Only British Riders From 2011 + Weymouth News.

[Steve Shovlar]

Taken from the Bournemouth Echo.

PIRATES chief Matt Ford has not ruled out a dramatic bid to buy Weymouth.

 

Ford has revealed he is not one of three parties Phil Bartlett claims are interested in buying the ailing National League outfit.

 

But the Wimborne Road supremo has not discounted making a later bid for Pirates’ Dorset neighbours.

 

Wildcats chairman Bartlett has put the club up for sale and told our sister paper the Dorset Echo: “A deal is getting closer.

 

“There are three parties very interested in taking it forward.

 

“All three know what they are doing and are based within 30 to 40 miles of Weymouth.”

 

Ford, who looks almost certain to pull the plug on his own third-tier team, Bournemouth, at the end of this term, appears to be an ideal candidate to run Wildcats alongside his Elite League Poole promotion.

 

He said: “We are aware of the interested parties and would always be there to help anyone who takes Weymouth on.

 

“We can only wait and see what happens about their future at the next British Speedway Promoters’ Association annual meeting.

 

“I can definitely say it would be a crying shame for the sport to lose Weymouth.”

 

Ford added: “We’d never rule ourselves, or one or two of the other parties, out of the equation.

 

“It’s not easy running a speedway club. It can be a severe drain on the finances and takes a lot of time and commitment.

 

“You can be the best businessman in the world and still not be able to run a speedway club.

 

“Firstly, you must have an immense knowledge of speedway itself and how it runs to promote a club effectively and efficiently.

 

“It’s been shown with Buccaneers in the past two years that you can be in a speedway town and still find it very hard to make ends meet.”

 

Ford, aware Weymouth is also used as a training track, continued: “ There’s a chance we’ll be doing something ourselves in terms of training at Poole.

 

“While it’s unlikely we’ll run Buccaneers next year, we won’t be withdrawing completely from developing young British talent.

 

“It might not be in the National League. It might be on a training basis.”

 

On a wider issue, Ford added: “I believe there will be one or two moves in the National League to make it a solely British-born or British passport holder league.

 

“I think it’s not in the people’s interest it’s open to Commonwealth riders and believe there will be changes at the AGM.

 

“Many people in British speedway are questioning the inclusion of Commonwealth riders.”

[21st century heathen]

That's many people questioning it apart from the many fans that have enjoyed seeing the like of Dyer ride this season. With one or two whispers of the points limit dropping it seems the NL will be next to take a 'watering-down' hit from the powers-that-be.

[Diesel]

Dissappointing since Mark Jones and Grant Tregoning have been 2 of the most entertaining riders I have seen in Hornets colours.

[norwichkev]

Dissappointing since Mark Jones and Grant Tregoning have been 2 of the most entertaining riders I have seen in Hornets colours.

Having attended a few NL tracks prior to demise of Mildenhall would suggest before "rose tinteds" are donned looking at track support of NL teams currently tracking mainly GB youngsters i.e Rye House / Kings Lynn etc would be worthwhile - supporters tend to vote with their feet.

 

In a sport that cannot attract enough youngsters to build Academy teams I would suggest that the only way to have teams of 7 is to allow more of the older brigade to drop down - surely a bigger sop than seeing young Commonwealth riders come through.

 

Mildy gone, Weymouth???, Bournemouth - if Matt Ford can't make it work who can and I would suggest there are possibly other tracks uncertain.

 

It's a bit like drinking squash dilute it too much and nobody wants to drink it

Edited October 1, 2010 by norwichkev

[wessexboy]

There has been some great new British talent in this NL at Scunthorpe Kings lynn Rye House ect have they been held back by commonwealth riders NO

The biggest problem the NL has is Journeyman riders that have not made the grade but expect to be paid PL wages to ride in the NL and the silly promoters who pay them

[waco]

There has been some great new British talent in this NL at Scunthorpe Kings lynn Rye House ect have they been held back by commonwealth riders NO

The biggest problem the NL has is Journeyman riders that have not made the grade but expect to be paid PL wages to ride in the NL and the silly promoters who pay them

I would agree with all that..I would just like to see those riders with patrality coming in on an average that is a true representation of their ability and not way below it,, as has been the case in the past

[PhilK]

There has been some great new British talent in this NL at Scunthorpe Kings lynn Rye House ect have they been held back by commonwealth riders NO

The biggest problem the NL has is Journeyman riders that have not made the grade but expect to be paid PL wages to ride in the NL and the silly promoters who pay them

 

Exactly wessexboy, I agree totally.

 

One Commonwealth rider per side isn't hurting clubs or in all honesty the future of British Speedway. Often they are exciting youngsters who actually bring a few more through the gates. However, riders wanting £20+ a point certainly is making it difficult for clubs to survive.

 

Apart from Dudley and Plymouth the crowds around the NL are pretty meagre, and as Rye House have found increasng admission costs is not the answer.

 

When promoters such as Ford, Silver and the Chapmans have trouble attracting people through their gates then there is a real problem, and unless costs are driven down I can see the NL only having 6-7 clubs in 2011.

