HOW do you reward a team that has just won everything there is for them to win in a speedway season?
Sitting down with the Daily Echo to review the 2024 season, Poole Pirates promoter Danny Ford laughs – a trip to Las Vegas is the answer in Poole.
A tongue-in-cheek promise for the trip came after pressure from outgoing skipper Ben Cook over a beer earlier in the season, but Ford has remained true to his word and the side will fly to Nevada on Sunday.
He explained: “You think the treble is always very tough to do. Usually, you have a slip up along the way.
“But the boys just delivered. They were absolutely fantastic.
“I think that extra little incentive spurred them on at the end, so to reward them with a trip to Vegas, it's the least we can do.
“They have been truly fantastic for us this year and we might have over committed on it a little bit but we will forgive them and they deserve it.”
It’s just reward for a season in which Poole were dominant.
After finishing top of the league yet again, the Pirates went on to secure each of the three trophies they were contesting, claiming the BSN Series, the Championship title and the KO Cup.
A bumper crowd packed into Wimborne Road to watch a sensational comeback from a 12-point first leg deficit in the Championship Grand Final, the highlight of a season that ‘couldn’t have gone much better’.
“At the start of the year, we had high hopes,” Ford said.
“You always say you want to be in the mix for securing the treble, and we were.
-
Skipper Cook returns to lead Pirates to retain BSN Series title
-
Comeback kings: Sensational Pirates overturn deficit to secure Championship
-
Treble triumph: Pirates secure KO Cup to seal sensational season
“We were confident with the team we built, we felt there was good room for improvement throughout.”
The side lost just once at home all season – to Oxford in August.
But Ford said this, while a bitter pill to swallow, helped give the side the kick they needed to finish the season strongly.
“We had a similar situation back in 2022 where we lost at home and then we went on to do the clean sweep,” he said.
“That was kind of the same as what we felt this year.
“I think we felt we were invincible, particularly at home, and that that loss against Oxford really gave us the kick up the backside we needed, to be honest.
“Everyone realised that it's not just going to be given to us.
“We need to really knuckle down and take this if we want to be challenging for the silverware.
“From then on, we went on a fantastic run of winning home and away up until we went to Oxford in the playoff final and obviously lost there but turned it around at home.”
He added: “The crowd's been behind us all year. We've seen some great racing and brought on some new, nice young developing riders to the league, which has been great to see.
“I think all in all, a truly fantastic season and one for the history books.”
The team itself saw one change from the one that was unveiled ahead of the season start in March, with Vinnie Foord replacing Max Perry at reserve.
“A lot of people saw that as a like-for-like swap and not necessarily good for team morale,” Ford said.
“But Vinnie came in and wow, didn't he produce.
“He doubled his average and became a real crowd favourite.
“That was really encouraging and that gave us that extra little bit at the bottom we were perhaps missing, but other than that, the team has been fantastic.”
Pirates’ top four of Richard Lawson, Tom Brennan, Ben and Zach Cook showed their class throughout, with Lawson already signed on for next season.
“Richard's one of, if not the best rider in the league,” Ford said. “Such a consistent performer, very rarely does he not hit double figures, and you need that from your number one.
“You need someone who's going to go out there and deliver in heat one so that your reserves aren't under pressure in heat two, Rich is that man.
“He's such a hard rider and I remember when he came in in 2022, a few people questioned his signing then, thinking that he's never necessarily been such a formidable force round Poole.
“When you look at him now, very seldom do you see him get beat around here.
“So to have that stability and that nucleus of the team built around him is important because there's a few riders who will be moving on, unfortunately.
“To have Richard here for yet another season, leading our charge for 2025 was really important.”
One rider who will be moving on is skipper Ben Cook, who has gone from strength to strength in 2024, his fourth season with the Pirates.
Cook was a ‘sensation’ with Polish side Unia Leszno in the Ekstraliga in August, with Ford saying once they saw his success there, they knew it would be tough to retain his services.
“He's the perfect build for big Polish tracks and he wants to move up in the world of speedway,” Ford said.
“The way to do that is, naturally, you move away from the Championship, you move into Poland and then hopefully move on to the GPs.
“We completely understand that, we didn't want to be holding him back.”
Ford said he wishes Cook well in Poland, adding that he won’t be a stranger at Wimborne Road next year as he’ll be continuing to live with team manager Neil Middleditch.
With Cook on his way out, work is well underway to find his replacement and fill the Poole one-to-seven.
With team points limits coming into play, with Poole’s sitting at more than 46, Ford knows that’ll mean some riders leaving, but new names coming in.
“We've got a good idea where we're going with the team building now,” he said.
“I'm very happy with what we've got, just filling in the final spots and obviously while we've got an idea of what the points limit will be, nothing will be confirmed until the AGM, which is the start of November.
“We don't want to overcommit ourselves until the points limit is finalised, at which stage we'll start making team announcements fast and I'd imagine we'll have the full team announced hopefully this side of Christmas.”
Ford said he is looking forward to a bit of a break before 2025 begins in earnest.
“I do truly love it, it's a great honour to be custodian of this great club and I'm a speedway fan first and foremost, but the pressures of running a club like Poole are vast,” he said.
“There's a lot of expectation from our supporters to deliver year on year.
“Last year was seen as a failure, even though we won one trophy and made two finals, finished top of the league, for a lot of other clubs that be seen as a successful season.
“For us, it was seen as a disappointment, this year was seen as a success because we won in the treble.
“It does weigh heavy on you, the expectations of the supporters.
“So I'm looking forward to a little bit of downtime, take that weight off for a little bit.”
Ford added: “It does feel like the winter drags on a little bit too long for us speedway supporters.
“Hopefully, come April we'll be chomping at the bit again and I'm very confident that we're putting together yet again a very competitive team.
“We'll go out with the aim of retaining all of that silverware.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here