Hawk127

Oh forgot that if possible Hawkins ought to do the manly thing but probably still believes he has go what it takes. You have not.

Witches need a clear out. If Doyle is available and does not travel north to the stars then it is build a team around him. Tungate, Batchelor, Starke and King need to go.

Well done the Aces. Just finish the job in the finals.

Mildenhall could probably use him if they ever get round to racing.

Robert is a class act and good luck to him. Sad that he has be brought in to bolster a team that probably did not need it and is up against an opposition who gave up last week so no real test for him. Can they transfer the live coverage to the other match.

Can Batchelor also leave the building. Waste of space.

Witches are as expected. Why bother chasing points, King needs to keep out of harms way for his main team. Hopefully we will not be a Witch next year. He has had his chances, move on please.

Not sure what the fuss is about. As a tie it is over, the Aces are through so just treat it like an individual meeting (ignore who is wearing what race jacket) and hopefully you will see some good races with those who turn up and hopefully all come through unscathed.

Unless a miracle occurs the Witches are out so is anything other than the state of the Aces team in the final relevant. In this easte of time meeting Doyle can go for it in terms of points money but the rest of the side are hangers on who will pick up whatever morsels are available and so we all hope next season will be better but the top table in charge of the sport will maintain the status quo and another year of sh.t. will ensue. It needs a radical change with weekly meetings and play offs in late August or early September but all on here recognise this. It is just the twats that run the sport who cannot see the wood for the trees. Even the riders are getting p.. off with the intermittent meetings but no one in authority is listening. The sport needs a radicle change but as long as you have the clowns in charge nothing will change apart from another season of fewer punters crossing the stadia threshold and the guys on the track who deserve the support are racing in front of fewer and fewer fans. A heart felt message to BSPL, piss or get off the pot.

The sad thing is that it could just add another dimension to the racing but the dinosaurs who are in charge really fail to get to grips with the mood of the punters and prefer a ‘take it or leave it’ scenario. Maybe this is the opportunity to start an alternative league to replace the NFL and let those at the Isle of Wight take the initiative and run it thereby offering something different on a U k wide basis. Machines that do not inflict noise pollution and riders who have a level platform in terms of bikes and hence rider skills may come to the fore. It may seem odd but I would prefer to watch Riders on machines that rely on the skills of the racer rather than the power of the machines used by the gate and fly merchants who hang on for dear life to a powerful bike that most have trouble controlling and races/heats that are processional because it all depends on who has the deepest pockets to throw cash at the machine to make it goes faster. Put those guys on a level playing field and let’s see just how good some of the rides really are. it will not sit well with many but the sport needs so much change to survive and something like this offers a faint glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel rather than a train coming the opposite way. BSPL please wake up and anyone who cannot face up to the issues should walk away now.

For anyone wanting to start out, it seems ideal without the huge ongoing costs. If you had enough people using the bikes, it could be a good addition to a meeting and perhaps that is what speedway needs, the main event with other disciplines alongside. Fortnightly meetings that are more a festival rather than just fifteen heats and then get on your way. As it stands speedway in the U.K. needs to try something new and innovative or simply die a slow death as is the case for the top tier of the sport. A meeting should be an event not an endurance test for the punters.

Yes back in the day of Mark Loram etc. Downhill for a long time. More racing lines in a banger meeting

Glad I did not pay to watch this. What a bore and lack lustre performance from Witches except Doyle who is a credit to the sport and a class act in the top tier in the U.K.. One last request, can Hawkins stop looking so gormless, he should never be in charge but I guess beggars cannot be choosers.

Tungate his usual crap self. Danny King overrated. It is more than likely all over for Ipswich, too many riders need carrying.

Agree. Doubt they can find a way back. Aces want it the Witches are sitting on their laurels. Not an exciting meeting compared to some of the Polish matches but Ipswich does not lend itself to exciting races these days.

Same old lines from the witches. You cannot see them making the final but miracles do occasionally happen.

Probably a smoke screen. £4 share capital and two of the four have 33 other directorships between them. Interesting that it was set up today and probably cost no more than £100 to establish the company. So sell out to Gaming International, make a few bob on the side and pretend to be interested in building a new arena elsewhere when in reality they could/should have looked at this year’s back. Another historic venue and club sold down the line by a few spivs. Would you trust any of those four to do the right thing? It will be interesting to read what the local MP’s take is on this news. You can hear it now how he did everything he could etc. Some dodgy dealings gone on here and no one will ever find out who got what. How many more clubs will the sport lose? Where was the top table of this prominent sport of speedway while all this was going on? They are another bunch who you cannot trust, they cannot even get fixtures completed in summer months let alone oversee the sport in the U.K. for the benefit of all, Too much self interest. Today this is a loss for the whole of speedway.

