ELITE PREVIEW 2013 - posted 10 April 2013

Retaining the Robyn Carter trophy is the only item on Horspath’s agenda for the 2013 season.  It’s been a busy winter at the Village with a number of riders coming and going. In the door is World champion Lukasz Nowacki (pictured below) who returns to the colours where his journey with cycle speedway in Britain first started. It looked like Lukasz was having by his standards a difficult season in 2012.  Then as all great champions do, he delivered a first class showing at the European championships that put him within a whisker of the title.

 

Young Welshman Jack Harrold also joins the Hammers for the 2013 season which will be a real education for him.  Over the last few seasons Horspath have had a real ability to help riders make huge steps in terms of their progression, just ask Chris Timms, Paul Heard of course Mark Carmichael. Returning to the Hammers’ line up for 2013 are Wayne Hutt and David Carmichael who will both add depth, and quality, to the squad, with both expected to feature in the first match at home to Wednesfield.

 

Out of the door have gone legend Steve Harris and the Osborne brothers, with Harris's boots in particular being pretty much impossible to fill. Mark Boaler has a really tough job ahead with his new rider/team manager role but what Mark will lack in experience you can guarantee he will have the complete respect of his riders, and that in itself is powerful. In addition Mark has had the privilege of working under the league’s most successful manager of all time, and what an education that would have been.

 

Readers will remember the Hammers being written off last season and look what happened!  Certainly their top eigt is as strong as ever with Boaler, Nowacki, Bates and Rudman leading the way. The Hammers will be tested when their squad is required to come into action, and for that only time will tell...

 

Last year’s wooden spoon winners, Ipswich, will be going all out to lose that title this time around.  The Suffolk outfit can look forward to what will surely be their best season in the top flight since returning in 2011.  In have come a quartet of big names; the Osborne brothers have moved full time from Horspath, likewise Adam Peck and Dan Pike join the ranks after transferring from Leicester. Make no doubt about it all four riders are quality and are the big names the Eagles have been missing for the last two seasons to really add some fire power to their line up.

 

What's unique about the Ipswich team is the fact that all their riders come from the region that they race in, and they also have no foreign riders among their ranks too!  No other team in the Elite League can boast this.  The Eagles should be applauded for this achievement in itself.

 

For a number of years Ipswich have heavily resourced their youth development programme.  Now is the time when, at the sports very top level, they can begin to see the rewards. Last season Lewis Roberts burst onto the scene with some quite superb performances, lowering the colours of Nowacki and Ganzerak in his opening two matches.  He carried this form throughout the entire season, culminating with a debut in the British Open final.

 

Like Lewis, Ashley Hill is another rider who had a excellent season last term and is now ready to punch his weight as a regular first team rider.  Ashley has real quality and is testament to the youth programme Ipswich have built. Watch out for Charlie Rumbold and Richard Fellgett.  They will both be pushing hard for a first team spot this season and are expected to feature in the new 9 and 10 substitute slots to gain vital experience of the first team environment. All of the above four juniors made last year’s European Junior Final, an incredible achievement for the Ipswich club.  What a future the Eagles have.

 

That's eight riders talked about, now add Jamie Chittock, Leon Mower, Richard Williamson, Leigh Cossey and Nick Myhill to the squad list and you can see what a line up Ipswich have for the 2013 season. The Eagles will need to hit the ground running against Poole in their opener, and will be hoping the recent bad weather has not hampered their preparations too much.

 

Birmingham have, by a country mile been, the most active club in the transfer market over the winter break, rebuilding their squad ready for the new campaign. What Phil Widdas will need to do is quickly establish what his strongest line up is and get them to gel together. If this can be achieved then Birmingham could have a really good season to look forward too.  Although Birmingham are potentially weaker in their top end, certainly the riders they have brought in as replacements make their actual squad significantly stronger for the new season.

 

They have lost a real star in Paul Heard and in addition its highly likely Marcus Wadhams will not feature in this campaign. This leaves a great weight on the shoulders of Chris Timms (pictured above).  He is Birmingham through and through and is going to be the key figure for the Monarchs as they look to avoid the wooden spoon they have been tipped for. The facts are Timms is a World class rider, who has the ability to win races for fun in the toughest of matches. The challenge for Birmingham is finding support for Timms to relieve pressure; and they have made a number of signings to hopefully achieve this.

 

Chris Parish is one of the best riders outside of the Elite League and is a real astute signing from the Birmingham management. Bury's number one rider who will be looking to transfer his indoor form to the outdoor season.  The Polish duo of Dominic Rycharski and Konrad Pientak rejoin for 2013 season, and if they can compete on a regular basis will be a real asset to the Birmingham team. Both were integral in Czestochowa’s amazing silver medal finish at last year’s European Club Championships. 

