Sheffield Tigers: War of the Roses revival plotted after top flight return

It’s a head-to-head which has a rich history in the sport and the teams will meet again in 2020 following Tigers’ elevation back into the top league.

And club bosses are keen to provide their riders with the chance to earn the bragging rights for supporters.

“Sheffield against Belle Vue was always one of the good, proper rivalries in Speedway,” Bates told.

“As soon as we announced the news that we were moving back into the top league, it was the one fixture our supporters were instantly talking about.

“There’s only 30-odd miles or so between the two clubs and I think it’s fair to say the crowds for those meetings will be huge.

“We’re not quite sure yet what’s got to happen fixture wise in terms of what happens when, but one way or another we’d love to bring the War of the Roses back.”

Bates has also spoken of his delight to be able to bring back traditional Thursday night racing to Owlerton and says it brings back many personal memories.

“Because of my involvement for a fair few years now, people may forget that I’m Sheffield through-and-through as well,” he said.

“I used to go and watch Sheffield on a Thursday as well when I was a kid and I agree you can’t beat Speedway under the floodlights.

“We had to move to Sunday’s this year and no matter what we tried, it just didn’t work for one reason or another.

“But you can tell everyone is excited about next season already and it’s going to be great to have Sheffield back in the top league.”

And Bates says he can’t wait to get cracking with team plans once the AGM is completed later this week.

“We’ve sat down and we’ve talked things through quite thoroughly,” Bates said.

“To have riders ‘phoning us has been brilliant and it shows that people want to ride for Sheffield.

“We’ll be speaking to riders from around the world as well as in Britain and we’re confident we can build a team who’ll be in the mix.”