steve roberts

He started the 1987 season very well until Ronnie Correy ran into him at Cowley.

Yes I recall he wore a support on his injured knee and lent it to Simon Wigg when he was having problems with his knee!

Never really took to him...don't know why. Now David Shields...sensational for Oxford in 1978. Scored a maximum in his first appearance for 'The Cheetahs!' Re-surfaced at Cradley (1982?) but the spark had gone by then. Rick Woods - Never saw him ride during his brief period for Newport. Saw his brother, Gene, however during his time at Birmingham.

Never really rated Lance King but saw a lot of Ron Preston at Eastbourne during 1982 and he was superb! His first and second bend sweeps caught many an opposition rider out. Shame that he never returned to Britain. In fact 'The Eagles' suffered a triple whammy prior to the 1983 season in that they lost their three heat leaders - Gordon Kennett, Kelly Moran and Ron - from the previous season!

Chris Pusey - Very exciting rider but a serious injury in 1973 seemed to slow him up just as he appeared to be making a break through. Eventually moved to Halifax and although put in some stellar seasons gradually declined and ended up making a comeback at Weymouth of all places. Last saw him at Oxford riding for Weymouth and it was like turning the clock back. I've read that he was badly effected by the serious injury to his good mate Alan Wilkinson. Chris later succumbed to alcohol (he was once a landlord and I remember talking to Ian Cartwright who mentioned that he was the wrong person to be running a pub!) A sad loss but holds many memories with his trade mark polka dot leathers!

Jens Rasmussen - another rider who had massive potential but injuries seemed to be his downfall...and again politics within the sport had an unsettling influence in that he was often a victim of the points limit.

I would agree re:Jimmy Nilsen in particular. His international form was quite impressive but he seemed to lack that little extra when it came to his British League achievements although he did achieve some respectable, if not spectacular, averages. I recall that Ivan Mauger once commented on his riding style in that he needed to tidy it up somewhat...but then I suppose Andrew would have lost that something extra if he had and would have been less exciting to watch subsequently? Did make the habit of looking behind him too frequently rather than riding his own race however.

I did some promotional talks at schools many years ago and took in some DVDs I seem to recall. Having a bike present would have helped tremendously but I felt that I didn't really get much support from the promoter at the time and it was really left to my enthusiasm, more than anything, to try and get the message across.

Per Sorensen. He rode for a number of years at Swindon and moved to Oxford in 1986...which turned Oxford's season round really. He looked as if he was making some real progress but politics and a good job meant that he didn't return to Britain in 1987. Could have gone on to achieve more in my opinion.

I remember reading an article in 'Backtrack' when Gordon Kennett commented that Martin should have taken himself off to Australia in the close season to further his experience. The experience certainly did bring some riders on...including Gordon.

Saw Kai when he first rode in Britain as I used to go to Wood Lane every week. I would agree. He had huge potential and had some sensational meetings for 'The Rebels'...remember one race when he took both Michael Lee and Terry Betts from the back on the last lap. He was often a match winner (as was Trevor Geer) at reserve during the successful championship year of 1977. I recall John Berry questioning Kai's commitment to Britain and felt that he often saved his best for meetings abroad.

How about Allen Emmett and Tommy Johansson? Saw Allen ride to a fantastic maximum at Eastbourne in 1972. He also won the Junior Championship that year but was involved in a bad smash with Dave Kennett at Hackney at that appeared to end his career although not sure if I am right but I think that he did try a comeback? Tommy had two very good years (1971 Newport & 1972 Ipswich) competing in the British League.Illness forced him to miss 1973 in Britain but he did go on to win the Swedish Championship that year. Had a good World Final appearance in 1974 (beating Ivan Mauger from behind) but it all went wrong for him in 1975 when he signed for Hull and picked up a nasty injury. He didn't appear in England again after that and faded from the international scene.

Dalle Andersen who looked really useful when he made his debut for Oxford during the 1995 season. He rode for Cradley/Stoke the following year and was a pale shadow. Re-surfaced later riding for Edinburgh but just didn't fulfil that early promise. I think that he suffered with a recurring back injury that curtailed his career.

'Mad' Malcolm Ballard comes to mind. Ex-scrambler who came from no where to top Eastbourne's averages. Went on to Oxford and had two relatively good seasons before transferring to Poole and ultimately Leicester before giving it away. Last I heard he was part of Lewis Bridger's pit crew?

Thanks! Yes it's somewhat more leisurely on the 'alternative' threads and one feels that you don't have to be constantly on your guard! I know that John Berry wasn't a particular fan of social media and/or public forums as he found it frustratingly difficult to conduct a sensible 'debate' when trying to win an argument!

Wish I had seen some action at Somerset when I was still going to speedway. Closest I got was travelling with a certain Humphrey Appleby to find that the meeting had been cancelled...I seem to recall it was a Somerset vs. Poole Inter League Challenge affair? At least I got to see the track which looked to be a good shape.

I'm sure that many of us could list candidates but the rider that instantly springs to my mind is Andrew Silver. He was a huge star in the National League with Arena Essex (even riding for the national team while still competing in the Lower Division) but seemed to mark time when he eventually moved up full time with Swindon and later Eastbourne. I got the impression that he just lost interest in the sport and looked towards other opportunities (didn't he become a big snowboarding competitor?) I recall that he made a come back some years ago with Rye House but I had ceased to follow speedway closely at that time and am therefore not sure how successful his return to speedway was.

Great double act lads! Really enjoyed reading your banter...so much lighter on here!

Great post! Perhaps I should be careful who I agree with in case I'm brushed with belonging to a clique on here...as has been suggested elsewhere!

Just done the same!

Blimey! Pot, Kettle & Black come to mind! No but I understand where he is coming from with his observations regarding the sport and his views about same.

I understand perfectly what Gresham is implying personally. Don't have a problem with his posts...unlike some.

My last track incarnation I gave to Peter Hill (brother of Leon - editor of the Oxford programme) when I needed to de-clutter!

Great images! In the latest 'Classic' magazine there are images of both Hyde Road (Belle Vue) and Custom House (West Ham) that were scratch built by enthusiasts.

Brilliant image...wish that I had taken some photos of my efforts but I'm talking over forty years ago now!