 

If they can re-capture this form it will give Birmingham a strong top end to their side.  Their Coventry team mate Myke Grimes (pictured below) caused perhaps the biggest shock of the season in 2012 by coming from nowhere to make the British Open Final.  Myke will be looking to establish himself as a first choice name on the Birmingham team sheet as he makes a debut season in the Elite League.

 

The Birmingham management have intelligently built a link with neighbours East Park by bringing in David Ball, Stuart Bentley and Joe Kemp.  Likewise Mark Winwood has utilised his Welsh connections to bring in both Kieron Jones and Nicky Evans from Newport.  Jones is reported to be in great form ahead of the season.  In addition three riders from Hethersett have signed up for the season.  Josh Colby, Lee Grange and young Oliver Riley all join, with Grange in particular able to add experience to the line up.  The former Norwich, Sheffield and Ipswich rider will be looking to recapture the form of 2011 where he had by far his best season at the top level.

 

Home riders Scott Millward, Nathan Groves and Mark Winwood will play key roles in bringing some stability to the new look Monarchs’ side.  The key to bedding in so many new riders is to build the side around riders who know what it means to pull on the famous red and white shirt. Birmingham know they have a tough challenge ahead, especially as they have to race their home matches away from their Perry Barr circuit.  But sides should take note!  When Birmingham first appeared back in the Elite League they were written off, only to have a fantastic debut season. Let’s see what happens this time around...

 

The early money for 2013 Elite League championship seems to have been placed on Wednesfield, who have made some superb signings over the winter to try to improve on their bronze medal finish last term.  The trio of Ben Mould, Chris Jewkes and of course Lee Aris is a formidable one.  Add to this British and European number two Paul Heard and the top end of the Aces’ team looks pretty frightening. 

 

Although Heard did not win a major title last season he was by far the most consistent British rider in 2012, with two silver medals in the majors accompanied by being top of the 2012 Elite League averages.  The season Paul had in Horspath colours seems to have been pivotal in his development as a rider and it’s only a matter of time before he takes a major title in 2013 with the British individual and World championships both in mind.

 

The last minute addition of Craig Marchant is a brilliant signing for Wednesfield.  He is probably one of the hardest riders in the league to pass and the Aces could not have signed a better team rider with the experience he has. The signing of Przemymslaw Binkowski has flown under the radar.  Expect to see Binky when the likes of Poole and Horspath are the opponents.  No stranger to racing in Britain with appearances under his belt for a number of teams including Horspath - always great value and always in the thick of the action.

 

In 2012 Ricki Johnson (pictured below) won the European junior championships.  He will be looking to make the transition from junior to senior racing, and could not be around a better group of riders to help him along this journey.  Although not the biggest of riders Ricki is really powerful and will be looking to secure a regular place in the Aces’ top six to continue his progression to date.
 

 

Another junior who is looking to progress into an established senior rider is Matt Haddock.  Matt had a number of superb performances for Wednesfield last year, most notably in front of the sky cameras at Leicester where he was quite brilliant.  In addition, Wednesfield have Scott Doherty, Mark Griffiths, and the Stockport duo of Ben Higham and Terry Norman in their squad for the season.  All four riders are vastly experienced in the Elite League and it’s easy to see why the Aces are the early favourites to win the title this season. 

 

The Aces don’t look like they have a weak link but Wednesfield’s fate will be down to their home form.  They have dropped points over the last few seasons at home, and will be fully aware that they need to make Ashmore Park a fortress if they are to build a successful title challenge.

 

Right up to the final stages of last season Sheffield were in the hunt for the title but ran out of steam at the final hurdle.  They have made a number of signings over the winter that put them in a really good position to mount a serious challenge this time around.  With Leicester stepping out of the top flight Sheffield moved in quickly to sign Adam Stephenson, who joins up with his Hull team mate Andy Angell for the first time in the Elite League.  Adam is rumoured not to be the biggest fan of the Graves track so will need to come to terms with the circuit in quick time.

 

Of course Sheffield’s number one rider is the current British champion Andy Angell (pictured above in the colours of Hull).  If there is one rider who in recent years has helped to be an ambassador for the sport in terms its promotion and public image it’s Andy.  His dedication to the sport in terms of training and preparation is flawless and this has helped to inspire the next generation of riders to one day wear the famous white jersey that Andy has owned for the last two seasons.

