's bike packed up on the start line when the two minute warning was on, by the time he got it started the time was up and he was not ready to race. when he saw the Yellow exclusion light he petulantly went full throttle through the tapes. Hope the referee reports this and he gets fined.

This is surely going to be one of the Matches of the year with a first class Glasgow outfit home and away and the Home side in good form. Eagles certainly missed Georgie Wood last week but his 14 at I O W last night shows he is over his illness and will be a significant player tomorrow. Lawson and Kennett are in great form and top scored with 11 each as Ipswich beat Belle Vue last night in the Premiership. (King 8 and Harris 1 puts it in perspective) Kennett produced the fastest time of the season last week and if he makes the gate in front of Cook we have a stupendous race on our hands. Tigers are even stronger I think replacing Sargeant who is weak at Arlington. It is boiling up nicely and any Speedway fan who could but does not go tomorrow is making a big mistake. I anticipate the tie being decided in a gripping heat 15 but cannot predict the outcome.

Another massacre to be sure 57- 33. Home leg a little better than last time 48-42 Maybe. Aggregate no contest.

Not so sure about that. They were only 4 points down with 3 heats to go last time and then got suckered in those heats for a 16 point loss. Kennett and Kerr had three wins each but Lawson had a poor night and Wood scored only 1. This time round could be different, Kennett is in good form with 11 for Ipswich at Swindon last night in the Prem and Newman could get more than the 3 Brennan got that night as he has more experience of the track. As regards Wood he has always had mechanical problems but with recent assistance and a complete overhaul they seem to be behind him now. More importantly he is improving all the time. A good measure is his times and on Sunday he posted the fourth fastest of the match only NIcholls managed to post one better for the Lions. There is no doubt his success at IOW's larger track is doing him a lot of good and that should start to reflect in his away CL scores. Normally I am a pessimist but this time I expect to see the Eagles wrap it up before we get to heat 13.

Are you sure? I understood Jason Signed for Eastbourne last year?

Another great initiative by the Eagles management. All members of the armed forces admitted for the Leicester Match free as their contribution to Armed Forces Day on Saturday. The way they have approached things this season they deserve success so lets lay off the Cook baiting please.

Many Thanks, That means in Eastbourne's case it should be better to have a guest even at home and most certainly away. They almost have the pick of the crop tomorrow should they decide but I have a feeling they will go r/r and take a chance.

Only if a Guest is allowed, not if compelled to go r/r which was the whole point of the question (Unanswered). Are they permitted a guest for missing 3rd heat leader or are they forced into r/r ??