STEVEHOLS54

Your user name probably sums you up. I dont care where he gets his income from. I am just trying to say that I can't see how our club can survive in its current format if it also has to finance a full time promotor as well as take all the hits its had to endure this season. Matt Ford over the years has done a brilliant job and most have viewed Poole as one of the most financially secure and successful clubs. I am just wondering how long it can continue as is if he doesnt have other biz interests to help him. I dont care what those interests are. My point being it all adds cost to a business gong through a difficult time financially. I may be wrong but i thought most if not all other Speedway bosses have other biz interests and Speedway is only part of that. If this is/was Matts main employ then it must be hammering him even more.

Flwg on from Skidders reply to yr question Me personally yes but my situation is not tight like some others. To me whether it is £18 or £15 doesnt matter. Perhaps for some it does. If I can get a decent fix with half decent riders i will pay for it. I would pay the same if i could get a chance to regularly see some of this young N/L talent coming through in conjunction with some of the other talent like the young Kurtz/Holder/Lambert/Woryna to name a few and in conjunction with some of the Champ riders, many themselves up and coming talent like Zach W - Adam Ellis (who also ride Prem). I still think we need to harness the young talent but also not totally lose those who have given us enjoyment over the years like Harris/Nicholls and others. I dont hold all the answers just giving my views. The future of British Speedway for me short term isnt these BIG stars. We cant in the main afford them and we can get plenty of exposure to them weekly on Youtube etc or if you want your big night out book Cardiff GP. Don't worry if these POL teams see a UK talent they will be on to it just like Rybnik have in a tie up with Bewley even if not in the team yet. They are advanced enough to know a good potential rider coming through. I still think there must be a way we can harness what talent we do have and present it in a way that we the speedway public benefit and also get exciting racing. Lets be honest the likes of Holder Jr/Kurtz/Woryna and many other young riders will still have their bloopers as they learn their trade with or without the Doyles/Holder Srs/Vaculiks/KK and others you may want to name. Hence why i keep banging on about taking the N/L talent (let them keep there N/L teams but work around it to get a couple into each Prem/Champ team) add these established young rider and a mix it in also with established riders in the Prem/Champ (Many who double up anyway). If not I really fear for our sport.

Think he had a long lie down in a darkened room as he see's his finances flushing down the toilet week by week this season and with less money then he ever had since the loss of both the Sky money (for the much poorer BT deal) and that lucrative Readypower sponsorship for I assume the much lower Poole Volvo deal ?? There is something I dont quite get and maybe some of my forum colleagues can help me here. I have read plenty that Matt is a full time promotor and as such his full time job is Poole Speedway (thought i read he had sold his hairdressing biz some time ago). I have no idea if he has other biz interests. If Speedway really is losing its backside, and I can fully understand that this season if nothing else with all the rain offs, what must have been a hellish expensive 70th Anniv wipeout with all the costs of the riders and ex stars coming over - hotels - the big bash and costs for arranging it, less sponsorship - no Sky money etc - etc. How the hell can he be staying afloat if this is his main source of income and also paying all the riders wages and related costs. A lot of other promotions have other biz interests incl Rye House who must be struggling but how can Matt do it if this is his main source of income (and sure I read that his wife also gets involved in the office). Maybe someone can enlighten me as I cant see how he can do it with all these rain offs and also falling crowds as they sure aren't attending in the numbers we had when we had those successful teams. That's also not incl the rain off of the normally well attended and lucrative BH meeting against Somerset.

You cant blame them. Can live with that. Speedway is not a lifelong career for most. Getting a career without decent grades is difficult enough. Nice to have in your back pocket if the Speedway career doesnt pan out. I believe even Jack Holder stayed in Aussie one season more than Brady Kurtz despite being 6 months older to get his apprentiship completed before he came over to race in UK. I think most who have a genuine long term interest in the sport would understand that. Also with the N/L and all the meetings available in Prem/Champ (combined) they would miss relatively few in comparison. Many of these guys seem to be able to encompass both unless its actually taking exams themselves.