 

Radek Handke had a fantastic season in 2012, the pinnacle being his 16 point maximum in the final of the European Club championships at Kalety.  Sheffield will need Handke fully fit it they are to make a title challenge in 2013.  The Polish star has had a on and off back problem for a while now and the Sheffield management will be crossing their fingers this injury clears up ready for the new season.  If only Sheffield could track Jono Birks for the entire season!  When he rides he makes a monumental difference to the Sheffield team.  One of a select group of riders you would pay to watch and Birks is an A-lister in terms of entertainment.  Let’s just hope his work commitments are kind to him this term.

 

Home based riders Jamie Brown and newly crowned British indoor champion Ryan Hoyland will be integral to the Sheffield challenge this term.  In every team you need the riders who understand the pride in pulling on the club’s colours and both Brown and Hoyland have raced for Sheffield from grassroots through to now.  Perhaps the most underrated rider of the 2012 season was Jamie Ball.  The former Sandwell rider had an awesome season for Sheffield scoring big points on numerous occasions. 

 

The Smith brothers, Lee and Matt, are both quality, although university commitments do hinder Lee’s availability across the entire season.  A fit Lee Smith is a real asset to the Sheffield management.  It’s no surprise they field Lee whenever he is available to wear the famous orange and black colours.

 

There is a strong Polish contingent to the Sheffield line up in 2013, with Pawel Idziorek joined by Bartosz Giemza and former European champion Damien Zeremba.  Idziorek was a real surprise package in 2012, catching many riders out with his pure raw speed.  The lad is rapid around the track and absolutely loves his cycle speedway.  Riding in the same team as Angell, Handke and co will really help Pawel develop further in 2013. 

 

Giemza is yet to make his debut in England, and like Idziorek has bags of raw speed, being a BMX racer back in his native Poland.  The signing of Damien Zeremba is an intelligent one.  If the former Bydgoszcz rider can find anything like his previous best then that’s a real bonus to the South Yorkshire club to be able to utilise.

 

In addition throw into the mix Dan Chambers, Mikey Hewitson, Jake Read and Richard Hudson and you can see Sheffield have an incredibly strong squad, perhaps the strongest they have ever had, and will be serious title challengers this season.

 

Poole finished as runners-up last season and will be going all out to get their hands on that elusive Elite League title. Their recruitment over the closed season suggests this too, with five riders coming in - in all fairness five riders who are all class acts.

Steve Harris knows exactly what it takes to win the Elite League, and that's experience that is going to be vital to Poole if they are to go one better than last season. Not only will Steve be able to come in and support the superb Poole youngsters in terms of their development, it’s also an astute signing considering Steve is an excellent Polish speaker. 


















Steve Harris and Gavin Wheeler join forces at Poole this season.

In addition to Harris, Poole have signed two other riders who are born winners, two times British Champions Gavin Wheeler and Phil Howells. I would expect Wheeler to feature more than Howells, with the Norfolk based rider most likely to feature away from home, traditionally where Poole have struggled in the Elite League. In fact, Poole were the only team in 2012 to boast a 100% home record, something they must continue throughout the new season.

Two new faces to the Elite League in 2013 will be Poland's brightest new prospects Arkadious Szymanski and Bartek Grabowski.  Both made their debuts in the UK last season when they rode in the European junior championships.  Grabowski in particular gave a brilliant account of himself, hence Poole moving so quickly to sign him up.  Bartek is by far the best junior to come out of Poland for many a year and there is much weight on the young Ostrow riders shoulders to be the next superstar of the sport in Poland.

Returning to Baiter Park are Polish superstars Maciej Ganzerak, Greg Gluchowski and of course the new European champion Marcin Szymanski. Gluchowski had a great season last term and Szymanski set the league alight with some blistering performances, so expect more of the same from this trio in 2013.

Poole have arguably the most successful rider development programme in the sport, with the likes of Leyton Glover, Aaron Morgan, Sam Hearn and to some extent Tom Reed all coming through the ranks at Poole to become established first team riders. The Poole management will know they will need to get the right balance in their team selection between experience, imports and their home grown talent, so expect them to really utilise the new number 9 and 10 ruling to their full advantage.  

In addition to all the riders mentioned above, Poole also have Tom Colling, Pete Young and the returning Chris Roberts in their squad, so expect a huge challenge to come from the Dorset club in 2013.

All in all the Elite League under the six team format will produce some breath-taking racing with six super strength teams battling it out for the title. Let’s just hope the home grown riders who have progressed through the grassroot ranks in each of the respective clubs get the opportunities they fully deserve over the course of the season.