ITEM: The wait is over and we have a new
TeamGB manager. I've fallen into the dirty habit of calling it TeamGB for
no other reason than everyone else seems to do so, always reluctantly, and
that's the worst possible reason. It should be England, of course - no rider
from any other nation has ridden for the representative squad for quite some
time now, but the inclusion of Scottish (and, latterly, Welsh) clubs in the
BSPA - and with the national team farmed out to that organisation like a
naughty stepchild - means that it really should be just Great Britain. But that
sounds odd, and unwieldy in the face of Poland,
Russia, Sweden and the
rest. But I digress.
So, yes, Alun
Rossiter is the new Great
Britain manager, and the news of his
appointment was met with almost total positivity, with some reservations and
exclusions. Rossiter is the right man for the job in all the ways Neil
Middleditch was the wrong one. Over the last half dozen years he has shown he
is willing to include homegrown riders in his club sides, and has actively
lobbied for them on occasion. Contrast that with a team manager whose club
sides have been shockingly, abjectly defined by the absence of British
riders - if you are charitable you could argue that Middleditch had no input
into Matt Ford's Poole teams because anything
else looks like he deliberately favours riders from his rivals on the
international scene. Middleditch wasn't unique in his seeming reticence to use
British riders whilst occupying the national team manager's job - Rob Lyon, in
his brief spell at the helm, filled his King's Lynn sides with all kinds of
non-Brits, although he, at least, had the defence that he was managing a second
division side at the time.
Rossiter, on the
other hand, has a decent record when it comes to using - and therefore trusting
in - British riders. This season is some kind of aberration - his two mandated
youngsters are his only homegrown riders - but he has worked with, and with some
success, Chris Harris, Edward Kennett, Ben Barker, Lewis Bridger, Simon Stead,
Kyle Howarth, Josh Auty, and Ashley Birks, as well as the late Lee Richardson.
He has also mentored Nick Morris, who may well have been a mainstay of the
British SWC side but for a tough decision made by Alex Harkess in the
spring of 2011.
There have been
slight reservations expressed by some - myself included - that Rossiter got the
job ahead of the outstanding candidate, Phil Morris, but that should not
denigrate Rossiter's suitability for the role. Quite why the BSPA management
committee decided against the Welshman will probably never be
revealed but, let's face it, they've hardly covered themselves in glory
over the years. Luckily, this is one situation where the second most-suitable
candidate, in my opinion at least, is very much up to the job. That won't
please the folks down Poole way, though -
they're waiting for Rossiter to slip up, certain he will, because their
beloved team manager wasn't up to scratch. One thing's for sure, Rossiter would
have to try very hard to have a season as bad as Middleditch had last year -
all he has to do is finish ahead of Latvia and he'll be the most successful
Great Britain manager for quite some time...
ITEM: Regardless of who got the job, the task ahead is a big one.
For whatever reason you’d like to choose, Great Britain’s standing in world
speedway – Tai Woffinden notwithstanding – is close to an all-time low. Being
beaten in the SWC by Latvia
and the USA
was an humiliation it will be hard to come back from, but the path is clear –
because other countries have already lain it for us.
Poland are the reigning world champions. They take
their national side very seriously and have just announced a get together for
their senior and junior national sides. Not for practice, like the Danes do
twice a season, but to help the riders bond as a unit. Rob Lyon did get the
British lads together for a training session a few years back – one that
resulted in an unfortunate injury for Adam Roynon, not that that should stop it
happening again – and if the top two sides in the world are doing it, who are
we to say its not essential in today’s speedway?
The Poles also
planned ahead for their SWC Final triumph by taking a full test side to the
Czech Republic, annihilating the hosts on the Prague track where the final (and
race-off) were to be staged. This year’s final and race-off are hosted by
Bydgoszcz, and one of the first points of order for Alun Rossiter should be
arranging a test match – against Poland or a Polish Select – at the Bydgoszcz
venue. Funding may not be readily available from the BSPA, but an enterprising
sponsor could reap the benefits of such an endeavour.
