TABAKA, József
DATE OF BIRTH: 17 September 1989, Debrecen, Hungary.
BRITISH CAREER: (2010) Edinburgh.
CLUB HONOUR: League Championship winner: 2010 [Edinburgh].
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.00 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: The Hungarian international became the first-ever Magyar to link with Edinburgh, when the Scottish club announced his acquisition for the 2010 campaign in mid-December. Tabaka had represented his country in the 2008 Speedway World Cup, participating in Event One at the Alfred Smoczyk Stadium, Leszno, Poland, on 12 July. Then, in 2009, he claimed thirteenth position in the World Under-21 Championship at Gorican, Croatia on 3 October, having registered 3 points from a brace of outings as track reserve.

Having agreed to join Edinburgh - who had shown an interest in signing him a couple of years previously - Tabaka took his UK bow at Scunthorpe in the Christmas Cracker event on 27 December and, in difficult conditions, did well to accrue an 8-point tally. The rider was to prove very popular with everyone at Armadale and did show signs of potential but, in a change to their declared side, he lost his place in the Monarchs' line-up to German Tobias Busch in early June.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Tabaka has signed on as a reserve for one Grand Prix at Goričan, Croatia, for the 2010 FIM Croatian SGP, but did not get a ride and is still waiting to make his SGP debut.

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 1
Events: 1 – 11th on Hungary’s list; 165th on SWC all-time list
Points: 1 – 8th on Hungary’s list; 154th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 0
Gold medals: 0

TAYLOR, Benjamin (Ben) Reece
DATE OF BIRTH: 7 November 1990, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire.
BRITISH CAREER: (2006-08) Buxton; (2009) Birmingham, Buxton; (2010) Dudley.
RIDER LINKS: Grandson of Jack Hughes (born: 3 March 1932, Roberttown, West Yorkshire). Great nephew of Arthur Wright (born: 14 October 1933, Odsal, Bradford, West Yorkshire).
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 8.09 (NL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: A team change saw Taylor released by Birmingham in May 2009, although he was told that he remained part of the club's future plans. He was replaced in the Brummies' declared line-up by James Cockle. The Dewsbury-born youngster was subsequently lined-up to join Glasgow at the start of June in place of Lee Smart, but the Scottish side eventually elected to sign Lee Dicken instead. In July, Taylor returned to National League action with his first club, Buxton, taking the place of Danny Hodgson. He went on to appear in twenty-three official meetings for the Hitmen and accumulated 220 points for a striking real-time average of 8.25.

In early-February, it was revealed that Taylor would represent the new Dudley Heathens side in the 2010 National League. Unfortunately, though, in the Heathens' historic opening meeting versus the USA Dream Team at Birmingham's Perry Barr Stadium on 7 April, Taylor was involved in a spectacular accident in his first ride when he tangled with opponent Eddie Castro on the straight. He was able to walk away from the track, but was withdrawn from the remainder of the meeting with a wrist injury. With the rider later ruled out of action for a month due to ligament damage, the Dudley management sought a temporary replacement and, shortly afterwards, they announced the signing of Jon Armstrong.

THELAUS, Jeremia
DATE OF BIRTH: 26 April 1988, Hammarö, Värmlands, Sweden.
BRITISH CAREER: (2010) Stoke.
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.00 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Thelaus initially appeared on the speedway radar when he began riding in 2006, but it would be three years before he first raced in the UK. He rode in the Kenny Smith Memorial event at Scunthorpe on 23 October 2009, scoring 2 points from three rides for Smithy's Seven, who beat a Scunthorpe Select 46-44. Then, six days later, he competed in the South Tees Silver Helmet at Redcar, netting 7 points from his five-ride schedule. His performance included notching his inaugural and only race win in Britain in heat fourteen, when he beat Mark Lemon, Michal Makovský and Peter Kildemand. But, he got the opportunity to improve on that in 2010, when Stoke signed the rider from Allsvenskan (All Swedish) League side Solkatterna as a replacement for the banned Claus Vissing.

