TotallyHonestJohn

I would vote for that but then again my opinions like most if not all on here mean absolutely "Jack". The said thing is how come most rationale folk on here can see what the sport needs why cant the promoters. They all have different ideas and to be fair so do the fans but not all of them are bad; however they can never reach a consensus and in my humble opinion this is down to years of weak leadership at the top, so I fully agree that the best place to start would be with your suggestion of a fully independent body to support and enforce the rules and ensure fair play, and the first sign of shenanigans from any team threatening not play their part and then say they will to sue should be chased, have their licence pulled or at least penalised that heavily that it deters anyone else from trying it on. But nothing will change until the sport is on its knees then it might be to late to be resuscitated, sadly Regards THJ

Brilliant Thanks for that, Regards THJ

It's the "rat race" they find themselves in really, its not sustainable in its current format, so things need to change; but the whole structure at the top end is wrong, its not boxing where they are promoting at an individual meeting/match/venue its a team sport, unless as suggested elsewhere on here they do away with the teams and run individual events To be fair I am of the same view there is nothing wrong with the product, its back to the point above and how it is being run where the the issues stem from in my humble opinion Regards THJ

Rob will tell you himself if it wasn't for the stocks and other revenue streams at the EWR there would be no Speedway; all of the other interests subsidise the Speedway, the best of it is RG gets vilified on here at times but to be fair he is a true Speedway fan and only wants the best for the sport. Regards THJ

LOL well there were only to "fall outs" at this weeks meeting Paulco where there has been open warfare in most of the previous ones so it is settling down. (honest) Also I don't envy Chapman's job one bit "Clowns to the left of him and Jokers to the right" he doesn't stand a chance really. At least he knows who his friends are "those ones who stab him in the front rather than the back" Regards THJ

Hahahahaha PMSL All my life pall but as it goes in life I get knocked down and I always get up again Regards THJ

Ya not wrong? Unfortunately Regards THJ

I honestly don't know the complexities of this as apparently there is more than "one type" of Visa available and I know Scunny had issues with Ryan Douglass last year who was stopped from racing this season, I thought (possibly wrongly) that Ty had a two year Visa that was dependant on him reaching a certain level (average) by the end of the first season (convert his top league average and it is above 7? Nah to easy?) which would allow him to roll into the second season without having to go through a National qualification process. I do know Ty had all sorts of issues at the start of the season with his Visa and spent a small fortune in trying to get it resolved (which he finally did). However as I understand it he needs to attain a 7 average in the Championship which is currently 6.96 and a double figure score in his last meeting against Lakeside sorts the problem. (happy to be corrected) However it needs saying that "I cant see it being that simple", it never is; LOL I also cant wait to see what happens if we have a hard Brexit and all these European Riders who become "Johnny Foreigners" overnight!!! What they will have to do? That possibly will put the cat right amongst the pigeons Regards THJ

Ya not wrong Paulco and if things pan out the way people are saying it may be the case that I will be restricting myself primarily to the east coast next year possibly and Berwick might have to become my Saturday team of choice and now with having some time on my hands I might even fit in Redcar on a Thursday (if Ged takes them on and they are still here) and of course Newcastle on the Sunday (who have confirmed they are running so something positive there) but don't worry I will still be on here as "Defender of the Faith" with "Totally Honest Opinions and Comment" fighting injustice and misinformation where ever it raises its head and don't forget the overtly defensive incorrect propaganda posted by the righteous few; but whatever happens with the sport I think personally that I will be doing a lot more miles next year than this. With so much uncertainty it will be an interesting winter ahead just to see how thing actually pan out. I honestly think we could be turning a corner although there is still some blood letting and pruning to be done before we see the "new vision" and sadly I feel there will be one or two casualties on the way. Regards THJ

Honestly think that this is the first sensible statement to come out for a while, the way the whole thing is panning out is taking the shine off the achievement for me personally and spoiling what should be the build up to something special for all the clubs concerned, and I don't just mean the fixture pile up. Add in the mix of Lakeside losing their home and the uncertainty around them, Ged announcing the Peterborough sale and what looks like him pulling the plug leaving the Panthers looking vulnerable and the predicament Worky find themselves in is leaving me quite flat, hope it wears off on the Sunday morning travelling up to Glasgow. Regards THJ

