A HUGE crowd witnessed Northampton's opening meeting at Brafield on Thursday night.
Speedway had not been staged at the circuit since the late 1960s but the relaunch was a big success on all fronts, apart from on track for the Foxes. Visitors Ipswich ran out 49-41 Knockout Cup victors over the Foxes on the night but the new promotion were delighted with a trouble-free first night at the Shaleway. Co-promoter Paul Hunsdon said: “Of course it was disappointing that we didn’t win on the night, or at least run it to the last heat, but we have to look at the big picture and I think everyone has gone home happy. “The main positive was that everything ran smoothly and we showed that we can deal with a big crowd, there was parking for everyone and there was still room for more. “We delayed the start of racing by a few minutes which was the right thing to do, and I know that not a single person missed a race. The turnstiles coped with the demand, the food was plentiful, and we know the track will evolve – we already have some more ideas on that." Ipswich manager Paul Hurry said: “When we all got there and walked out on track, we were thinking, ‘wow, this isn’t quite what we expected.’ But the boys all went there with an open mind. “The main body of the team are all experienced enough to be able to deal with these tracks. It’s one that was a lot smaller than we expected. If they can do anything, our boys can turn a bike. All of our boys can ride small tracks really well, so that helps. “Going there with the unknown as to what conditions would be like and what the material was going to be and feel like was tough, but they all took it in their stride and dealt with it.”
