Aces51

The silence from the SCB is deafening. Is Neil Vatcher on holiday. Chapman is supposed to be the saviour of British speedway, we have seen no evidence yet that the sport looks likely to retain its existing fan base, let alone grow it and now we see yet again how poorly run is his own club. We need someone who really is committed to openness and transparency and who has the vision and ability to save the sport.

It was nothing to do with the cost of the stadium. It was because David Gordon and Chris Morton insisted that the stadium was built around the track and not just adapted to fit inside it and because they did lots of research on other tracks including the old Hyde Road before finalising their design. They even went to the quarry and chose the shale.

A well deserved win for the Robins. Not a surprise to me, we are very vulnerable at home, far too many riders enjoy racing at the NSS and we have been pushed hard by lesser teams than Swindon. They had no weak links and BWD was exceptional.I was concerned that Batchelor might further injure his thumb riding so soon after his crash. No excuses, we were beaten by the better side. Swindon were gating better and using the outside run to good effect. Bewley rode well and was winning heat 14 when Tungate fell, Fricke showed some determination as did Bjerre and Worrall but Cook seemed reluctant to use the wide racing line, had a primary chain snap in heat 11 and ended up coming out on Worrall's bike in heat 13. Tungate was signed as a NSS track specialist to give us extra strength at home but has not yet shown he can deliver what is needed.

Monmore Green has often produced good racing although in my opinion the best racing there doesn't compare to the best at a well prepared big track. Decent enough meeting tonight with a few good races. Wolves have a huge home advantage, as we did at the dog track, just look at their points difference Some are saying that every track has riders locking up. It may be my memory, it's not what it used to be but I can't recall anyone locking up at the NSS

Those comparing the track last night to Belle Vue perhaps missed Craig Cook explaining before the meeting that he had tried the set up he uses at the NSS during the practice and it just didn't work. He and others explained it was an entirely different surface and that they still hadn't found the best set up. Most of us knew that Team GB would struggle and that the Russians are far more used to racing on Polish tracks than we are. Having said that I agree with those who say that Cook and Lambert should have done better. Worrall and Harris did all we could expect from them and more. Craig Cook on Twitter last night. "Sorry to everyone who I've let down I'm really embarrassed, I've tried my arse off and changed everything but nothing worked. Sorry again." At least let's give him credit for acknowledging his poor performance and apologising. It was a bad night at the office but he is still the best rider we have who wants to ride for GB and nobody can deny his passion and commitment.

The NSS requires just as much skill to ride as most other tracks, that's why the top scorers are usually the better and in form riders. To ride it well you have to be very smooth on the bike otherwise you lose traction and because of the high speeds can immediately suffer for it. It is the shape and width of the track which makes it relatively safe and that, together with the numerous racing lines, is what enable the generally close racing. The problem with the small tracks is that they often have only one or two racing lines and that together with the significant home advantage they often offer can produce processional racing. Our many years at the dog track and my numerous visits to most tracks confirms my opinion. That isn't to say that they don't offer some exciting racing, they can and do and some are better than others but for me it doesn't compare to the spectacle I was brought up on at Hyde Road and now at the NSS as well as tracks like Somerset and Peterborough.

No problems with Fricke. He is progressing well for his age and those doubting his aggression need to see his occasional dive bomb moves into the third bend at the NSS.

If it is so easy to put right it raises serious questions as to why nothing has been done. The first match on BT was an excellent opportunity to showcase the sport, two of the best teams but a track that was potentially dangerous and denied riders the chance to show how exciting this sport can be. I doubt many viewers new to the sport will be tuning in in future. It was totally unprofessional and the authorities should take action, somehow I doubt they will.

Any team with our away record would be expected to be winning their home meetings easily and we aren't. The explanation is obvious, it is the lack of home advantage coupled with the fact that most, if not all, visiting riders love the place. Tungate was signed because of his previous outstanding performances at the NSS with an obvious eye to improving our chances of winning on aggregate in the play offs. It will be no surprise if King's Lynn win or run us very close.

You have only got to watch the racing at the NSS and I am sure elsewhere as well, Scunthorpe, Somerset and Peterborough for example, to know that given a well prepared track all riders are certainly interested in racing. Similarly,if they believe they have no chance of passing, it is usually an indication of a track that is poorly prepared or that has only one racing line.

Harris had his best performance at the NSS, Nicholls had his moments but Barker was ok but wasn't able to replicate his Monday night performance. For the Aces, Cook and Worrall looked slow and Steve did have machinery problems as did Tungate who ended up borrowing Bachelor's bike. Fortunately, three 5-1's in the last few races made the win look easier than it was but Rye can feel that their efforts in the first 9 heats were deserving of a point.

