Richspeedway Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 (edited) I was wondering what people thought about speedway in the two areas. In Scotland we have Glasgow and Edinburgh in the Premier and sadly that is it. Armadale were in the conference but had to sadly call it a end. It would be great to see maybe another team in Scotland maybe in the conference just to get the kids through as the nearest team would be Cleveland (I might be wrong) for the conference. Maybe Aberdeen/Inverness area? Also Wales is in the same situation, with just Newport in the Premier and Conference which is brilliant to see as they get the chance to go up the ladder but where else in Wales could they put a track? There was Carmarthen which sadly went and also there was talk of Swansea and having a track at the greyhound stadium around this time last year but that has gone quiet. I know speedway is not a massive popular sport in the uk compared to Football, Rugby, Cricket etc but we do have alot of fans and alot in Wales/Scotland and I think that if marketed well then both places could have a couple more teams maybe in the conference first so that young lads/girls could get the chance to get into the sport. Edited December 3, 2006 by Richspeedway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCB Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 I think you seriously over estimate the population of Wales! I don't think another team is viable away from Cardiff and sadly thats not possible as it's within 30 miles of Newport and Tim Stone would never agree to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tanya Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 It's a wonder that no one has ever tried to revive the sport in Cardiff with such a huge population base and a history of having a team before. It would be nice for Newport to have a local derby with someone other than Somerset or even now Birmingham, who are quite a long distance from us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richspeedway Posted December 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 it would be great to see maybe a team in mid/north Wales though. cardiff would be great but it is maybe to near to Newport and Tim Stone would not have that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Third Man Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 how long has berwick been in scotland? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richspeedway Posted December 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 Well I know there is a bit of debate with that as Berwick Rangers play in Scottish league and the boundaries have changed. But I guess could open this up to England as there are some counties that do not have one team. I think they could sell the sport better then maybe more councils would let tracks go ahead and maybe get more people going through the turnstiles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCB Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 it would be great to see maybe a team in mid/north Wales though. cardiff would be great but it is maybe to near to Newport and Tim Stone would not have that. Mid Wales? Even the sheep stay away from there!! Some where in North Wales, well place might just work and probably Cardiff if it was allowed, other than that, I don't think it's at all viable. I think Carmarthen pretty much proved that with there crowds of about 100! Well I know there is a bit of debate with that as Berwick Rangers play in Scottish league and the boundaries have changed. Cardiff play in the English League, they're certainly in Wales Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulco Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 We did have another team in Scotland (briefly in the mid-seventies ) at Paisley , but that quickly folded . Geographically we are too far north to support any more sides - the three that have been mentioned struggle to crack the 1000 barrier as it is . Plus being this far north the travelling expenses paid out to riders is huge and it is a tough task to attract them in the first place . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highside Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 how long has berwick been in scotland? <{POST_SNAPBACK}> thats what i was thinking. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lady s Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 funny i always thought one of my fav tracks to vist was in england but then it is called berwick upon tweed very confusing this Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topcat Posted December 3, 2006 Report Share Posted December 3, 2006 I was there on saturday,and can confirm that it is in England. While we are being silly, and on a sober note, if you want to see super Christmas lights pay a visit to Alnwick, south of Berwick (Also England) for a display that would shame many large cities. We stumbled on it after looking for a chippie onroute home from Redcar!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerbrandcoffee Posted December 4, 2006 Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 I remember speedway in Aberdeen being talked about in around 1984. Don't really know how close it came but it was as succesful as the ahem 'attempt' to have the World Final staged at Hampden Park the same year I doubt Scotland could support a third team, there's barely enough supporting the two that exist in/near Scotland's two largest cities as it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Meynell Posted December 4, 2006 Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 (edited) Well I know there is a bit of debate with that as Berwick Rangers play in Scottish league and the boundaries have changed. The last time Berwick was in Scotland was in the 15th century, but I heard that the speedway team is generally considered to be 'Scottish' because it draws much of its support from neighbouring areas of Scotland. Scotland and Wales are only slightly under-represented by speedway tracks if you compare the number of tracks per capita with England. Of course, it doesn't really work that way, and although you'd have thought the Glasgow-Edinburgh axis could support another team, no tracks lasted long even in speedway's heyday. I'd have thought Swansea might have been able to support a speedway team, but I suppose there isn't that much tradition of speedway around there (although didn't Neath have a track for a while). As for Mid and North Wales, well forget it. You might just get away with something close to Chester/Wirral, but then why go to trouble of putting it in Wales when you could go closer to the areas from where your support is likely to come from. Edited December 4, 2006 by Kevin Meynell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lady s Posted December 4, 2006 Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 I was there on saturday,and can confirm that it is in England. While we are being silly, and on a sober note, if you want to see super Christmas lights pay a visit to Alnwick, south of Berwick (Also England) for a display that would shame many large cities. We stumbled on it after looking for a chippie onroute home from Redcar!!!!! