Vincent Blachshadow

This is similar to our speedway isn't it? You know, total misnomers. The Elite League isn't because it hasn't got the 'Elite' any more. The Premier League can't be because it isn't 'premier' (first in position, order, etc) . It's just a name. It's a replacement competition to find Europe's top club, as it always has been, and one that always ended with a one-off final. It's just the qualifying process that's altered and, with so many teams now entering a mini league competition is necessary, followed by a knock-out stage culminating in that old, traditional one-off final.

True, but a one-off final should be something similar to a club's fans, shouldn't it? It certainly is for football.

Cardiff. If you make it worth it, they will come.

Mostly, yes. Although, if you give them a sufficiently good product they will turn out in their thousands to watch it, even at a neutral venue. But the product has to be good enough and worth it.

We've got Halifaxtiger posting that diehards should attend come what may, and we've got orion asking T W K why he goes if he doesn't like the rules. Not exactly working together - are they both on the BSPA?

Why's that? It sure works for football and both rugby codes. It's the one-off final the fans want to see - the big day out for many thousands of them.

Which is why I posted 'every other June and July'.

And call it 'The Craven Shield'. But we all know that calling the play-off winners anything other than 'EL Champions' would be/have been no interest to Sky and would devalue the four team competition in their eyes. So let's devalue the season-long league campaign instead.

Not exactly similar. The Champions League is a restructuring of the European Cup which always has been settled by a one-off match. How the teams get through the qualifying stages is what's been changed.

A calculated risk by Sky. If speedway isn't shown some new sport will most probably fill the void - there's not a lot of football every other June and July. If that sport's devotees take out Sky/add Sky Sports packages as I'm sure some speedway fans did 15 or so years ago, there won't be much difference to Sky's income.

Or a one legged final at a neutral track. Then we would be somewhere near most, if not all, of these other sports that have play-offs.

I did post he'll be gone by the start of 2014 season so there's still time, and an AGM, to go. Should the situation be allowed to stand and Swindon's usurping of Batchelor be allowed to go without repercussions the entire asset situation will be ripped apart with all clubs having recourse to the March 1st ammendment to pick up, on the cheap, any riders they have previously sorted deals with. I would hope the promoters with assets coveted by other clubs will see the danger to income here and even Swindon, with Morris (who they did pay for) and Kildemand likely tapping-up targets, could lose out as a result. We are, though, talking BSPA here so I suppose they could just say they were wrong to sanction the 'loan' in the first place, rescind the March 1st ammendment (if there is one, that is, since we've only heard about it, not had any proof of it's existence), and tell Panthers' management to lump it. It's not as if it hasn't happened before.

Can't see it myself. Think Panthers'll use their own assets next year, not bring in loanees - not even after March 1st.

Possibly not tight, but also not paying over the odds. The latter could lead to financial problems.

At the risk of 'prejudicing' this particular case, isn't it weird that folk were allowed to post on here that drug-taking should be legalised and that Lee should have been left in peace with his cannabis and amphetamines but god help anyone mentioning it here now.

Poole riders were at the BV track telling the world there was no problem, not accepting the situation and laying down. Slightly different to shrugging shoulders and going along with it.

They should have pointed out there is no facility within the rules to allow a cancellation for the reasons given and that they want the match ridden. Ford would more than likely have called the match off anyway but, with the opposition putting in an objection the MC would have had no alternative but to hold an inquiry, not sweep the whole thing under the carpet as Lakeside's capitulation allowed them to.

'Us'? Aren't Poole 'us' these days?

Maybe not, but if he had, I'd bet he'd pay for it.

Can see the possibility of Poole pulling back the tenth point round about heat 13. That would make for a very interesting finish.

Ah, but only 'pencilled in'. Pencil rubs out easily.

Having taken a look at how it stands at present, Ford might want to review that.

That's because they don't want to stop it. It even allows the situation where a previously injured rider, ready to come back into the team, is told to 'take another match off' to allow a track-specialist to be utilised at an away track in his place.

Not to mention '2 years indemnity against losses'.

Why is the onus on the BSPA to address Lee's drug problem and finding out why he did it? There's plenty of channels he can go down to do that for himself - it's not as if he hasn't had the opportunity in the past. Oh, and it's no mistake. He deliberately smokes and, according to his brief, takes an amphetamine or two to counteract the pot so he can keep working on other riders' engines.