Your eyes are ok? You must have super vision to be able to count the crowds at the NSS from 250 miles away.

A crowd of over 2000 on a Monday night for a meeting that was live on tv was much better than I expected. As for league matches I doubt we have had a crowd of less than 1200 and usually more than that. Recent reports from Poole fans on here are that sadly crowds are significantly down.

Sedgemen knew on Tuesday so all credit to him for doing his best last night. Speaks volumes about his character. I have a lot of sympathy for him, he has done all that he could reasonably have been expected to do but as others have said we couldn't miss the opportunity to sign a NSS track specialist. Our away results show just how good a team we have but we need a rider to strengthen us at home to try to avoid dropping any more points and to give us a better chance of winning on aggregate in the play offs, assuming we qualify. Tungate is riding well in Poland , he should do well at home and that will help him to do better away. Much as it's a shame for Sedgmen I think it was an obvious change to make.

Bewley was down as one of the reserves in the programme and he was present at the track. It was announced on the BV website yesterday that Mellish and Smith would be the reserves with no mention of Bewley. Obviously somebody decided yesterday that he couldn't ride. I am sure it wasn't anybody connected with Belle Vue, it was in their interests for him to gain the experience, so who was it? It had to be someone with the authority to make such a decision and common sense dictates that as Chapman was there he would have at least been consulted. As for the suggestion it would break a rule if Bewley rode,chapter and verse would be helpful.

There were Integro banners on the back straight and of course on the race jackets. Whether BT showed the banners or mentioned the sponsors is a matter for BT and not something the BSPA can control. The track staff deserve praise for preparing a track which provided many racing lines and no dust. A rare feat after a couple of really hot days. A very enjoyable meeting, there was an excellent atmosphere in the grandstand, some good racing with plenty of genuine passes although not as good as some of the best meetings we have seen at the NSS. Cook was a deserved winner and really seems to have made a significant step up the ladder this year. Also good see Steve Worrall doing so well in such an important meeting. Sad see that Chapman apparently decided that Bewley, one of the programmed reserves, was too good and denied him the opportunity. He is 18, has been racing for a little over 12 months. A missed opportunity give an outstanding British prospect the chance learn from the experience of being part of a prestigious event.

It's not as if they didn't know approximately when all teams would complete their 4 home and away and if it is true that they are having a meeting on Monday to sort it out then that indicates total incompetence. They could and should have decided months ago how the new averages would be determined and implemented.

A fair result and some good racing with a number of genuine passes, including those from Batchelor, Bjerre, Fricke and Bewley and an excellent example of team riding from Cook, who shepherded Smith home for a 5-1 for the whole 4 laps. An enjoyable night that I think sent most fans home happy. It's always difficult to tell when you are sitting in the grandstand but looked like a decent crowd. Hopefully, the media advertising is producing results

So now with Batchelor for Zengota they are actually stronger. Looks like it might be a good meeting.

At Poole it may be more to do with the Darcy Ward meeting farce and having a team which some think needs strengthening. I suspect that the long gaps between meetings and the ever increasing numbers of guests and r/r are at least as significant as the lower standards. I can't speak for anywhere else as you can't tell from attending away meetings but crowds at Belle Vue seem slightly up. I can't say that the absence of Zagar has had any affect.

I am old enough to remember when riders just put boiler suits over their leathers and got on with it so have sympathy with your point. However, the article says that all of the riders wanted the delay.

I wasn't at this meeting but interesting comments in the Speedway Star. Lemon says that he didn't blame the result on the conditions but that all of the riders wanted a sufficient delay to allow the track to be sorted out before heat 9 or 10. He said the referee put the riders at risk. Josh Grajczonek agreed and comments that safety should be the most important thing. There is a photo of Josh racing caked in mud and with no goggles, having had to remove them to be able to see. Josh said he normally goes through no more than 4 tear offs in a meeting but went through more than 40 in this meeting, including 7 in the race where he had to remove his goggles on the third lap.

I can think of one club that might be feeling that there is one rule for them and another for certain others. It seems to me to be just as bad to call off a meeting for a pretend weather forecast as it is to invent a water leak. We were rightly fined, had points deducted and meetings could only be called off by an SCB official. What is very disappointing is that Buster as chairman of the BSPA seems to have done little to improve the sport. The farce over averages, doubling up and fixture planning seems worse and what happened to the promised new rule book?

I agree that Poole are weakened by losing Andersen but Batchelor rode extremely well in his last appearance at the NSS when he a scored 13 and finished second in the Peter Craven Memorial. He should be a more than adequate replacement for Zengota.

You were referring to the two matches this week when making your point that Poole were worse off with Bates. The facts show that is not the case at the NSS. Trying now to pretend you were talking about who is better overall fools nobody.