waytogo28

The Stars had a very good season and all fans of Kl should be pleased. I agree with Steve Shovlar on this point ( unusual for me ) but he is spot on - the reality is as he has written here. We were the Next Best Team and there is only credit in that - certainly no shame.

Sadly those in control of the sport in the UK never do look at the bigger picture. I believe that they are incapable of looking at the bigger picture as they are totally immersed in their own macro parochial world. Hence the managed decline of this century will continue until the point of extinction ( ie the death of speedway here, as we know it ). The sport in the UK consists of a group of mercenary riders chosen by those to ride for their team when possible to maximum local gain - sod the bigger picture it seems!

There will be no Swindon Robins at the Abbey in 2019 I feel sure.

The "boy" done good in 2018. That's for sure. More to come too.

Let's hope that there are more than eight, even ten say - then, Go Ahead. We need at least eight but that does sound a lot like not much change ( if there are to be three leagues in 2019). The six, eight or ten clubs with higher aspirations need to up their marketing methods considerably if they are to pull in the 2,000 average crowd needed to sustain their team costs. Just popping it on social media will not double the crowd at King's Lynn for example. They have been there, done that and it has failed.

The other question is if there are only four or five clubs that want to go along this route they should not crush other clubs who might have dreams to copy them but no cash.

That is almost the only way to build up a new" fan base." Long may your efforts succeed! And please gather up some fellow disciples among the other promoters! A fun filled show and 15 heats of exciting quality racing. Yes Please!

The problem is How To Engage and Hold other age groups other than Over 60's ( most of whom remember a more glorious past ). Kids can be brought in in the Barry Bishop IOW way much more simply ( with the effort shown there ). 20s to 40s and 40s to 60s is a much more difficult proposition to even get them to take a long look at what speedway offers.

The other way is to let them go and set up and run teams in the Swedish way ( full of Superstars ) in a league of four teams only one will fail to get a medal every year, so success or near success is theirs from the start. I genuinely don't believe that they will get the 4,000 or so paying spectators for every match to pay for it. Let them bankrupt themselves giving it a go. And let the other tracks run one big league on a much more realistic, UK contracted only riders level and see which one is the more successful setup. There seems to be no one league setup which will suit all. Better to crash those four clubs ( by their own choice ) than destroy the whole sport here.

If as we hear, there is to be very little change in the league structure of UK speedway in 2019, this is the likely outcome.

It was an assault and anywhere else could easily have had serious consequences with the police. He showed no self-control and no interest in resolving the dispute before it worsened. No man management skills. More like a bully boy. It certainly was an attack.

The BSPA think that there is a lot of on track "action" for the fans to watch when the mechanics etc rush out on track dramatically.

Radical for Rosco and his BSPA chums means bringing in the green helmet colour or adjusting the points limit by 0.5. There will be almost no changes at the 2018 AGM and the withering of UK speedway will go on and on. Let's hope that Freesports goes on offering us European speedway and IMG the GPs.

All three promises of change on this were broken, lost or just ignored. Getting rid of "gardening" for example - lasted three matches at King's Lynn. Unnecessary delays ditto ( now such delays are tactics during the meeting as we saw recently at KL - 35 minutes of grading during the meeting ). As for sensible fixture lists, we had two doubleheaders ( both times against the same opposition ) in a month. Hmmm. As Rosco recently said 'it is what it is" about all such things in UK speedway. I suppose that means take it or leave it - a point of view the Chairman appears to hold.

I SO much want to believe in that dream too! But the realist in me says that in a Stars V Pirates final the Pirates would edge it.

That sums it up well, that UK speedway runs on the goodwill of existing and mostly long-term supporters. It has done so for about 10 years and that goodwill is now seriously running out ( age and infirmity has taken it's toll too ). Rosco et al will be standing in an almost empty stadium in two or three years. Not of course in Swindon's case as there will not be a new stadium for the faithful few to stand in.

I'm in the "can't see it happening myself " camp. I'm not a Swindon fan but I am a speedway racing fan. And the "another track bites the dust" news would be portentous.

Rosco is very like at least half of the BSPA Promoters ( and movers and shakers of UK speedway ) in that fan blaming comes as second nature to them. I am surprised that the usual threats of " use or lose it" have started so late. Swindon fans, ( if the Robins run in 2019 ) will have a weaker team because the leagues will be weaker all round. Unless Swindon are somehow in the Super Dooper Mega 5 Team League that seems to have been considered with Superstar Big Names galore.

So what would change if they go ahead with that idea? 2018 revisited. More supporters drift away and the 2019 AGM will be another "last chance saloon". Let's hope their joined up thinking is better than that,

These scenarios such as a five-team league ( no-one could have taken that seriously even at the BSPA ) make for a great new sit-com outline. You could have mikebv's idea of a four-team league ( in a four-team tournament format ) because Swindon are unlikely to have a stadium or a track on that site to race on, are they? Not unless all the new homeowners were speedway fans already.

Well, they intend to lay down a new track giving a variety of racing lines, something along the lines of the NSS but flatter perhaps. They have, seemingly, a great opportunity which should help gain some new fans.

Totally spot on Mr Webb. With Rose, Kerr and Anderson we are unlikely to have topped the table ( meaning no disrespect to any of that trio ). Eric Riss has, as you say, been the pivot around which positive changes have been made.

Oh, we certainly do have a perfect storm in UK speedway. Will there be sunshine after rain in 2019?

Dave G. implied that it was live on Freesport and got all our hopes up. He should have just added " you can watch the 2nd leg live on Premier" we were lucky to see the first leg - pity the racing was very poor.

Those fans need to bring friends in high multiples 2 / 3 / 4 each in order to finance even the Swedish menu! 2,500 average crowd needed? Is even Poole capable of doing that at the moment?