Sings4Speedway

I think most have a similar view on this subject namely that the NL is a developing league however development occurs at various levels & time frames. The main thing i have always been an advocate of is that if you are good enough you will get a team place rather than the approach that is creeping in where you have to be young enough to get a team place. Ive long felt that 16 should be the minimum riding age (but that is a separate issue). The main issue is the gambles many promoters are taking hoping any 15/16 year old will be the next big thing rather than awarding places to those who are ready & allowing the others to develop elsewhere a little longer (although with the terrible demise of the Development Leagues elsewhere opportunities are limited).

As its free i hope Peterborough go to town and really push the advertising. Get as many new visitors in as possible and hopefully increase future crowds. Might as well try and turn a negative into a positive.

Good job by the hammers and cracking debut from Edwards. Only odd decision of the night was to not switch him into heat 8 as there could have been even more points there. I actually fear the extra point or two he could have got there may be the difference in the overall result

I know the Colts have to play second fiddle due to all the excessive doubling/trebling up by riders (which really needs to stop 3 leagues is too many/greedy) so Bewley riding for the senior team is inevitable but why include Shuttleworth in the PL side too? There must be plenty of other 2 pointers who could have filled in for Smith rather than weakening the Colts further.

LOL stupid auto spell. By the success Jake has had this season id imagine his engine us usually pretty sweet. As for the ban i suspect you are right and he didn't think he would receive one and it does seem a bit petty given that other riders have gotten away with similar/worse offences this year. I feel it would have made more sense to issue a statement at the start of next season saying any rider who withdraws from the NLRC must have a certified reason.

Definitely hoping Lakeside & Wolves thump Belle Vue now. Im all for the best team winning and for the most part that has been the Colts but the disdain by the senior members of the club shown towards the NL side is appalling. I do feel for the lower end riders who want to give thier all, the team management who have been left high and dry but mostly the fans who have stuck with the Colts all season, given a great opportunity to progressing riders throughout the league only to be dumped upon at the sharp end of the season.

Its a very odd ban. I guess its so that both the KO cup & play offs are equally affected? I can't quite decide how i feel about it because on one hand im certain Jake could have borrowed an engine considering the resources available at Eastbourne which makes me think he withdrew because he didn't fancy his chances on an unflavoured engine. On the flip side he could have turned up with any old motor completed one ride then pulled out & prevented a ban so im not sure how its a deterrent to others? Perhaps the qualifying format needs looking at? All clubs to nominate a rider (rather than the number 1 at X date) plus wild cards or just the top 16 in the averages at a certain point with the next down the list etc if riders cannot attend due to a certified reason

The "farce" as you call it has been approaching for years & is just a repeat of last season (although not for top spot). + The fixtures need to be sorted properly with league matches taking precedence early in the year and then the filler meetings / KO cups / National Trophies etc being entered later in the season if there is still time. Cradley for whatever reason had 2 home fixtures scheduled for May & 1 for the whole of June. Its pretty clear from that early they were going to struggle to fit matches in. Im not going to pick on Cradley because there are several other teams who are just as guilty but if a club can only run one day/night a week/fortnight surely league fixtures have to take overall priority and be insisted upon by the powers that be?

Good guest for Zach in Clegg & i suspect Edwards will do very well providing he doesn't try too hard although i think he has been brought in to replace the wrong reserve as although often on the deck Locke does have speed and would be far more useful at Belle Vue as Cousins tends to get a nose bleed that far North.

Wrong thread i think

Lakesides resistance to try/change anything at the lower order will ultimately hurt them in the end. Connor will probably be better in the long run from the experience but Cousins, Laurence & Locke have all spent the season at a track with a strong home advantage and all failed to become anything more than 3 pointers. Normally i would suspect a mystery injury to bring in an unattached 3 pointer but all those who have been doing the rounds this season haven't offered a lot of inspiration. Who knows maybe one of the three will deliver a big performance?

The danger is that the North will be the Championship + Belle Vue & the South will be the Premiership + P'boro/Ippo. Whilst logistics would be a lot easier & attract travelling supporters there is a danger that the mentality of the stronger / more experienced at higher level clubs could strangle the other sides?