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> you shsould have gone to the best chippie any where robert smith's of berwick and it's not far from the spedway track Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Topcat Posted December 4, 2006 Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 you shsould have gone to the best chippie any where robert smith's of berwick and it's not far from the spedway track <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Been there,done it,got the teeshirt. Ps the chippie in Alnwick was also very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Highlander Posted December 4, 2006 Report Share Posted December 4, 2006 I'd love to see a team start up in Aberdeen as I feel that's probably the biggest city in the UK not to have Speedway either in it or nearby.(Someone will now come in and correct me) It's certainly somewhere I feel has an untapped potential but it would have to be Premier because the Aberdonians would love nothing better than turning over Glasgow and Edinburgh. Since 1990 as well as Glasgow and Edinburgh being successful (league titles etc) Linlithgow also managed to do the double in the Conference league in 96 and may still have been on the go if their track wasn't sold off for development. Armadale also had a bit of success before their closure for financial reasons. Scotland really does need a team in the CL but seperate from Glasgow/Edinburgh as we need somewhere independent to bring on youngsters. But will it happen? Sadly I've got to say I'm doubtful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthur61 Posted December 5, 2006 Report Share Posted December 5, 2006 It' s hard to tell whether or not speedway would take off in other parts of Wales. There were people who were interested in the prospect of habing Speedway in Swansea, but oher factors hampered that. Neath did have a team years ago and it was popular. That only went because of developers. The only place I could think of in Neath would be the Walters arena which is suppposed to be a designated motorsports area. But because of its location, I'm not too sure about that either! It all depends on whether people want to take a risk and put a lot in to it (meaning advertising etc) who knows but I would love to have more Speedway in Wales and Scotland. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben91 Posted December 5, 2006 Report Share Posted December 5, 2006 I think you seriously over estimate the population of Wales! I don't think another team is viable away from Cardiff and sadly thats not possible as it's within 30 miles of Newport and Tim Stone would never agree to it. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> he can object but cannot really stop a track going ahead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
25yearfan Posted December 5, 2006 Report Share Posted December 5, 2006 (edited) Both Wales and Scotland could do with 1 stand alone Conference League track to assist with the development of youngsters. Swansea would stand a much better chance than what Carmathen did in trying to support a CL outfit. Likewise I'd of thought a team in Motherwell would be better suited to getting crowds than what a team in a field outside a provincial town (Linlithgow) did. But both Scotland and Wales have had the before mentioned stand alone CL teams in the past with Carmathen Dragons in Wales and Linlithgow lightning, then Ashfield Lightning Giants and most recently the Armadale Devils. While great breeding grounds for up and coming riders financially none of them have been viable with poor crowds at them all which is why none of them are still in operation. Not just Scotland and Wales but areas all over Great Britain would benefit from having CL teams in order to help British riders to 'climb up the ladder'. But the harsh reality is that most CL tracks don't make money in fact are costly exercises which is why their aren't more teams in the CL. Anyway the 3 existing clubs in Scotland and Wales find it hard to attract viable crowds as it is. Though I'd of thought that Cardiff could support some sort of League speedway. Aberdeen certainly has the population to support a speedway track but its Northenly location (isn't it about 150-200 miles north of Glasgow I think?) means that it would be highly unpractical in a British League. Imagine Plymouth V's Aberdeen! I'd like to see more teams in the British speedway League as we certainly need more teams but we have to look at how difficult and costly it is to open new tracks. Look at Birmingham for instance. They last rode in the old National League 20 years ago and have only just come back for next season and they are potentially one of the best supported tracks in the Country. Likewise before the 2006 season speedway racing hadn't been seen in the big city of Plymouth for 36 years. My team Norwich haven't had their own track since 1964 and we were one of the biggest clubs in the Country! I think you'll find that Tim Stone could indeed stop a track from opening that was 30 miles or less from his Newport track. King's Lynn stopped nearby Swaffham from opening a track up 4 years ago. If an existing promotor has no problem with a nearby track reopening then their is no problem. This is what has happened with Birmingham as Wolves and Coventry have not objected. Edited December 5, 2006 by 25yearfan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
south coast robin Posted December 5, 2006 Report Share Posted December 5, 2006 (edited) I'd love to see a team start up in Aberdeen as I feel that's probably the biggest city in the UK not to have Speedway either in it or nearby.(Someone will now come in and correct me) It's certainly somewhere I feel has an untapped potential but it would have to be Premier because the Aberdonians would love nothing better than turning over Glasgow and Edinburgh. Since 1990 as well as Glasgow and Edinburgh being successful (league titles etc) Linlithgow also managed to do the double in the Conference league in 96 and may still have been on the go if their track wasn't sold off for development. Armadale also had a bit of success before their closure for financial reasons. Scotland really does need a team in the CL but seperate from Glasgow/Edinburgh as we need somewhere independent to bring on youngsters. But will it happen? Sadly I've got to say I'm doubtful. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I think Aberdeen would be too isolated . Southampton is a bigger city and there are over a million peeps within a 20-mile radius . They were one of the top teams before they folded in the early 60s. No other speedway team in Hampshire . The East Midlands triangle of Derby/ Leicester/ Nottingham ( over 2 million ) , does not have a team ..used to be Long Eaton , Leicester there . West Yorkshire ... Leeds , Bradford , Halifax , over a million population .. Bradford , THE team of the early 90s , and Halifax were successful clubs once . London .. Wimbledon , Wembley , New Cross , West Ham , Hackney , Harringay , etc ., once the hotbed of speedway 8 million people .. no team , bloody sad !! Bristol..best supported club in speedway once , still speedwayless . Then there is Hull , Sunderland , Liverpool , all major centres of population, over 250,000 , that maybe could support a club . I'm sure Norwich and Cradley would attract decent crowds . Would like to see a club in south-west Wales ..Swansea ? easier to reach from England , than Scottish highlands . Edited December 5, 2006 by south coast robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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