Spell check still didn't like it even with the "U" in where it should be LOL Regards THJ

You are not wrong Marra and consider this, Worky could have 9 meetings to fit in to the end of this season, 5 at home and 4 away, if this weekend is washed out then only available day for Worky to run this semi is 19;30 hours this Sunday (good forecast at least) and if they win the semi against Glasgow that would leave 17 days to the end of the month to run 7 meetings (with only 2 weekends) , however Ty needs the league meeting against Lakeside to get a double figure score or he has to go home to race in the Australian championships to qualify for a visa as does Mason, so both of those could miss the 26th, 27th and 28th weekend as the Australian championships have been brought forward a month apparently, meaning a requirement for guests. Glasgow don't want to race this Sunday morning if the meeting is washed out on Friday night as suggested; as they have a wedding booking using the stadium function room on the Sunday so it looks like it will have to be Monday night up there. The additional complication is flights for the Danes which will now add substantial cost to bring them in, whether in changed flights or accommodation costs over here. Starting to make that Scottish Cup match an even bigger joke, honestly you couldn't make it up. However hang in there it gets better. So as it stands at this moment in time (however subject to change) Friday Glasgow Saturday Worky weather permitting, if both are rained off, Sunday Worky and possibly Sunday morning Glasgow but probably more like Monday night. The next complication comes out of who wins this match Worky? then Lakeside Play off Final Friday 19th (Rye) then Sat Worky double header Lakeside (if they beat Boro) Play off first then league match second (Aussie issues which I will come back to) if its Boro it will be them Friday and Saturday followed by Lakeside in the double header, then the Cup and Shield matches depending on who wins between Scunny and Boro it could be Boro Friday in the cup or Lakeside at Rye in the Shield with the return leg at Worky Saturday and if it is Scunny it could be them on the Sunday with Lakeside still on the Friday at Rye but if its Boro it could be another double header on the Saturday/Sunday and I think I have still missed out one possibility, which could be Scunny in the cup on the Saturday if they beat Boro. Jesus no wonder Jacko hasn't got any hair. If Glasgow win the Play Off they will want to fit their Play Off final in and all of the above will go out of the window. However and for those who haven't fell asleep or whose head's haven't exploded it will still end up Worky having to fit in 7 meetings in 14 days and with the potential of having to do without the two Aussies for the last weekend of the month due to not having attaining high enough averages. C'mon Indian Summer and two weeks of good weather!!! LOL So just for Jenga "More to Follow" I would say Regards THJ

You are not wrong Marra, however don't forget the Jam Eaters and my mob at Maryport (the jam factory and apparently my house was built on the very spot the Jam Factory used to be located making me a "Down Streeter"!!! as I am from "Down Street" like eh!!!), the Spatri lot, Carlisle, Egremont, Whitehaven, Torpenhow, (trepenna? really!!!), Bagrow, (Ba'gra? Nah!!!) Seaton, Siddick, Flimby, Blindcrake, Mosser, Dovenby, Tallentire, Bridekirk, Redmain, Brandlingill, Cockermouth, Keswick, Penrith, Crosby and the Villa and not forgetting Greysouthen (Gra'soon? give over!!!) and any other great laal spot where Comets fans travel in from. oh and of course not forgetting Workington itself. Spell check loved some of them names mind!!! ha ha!!! Regards THJ

Not sure he does know after watching him face the other way round in heat 15 the other week Regards THJ

When I read Tsunami's post on the other thread that the Comet's first meeting back brought in 4000 fans and the crowds regularly hovered around the 2000 mark its amazing and then added to this both the football and rugby clubs in recent times have had average crowds in the thousands what do these people do now for a hobby as they cant all be armchair enthusiasts surely? Even with successful teams it still cant bring in the crowds and that's not just Worky, Ged Rathbone stated his 2 lowest crowds this season have been in their last two matches which were in the Play Off/Cup/Shield (whatever stage the Boro/Lakedside epic's are at) and if these matches cant bring in additional support what can? Very sad!!! Regards THJ

