pandorum

The riders will be right to boycott the SGP as it will treach them a valuable lesson. When in a hole a JCB is not necessarily the best option for getting out of it. Will be funny listening to poor old Nige having to explain all this away with a GP containing PL 2nd strings.

Sadly it is not a team manager England need but an actual team for him (or her) to be able to manage.

There is more chance of I'm A Celebrity's in Pyongyang than that Phil. Mayhap it will happen mayhap it won't happen but as this has been going on since what 2010 I am long past caring to be honest I had forgotten about you you pathetic little troll. I don't know you from Adam and you don't know me but still you make assumptions based on some silly message forum.

The Y/B helmet colour worked fine and should be reintroduced. Speedway lost it's way once they flirted with yellow and then Green helmet covers. There would be no problem differentiating between the B/W helmet and the Y/B as there is a marked difference between the colours yellow and white and anyone who can't see that should probably not concentrate on the helmet colours as blue and red can be frustrating at speed as well. Perhaps we should experiment with displaying some kind of number and maybe even a name on race suits and perhaps some kind of team symbol rather than trying to cram every minor sponsor who has paid more than a fiver onto them.

definitely sarcasm. There is as much chance of this happening as there is of I'm A Celebrity's next series being held just outside of Pyongyang.

The Grand Opening next March/April will be huge for the sport. It must be well on it's way to completion by now and Belle Vue will be all ready to move into it's state of the art facilities.

To a degree you are right and it would be good if Matt Ford and his fellow promoters could work together for the good of all rather than just thier own selfish interests. But in many ways Matt is also bad for the sport as well. We had Ian Thomas as the bogeyman in my younger days and now Matt has that mantle. He is indeed a good promoter for his teams the same way Thomas was for his but sadly they are not all as clever as those guys and some need a helping hand but the sport would rather point score off each other than work as a unit to build something better..

I was not trying to say we are not training riders simply that other countries seem to produce an endless stream of riders with ability and we don't so therefore we are obviously doing things the wrong way. I have no idea what Poland does to bring on talent as I don't run a speedway club or am a member of the BSPA. But it seems sensible to find out what they do to bring on talent and then copy it here as it obviously works. Our haphazard methods which you highlight in your post are not working very well as there are no riders in the NL that would challenge for a post in the Polish league or Swedish league but they have riders of the calibre of Przedpelski (who came from nowhere this year) who would find a way into our EL if he so chose to seek one. We need to find riders to fill the PL rosters first (and then work thier way up to the EL) but even they are few and far between. I think it says a lot when the kid regarded as the best prospect we have chose Germany to learn his trade.

That's the future for the sport. Give these lads the #6 and #7 berths in PL/EL let them learn even if it's the hard way. The Danish model (5 man teams) pits the #4 and #5 man against the #1 and #2 man in one heat, so a novice can be pitched in against a top rider and you know what? Sometimes that novice beats the top rider. Instead of training everybody elses train ours. That is the easiest thing British Speedway can do to improve it's lot and it costs nothing to do it. Build teams with a heart that is British, produce local riders who have some empathy with the local community. Visit schools on a regular basis and explain the sport to kids, visit hospitals (I think I read somewhere of a team doing that this year. Redcar I think?) Get involved in local activity at every opportunity and show people speedway exists. Promote the bloody thing and maybe you will see a few people come through the turnstile. The next obvious thing is give them something to shout about. That involves tracks and presentation and involves a bit of outlay. Tidy the rubbish tip stadiums up a bit and make them look less like something that was dumped at the side of the road. UK speedway can do without Freddie Lindgren and his ilk but it can't do without the NL as when the whole bloated edifice implodes and the so called top riders have milked the sport dry here and bugger off to sweden or Poland those lads (and a few lasses) will be important. So why not make them feel important NOW! Give the kids and novices a chance. They surely can't be any worse than some of the utter garbage the EL and PL has spent fortunes flying in to fill thier team rosters over the last decade. To hell with Lindgren and his overpriced ilk. Spend the money on British and maybe if the BSPA put a bit of effort in they might see something good come out of it.

But look at the rosters of UK teams and they are filled with young upandcoming riders from Sweden, Denmark, Poland etc. Why is it these countries can produce a never ending stream of Pawel Przedpelski's and Rasmus Jensen's. They must be doing something different to us? Maybe having a look at how these countries do this and then starting to put the mechanisms in place to emulate them would be a better idea than wasting fortunes on allowing the Hancock's of this world to use our leagues as bolt holes when the opportunities in the lucrative league systems dry up. No PL or EL #6 or #7 in any circumstances whatsoever to be non British would be a start. Give our lads a chance and see what they can do. See if we can produce a few new Collins, Louis, Wyer, Wilson, Grahame, Wigg, Cross, Jackson, Finch, Owen, Wilcock, Garrad, Perks, Jessup, Courtney, Havelock, Tatum etc. These lads started at the bottom and did pretty well

Speedway is such a silly sport.

I will give you a clue. His brother was NOT the drummer with Genesis.