Those who own the stadium have played the long game yet again and supporters get weary but nevertheless it is a sad day to see another team bite the dust. I think that supporters just have to accept the fact that very few like speedway, it is a minority sport and will never galvanise support at any level of government and local authorities have zero interest despite what many a local MP’s will spout on the odd occasion that they want some publicity to get votes come election time. Those in charge of Swindon Speedway have little say in the matter as mere tenants and at best you could say that they are very naive to believe anything other than the inevitable. I would like to think that the Robins will make a comeback but like so many before, without a lot of luck, it could be a long haul. Here’s hoping.

If this is the case why did Terry Russell not go public on it in the local press and be honest with the supporters and tell the truth for a change. Swindon fans have had enough lies and false statements.

Those in charge really ought to think before playing about with fixtures and various tournaments and scheduling a list of meetings. League meetings should take priority and the league positions decided by the end of August with play offs and final in first two weeks in September. Cup and pairs take place in September and October so that clubs who did not make the play offs still have something to race for and retain fans interest. Too much to ask that those in charge have a brain between them and act in the best interest of the fans and the sport. Farcical situation that the top tier finds itself in towards the end of September in a seven month season with a league of just six teams. Yes British speedway is a shambles and we can all guess who is to blame.

Enjoyed that meeting, it had a bit of everything. Thanks to both sets of riders for putting on a good show and how every club in the U.K. would like a crowd that attended its final meeting. Thanks to all involved including the fans who gave it such a great atmosphere.

The powers that be will sight many reasons why they could not run ten home meetings in six months but will miss the obvious one, utter incompetence by each and every track to work collectively to make it happen. It is a further endorsement that can added to another thread headed British speedway is a joke . When you take into account how it’s affairs are managed and the lack of respect each and every track has for its punters it is a miracle anyone bothers to turn out in September and October after all the fine weather had this year in the U.K. It is a mystery and the only way those in charge will learn is if the punters vote with their feet but that will not happen because for some reason many think they owe the club some debt of loyalty but I doubt each and every team owner thinks that way. So it is a Christmas festival to resolve the who will be champions. The weather should be fine, ask the club promoters, they are good at using a crystal ball.

All the debates regarding the state of British speedway (not to be confused with other similar products held outside England and Scotland) is irrelevant when the sport has a number of fronts to fight to save its existence. You have track owners with a few being on the top table who make the rules up as they go along, riders who have an inflated valuation on their services and then the local authorities who are as crooked as they come (see Swindon, Coventry and no doubt many on here can name others who simply do not want a speedway track in their back yard). The joke is on the punter who continues to pay to cross the threshold of the surviving tracks where many serve up little in the form of entertainment and yet pretend that everything is fine. It is a sport which has not changed with the times and regardless of the age of supporters, it neither meets the idea of a slick presentation that can get the terraces excited nor is credible given the rules etc. and as a prospective business opportunity has zero appeal in terms of making a return in its own right without the addition of 3rd party contributions from sponsors etc. Start again get back to basics and become a part time occupation for the riders and a streaming service that punters can tap into for live speedway if they wish.

Added to which the T V coverage is far superior to that broadcast by Eurosport. U.K. speedway should not be mentioned in the same breath as Polish speedway as the U.K. falls so far short in all that you mention. The sport in this country either needs ‘surgery’ of some sort or put it and the fans out of their misery by closing out the failed product and start all over with someone who has the vision to take it forward assuming you could find anyone not tarnished by the current set up.

Unfortunately despite all the good ideas and suggestions put forward on this topic, no one in authority is listening nor will those in charge take a inward look at what they are dong to the sport. None so blind as those who do not want to see comes to mind. Riders want to earn an annual salary in a six months season while the rest of the population has to work twelve months. (If they have winter jobs are the pay rates demanded by the riders over ambitious) They have expensive equipment that is not robust enough to cater with the work that it is required of it hence the regular expensive overhaul after a few races that adds to the cost. Most of the tracks in operation today were not built for today’s machines and on the subject of tracks, the entry point in terms of costs for new tracks, in order to cater for the bikes and safety aspect etc., is now so high and even if you could find the land who in their right mind would invest in a project where the business model is dictated by third parties who have put nothing into the new track and will basically tell you when you can open and run meetings unless you operate outside the current set up and follow the IOW. The sport is not a joke, it is some of the parties involved from riders to track owners and as has been said before, as long as the punters turn up no one is going to take on board the possibility that trying something new might just be better option rather then sticking with the current format with dwindling support on the terraces. Today people are rarely prepared to wait yet it can take two plus hours to run 15 minutes of racing. Younger people lose the will to live whilst waiting for the next heat to be run and if they do get hooked, how often is the team made up of guests and Mr R/R. Nothing will change just fewer and fewer people bothering to go to a track and the way the cost of living is going speedway however good it can be will be way down the list of spending and many will consider that it is not value for money if attending a live meeting.