Dream Team : Niall Strudwick

My name is Niall, I have been going to speedway since the age of two years old. I have mainly followed Eastbourne, but now as I am riding I don't really have the chance to follow one team. But here's my dream team which I think would do well.

Kennett	Penhall

Martin Dugard
My all time hero. A very good team man, whether it was to do with the bike or the rider he would be there to help and he is a very good captain as well and who can forget that magical night at Coventry in 2000? I can't, I was there.

Henka Gustafsson
Henka was a very good rider at King's Lynn because it seemed to suit his style, it was his sort of track. It was a shame that he never made it as World Champion or made it into the top three in his career, because I thought he had a lot of talent.

Bruce Penhall
Bruce Penhall was a very good rider who I would love to meet. I think he had a lot more world titles in him if he hadn't retired in 1982. From what I have seen about Bruce in my old Speedway collections, he was the ever professional with his equipment and with fans and riders alike.

Sam Ermolenko
This man 'Sudden Sam' never knows when to hang up the helmet. I personally think that given the choice he would have never really retired, but he has a good business behind him now and he works with Sky on the GP's along with Louis, so he is still involed with the sport that way. I know Sam well as well and he is a good friend to help me with my racing.

Hans Nielsen
My idol is Hans Nielsen. A great rider through the whole of his career. Like Penhall he was a great professional in his own way. He was noted as a very good and fair rider, but the only fault I thought Hans had was he didn't always team ride his partner home. Hans should have won at least five world titles but he was just unlucky, especially at Bradford in 85 and Gothenburg in '84. But still a very good rider.

Edward Kennett
Edward Kennett is a young rider just getting to grips with heat leader position with Poole. Hopefully next season Ed should be given the chance to go in as a wild card at Cardiff after 3 years in a row of being at reserve.

Tomasz Gollob
Well my final rider is a man who doesn't need any introduction, Tomasz Gollob. He has to be the most exciting rider in the GP's with his long legs and great bike control. A great example of this was in the GP in Wroclaw in 1998 when it was the Final and he went past Jimmy Nilsson on the Final corner, now that was a race. The list for Tomasz is endless of great races.

This article was first published on 22nd November 2007

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