Lets hope the BSPA can finally see that. When the likes of Matt Ford are feeling the pinch hard. Even more so with what must have been so far a financial disaster this season Reasons for that having been well aired in previous posts. Come on when what was viewed as the most financially rich club in Prem can't afford its own team kevlars ?? I really think it will take the likes of RH (who for me must be struggling fiancially) - Poole (who were for so long viewed as the cream of the crop financially) and 1 or 2 others to sit round this BSPA Annual get togehter and spell out once and for all that its got to be change or we go down the toilet certainly as far as the Prem is concerned. Either that or the blinkered blindly carry on for another 1/2 seasons before the Bankrupcy signs start appearing. If they even get that far.

Oh Please...... Not this subject kicking off again Don't know what is worse this or the ongoing track issue from last night. Have we really got to wait another 2 weeks for the next home meeting before we can kick this subject into the long grass

Well my cards are Kemp/Flint and Jenkins. Be interesting to look back at say the end of the 2019 season to see how they are progressing. At least we know the N/L will still be around but in what format the Prem/Champ - who knows ;-) I say Jenkins because he was looking so good prior to his injury at Brum (hopefully back in next 2/3 weeks) and also looked good as late guest for Poole V Bloaters meeting (the kind of poor mans 70th anniv meeting).For a guy who is only 17 in Aug a return of 4 plus 2 bonus from 5 rides was a decent effort. Many thought he looked quite good.

Interesting bit of Speedway Trivia. According to his website. Thomsen is now 24. Got on his first 50 CC Speedway bike at 3 - Yes 3. That's what his website says. Man do they start them young in DK. Maybe why a lot of them seem to look like going places when young but then taper off - I use MJJ and M.Bech as examples, as remember how they burst on to the SGP scene as 16/17 year olds. 50cc, (1997 – 2004): 2 x Danmarksmester 5 x Fynsmester 6 x Klubmester 80cc, (2005 – 2010): Individuel verdensmester Holdverdensmester Holddanmarksmester As For Gomolski. If he rode nearly as good as he seems to think he is then indeed would be a good signing. For me, there lies the problem.

As a side issue I see Josh now being a POL Citizen is now riding in the POL Championship Quarter Final on Friday at Krosno. Could we be emptying 2 Poles looking at your comment above ;-) Personally would be surprised if Matt were to empty his team Captain and fork out for 2 lots additional costs. At least Josh is resident (sometimes) in UK where both named would come with flights/accomodation etc. Interesting post though.

Its perhaps easy for people like us on the outside looking in as take me for example. I look at plenty of stats and results and Kemp has jumped out although I know he is also using his head/brain when riding. Incredible for a 15 year old. But in reality I have no idea how long some of these guys have been on a bike. Some started earlier than others so although on the face of it young. One who started at 7/8 may be ahead of one starting at say 10/11 even if on face value both riders may be only 15. BUT I dont want to take anything away from these young up and coming lads. We all mature at certain things at different levels and some get there quicker than others - some get to a level and dont push on and some come along steadily and then burst on to the scenes. Even Lambert was giving me some concern. He was the next BIG young Brit and now is starting to actually show it. See he won a German Open meeting today. He broke into KL Elite team at 16 but there were doubters starting to appear in respect of his terrible gating - his attitude etc. Even I was having some doubts as he seemed to explode on to the scene but not push on. Probably some of us were too impatient as we tend to compare young Poles who always seem to be ahead of us but its an unfair comparison. But lets not forget he started riding in 2008 (10 years ago when he got his first licence) and got around the min UK Speedway age rules by having contacts in Germany where he could race under aged. So when he hit the UK scene as this exciting looking 16 year old, he already had some years having raced overseas. I am not knocking Rob as he is the short term future of British Speedway, but he didnt just walk into the sport at 16 but at 10. I only mention Rob as an example as many of us dont know how long some of these young 15/16 year olds have been on speedway bikes of some nature. But ultimately at the moment we do have plenty of talented youngsters coming through and I for one want them to get asap exposure to also riding against better riders or even top class so they can have mentors in the pits giving them advice on how to ride certain situations even if they only have limited exposure to riding against them in order not to kill their confidence. Hence I for one would like to see a league set up where maybe 2 of these guys go in per team so they can ride against riders of approx equal capabilities for their tender age and also too learn when teamed with some good young or experienced talent to get track craft and riding experience. A kind of mini Polish Team exercise.