Here is a quick question I hope someone can help me with Derwent Park has an official capacity of 10,000 with a record (Rugby League) attendance of 17,741 against Wigan in the March of 1965, (no problem its a big spot and I get that) however Borough Park it states has a capacity of 3,101, of which 500 is seated (which seems about right) yet I have read that during the 1957–58 season they played Manchester United at home in the 3rd round of the FA Cup, attracting a record crowd of 21,000 and I can also remember (vaguely) that I came across with Newcastle in (I think) the late 70's early 80's and the place was packed out, with what I assume was a crowd of around 5 or 6 thousand (maybe more), I was only a kid at the time and I may have inflated that figure over the years but the spot as I remember was packed out; however was this the same stadium (or were we in Derwent Park) as not knowing the area then as I do now it just doesn't seem possible or feasible. So the question is this; have the Reds always used Borough Park and if so has there been radical ground/stadium works to reduce the capacity, and is my memory serving me correct and could there have been a crowd of 5/6 thousand at that friendly or were we; as away fans; just shoe horned into a corner which made it appear there was more in than I estimated? Regards THJ

Ha ha just a bit? But "it's all done in the best possible taste" A doubt some of the "Plums" in the Toon side would get a game for the Reds at the minute Feel sorry for poor Rafa having a billionaire boss who wont spend any money on the team because he's a Tottenham fan Regards THJ

I couldn't possibly confirm or deny your comments, however it must be stressed nothing done was outwith the current rules, no rules were broken by a Championship team signing a GP rider and don't forget it was sold I believe as being "in the best interests of Speedway" so that always makes it alright doesn't it?, but I think everyone knows as to whose best interests it was in. After all there is nothing to say Carlisle FC couldn't sign David De Gea, Sergio Ramos, Luca Modric, Eden Hazzard, Neymar, and Ronaldo if they had the money or a sugar daddy to bankroll the side. However its all just Fantasy Football as we know 1. These guys would never come as its to cold and wet for them on the Costa del Solway. 2. As a positive though if they did come the crowd would go up by 6,000 at least 3. Unfortunately revenue would go down as none of the 6,000 would pay to get in, being that they would all be family, friends and sponsors of the players, commonly known as the "Hangers on" 4 The true fan base would be alienated and crash due to the traditional Pie and Pint being replaced with Caviar and Champagne. 5. The real fans will be priced out of the sport with escalating costs making entry fees beyond the reach of the common working class fans pricing them out of there sport of choice. 6. When the superstars left the true fans who had stopped coming due to watching total mismatches in games and/or being priced out of the stadium would never return and be lost to the sport for ever resulting in the club closing and the stadium being turned into a Parking Lot for a garage selling second hand cars. 7. Every other club in the league go bust because the wages offered by Carlisle totally outweighs the return and collapsed the system as fair play rules went out of the window. 8. The whole thing reverts back to an armature or semi professional sport and everyone says they can remember the good old days. Never mind we will say we had a good run while it lasted and we can be patronising and sympathise with all and sundry while laughing out "tadgers" off at what caused the problem in the first place. Regards THJ

Is there a job on offer like? I'm available for either end if the pay is right Regards THJ

LOL He is a great kid and Dad Gary will keep him well grounded that is for sure; and no matter where he ends up he is looking like a tremendous prospect, Regards THJ

Even if that's Newcastle Regards THJ

Plus with the latest news coming out of Peterborough there must be a really deflated feel about the place, going to be tough for the Panthers But it is doable!!! Good luck to both sides Regards THJ

Forecast for Thursday/Friday up in Glasgow doesn't look great and the weather for Worky on the Friday/Saturday would appear to be equally as bad, looks like there will be a lot of water put down leading up to and over that weekend. As stated Glasgow can race any night and Worky now have Sunday 14th October free with the Lakeside meeting/s re-jig, so as a guess possibly the Sunday at Worky and mid-week up at Glasgow is the possible solution. Ultimately track conditions could have a bigger say in these meetings than the riders from each side. Regards THJ

What a shame as it just cuts out another option making things ever more difficult Regards THJ

So am I correct in assuming that the "taking a year out facility" by effectively putting the clubs "licence on ice" for a year which is open to clubs is definitely not an option for the Panthers Regards THJ