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Post by Pail Merk on Jul 15, 2023 9:34:47 GMT 1
Do I detect a change of policy regarding rain-offs? Promoters and/or referees appear to be making earlier decisions, basing them on weather forecasts as much as the amount of rain that has fallen on a track. More accurate weather forecasting helps, of course.
If such a weather policy exists, it's A Good Thing. Better consideration of the fans, especially those attending matches on the road, is to be applauded.
If nothing else, a new attitude to inclement weather banishes the days of supporters having to watch 'speedway' through stair rod rain, like Glasgow v Weymouth at Craighead Park in 1982.
And, yes, you've guessed it. All of today's fixtures have been postponed. What a world.
Update: Silly me. The Edinburgh v Workington match is still on. But I'd take a brolly.
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Post by coombes on Jul 15, 2023 10:00:17 GMT 1
Real fixture congestion. Both legs of the KO Cup semi between Redcar and Scunthorpe have been rained off and it looks like no mutually available dates for the restaging. They could swap Fridays league meeting to KO Cup but thats just storing up problems for later on.
Plymouth's round trip of Edinburgh and Berwick now off and will probably have to be separate one off journeys. Not great for the cash strapped Gladiators.
We're not immune either. A date for our meeting with Oxford has still to be agreed. A Tuesday in August would be my guess.
Really need the BSPL to have a fixtures secretary role to sort this out and needs teams to have Reserved dates to stop riders making arrangements to ride elsewhere on prescribed dates.
It never rains but it pours,
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bbuck
Falling off with Martin McKinna
Posts: 88
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Post by bbuck on Jul 15, 2023 13:12:39 GMT 1
Re-arranging rained off meeting is becoming progressively more difficult now that so many riders are racing in various parts of Europe, so it isn't just a case of looking for a blank date in the home club's fixture list and then slotting in a washed out match. It's as much a scramble to work out whether either team can muster together all of their riders on that particular date.
None of want to see matches with half of our team or half of the visiting team absent - a scenario which happens too often anyway, but truthfully, speedway is so reliant on the weather and most clubs will call off meetings on the strength of a weather forecast which might or might not be accurate. In a case like Plymouth's, their location is so out on a limb that getting it wrong can be very costly for them.
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Post by coombes on Jul 15, 2023 14:29:41 GMT 1
We need more detailed fixture planning before the season starts, with home teams having Reserved dates every three or four home fixtures. These would be used for any rain off of one of the preceding meetings. All visitors in the preceding fixtures would be expected to keep this date free too.
The KO Cup to be drawn all the way to the final and meetings to be scheduled accordingly. Those eliminated will have extra Reserved dates.
Yes it would mean riders sitting about idle on some occasions but there you go. It's about time British clubs got a bit more cooperation from their riders.
A bit complicated - too complicated perhaps- or is it worth a go?
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Post by coombes on Jul 21, 2023 7:47:09 GMT 1
BSPL site shows our rearranged fixture at Plymouth as August 22, the night before we go to Poole, and also that we're at Scunthorpe on August 25. Neither of these dates have yet been mentioned on any of our media but presume they are agreed.
Possibly this opens the way for our meeting v Oxford being slotted in on Tuesday August 29, just ahead of the deadline.
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Post by Pail Merk on Jul 21, 2023 11:13:16 GMT 1
Five matches in eight days (excluding the Oxford fixture) and four on the road. A tough finish to the regular season.
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Post by coombes on Jul 31, 2023 18:02:46 GMT 1
BSPL site shows our rearranged fixture at Plymouth as August 22, the night before we go to Poole, and also that we're at Scunthorpe on August 25. Neither of these dates have yet been mentioned on any of our media but presume they are agreed. Possibly this opens the way for our meeting v Oxford being slotted in on Tuesday August 29, just ahead of the deadline.It seems that the deadline has been pushed back, with our fixture v the Cheetahs now going to be run on Friday Sept 8. Edinburgh also race Plymouth that night in a fixture that may decide the final play off spot.
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Post by coombes on Aug 4, 2023 8:07:25 GMT 1
Our meeting at Redcar tonight is off due to a waterlogged track and more rain being forecast. We've no free Fridays and Redcar are staging the CLRC at the end of August are we looking at Sunday Sept 10, the eve of the cut off?
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Post by benbulben on Aug 4, 2023 9:41:50 GMT 1
Can you imagine the chaos had the proposed 2x H and A meetings gone through ? Ah well, will curl up and watch Monarchs v Poole tonight on BSN. Might suit us better with a home win and three defeats in three weeks north of the border might shut some of the Poole fans up.
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clavius
Falling off with Martin McKinna
Posts: 62
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Post by clavius on Aug 4, 2023 10:49:45 GMT 1
Advantage Poole ? Thomson in hospital for tests so RR for him whilst Hume comes in for Castagna.
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