Good question as the Poles think they rule the Speedway World. Well suppose in reality they do..... But the Poles know how to organise and make sure any meetings take place over a FRI/SAT/SUN in both EXL and Nice 1. They know how to run the sport within the agreed days but let's be honest. They chose those days so the rest have to work around them anyway. Also if you only have 14 regular League matches plus a max of 4 for the play offs between 7/8th Apr and the play offs in Sept much easier to plan I suppose. That's only half of our League season. In effect they get one more day for half the matches we have. You are right though. In comparison overall we are probably fourth behind POL EXL/SWE Elite/Pol Nice 1. Fortunately we have the Danes behind us but probably only just....

But what are the rules. Uk Prem Speedway supposed to have prioirty on Mon/Thur - DK on Wed - Swe on Tue and the Poles get the rest (or kind of). Those were agreed prior to this season start. I was the poster who observed this on the Poole site (my team) when I saw the fixture and thought what about NKI and RL who both ride for diff DK teams. I noticed NKI's team were not riding on that night but RL's team were. My observations were COULD NKI be absent due to his injury treatment (or was it an Op for his problem shoulder injury from last season), and cld RL be absent as his DK team should in theory get prioirty as the Speedway powers that be determined DK get priority on a Wed. I don't know if that rule only applies to Danes BUT if it doesnt then as said his DK team in theory should have priority, although I know like the Swedes the Danes have a squad system so maybe can cover from elsewhere. But arguably why should they if the powers deemed the good old UK should be flwg what was set. Not a problem for my team as they did not have riders who had DK clashes as Poole kept to their Wed race night. Having said that Klidnt jut signed but it cld be he is wiling to swap a much smaller less financially lucrative DK arrangement for more meetings in UK where he is also based despite being a Dane. Maybe there will also be some nights when Poole are not racing and DK are so he can juggle both. Anyway just for clarity but would hope for KL supporters if there was some form of notice if he is riding or not, rather than than day before when these things tend to get released by clubs.

Still only 15 is 16 on 11th Aug. Can't sign for any team I think until then other than his NL side. Has also been doing studying as missed a N/L meeting the other week for exams. I have been flwg him and a number of other bright young riders of 15/16 this season as we suddenly seem to have some really exciting youth coming through. At least 5/6 of them. Think he is a big Ipswich Fan as did a lot of his practicing on their track between meetings before he cld sign for Mildenhall at 15 (this season). I am a Poole Fan even though based in Chelmsford and would love to see him signed if we ever go down the use of N/L riders route within a restructured set up with 2 N/L riders under 20 per team or in one big league with something similar. However I think he may be set for Ipswich wherever they are next season. One certainly on the radar big time as think he is more advanced than Bewley was at his age. In fact Bewley is an old man compared to him having just turned 19 . Others to watch out for are Flint - Jenkins - Edwards - Brennan - Bickley - All are in the 15/17 range. Also don't discount Jack P.Blackburn who looked a real star for the future before his partner had a child and he kind of gave up prior to season start. Now back with Birmingham and still only 17. Thought JPB was also Norfolk based (at one stage anyway).

