Berwick Bandits speedway club still have no buyer

Nov 15 2008 by Brian Daniel, The Journal

BOSSES at a Northumberland speedway club are pleading with the sport’s governing body to allow them more time to save it.

As previously reported by The Journal, Berwick Bandits is facing the end of the track after owner Peter Waite opted to sell up for personal reasons last month.

He set a deadline of midnight on Wednesday for potential buyers to come forward, but no serious offers were received.

Mr Waite is currently at the annual general meeting of the British Speedway Promoters’ Association in Spain, where he is expected to declare what the club’s intentions are for the 2009 season.

And the owner last night said he is to plead with the promoters to give him more time to find a buyer, and save the club from extinction.

Mr Waite believes “a few more days could make a vital difference.”

Speaking from the AGM venue in Spain, he said: “I have gone past my own deadline of midnight on Wednesday and I am battling harder than ever to keep the Bandits alive by looking actively for a buyer for the sake of the town of Berwick and the army of supporters who deserve nothing more than a continuation of their speedway. I’m trying a massive salvage exercise now, but I can only reiterate the one vital fact – there is still no deal on the table at this stage – we still do not have a new buyer in tow.

“I’m desperate that we can get some positive outcomes from the next few days and my fight goes on, although the big problem is now that I’m always going to be right up against the clock like never before, but I have no option, I must press ahead for a solution to the problem and a time extension is the first item on my list.

“I don’t have a magic wand to wave, there’s no easy or even obvious solution but I can assure the fans and the area I’m doing everything possible to make sure the Bandits don’t go down, but it’s an intense struggle. We need more time, we need to push the deadlines set upon us and the more time we get the better our chances become, but the time limits are out of our control.

“I’m trying 100%, I won’t let this side go without a fight, as the fans deserve it, and we’ve made history before so maybe we can do it again, after all history is made by the press of a button or the stroke of a pen and I want history to be made again to keep the Bandits rolling on with new owners at the helm. The fight goes on to the end.”

The Bandits were founded in 1968 and have competed for 41 consecutive seasons. Mr Waite bought the Shielfield Park club in 1999.