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

Exactly wessexboy, I agree totally.

 

One Commonwealth rider per side isn't hurting clubs or in all honesty the future of British Speedway. Often they are exciting youngsters who actually bring a few more through the gates. However, riders wanting £20+ a point certainly is making it difficult for clubs to survive.

 

Apart from Dudley and Plymouth the crowds around the NL are pretty meagre, and as Rye House have found increasng admission costs is not the answer.

 

When promoters such as Ford, Silver and the Chapmans have trouble attracting people through their gates then there is a real problem, and unless costs are driven down I can see the NL only having 6-7 clubs in 2011.

while i agree with the 2 points here ,restricting commonweath riders and riders wanting £20+ a point ,the fact is introduce those 2 rules and there will be a major shortfall in riders for next season , this year when injuries start there isnt enough riders to go round now ,i think introduce those rules and you rule out half the current riders maybe more, but i agree something needs to be done, and just for the record i am not on £20 a point so this isnt a personal gripe for me

[lance52m]

while i agree with the 2 points here ,restricting commonweath riders and riders wanting £20+ a point ,the fact is introduce those 2 rules and there will be a major shortfall in riders for next season , this year when injuries start there isnt enough riders to go round now ,i think introduce those rules and you rule out half the current riders maybe more, but i agree something needs to be done, and just for the record i am not on £20 a point so this isnt a personal gripe for me

Maybe you need to identify some young 12 to 14 year old junior riders and send them to Australia for your winter where they can see and learn from the Australian Junior Speedway that seems to be producing all these good riders, or get the SCB to do something to develop junior speedway before there is no junior riders in the UK at all. If you had some decent junior system that might make it harder for all the young Aussies invading your speedway teams

cheers

[BigFatDave]

Maybe you need to identify some young 12 to 14 year old junior riders and send them to Australia for your winter where they can see and learn from the Australian Junior Speedway that seems to be producing all these good riders, or get the SCB to do something to develop junior speedway before there is no junior riders in the UK at all. If you had some decent junior system that might make it harder for all the young Aussies invading your speedway teams

cheers

Come on, Lance, you know how easy it is for these little Englanders to slag off the number of Aussies in the NL, (how many was it? Four!) who are the sole cause of the poms not producing any good riders of course, rather than getting off their backsides and actually DOING something about it!

[Blazeaway]

Maybe you need to identify some young 12 to 14 year old junior riders and send them to Australia for your winter where they can see and learn from the Australian Junior Speedway that seems to be producing all these good riders, or get the SCB to do something to develop junior speedway before there is no junior riders in the UK at all. If you had some decent junior system that might make it harder for all the young Aussies invading your speedway teams

cheers

 

I think the fact we do have a half decent junior set up is the very reason we have all these "young Aussies invading" our speedway teams.

 

Personally it's not something that bothers me, I subscribe to the fact that if your are good enough you will make it.

 

As a comparison, every two years the England football team either fails to qualify or fails miserably in a tournament. Who gets the blame? The Premiership and Jonny Foreigner of course. England last won the World cup in 1966, the Prem started in 1992. What happened in the years in between?

 

 

My own view is that it comes down to application and dedication.

[THE DEAN MACHINE]

i see old righteous one has spouted his wisdom ,you really should get the job of running speedway ,

[Halifaxtiger]

There has been some great new British talent in this NL at Scunthorpe Kings lynn Rye House ect have they been held back by commonwealth riders NO

Exactly wessexboy, I agree totally.

 

One Commonwealth rider per side isn't hurting clubs or in all honesty the future of British Speedway. Often they are exciting youngsters who actually bring a few more through the gates.

 

Well said Robin & Phil.

 

The Australasian riders in the NL are a drawcard for supporters and undoubtedly have added a little colour with very little effect on the British youngsters looking for places in the league.

 

I'd be the first to agree that there should be controls on those borne outside the UK such as having higher starting averages and the number in each team, but a total ban would be counter productive.

 

while i agree with the 2 points here ,restricting commonweath riders and riders wanting £20+ a point ,the fact is introduce those 2 rules and there will be a major shortfall in riders for next season , this year when injuries start there isnt enough riders to go round now ,i think introduce those rules and you rule out half the current riders maybe more, but i agree something needs to be done, and just for the record i am not on £20 a point so this isnt a personal gripe for me

 

Good point, Dean. The very unwelcome (if necessary) sight of three guest riders turning out for Newport the other day clearly confirms that there isn't exactly a huge number of riders out there who can (or wish)to compete in this league. Its a point that those who wish to slash the points limit utterly brush aside but which is fully acknowledged by most clubs.

 

With regard to wages, that is entirely up to the clubs concerned and I do not think it is for central authority to dictate to them how much they pay in this league any more than it might be in the EL or PL. Teams in those leagues use their financial muscle generated by whatever form of income to pay riders what they want and I don't see why NL clubs cannot do the same.