So we maintain the product as it is ?? How long can British Speedway continue in its current format before some teams say enough. Clubs like Rye I can see dropping out of Prem if it continues as is and if the Poole lack of finance continues then can Matt continue in the current format. No money for Kevlars this year. For sure highly unlikely a fairy godmother will appear next year with mega sponsorship. Thousands being lost in revenue for rained off meetings and all the costs flying these guys in and out. Maybe one big league is the answer with more use of these youngsters in N/L where for sure wont cost as much as a lot of these so called top foreign riders who perform in and out so inconsistently. By foreign I mean those not resident here who cost fortunes to bring over. Especially with our climate from March through to end May.

Sorry late reply Sidney but was out last night wining and dining my wife, thus missing the carnage of the called off meeting. Yes that kind of idea. Just trying to think outside the box so that it gives us a combo of decent experienced - plus what I called established young talent such as Kurtz/Woryna and a chance for these young 16 (I assume min age they would qualify for our top League/s) 17/18 & 19 year olds in NL. We need to give the sport something which is exciting to watch and at the same time allow clubs to reduce their costs. I dont profess to have all the answers but we do have a chance with some of this exciting talent coming through. They still need the NL as that gives them the grounding from say 15, and against riders of similar quality where they can also gain confidence as they see results when they beat opposition. BUT it is too far a jump to expect these boys to go into top teams. BUT also the flip side is they could do no worse if they are matched against similar in reserve races and then matched against another junior in races which also include say some of the middle order young riders. Just airing thoughts here so the rreal guys running the sport should be able to come up with some ideas. Would also maybe encourage some team riding from those with more experience to help out these young guys. I think it should be applied to young N/L riders only say under 20 ??. Young riders in the Champ could be amongst those in the lower order of a Prem side or if we went to one big league then there would have to be some spread. I just feel we need to move forward maybe in a format that mirrors how the Poles do it but in a way that suits British Speedways budget. Set a team limit maybe with no av or a nominal low av for these N/L guys (say 2 per team ??) - Bring in a one over 8 rule to keep the option if a club wants to sign a high scorer. We dont want to lose every top guy as I am sure those who can afford a Doyle/Cook/Bjerre/Morris/Thorsell/NKI or any one of that level on an 8 plus should be able to have one IF they so choose but it would cost them in the overall points ceiling lower down the team. The idea may not be to everyones liking but just airing ideas on how we can harness this young talent coming through to help give them that extra push but also keep the established young talent we have with a sprinkling of top guys for those clubs who feel they can afford them. As said its just ideas.

My last sentence on the subject of mixing young Brits with experience etc said and I qte "Let's take advantage of it combining youth and talent (in our own way) like the Poles do. Even if it is a case of small steps" I was making that comment as a lover of Speedway (like most on the Forum) and not Poole taking advantage in its own way of creaming off the top 2 or 3 youngsters (in its own way as you mention) and building the team accordingly. The let's take advantage and in our own way comments were meant that we as British Speedway should do it this way. In our own way I meant in a minature version of how the Poles seem to do it taking 2 POL youngsters - young established WW talent and experienced WW riders. (By WW talent I mean that to include both British and any other nation). Of course we can't compare it to the Poles who are light years ahead of us, but as a business/racing model they seem to have the right mix so perhaps we can follow "In our own way" to give both supporters and riders the right mix of youth - established young and experienced riders. We perhaps seem at crossed wires but hopefully this clarifies any misunderstanding of what I was getting at.

