Sings4Speedway

But the points limit was raised so that certain commonwealth riders could be accomodated , ive got nothing against them personally but where is the benefit to GB speedway to include them? Mildenhall and Oxford made poor reserve choices but teams do that every year, some riders are clearly not ready some are nothing new there even if its plain to see. Turners not racing in the NL......yet.

Lets be honest Roynon would have got a place anywhere, likewise Spooner so maybe Simpson/Lyden would have gone without. However with Hook, Pearson, Turner and Congreve blocking places there are always 2 sides to a coin. Then of course theres Dayle Wood fiasco, Edinburgh only have self interests and are able to dictate what they want by the influence the promotion holds.

Wrote it all before i went out . Fact is Edinburgh removed Simpson and Bickley from the team and added Clegg and Parker, the next day Simpson dropped to a 3.00 average and 14 days later hes reintroduced missing just 1 match (and in fact became free to take several guest booking in that time). The rule used to be that if you were taken out of a teams 1-7 you could not be redeclared into that 1-7 in the same season (bar 28 day injury cover) now riders can be reintroduced after just 14 days which makes average manipulation potentially rife.

So Parker sent packing after a single meeting and Simpson returns on a 3.00 with Clegg slotted into the side. Don't know who voted to introduce the 14 days return rule (rather than the previous not that season) but its been used to clever but farcical effect and just belittles the sport even more. With this, the insistence include Commonwealth riders and still tracking poor sides i have to question if Edinburgh's NL side has done more harm than good since its inclusion.

The split between the two sides comes down to Oxford 'have beens' vs Plymouths 'never beens'. Sam, Scott and Cam have all been top performers at PL level (Sam still is) these guys can and do pass on information and experience to the emerging listening younger team members. Plymouth on the other hand have a team of individuals who are all struggling themselves and with few who want to listen.

To be fair theres a decent mix from the list above of riders still competing (speedway or focused on grasstrack) , riders who had decent stints at high NL/CL level and riders who frankly didn't make the grade at NL. There will always be a high level of attrition in the sport due to costs, time, work, injuries and families plus the inevitable numbers game where a rider hits a certain number and then doesn't pick up a place the following season.

Douglas plus A.N.Other.....

Quick check of SCB registered riders says there are 7 female licence holders (ignoring youth). 3 have taken part in the rounds thus far (although Wendy McAllen is missing rom the list so don't know if she appeared on a day licence or the list is out of date?) Of the riders who competed in last years IOW ladies champs i can only see Katie Gordon with and SCB licence.

Haven't seen Liebmann ride in the flesh but if she is CL standard i do wonder if a team would give her a shot just for the great PR? Although I guess she would come in on an assessed 4? As for the few remaining female riders the majority that are active are southern based so picking the northern venues to host was always questionable. Theres also a financially element, an SCB license isn't cheap.... a Nora one is.

Whilst only one showing Pearson was on a par with Morley for a decent part of the meeting and given he had never seen the track before that was impressive. Ben is a 4-5 point CL rider and theres no reason to think that Pearson couldn't be too. His gating was alright but perhaps just not physical enough in the first corner?

Similar attitude too and look where it got Bickley in his career. Great opportunities wasted....

True although have crowds ever been at the required 1000 level? Never went during the Prem era but certainly don't recall those figures when there was a good NL side. A 20% crowd increase would be amazing for any track but the reality is that could see crowds of 600 at Brum. Doubling the crowd size (a full 100% increase) seems a daunting task for any promotion

Saw Pearson in the flesh for the first time at Kent yesterday and am baffled how he doesn't score his average at CL. Certainly one of the better first time visitor performances, beating Morley on the way even if he wasn't awarded the win and certainly quicker than Hagon. Im guessing not enough wiggle room to have kept Pearson over Joe?

You would have thought so but earlier attempts were blocked, now time has passed and its probably too late for doubling down to do much good.

Surely if you are old enough to race you are old enough to be banned. If all the riders dont have to abide by the same rules then the sport becomes more of a joke. Maybe its time to re-raise the minimum riding age? Can't be old enough only when it suits

Phillips has thrown lot of money at Turner and blocked him from riding NL that would have helped him. Question is at what point will he cut his losses?

Despite the racing often being described as excellent Kings Lynn fans have never really embraced NL racing, in fact despite decent and local riders on show crowds have generally been poor. Im sure quotes of 200 max at some meetings.....

Hagon is clearly the best 2.00 pointer not signed this seaon but his form has been improved not spectacular. That said he should be good for 2 a meeting where Pearson wasn't returning his 4 regular enough. If Howarth rumours are true thats a marquee signing and if Brum let him slip through someone else will snap him up and they will be signing up leftovers again.

Mildenhall at home usually look decent especially with this 1-5 but certainly look suspect at reserve without Warren. If the visitors can pack the minor places and capitalise on the weaker heats it could stay close. As ever too much depends on Harrisons score and if harry can't get the better of Richardson then its time for him to take a serious look at himself.

Would have been nice if the SCB published that info on their site. They were happy to document the Kerr / Basso incident but not this one. Now the incredible sulk has 28 days to not pay it whilst still riding and then get the club to pay it anyway.

Thanks found it. Obviously none have gone above 3.00 so Parker gets the rough deal. Hopefully his guarantee for the next couple of matches is worth it. In any declaration where 2 or more riders hold an identical MA (cannot be determined by a 3rd or more decimal point) then the re-declaration must nominate the hierarchical order. Where riders have a previous MA, then the higher placed rider from the previous issue shall retain the higher position.

Douglas finished last season on 3.45 so not eligible to guest for a missing 6or7.....

Also Boughen in the line up suggests no ban......love it when there are soooo many over complicated rules and none of them are enforced

I thought when you have 3 x 3.00 riders its then a BSPL decision who rides where (usually the rider with most experience/previous higher average). Whilst there might not be much to split between Wood & Lyden theres no way Parker should be in the 1-5 .......completely seperate from whether he should be in the 1-7

Sad that an individuals actions have impacted the club.....in all honesty there have been some pretty dreadful teams put out over the past couple of seasons but don't recall any fines dished out.