Roger MARTIN

Spot on mike it's all irrelevant now, i just hope we get more luck than we did last year with injuries in the first few meeting, Ipswich will already be looking for a rider i think after Poole injured his arm in the the meeting with Rye House on thursday, and the meeting at Redcar ended early after Kus injured himself in heat 15, so keeping rider's safe in the first few meeting will do for me, fingers crossed.

I agree Lovey, on one of the DVD's i have he says that riding for Plymouth is great because it will be easy for his family to come and watch him, not just his mum and dad, yes his mum and dad probably go and watch him in most of his meeting's, but to say that having Plymouth being so near to where his family lives did not come into him riding for the Devil's, i can't see it, i think it's everything to do with it, and like you say i don't think he would have ridden for any other PL club.

So if Ben had been offered more money to ride for Berwick he would have gone to them, i think the location of Plymouth had everything to do with him coming to ride for the Devils, no matter what team Ben would turned out for in the PL he would be offered very good money, so saying he would get £40 a point from anyone just so his family could watch him you know would never happen, some people mite think Mike Bowden is stupid, well he aint that stupid, he knew how much Ben would cost, and if he get's £100 a point, the lads worth it.

Your right lewy, if he could he would ride in the NL, he just loves the sport, and the money comes in handy.

It's an opinion, or is it to far over you head you can't understand it. So having his family come and watch him didn't come into it mike, so why didn't Lanham not come down, that wasn't to do with the money, yes Ben earn's good money, but he has to earn it, it's not a matter of just going on the track, Mike Bowden don't give money away unless you work for it.

So do i JJ, it won't be for the want of trying, he is the most determined rider i have ever seen, and a great lad to.

The rules say they are not to good, so we have to abide by that, some of the rider's Ben beat in the meeting the weekend you would have to say are to good for the PL, if they were to ride in the PL we would say they are, but rider's like Ben beat them on a regular basis, especially away from their respective tracks, even the bests rider's from any league get beat away from home. If Ben and Ryan were reserves in the EL i would agree they are not, but Ben has a 6pt + average in the EL for Birmingham, where do you draw the line, i think when a rider is to good to ride at reserve in the EL, you have to draw it there, it's great that Ben is riding for Plymouth, and i will be there watching him everyweek, but in my opinion he is a cut above the PL, but he did make a very bad year for the team better with some great displays at the SBA.

We know Ben and Ryan are to good to ride in the PL, but it is there choice to do so, i think with Ben it is to do with logistics, riding for Plymouth it allows his family to come up from Cornwall to watch him, we all know both of the lads are to good for the PL, but you won't see any Plymouth supporter moaning about it, only some EL supporters who think he should ride in that league and that league only, oh and that pratt Pearson who we all know don't know what he is talking about, but any rider with an over 9pt cma should not be riding in the PL, but they do.

No i don't think so, In the local sunday paper Mike Bowdens is asking if someone would like to help him run the club on a 50/50 split, if that is the case forking out for team kevlars will be way down on his shopping list, i think he is finding it very hard now to finance having riders like Ben and Ryan in one team, i think he now wishes he stayed in the NL, but i'm glad he didn't.

Well done Ben on winning the Ben Fund meeting, but well done both Ben and Ryan, can't wait to see them on saturday at the Plymouth press and practice.

To tell you the truth i have never been a Aaron Baseby fan, but then i have never seen much of him, but Matt when he was a reserve at Plymouth did a great job, but Matt or Aaron would be a good call to have at reserve.

It will be interesting to see how Ben and Ryan get on in the Ben Fund meeting, i just hope they both do well and keep safe in the meeting.

Now that Ben has signed i would go for Matt Bates for the last spot, at reserve he would be a very handy rider to have there.

Your right both will get beat in the odd race, like they will beat top riders on there track, but we will see some great racing at the SBA this year from Ben and Ryan and hopefully the rest of the team to, you have to say that people who said that the track at the SBA would never be any good for PL racing were wrong, we have seen some great racing, from some great riders that attack the track, thats the key with the SBA something we never saw in the NL, most riders when they came down never got past the first bend, to see Lemon, Robson and Alden attack the track was a great to watch.

Your right Robin, even when the team were getting beat early in the year Ben was banging the maximums in, and he showed no respect to the very tricky SBA track, that most riders don't find very easy to ride.