No offence taken and sensible post. Ward & Holder came from lower div teams such as KL and IOW iwhere as young riders they were rightly cutting their teeth. Poole signed them as a Prem/Elite team as they saw their potential and were willing to take a risk on non proven youngsters. Shanes was signed mainly to allow Matt more points higher up last season and this and because he had shown some potential in NL. plus had an accomodating low GSA. I am the first to admit that LAST season he had shown potential and even though he was not showing signs of pushing on.BUT he has been riding in Speedway since 2013 for Coventry 2nd so isnt new to the scene being 21. Honestly I have reservations as to where he will end up in the sport as get impression his real loves are grass track and long track. Just an opinion. Ultimately many know he has suffered as a result of others not performing. But lets not lose sight of te fact that Matt would NOT have released him had others performed. Teams like Swindon could be patient with Zach as they had other relieve the pressure but I think Zach has shown the potential. Is one year younger and had 2 seasons less in the sport having started only 2015. Another example is Newman. A repetition of injuries have for sure curtailed his progress, but to be honest neither at Plymouth/Ips (who didnt retain him ) so far at Lakeside and also imo for Leicester, has he shown he has moved forward and progressed. For a rider who has been riding since 2007 (11 years) and is 27 this year. Dont you think he should have moved on even taking into a/c his injuries. he should be at the top of his game now but for me he will always be a lower order rider in both Prem/Champ despite his many years of experience in both leagues. I think its important that we have a balanced view and not a Poole always dump young UK Brits when the going gets tough. I am sure Matt would like to develop young UK talent if it is really there but not just always because he/they are a Brit.

Yes but that is in respect of the young Brits coming through and nothing to do with Milik. My comments were about mixing this obvious talent coming through together with some of the existing talent such as mixing say a Kemp/Jenkins/Flint (say 2 per team) and putting it with other established young riders (such as Kurtz/Holder Jr) and also adding experience such as say Holder Sr and Josh G etc. That way we are taking advantage of presenting all that is good in Speedway - Up and coming new talent only say the 16/17/18 year olds - Exciting existing young talent - Experienced riders like the Holders/Josh G's/Klindt's. Name who you like just taking examples. Mix these young raw talents with the bigger guys so they race against similar talent and more experienced in the same race. It's just idea's going forward. The way you put the comment over was as if you were insinuating I was trying to get Milik on a low GSA just to fiddle around the points available to Matt if he goes down the route I mentioned. If Milik does not qualify for a reduction as I thought then of course Matt would have to rethink, but even then I think its a highly unlikely scenario even if I wished it. Remember I did quantify my comments with the fact I was playing a "Fantasy team" building exercise/discussion. Just so we are clear.

Interesting that when you try to engage in sensible dialogue on your own teams forum you get the inevitable troll or idiot who comes in from outside with something stupid or idiotic. Today it seems we have another poster who is not a regular - from ipswich it seems (sounds familiar to someone who has recently gone quiet or is serving a ban maybe from the same area???). Not only that but our friend DC2 could not resist a laughing to the above reply. No wonder sensible posters such as Poole Bolton has had his fill of some of the crap that flies around on the Poole Forum from those with no interest in the club other than sniping or taking the pee out of anything constructive - contributory to a discussion or otherwise. Dont blame him for stepping out of the forum as he is probably fed up with it. Or to coin what dontwhatf says "waffle". Nowhere in my qte did I say so lets take advantage of it, but YES just like any other Prem side his GSA is there for any club to sign him. Whether it be his current GSA or a reduced it still on face value a good GSA for such a POTENTIALLY good rider. Nothing is guaranteed as can be seen with what happened with Sundstrom/Woryna/Spaniak as POL form can be misleading. I am happy to indulge in sensible online exchanges with anyone if its sensible, and i can take criticism if its constructive or contributes to the discussion/forum. As for the idiot come backs. Please forgive me if i don't indulge those who get a kick out of winding people up or just antagonising them. At least I would say with Gavan a lot of what he says makes a lot of sense and even though some of the Poole die hards find it hard to take. His comments on reservations about the Poles on UK tracks - turned out to be correct so far. His comments re Brady v Morris are again spot on. In fairness he made those comments clearly in ref to comparing them in UK Speedway to date and not on the World stage where Brady may one day prove to be the better rider. Also maybe in UK long term but at this stage Morris is the better proven heat leader but he also has greater experience and the AV do not lie either last season or this where both are now riding as number 1. I will take Gavan on most days as he has constructive input. Just needs to tolerate some of the come back a bit better, as he should know that as an Ipswich supporter on a Poole Forum that most things not pro Poole will always generate a reaction. At least he talks with knowledge and his insight as to what may happen has in the main happened with the risks Matt took in bringing in riders who had been out of UK some time i.e: Spaniak/Woryna/Sundstrom even if on paper they looked decent signings. If he is on a temp ban after last weeks meltdown I welcome his constructive views when he is back. Anyway don't want to keep waffling as it might upset certain visiting posters who have not interest in our team other than having a pop for the sake of it.

