Speedway's race to the bottom continues.

[admin]

PROMOTERS at cash-strapped Plymouth Devils are ready to make an urgent plea to league bosses to help them cut costs.
Devils were on the verge of financial collapse until Exeter businessman Allen Trump agreed to pump cash into the Premier League club to keep them afloat until the end of the season.

Premier League clubs are due to meet in late August to discuss agenda items for their annual general meeting later in the year.

An item likely to be top of that agenda is a restructuring of the league to cut costs.

Concern has been growing among member clubs over spiralling wages for some Premier League riders.
It is understood that clubs in the Premier – the second tier of speedway in the UK – are forking out as much in wages as some clubs in the Elite League, the top strata in the sport.

An unwelcome gulf is also opening up in the standard of riding between the lowest rung of the speedway ladder, the National League and clubs in the Premier.

Premier clubs regularly use National League replacements for injured or unavailable Premier riders.

It has become clear that the ‘guests’ from the National are not good enough to compete on equal terms in the Premier.

That means that it is becoming increasingly difficult for home-grown riders entering the sport at National level to progress their careers into the Premier.
Trump’s involvement with the Devils was revealed nearly a month ago by Herald Sport.
Trump, previously involved in speedway at Oxford and Coventry, indicated that the club could have closed within a week because of its financial position.
The businessman had been in the frame to completely take over the club, but that scenario has been shelved until this season ends.
After that, further discussions will be held over whether Trump, who also fronted an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to resuscitate Exeter Falcons after their closure in 2005, will officially take the club over.
Devils co-promoter Ashley Taylor said he was confident that the club would get to the end of the season.
Taylor said: “The most important thing is that we get to the end of the season, then we will see where we are.
“We know that it is not just us – there are several other clubs with the same concerns.”
When asked if Trump would be taking over the club, Taylor said: “It’s not being talked about at the moment – at the end of the season, it will all go into the melting pot anyway.”

Plymouth Herald

[admin]

So they're going to further balls up the PL so we might as well go back to the EL if it doesn't cost any more

[admin]

Jun 19, 2015 7:23:03 GMT admin said:

So they're going to further balls up the PL so we might as well go back to the EL if it doesn't cost any more

And as evidence from Fri 20/6/15:

Coventry 51
Hans Andersen 0 1* 1* 2 = 4+2
Stuart Robson 1 2 2* 2 1 = 8+1
Joonas Kylmakorpi 0 2 2 3 3 = 10
Danny King 3 1* 3 2* = 9+2
Chris Harris 1 2 R 1* = 4+1
Jason Garrity 2* 1* 3 2* = 8+3
Josh Bates 3 2* X 3 = 8+1

Leicester 39
Jason Doyle 3 3 3 3 0 = 12
Ulrich Ostergaard 2* 3 2 1 = 8+1
Grzegorz Walasek 3 3 3 R 2 = 11
Szymon Wozniak 1 0 1 1 = 3
Grzegorz Zengota 2* 0 X 0 = 2+1
Oliver Greenwood 0 0 1* 0 = 1+1
Richard Hall 1 0 0 1 = 2

Jeez, £18 for that dross. Many at Peterborough want rid of Greenwood, saying that he needs National League racing but he turns up here at Britain's highest league level, along with Richard Hall who I wouldn't walk to the bottom of my garden to watch these days!

The likes of ostrich used to get a ride at reserve in the proper EL and struggle to score above 2 or 3 points. These days, straight in at 2, no duck eggs and a score from Brandon that Kenneth Bjerre can only dream of when it mattered.

[rodders]

Judging by the crowds at Cardiff there is still an appetite for top level Speedway in this country. It must be concluded therefore that the decline in spectators at League matches in this country is due to the standard that is being offered

[admin]

Jul 7, 2015 15:07:57 GMT rodders said:

Judging by the crowds at Cardiff there is still an appetite for top level Speedway in this country. It must be concluded therefore that the decline in spectators at League matches in this country is due to the standard that is being offered

It did look decent but it's hard to tell whether it's full or people are just spread out and in the right places? I did try to find a crowd figure but haven't as yet. Don't think they've ever broken 50,000 so that'd be a measure as to whether it gets bigger and better every year? It's always around the 45,000 mark with people no doubt desparate to see the only top quality speedway (in terms of riders at least) in the UK for that year.

[Bigcatdiary]

Jul 7, 2015 16:28:57 GMT admin said:

Jul 7, 2015 15:07:57 GMT rodders said:

Judging by the crowds at Cardiff there is still an appetite for top level Speedway in this country. It must be concluded therefore that the decline in spectators at League matches in this country is due to the standard that is being offered

It did look decent but it's hard to tell whether it's full or people are just spread out and in the right places? I did try to find a crowd figure but haven't as yet. Don't think they've ever broken 50,000 so that'd be a measure as to whether it gets bigger and better every year? It's always around the 45,000 mark with people no doubt desparate to see the only top quality speedway (in terms of riders at least) in the UK for that year.

I haven't really noticed any great difference in the crowd at Cardiff for the last 5 years or so, officially I have seen the attendance given as just over 40,000 and don't have any problems believing that, I remember a few years ago when Pearson was saying nearly 50,000 but he has been known to exaggerate !!!!

[admin]

Jun 19, 2015 7:08:16 GMT admin said:

An unwelcome gulf is also opening up in the standard of riding between the lowest rung of the speedway ladder, the National League and clubs in the Premier.

Premier clubs regularly use National League replacements for injured or unavailable Premier riders.

It has become clear that the ‘guests’ from the National are not good enough to compete on equal terms in the Premier.

That means that it is becoming increasingly difficult for home-grown riders entering the sport at National level to progress their careers into the Premier.

So the solution is to balls up the PL as they have done the EL, with the understanding that fans will appreciate the experiment which isn't anything to do with cost cutting.

Good of Pearson & Tatum to prepare the ground this evening - cheque's in the post lads

[rodders]

I find the term "Fast Track" particularly irritating. Fast Tracking to where or what? Clearly it is nothing more than cost cutting.

[admin]

Jul 10, 2015 6:49:00 GMT rodders said:

I find the term "Fast Track" particularly irritating. Fast Tracking to where or what? Clearly it is nothing more than cost cutting.

The BSPA doesn't appear to have a great record of strategy in the best interests of speedway and it's fans, so without much evidence of any success of this experiment then it's hard not to come to that conclusion. The better lower order riders would have emerged anyway under the previous structure. As has been pointed out to me this week, there are some good promoters out there who can't be bothered to fight those at the top of the table who basically mess up year on year; probably still mindful of the events of 2010 and associated issues?