Did not get to Hull much but was there when England took on the might of the US and Hull rider Mad Frank Auffrett beat the golden boy Bruce Penhall. My wife was not amused

But I don't want to as it's of no interest to me anymore than darts or golf or underwater chess

Without bashing Poole I think you are indeed right. As Topsoil points out people go to be entertained at sporting events and want more for thier pound not less. Speedway has too little value for money nowadays as all the money seems to be spent on travel for foreign riders and wasted on the Hancocks of the world who use our racing as a bolt hole when they are dumped in the top leagues. You won't see hide nor hair of the Grin in 2014 unless he wants a few meets before the GP or has a few problems like this year with his Swedish and Polish teams. Becoming Insular is the only answer. Invest in UK riders and those foreign lads who show commitment to our leagues and put what money there is into UK speedway instead of Ryan Air dragging Europes rubbish back and forward a couple of times a week and training them. I say, if Freddie Lindgren does not want to ride here, bye Freddie. Let UK speedway find it's own stars by putting in the effort to a) attract them and b ) let them earn a living from the sport. I can remember so many young kids starting off in 2nd halfs and becoming big names. I remember one lad in particular who used to ride for Rochdale as a reserve who did rather well for himself. It won't be easy but nothing worthwhile ever is.

LMAO I voted for the speedway riders as I have no idea who any of the other names were

I don't want to use my real name as who I am, where I am from and what I do while I am there is none of your (the forum) business unless I choose to make it so which I don't I have no interest in socialising with anyone here but have fun expressing my opinion on a sport I like and having a bit of a laugh with the guys in the International section who are a good bunch. If you want to reveal your secret identity that is your business but as it was a free country last time I looked I choose to excercise that freedom and not do so.

The double point rule is not really a tactical rule in the way the old tac sub rule was. Under the old system you could throw in your best immediately after going 6 points down. Now you have to wait to be 10 down and hope that you have someone in the next heat capable of offering a decent punt at scoring double points. A team like Poole can take advantage as they have plenty of heat leaders but a team at the bottom would struggle and may have to wait a heat or two for a decent candidate to use it by which time they are further behind and the so called tactical rule is useless to them. The old rule did not mean that you would immediately get back in the match but at least it made things interesting. With minimum numbers of rides for the lesser members of a team it does actually involve some tactical thinking from managers whereas the current rule consists mainly of a panic measure of throwing someone in as a 'tactical' in the hope they might get a win or second.

without any doubt 'the stupid idea bin' beckons...... Why not just have a rule that when 6 behind the team can bring in a tactical substitute of anyone in the team to replace a rider in the relevant heat. The big leagues use it so it must be a decent idea.

Lovely little venue and saw some good meetings there.

For someone who spent years using words to bamboozle a Prime Minister you sure have problems understanding them. nboy did not say the GP would not exist if SKY was not onboard he simply stated the obvious that the GP would not have become such a force without SKYs involvement. The clue is in 'getting us to where we are' which infers that the GP is still in existence even though SKY are not there but may well have not been such a good product without SKY being involved. Bernard would not have made such an obvious error

Well you learn something new everyday! I did not know Kel and Nige were running British Speedway and commentating was just a sideline. Got to agree that these two have certainly done a p#ss poor job when it comes to overseeing the sport. Maybe they should have stuck to commentating and left the running of the sport to someone more qualified like the BSPA.

What a nonsensical statement to make. I am sure that there were 'probably' several people who could have negotiated a deal within the ranks of the motley crew known as the BSPA. Which tells you all you need to know about these people

I don't agree with the wildcards but that sentence is utter rubbish mate. The qualification system has thrown up as many spuds as the selection system. Same with the old formula that let 5 deadbeats into the final without having to show thier 'skill' against the best. Perhaps Laguta did turn a WC spot down. If not then Lindgren is the new Chris Harris. 11 out of 15 did qualify and the picks will never please everyone but it is a better system than the one it replaced. It won't be that far off

League speeway here as I knew it finished a long time ago and the last few years of EL on TV have shown how corrupt and bankrupt it has become in it's death throes. I used to love league racing but no team left me watching on TV and this year I could not be bothered to watch EL even if I saw it free. I prefer the excitement of Polish, Swedish, Russian and Danish league racing which of course has it's dull days but is way better than Monday night on SKY. I feel sorry for SKY having to put up with such poor fare this last few years as they have been the best thing ever to happen to our sport but sadly with corrupt imbiciles in charge nothing worthwhile ever came out of thier 15 year sojourn with EL racing. These morons could not even attract a sponsor for the league Now if SKY have any sense they will dump the toxic involvement with the BSPA and be well rid of such idiots. Of course it would be nice if UK speedway was on a major TV channel but such things are a two way affair and the BSPA have proved them selves lamentable when it comes to showcasing thier product. Now it's too late and this selfish bunch of backstabbing fools are left with empty run down stadiums and a fanbase that expects something more for thier hard earned pounds than the BSPA are capable of giving. All this nonsense of trying to blame fans for not turning out misses the unequivocally obvious. The sport is clapped out and clueless and an anachronism stuck in an era that it's audience no longer live in. This forum provides the answers as many people here have put forward many an erudite solution to whats wrong with the sport. But all these clueless fools do is portray thier customers as an enemy and ignore them or abuse them. 2014 will be a pivotal year for the sport. Speedway needs every friend it can get if it is to survive. It is blatantly obvious that 'doing nothing' is not an answer. Tinkering with the odd rule won't save the sport. It needs investment in the new generation of rider and supporter. Thier lackadaisical attitude to promotion and presentaton has to change. People expect more when they are asked to pay more. The lazy promoters need to start promoting thier product not just to a new audience but the old one as well. The new National Stadium will not save speedway if there is nobody to fill it. Can it rise from the ashes of indifference? Maybe if it acts now and starts to show it has a plan and some solutions to the problems. But unfortunately we are talking about the BSPA and that really does not fill me with confidence that the sport will survive much longer in the UK. And considering speedway was such a big part of my life I find that incredibly sad