arnieg

There's no pleasing some people. For my money the best EL meeting I've seen at BP.

Certainly seems unfair on NBJ. It is easy to imagine a situation where he might make an attractive signing for another EL club who would actually use him. And he's at Peterborough tomorrow so I don't think Leicester tonite would add much to his travelling time!

There is a Danish under 21 meeting today but NBJ is not listed as a starter in that. However he is being replaced by Huckenbeck which is OK. And there is no doubting Schlein is injured so a facility is clearly available for him. I suspect it is a byproduct of the "squad" rules being added late in the day. The rules refer to missing numbers one to seven and the various permutations of riders missing without adding any additional provisions for number 8s. 17.6 which deals with this makes no mention of no 8s, and section 17.4.1 dealing with no 8s says they can be used, not must. So completely according to the rules. A long discussion is needed ( preferably well before the AGM) about how squads should work next year - but it's hard to draw many conclusions from the limited number of meetings we've had so far this year.

No it is a strictly accurate interpretation of the rules. Steve took one rider replacement ride as the rider immediately above Ritchie in the averages and two as a reserve replacement which he can always do. What I want to know is why didn't Steve bring Ritchie's kevlars and just change from one pair to the other between races, taking five rides as Steve and four as Ritchie?

Apparently any reserve without a proper average by May 1 can be given a 'new' average by the BSPA management ctte! Who knew!

No r/r ride allowed for Fricke

Bottom line is speedway is a lot better with a large enthusiastic crowd. And there is no denying that there were two passionate sets of supporters at Perry Barr last night.

Last meeting 18 September 2014 for Masarna at Gislaved (Lejonen)

Klindt stays in top 5, Starke at reserve.... Interesting!

Auty can't be in the top five until he's had his second away fixture, so he can't be in the top five yet. What we should infer from the officially published GSAs - well your guess is as good as mine!

And Wright gets to be a heat leader!

The only time a reserve will ride against a heat leader is if he takes an extra reserve ride (or rider replacement ride) or when a third heat leader takes a rider replacement ride for no 4 in the averages in a heat with reserves and second strings. Edit: I forgot the possibility that a reserve could get a heat 15 nomination. but 'heat leaders' - i.e. riders of heat leader ability (cf Freddie Lindgren) - can find themselves at no 4 in their team averages and thereby end up riding against reserves.

I'm with you on this. While it makes a change to do something out of the ordinary, having done it a couple of times I'm not in a rush to do it again. However what I can recommend is a spot in the referee's box. Great view and some interesting insights into how the meeting is run.

From Monday Aaron Summers is number one in Leicester averages (but only no 2 for his Premier League team!) And Paul Starke will be in top five at the expense of Klindt.

But would you watch live streaming of burgers being purchased?

There's a reason they invented Sky plus and the mute button

Perhaps because that would be against competition law. Not that that would necessarily stop SKY, but they are in no doubt that there is considerable scrutiny from politicians and other parts of the media so it would be prudent to at least appear to be 'playing by the rules'.

Belle Vue Press Release 6 April: Brimming wth confidence after their superb victory in Norfolk, Belle Vue are fired up and ready to tackle their first home match of the season against the struggling Leicester Lions on Friday. With the forecast in their favour, and a successful practice under their belt, the Rentruck Aces are particularly eager to entertain their home crowd having last done so in the 2015 EL Grand Final. Team boss Mark Lemon, who meticulously watched over Wednesday’s closed-doors session, says the increasing anticipation for this meeting is making his squad all the more feisty in the build up. He said: “Any doubts over the condition of the track have been put to bed in the wake of today’s closed practice. The boys had a good session and are exceptionally keen to get things moving. I am prepared to believe that the lions share of the blame lies with the contractors, but this (and other pronouncements) makes it hard to believe any subsequent assurances about progress on the track.

But is that procedure applied to the likes of Ryan Burton, Dan Bewley and Connor Locke? What if one of them has never been abroad and does not possess a UK passport - does that make them ineligible for the NL? He is a British citizen not a foreigner. "Despite Jade becoming a British Citizen and having official confirmation..."

Do the SCB only issue licences to riders on proof of a passport normally? What if an NL rider has never been abroad and doesn't have a passport? Is he excluded from the NL until he successfully applies for one? Surely the issue here is British citizenship, and that has now been proved Possession of a passport is academic (unless you actually want to travel abroad).

I still don't understand your reasoning. You get 1&3 in seven races out of 14 regardless of who makes the choice in heat 1.

Why is it a schoolboy error? I'd always give choice of gates in heat one to the opposition.

Here's the relevant rule: 16.3 TEAM DECLARATIONS Teams must declare their Team prior to the start of the Season. Changes must be made at least 72 hours before the start Time of the Meeting at which it is intended to be used. 16.3.1 In any declaration where 2 or more riders hold an identical MA (i.e. cannot be determined by a 3rd or more decimal point) then the (re) Declaration must nominate the hierarchical order, except that where riders have a previous MA, then the higher placed rider from the previous issue shall retain the higher position. Key phrase is 'must nominate the hierarchical order' As Luke Harris is listed at no 5 in the hierarchical order of the declared Eastbourne line-up this is illegal under the current line-up but if Eastbourne redeclare before tomorrow it would be OK subject to 16.3.5 16.3.5 The BSPA MC monitors all proposed moves and has the sole responsibility to approve all (re-)Declared Team Line-Ups having been satisfied they are in the best interests of the sport. Otherwise I see nothing that stops Eastbourne redeclaring Harris at reserve and Phillips in the team. (Harris once had an MA greater than 3.00 but that was way before 'the previous issue')

Three matches for Grindsted in 2013 is his only Danish activity in the last seven years.

They lose because they have a dreadfully weak team. Leicester were only thrashed at home to Lakeside, without their reserves they would have received a spanking of mega epic proportions. At Coventry they nearly won - without Auty/Starke they wouldn't have got close let alone been level after 12 heats. Leicester's good reserves don't compensate for the weakness in the top five because it is so completely woeful. However Leicester did very badly out of the fast track/EDR system the two previous years so deserve a bit of luck on that front. Good though the Auty/Starke pairing is, doesn't make up for the serious deficiencies elsewhere in the team, but they certainly help to reduce their impact.