 

If a club goes bankrupt because it has agreed to pay its riders too much, the blame for closure cannot be laid at the feet of the riders for demanding a certain pay level but those at the clubs who said that they would pay it.

 

I think the fact we do have a half decent junior set up is the very reason we have all these "young Aussies invading" our speedway teams.

 

 

Without being too critical, 'all these' Aussies is an absolute myth as there are still less than 1 per team riding in the NL.

[builderbob]

does everybody on this forum just look at there own team or league. try looking at speedway as a whole, the problems are in the premier league signing on second rate foreigners, and when there average drops replace young british rider with higher averaged rider whilst second rate foreigner drops to reserve.

1 i would like to see any rider allowed in elite league as it says its elite and so should have the top riders riding.

2 no danes swedes or poles in premier, they have there own leagues, when they are good enough come into elite

this would allow more aussies yanks kiwis etc to come into premier, which might get america back on the speedway map. the reason i would let them in the prem is the distance they have to come they are committed.

3 the 3rd division would be british riders only, and when they are ready progress to the prem with the yanks aussies etc

[montie]

i could be wrong,but as i see it,it got nowt to do with the speedway top brass about Aussies etc in NL,it the borders agency that is ruling them out

If i have read it correct,there isnt a work permit or visa what ever you want to call it out there that will permit these chaps skidding in the NL

[adamdelveracing]

i dont believe for a second there is not enough british youngsters to fill NL or academy teams. myself being a 19 year old hoping for a shot i rode in 2 academy league teams last year and it was not through lack of interest by riders but by clubs. also if anyone took the time to visit events by scunthorpe, str etc they would see there is a good standard of british youngsters but many frustrated not getting opportunities due to commonwealth riders filling too many places. the NL was suppose to be a development league but brithish riders are struggling to delelope and get league experience due to commonwealth riders. myself and many others i know will 100% back the british rider only league

[adamdelveracing]

Come on, Lance, you know how easy it is for these little Englanders to slag off the number of Aussies in the NL, (how many was it? Four!) who are the sole cause of the poms not producing any good riders of course, rather than getting off their backsides and actually DOING something about it!

 

 

just to clear up its not "little englanders" slagging off aussies in NL. for starters brit riders are not sat on their backsides doing nothing there are alot of riders making alot of effort trying!! myself started riding 18months or so ago and have really struggled due to lack of schemes to help us not lack off effort! i work 15 hour shift to just try and pay for a few minutes of track time a week coz its so difficult in england.we have a good standard of amateur league over here but getting experiences and opportunites is very tough because there are alot of foreigners not just aussies taking up too many places in our leagues. i agree they should be allowed to ride over here but there should be a limit and a minimum amount of brits in each team! also some training schemes wouldn't go a miss! i think people should be more considerate before slaggin british riders down there are alot making big sacrifices to get around hoping for a chance!!

[shippy22]

We keep hearing about all the British youngsters that are kept out of a NL place by the Aussies and older riders.

 

Surely, if these riders were serious about getting a National League team place, they would be riding in the second half at NL tracks, trying to

impress and ger a team slot. That is what riders used to do in the past.

Only a few years ago at Rye House, there were regularly 8 or more riders in the second half. This season we are lucky to see 3 riders. Newport and Buxton have also recently stated that they struggle to get riders for the second half.

 

By placing even more restricitons on who can ride at NL level ( ie only 1 rider over 25 per team, as some have suggested), will result in a much weaker product, and drive away even more fans.

[Wayne Chivers]

When Adam and me have been to amateur meetings we have talk to the young English riders. Most say they would ride for nothing, all they wanted was to get there travelling expenses. Then when the club thought they were ready to sort out payment of £10 a point, all of which would go done in a contract. There are schools out there run by riders/ex riders but when they wont to charge £100 to £200 a school it is getting to high. As when u take in the travelling as well u r looking in paying out £200 to £300 a school.

[BigFatDave]

just to clear up its not "little englanders" slagging off aussies in NL. for starters brit riders are not sat on their backsides doing nothing there are alot of riders making alot of effort trying!! myself started riding 18months or so ago and have really struggled due to lack of schemes to help us not lack off effort! i work 15 hour shift to just try and pay for a few minutes of track time a week coz its so difficult in england.we have a good standard of amateur league over here but getting experiences and opportunites is very tough because there are alot of foreigners not just aussies taking up too many places in our leagues. i agree they should be allowed to ride over here but there should be a limit and a minimum amount of brits in each team! also some training schemes wouldn't go a miss! i think people should be more considerate before slaggin british riders down there are alot making big sacrifices to get around hoping for a chance!!

Adam, none of us are slagging off British Riders here mate, its the powers-that-be that need to get behind people like you; the Promoters, the Sponsors and the Hierarchy need to do more to assist those that deserve a chance. Can't see how having less than 5% Aussies in the NL is holding Brits back: there's a darn sight more 30+ Riders doing that. As for the PL and the EL - surely the public are entitled to get what they pay for, not understrength teams or an outmoded quota system.

Edited October 4, 2010 by BigFatDave