BurntFaceMan

Wasn't King's Lynn still Premier League back then? I was referring to Matt being the first to sign some brilliant up and coming riders to the Elite League, many of these riders then go on to show great loyalty to Poole. Matt has set the bar very high, but I really don't understand how other teams can't reach it? I wonder if Matt went to another club would he have the same success? Granted Poole is a very good place to promote speedway, but I think there is a lot more to it than that.

No? I don't remember writing anything like that.

He was when Matt signed him from Newcastle Diamonds in 2002. Matt has always kept his eye on up and coming young riders, which seems to be one of the key areas other promoters fail to capitalize on. It's no wonder there is a huge disparity between Poole and some of the other clubs when you look at the huge list of names that Matt enticed to Poole first. Bjarne Pedersen, Antonio Lindback, Chris Holder, Darcy Ward, Brady Kurtz, Kyle Newman... the list goes on.

I would be interested to learn, if anybody has a bit of knowledge, how long speedway components last? For example engines, clutches, tires, etc? I was looking at the for sell section and noticed that an engine with 13 heats was £400 less than the new one. Does this mean the engines have a relatively short life? Can engines be rebuilt if they die, or do you need to buy a new engine every time? I'm referring to world class level 500cc engines.

Where did you hear that? Interesting if that's the case what with Davey having some trouble with his mrs...

Surely it's innocent until proven guilty? The onus is upon you to prove it. It's easy to blame the club making the best fist of it. Maybe it's down to other clubs not working to the same ethos?

It's laughable really! As if anybody is going to sit at home and watch a crappy periscope feed over going to the real thing? The last couple Shovlar uploaded I could barely pick out track, besides the riders, the helmet colours or any of the actual racing. An over the top reaction motivated by desperation to please Sky and/or an irrational fear of fans picking periscope over actually attending a match. Either way the aggressive rhetoric is completely unnessacary.

Their deal was made before the Sky contract had been agreed.

Not true really Midland Red. Horses for courses. The majority of those armchair fans wouldn't bother attending even if it weren't televised. The revenue bought in by Sky, based on the figures JC is quoting, I would imagine easily covers those who would otherwise have attended. The benefits of live and on demand matches, which Sky are actively blocking, are that fans who are older and perhaps their age or financial situation makes attending speedway a difficulty, or fans who would like to follow their team away when travelling is impractical, can do so whilst still making a financial contribution to the sport.

The relationship between Go Speed and Sky is strained to say the very least. Go Speed have had to make an awful lot of concessions to accomodate Sky and there wasn't going to be a 5 year contract (which I believe still has 2 or 3 years remaining?) unless GSI gave them all they asked for. For example, Sky do not only hold the rights to Elite League speedway on TV but they also own every form of transmission rights except trackside recording for DVD only. Streaming and on demand rights are held by Sky. GSI wanted to stream and make some matches available for the public to watch online however Sky refused to release the rights back to them, even though Sky has no plans to use them themselves. They simply wanted to make sure that fans in the UK could only come to Sky for their once a fortnight or whatever it is speedway fix. Sky want to keep Elite League speedway on their channels, but it's very much a case of do it their way or the highway. And if they cared about the future of the sport, they wouldn't hold on to redundant rights (streaming, on demand) to the detriment of the fans. If it weren't for Sky, you'd be able to watch some recorded and live stream matches online.

Chuck all the youngster in and let them have a go. Tai Woffinden isn't interested in Great Britain anymore. Scotty doesn't deserve a chance imo.

We'll give them something else to moan about later this month

I hope Dak and his father are ok. I am pleased that the 2015 victory is no longer tarnished by false allegations.

It won't cut crowds. It's horses for courses. Some people like to be beside the track, taking in the smell, the noise and the atmosphere. Some people prefer to sit at home and watch it in their pants whilst munching on a pot noodle. At the moment they aren't making any money from the arm chair fans. I'd suggest the money gained from appealing the arm chair fans would generate a fair bit more than those who'd rather not go anymore. Not to mention many people already attending would subscribe for the benefit of watching away matches.

Hope they know what they're doing making those track changes. Looks like a bit of an odd shaped bend to me.