Fourentee

Well, one out of two....

Good points well made, but I still regard the piece as “whither the rising star programme?” rather than “ooh, those naughty Panthers have pulled a fast one”!

To be honest, it didn’t strike me as a partisan piece so much as airing a problem with rider development. I presume you’re pointing at the greater experience of Bacon and Bates (although Bacon came late to the sport, did he not?), and I certainly take that point. As for “he thinks it’s wrong (Peterborough’s team building)”, he specifically says he’s not criticising it!

Good question. And at risk of sitting on the fence, my answer would be “it depends”. Workington in 2018 built a side with, in effect, half-a-dozen six to seven point riders plus Kyle Bickley as a developing local to learn his trade without pressure to score. Very much a rising star scenario, really. As you say, although six is tough, team boss Tony Jackson moved him there because he would have gate one or two in heat two at home. He started to win that heat and confidence rose accordingly. Good management. As a general thought, I’d like to see rising stars get their four rides (minimum) but at the same time I’m not wild about rules which restrict team managers’ ability to use their own skill set to affect matches. I like to see the Lyons and Adamses of this world in action. So, conflicted really!

Interesting points on Jordan Palin there. As it happens, Peter Adams devoted some of his programme notes on Monday to teenagers Leon Flint and Palin (Wolves having hosted the Panthers the previous week), saying of Flint’s progress: “Following and chasing riders who are better than him is a valuable learning curve in itself, but there are limits. “Here last Monday, had he not been excluded for a tapes infringement in heat 8, he would have faced four times GP winner Hans Andersen in all four of his races which, quite frankly, is ridiculous. “Peterborough rising star Jordan Palin meanwhile was given only three of his scheduled four outings for the third away match on the trot and whilst I am not in any way being critical of their team building model, or their game plan as matches unfold, the development of rising star riders won’t be helped by denying them 25% of their races, or exposing them to opponents who are a class apart! ”I spy rule amendments in the winter…” Thoughts?

Gave it a good go. First four or so heats were a matter of just getting round, but once the rain stopped and the track work paid off, they gave it a good shot. Only eight down with two to go, so in with a shout of a point.

I don’t have the second-half times, but for the main fixture: 1) 60.03 2) 60.90 3) 60.28 4) 59.75 (Harris, fastest of the night) 5) 59.87 6) 59.85 7) 60.18 8) 61.10 9) 61.10 (this caused some hilarity, “forgot to reset the timer,” etc) 10) 60.28 11) 59.93 12) 61.00 13) 59.94 14) 61.32 15) 60.28 Hope that helps.

If you're the genial fan from Sheffield stood at the back of the bend one stands who mentioned visiting Eastbourne last week, thanks for coming and I (bearded man in brown brimmed hat) really enjoyed our chat. If not, thanks for coming anyway! Good meeting and kudos to the club on how hard they've worked this week. Fingers crossed that they can pull in enough supporters.

Cracking match. Thought the Aces were very unfortunate tonight. After the rain, only Bewley (and what a joy it is to watch him ride) looked at all comfortable. Before it they appeared in command, well-drilled, team riding splendidly, careful to ensure shared heats if a home rider got away. Clearly came for the victory and probably deserved it. I take nothing away from Wolves who, when offered their opportunity by the weather gods, grabbed it by the throat. Good teams do that. Masters, Morris and Schlein were again full value and when Douglas and Becker turned their evening round late on, it was just about enough. But that was a real statement of intent from Belle Vue. Edit: Good to see a healthy portion of Aces fans at the match; a cheerful bunch who added plenty of spirit to a good atmosphere. Safe journey home.

A tight, grippy track was never going to suit Crump tonight so soon after big injuries, so unfortunately we didn’t see the best of him this evening. Cook can clearly cut it at Prem level, as he has shown repeatedly this season, so we will have to differ on that one, old mate!

Really enjoyed that meeting, my first since the pandemic began. Ipswich were well in this after eight heats, but the heat nine and 10 5-1s — a brave blast round the outside off four by Morris and a superb piece of team riding from Masters — proved pivotal. Impressed by Starke, always doughty, and Kemp, very composed in heat eight when under all manner of pressure from Becker, for the Witches. Wolves’ top three were all excellent; I thought at the start of the campaign that as goes Morris, so will go Wolves — he’s the rider who is demonstrably better than his season-starting average but needed to show it. Good night with some cracking racing. Good to see that some Witches fans made the trip; safe journey home.

Indeed. Wish I could be more helpful.

"A good number of tickets" (Tigers official website) available for home straight, sold on the night, first come, first served. Turnstiles open 6pm. Obviously, is "a good number" a good enough number for you at 7pm?! Not an easy decision. Might be worth ringing the club to see how many? They might be able to give you at least a rough guess as to your chances.

Well done, Dave! Heads down over the winter and shoot for the treble.

Steve Lawson at Workington brought back a coffee cup full last year! I believe he had it analysed and then sourced its domestic equivalent. Certainly a lot of praise for the Derwent Park circuit last season.

Hynek's race win, Steve?

As to the top four, you're right, that's how the side is built -- you can't have your toffee and your ha'penny as we used to say oop north! FWIW I thought Shanes raced his heart out and his score certainly doesn't reflect his efforts. Again FWIW I expected Rosco to go with Batch and Musielak and think it was the right decision given their obvious pace. For Wolves, RR covered Nick Morris quite well (ditto Nicholls for Thorssell) but obviously you want your first choice seven ASAP. Becker will rightly garner the plaudits and was hugely impressive -- potentially a very big takent. Good night's racing.

OK, if that's correct then even better!

Tickets were numbered and mine was 840-odd, so given that plenty came in behind me surely a four-figure attendance.

Enjoyed the meeting. Well-organised, professionally run and would have finished a lot quicker had certain riders not ploughed through the elastic on a distressing number of occasions early on. I know it’s an early-season one, but some good racing too. Pleased to see some far-flung supporters from Redcar, Berwick, Eastbourne and doubtless other places too. Hope the organisers have raised a hefty sum.

Magnanimous post there, Sidney. Best of luck this season.

I can but speculate!

I can assure you it isn't!

Having interviewed Kyle on more than one occasion (not the one being discussed!) I can confirm that he conducts himself honestly, candidly and in a very mature fashion. He certainly values supporters and will always give a straight and thoughtful answer to a straight question. I'm pleased to see him sticking up for himself here. For what it's worth, I have a high regard for Frigbo's forum contributions but respectfully suggest he's just misread this one a touch.

Well said.