Would be a great upset but a big ask. Would need Morley to max out, Hurry, Bowtell & guest to get double figures and still need one of the tail to stand up. Belle Vue have consistently hit 55+ at home so Lakeside would need that as a minimum target to set up an exciting second leg

If i had to Hav a guess i would say you are not far away

Yes that will be very productive. A team that already has a dark cloud of uncertainty hanging over it really does not need to be pressured into making assurances or told its no go just because the matches may have affected your club. Ive no doubt that Cradley are hurting from the recent events and its certainly not something anyone is used to from a usually brash club. Injuries can affect any side and Cradley has been hit badly this year plus made some questionable choices/signings but there is no way there has been any intent to track weak sides (Mildenhall is notoriously hard to get guests for) plus teams in higher divisions have tracked far weaker teams. Whatever may have happened this season i for one just want to see Cradley back at the tapes again next year and hope whatever assistance is required to make that happen is made available.

Everyone knew Cradley were tinkling in the wind when they signed Govier or more accurately the other way around. Not sure what excuses Hall & Dwyer have put in although the latter seems to be picking and choosing meetings recently? Final word of best wishes to Danny Ayres, get well soon fella, stay strong and come back better than ever next season.

The problems were clear from the start. The number 7 wasn't selected from the countries offerings but from who was prepared to turn up to press & practice try out day & then face an immediate start with matches the next day. Fair play to Ryan Mac for making the journey down & it was a big ask to perform on a track he had barely ridden. There are still riders who could have held down a team place with better scores than those included but most would have needed to be in the side early and learnt the track, been race sharp etc the continual process of chucking a rider into one or two meetings halfway through the year and expecting them to be on the pace immediately is laughable and 90% of the time dents the riders confidence & chances of getting a place elsewhere. Having a 2nd half side, 2nd half match races or practice days would have offered the opportunity for 3 pointers to come & learn their way around the track before potentially moving into the side. By ignoring this Lakeside have failed & by scraping into the play offs has flattered their season.

If nothing else i must tip my hat to Buxton. To be the only current club to have been in the league from the beginning takes some serious staying power and for that i salute the efforts of everyone involved.

The tail end all boils down to how in touch the club is with lower league speedway & youth rounds. lakeside clearly were not and have struggled all year based upon recommendations from old mates etc. Had they bothered to enter an MDL/SDL team they would have had 8 riders at the track all looking to prove they could do a better job than the current tail enders and in all fairness if Nick Laurence and co were the top performers they had earned the right to stay in the team but if more promising riders turned up changes could have been tried/made.

In looking at it again the rider still appears to have hold of the throttle until halfway across the track after bouncing off the boards so if the bike was revving flat out i would expect it to travel that far as engine braking alone isn't going to slow it down with little weight aboard and could be that the cut out was fully operational? That said it could have been horrific had any injuries ensued as would the resulting lawsuit. Sadly it seems to be that accidents have to happen before any action is actually taken.

Don't think there is any rule about all matches being completed before the cut off just before the close of the season (with fines for clubs that do not host all their matches) so can't see how any team can be awarded points unless a team officially concedes. Chances are it will mean a terrible match late in the season with both sides out to lower averages and the crazy situation of Cradley finishing 4th in the table but not competing in the play offs or Eastbourne finishing top of the league but not getting to choose their play off opponents. Do i remember a similar situation with Rye House Raiders & Coventry last year?

In all fairness im not sure if Chris Harris knew what he was yesterday as he certainly wasn't a Grasstrack rider. 2 x practices & 3 x heats where he either broke down or was so far off the pace he retired. Certainly did more than enough to embarrass himself & to put his selection for the Longtrack rounds in jeopardy. Eddie Kennett on the other hand looked excellent but nobody could live with James Shanes so just goes to show that whilst similar sports pedigree in one discipline doesn't necessarily transfer to the other.

Unusually disappointing meeting at Swingfield yesterday. The track lay out with one sweeping and one very tight corner plus a soft surface from all the previous rain meant the solo racing was erratic and often survival rather than full on racing. The sidecars produced better entertainment. Sadly heats were cut to 3 laps only to save minimal time and the the 4th round of heats were still cut altogether. Delays between racing didn't help the meeting flow and panic about potential incoming rain / light fading meant a very dubious affair. However best men won both classes on the day but not a classic Swingfield meeting but then the bar is always set very high.

Looks a very open line up this year. Germany probably have the edge on paper but several other strong looking combinations. Will be especially interested to see how the Swedes get on.

Its definitely time for clubs to make a stand and state this is what we can afford to pay who would like to sign? Not as it is at present with riders making the demands and clubs having to buckle to them. Club A sets the rate for its number 1, heat leaders, second strings, reserves etc and as riders move up and down the positions the points money adjusts accordingly. Yes there will be clubs that can afford to pay more & yes some riders will strop that they cannot afford to race on X monies BUT the club will remain financially viable & the riders will come creeping back when they haven't been signed anywhere else plus the mercenaries that don't we are better off without.