The Poles, Danes,
Russians, and the rest of the continentals, also take the supplementary
competitions available to them very seriously. The BSPA sanction British entry
into the World Championship, SWC, and its under-21 counterparts, but largely
ignore those events under the auspices of FIM-Europe. The European Championship,
a junior version, a senior pairs competition, and a junior team event are all
open to British entries, should we be interested, and there is little doubt
that continental competition, with the experience of riding abroad and against
unfamiliar opposition, is invaluable to those riders on the fringe of the
British squad.
These are all
things that other nations are doing – nations who have deserved every moment of
their successes over the years because they’ve worked for it. They represent
the very minimum that we have to do to catch up with, and hopefully supplant,
those teams at the top of the world rankings.
I’d also look to
some events staged on home soil, whether it be full test matches or a series of
SWC-formula four-team events, designed to ease the riders – and the new manager
– into the role, by familiarising themselves with the format and conditions of
racing.
If we don’t look to
our rivals, and ape what they’ve been doing, we may as well not bother,
regardless of who we have in charge of the national side. A successful Great Britain,
on the world stage, will pay off down the line, and a little investment up
front is nothing compared to the potential rewards. Time to think big.
ITEM: I feel like an overgrown child the night
before Christmas right now because tomorrow, at 9am, the 2014 fixtures are
released! I'm hoping for some common sense this year because, God knows, last
year's were a mess! Coventry had ridden a quarter of their fixtures before
Birmingham had even really started, and an imbalance of fixtures spread
throughout the season meant most clubs had gaps of three weeks to a month
between home meetings, and Lakeside completed their season before August had
finished! Hopefully the addition of four extra home meetings this year, plus
some sensible scheduling, will mean that is a thing of the past, and most fans
can look forward once more to regular fixtures at their local track.
Like me, I'm sure
many fans will be poised over their computers with a diary in hand, copying
the fixtures in, and marking the most attractive for special attention.
Some of my best times last year came watching the Storm on the road, and
although the National League fixtures won't be ready until after the January
31st deadline for new applications, I can see this being the case again.
Leicester will be a new away trip for most Elite league fans, and Peterborough a welcome
return to the itinerary of Premier League supporters. With Mick Horton and Neil
Watson promoting teams in all three leagues, it will be interesting to see if
there are any occasions when they are expected to be in three places at once -
last year, with only two sides, a rain-off delayed fixture at Kent meant
that both Coventry sides took to the track on the same night, with the Bees at
Belle Vue of far less interest to most fans.
Compiling the
fixture list can't be an easy job - no other sport has to cope with competitors
appearing for two, or even three, teams at the same time, and I would be
interested to see a diary piece of just how the horse-trading takes place, if a
particularly-open promoter were so inclined. I imagine there's some conniving
and stubbornness in amidst a huge heap of accommodation and coöperation, and to
see it play out would be nothing short of fascinating.
9am, then, and
Twitter will be abuzz. Me? I'm looking out for Coventry’s
visits to Birmingham and Leicester, and when Peterborough are north of
the border. Oh, and who Poole have got in the middle of June when I'm on my
holidays down there - perfect chance to test out whether it is possible
to see the track from the multi-story car park...
ITEM: Still no news on who has – and who hasn’t –
got their visas to race in the UK
in 2014, with Jason Doyle, Rohan Tungate, and Alex Davies amongst those
possibly caught out by a technical hitch in their applications. The fault lies
in the timing of the applications, rather than the merits on which they should
be granted, and the clubs involved really have no excuse given the
well-publicised issues surrounding Sam Masters and Mason Campton last season.
With Australians,
Americans, and Russians the last of the speedway nations to actually need
visas, it might be worth considering whether the BSPA can adopt a similar
approach to that taken by Scottish football and apply, as an organisation, for
a certain number of visas each year, with the BSPA as sponsor, to ensure that
this situation does not occur too often. These visas would then be divvied up
according to the merits of each application, with the clubs unable to apply for
further visas. In one swoop, a limit on the number of non-EU riders and ensuring that those who do come have
few problems doing so.
As it is, with
riders changing clubs – and therefore sponsors – these hitches are bound to
happen from time to time, and fans of the clubs affected may miss out on worthy
additions to our leagues. Still, what does it matter if Jason Doyle has to stay
home if Joey Ringwood gets to ride?
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