I was the one who made the Lambert comment. When I saw this was a Wed fixture I immediately checked the DK fixtures as i know that DK had been given Wed priority. It didnt affect my team Poole as we had no riders with DK commitments but my thoughts were what about Lambert and NKI who both signed up for DK, I think even maybe before Uk as they were both latish signings for KL and the rules were already in place. I think NKI's team not riding that night but of course if he is having an op and treatment on his shoulder then it could mean he misses the meeting. Lambert's team are riding so in theory he could miss out. Doesnt he also live in Germany with his girlfriend now ??, so I assume he would do POL Sun/SWE Tuesday then DK Wed as its now bridge connected ??. Also not constantly having to fly in and out of UK. I cld be wrong of course but if thats the rules then I assume he will ride DK which he already did on a Wed when it clashed with KL this season I believe. Not sure if Jorgensen is affected as not sure if he rides DK or if his team rides that night.

Hmmm Interesting. Don't suppose Poole could loan him to Somerset on basis he is not allowed to ride in the 3 Aug matches against his parent club (like in football ??). Also between 4th July and season end Somerset have about 16 league matches. They have about 12 from the 19th July meaning it could hit his GSA for next season if he did ride and Matt wanted him back with younger bro for 2019. They are after all both Poole assets. Of course there is still the small matter of his visa issues and on the subject of the thinking out loud on needing income to maybe pay towards his son. He should be doing that anyway irrespectice of where he rides and I am sure his lucrative POL/SWE deals generate plenty of income. I would like to think it is his main priority in life anyway besides his job. Just replying to your thinking out loud comment ;-)

Keeping the NL of course sas it is now starting to throw up some exciting young talent. Some of what the likes of Drew Kemp are showing at 15 not even Dan Bewley was arguably doing at the same age. Similar maybe with the likes of Leon Flint.Maybe in our own small way this is our micro version of what the Poles are doing with their juniors. OK we a re nowhere near them in overall class but then we dont have the money/crowds/stadium (other than the NSS) or sponsorship. BUT we have to start somewhere and these young kids seem to be suddenly coming along in numbers. Let's take advantage of it combining youth and talent (in our own way) like the Poles do. Even if it is a case of small steps.

Yes but they will qualify by right imo and not because they are close friends to Monster Joe ;-) Thats assuming the likes of Holder and Hancock were perhaps not to qualify by right ?? Got away with it this season but if they bomb out this season then it could be curtains for next ??

All things being equal would happily build the side around Kurtz/C.Holder/J.Holder/Josh G and throw in a couple of promising young brits and a.n.other. Much as i want to win the league I also want to see a combination of exciting talent and promising youngsters. Young guys like Drew Kemp/Jordan Jenkins/Leon Flint/Kyle Bickley/Jason Edwards who are 15/16 and Jack P.Blackburn who has returned only 17. These are the guys who potentially excite me for the future. Give us some form of single league set up maybe with regions initially then knock outs and combine top guys/middle order and these youngsters maybe is a way forward ??

interesting but Spaniak wasnt injured ?? and he got a reduction He arguably should have been marked up based on his POL Nice form last season flwg such logic ?? He may not even be part of the thinking but would be interesting if he is, and no doubt Matt would have the answer to that question anyway before committing to signing him in the unlikely event he was available. I say Spaniak was not injured for a full season but I mean I am not aware he was. BUT based on his recent form one would never have assumed he would get a 4 plus GSA even if with the benefit of hindsight he has been that due to chronic underperformance this season in UK and POL. Can see that guy out of a place at Poole and Rybnik the way its going and with Cook a more than able replacement in Rybnik based on this seasons form.