Some of the best races seen at the SBA is when Ben don't gate, if he gates it's all over, it's takes a good rider to beat him and Seb Alden did well, but has the season went on he was near unbeatable, and could control a race at will, it didn't matter want line he was on, watching him and Ricky Wells at the back end of the season was PL speedway at his best, and worth the £12 alone, i think this year with Ryan in the team it could be even better, i think changes will be made during the season, but i think most teams will do that anyway, like mike said its all about making the right changes at the right time, and bringing in the right riders.

Your right when Ben is on gate 3 and 4 that's when he gets beat at the SBA, it's a very short run to the first bend, i have seen it done, put him on gate 1 and 2 he rarely gets beat, teams when they come to the SBA don't need to beat Ben and Ryan, just the other five, the team manager will tell his team that, like you i don't think Ben and Ryan will be unbeatable at home, there some very good riders in the PL capable of beating them both at the SBA, i don't think many will, but to say they will not get beat at home i don't see it.

Robin i agree 100% with that, no problem with Steve Boxhall, could like you say be a very astute signing, if he gets his head together, the problem like you say is with Franchetti, and by signing him will put a great deal of presser not on him but on James Cockle, he will ride at reserve, poor James is the one with all the presser on him riding in the main body of the team, i don't think there was any thinking behind that, moving a 3.40 rider in, then moving a 3.60 rider into the main body of the team so he could come in, to say that was a bad move is putting it mildly to say the least. On the BSPA site Cory Gathercole says he is looking for a team, now i'm not saying he is the answer but i would think he would be a much better option to me then a rider that is no more than a average reserve, yes the lad gives 100% at the SBA but that is only half of the meetings, away he did nothing and thats why someone like Gathercole would do better, you are looking at Gathercole 6.84 and Franchetti 3.40, i can't see Franchetti doubling his average, it isn't hard to work out who the better rider is.

Steve Boxhall got 10+2 from 5 rides last year at the SBA for Rye House, i would be happy for him to get that every week at the SBA, if he gets himself sorted i can't see no reason why he can't add a point to his average, we all know the lad's got the ability, but like any motor sport its not all about the rider, couple a good rider with good tools and he has a chance, its all about preparation with motor sports, and that cost money, but if the 10+2 at the SBA was on a not so good bike last year, then on a good bike we should see the lad do well, we shall see at the press and practice on the 17th.

When he came down to the SBA with Rye House last year he looked good, and you have to say he has the ability, but you can say that about a lot of sportsmen, and they never do make the grade, not just speedway riders, i have heard last year he only had one bike, and that belong to Len Silver, and so far this year he hasn't got a van, so that's a good start, so that makes two riders that have signed for Plymouth that need a van, i hope it's sorted by the 17th press and practice day.

Great post 100% behind you on this, all the promotors at the end of any season will sit down and work out the rider's they won't for next year, but the Plymouth promotor went on holiday, to say there was any planing put into the Plymouth team is an understatement, yes it will be great to watch Ben and Ryan rider for us but that will overshadowed if the team lose the meeting, after all isn't that the point to win meeting's, there is no way in this world this team will last more than a month or so, when teams look at the Plymouth team the team manager will say to them we don't have to beat Ryan or Ben, we just have to beat the other five, and looking at some of the team's that have been put together that won't be hard, i hope i'm wrong but i can't see it.

The honest answer to that Steve is no, you would think being an ex speedway rider he would have a good idea the thinking behind putting a speedway team together, Barker and Fisher are very good rider's but will find it very hard riding has a team with rider's on a third of there average, yes they both will win many races but team's will just let them go and fill in behind them, until Ricky Wells came last year thats all teams did, they just let him do his thing and filled the minor places and got a 3-3, it wasn't until Mike Bowden called on riders like Sanchez and Hawkins and teams were weaker the second time they came down, Plymouth started to win meetings at home, before that teams came to the SBA and won easily.

Mike your right Lanham isn't signing, and i can't see that present team lasting very long, even with Lanham it would have been the same, it's a shame because it had the making's of a decent side with two of the top rider's in it, very strong at the top, but very weak in the middle order.

I also see Mike Bowden has put the price of admission up by a £1 for adult's to £13, but to be very fair that's still very good value for money still, the family price will still be the same, and anyone with a season ticket wont have to pay any extra.

I have it from a good source that all is not well with one of the rider's, it's down to lack of transport and having no help from the team he is going to ride for in finding any, looks like we are going down the Nedermark road again, when a team signs a non British rider you have to give him some help to find transport to get to the meetings if he hasn't got any, don't you ?.