TOMÍČEK, Luboš
DATE OF BIRTH: 14 March 1986, Prague, Czech Republic.
BRITISH CAREER: (2003) Oxford; (2004) Newcastle; (2005) Newcastle, Oxford; (2006) Oxford; (2007-08) Lakeside; (2009) Belle Vue; (2010) Somerset, Stoke.
NOTE: Tomíček also appeared for Oxford in 2007, but this is not credited in his career record because the club closed down prematurely, with all their matches expunged from the records.
RIDER LINKS: Grandson of Luboš Tomíček [1] (born: 16 August 1934). Son of Luboš Tomíček [2] (born: 10 July 1956).
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 8.96 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: After joining Lakeside in June 2007 – following the closure of Oxford – Tomíček remained in the Hammers’ line-up for the start of the following term. However, he didn’t appear for the club again after a Knock-Out Cup semi-final tie at Eastbourne on 30 August. He had crashed in heat four whilst representing Holsted in a Danish Super League match at Grindsted five days previously, the effects of which left him suffering from dizziness for several weeks. Lakeside eventually drafted in Krzysztof Jabłoński as a late-season replacement for the Czech.

Following that, Tomíček appeared lost to British racing until he was part of a raft of changes at Belle Vue in August 2009. This was a touch ironic as – in 2006 – then-Aces’ promoter Ian Thomas had tried to sign the Czech for £13,000 from Oxford, but the bid was turned down. Other incoming riders to strengthen-up the Aces were Jason Crump, plus the ‘doubling-up’ duo of Joel Parsons and MichaÅ‚ Rajkowski. Meanwhile, those replaced were Tomasz Chrzanowski and Morten Risager, together with the injured Charlie Gjedde.

Regrettably, though, in only his fourth meeting for the Aces, Tomíček broke his left collarbone in two places and suffered rib injuries in a heat fourteen accident during an Elite League encounter versus Peterborough at Kirkmanshulme Lane on 7 September. The accident occurred when guest team-mate Kevin Doolan inadvertently collected him after hitting a rut on the third and fourth bends, which had sent him careering across the track at high speed.

After Steve Boxall’s decision to quit Somerset in the early weeks of the 2010 campaign, it was announced by the Rebels’ management on 29 April that they had signed the talented Tomíček as a replacement. The easy-going rider concluded the deal very quickly with co-promoter Debbie Hancock, linking with the Oak Tree Arena-based side on loan from his parent club, Lakeside. Basing himself in the UK, the Czech’s starting average of 8.96 saw him assume the No. 1 race-jacket when he made his debut for the club on 7 May, scoring 8+1 points in a home league fixture versus Workington.

Tomíček crashed out in heat eighteen of the Czech Grand Prix on 22 May and was subsequently transferred into a waiting ambulance. Thankfully, it was only precautionary and he declared himself fit to continue racing for Somerset. However, he was unable to maintain the form he showed in his opening meeting for the Rebels and, on 17 June, the club announced that they had released him from their line-up. Although he was replaced by German racer Christian Hefenbrock, the Czech ace made a swift return to the British scene the following month, when he linked with Stoke.

The Potters had originally enlisted the services of Henning Bager to replace Claus Vissing, but when it became clear that the Dane was only available for a month, club promoter Dave Tattum instead turned to Tomíček to plug the gap. On his arrival, the Czech had completed ten matches towards a new green sheet average with Somerset and duly raced another six meetings in the No. 1 berth for Stoke, before a new 4.26 figure became operative, which allowed him to shuffle to a reserve slot. That switch coincided with some resurgent form, highlighted by a 10-point return from a league encounter versus Sheffield at Loomer Road on 7 August.  

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 6 – 69th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 16 – 79th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 25 – 64th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 0 – n/a
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 1
Events: 1 – 16th on Czech Republic’s list; 166th on SWC all-time list
Points: 4 – 12th on Czech Republic’s list; 124th on SWC all-time list
Finals: 0
Gold medals: 0

TOPINKA, Tomáš
DATE OF BIRTH: 5 June 1974, Prague, Czech Republic.
BRITISH CAREER: (1993-95) King’s Lynn; (1996) Oxford; (1997-98) King’s Lynn; (1999) King’s Lynn, Ipswich; (2001) Belle Vue; (2002) Coventry; (2003-04) King’s Lynn; (2005) King’s Lynn, Coventry; (2006-10) King’s Lynn.
MAJOR HONOURS: Czech Republic Under-21 Champion: 1992; Czech Republic Champion: 1996, 2003; Czech Golden Helmet Champion: 1996.
CLUB HONOURS: Four-Team Championship winner: 1996 [Oxford]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2005, 2007 [both King’s Lynn]; Young Shield winner: 2005 [King’s Lynn]; League Championship winner: 2006, 2009 [both King’s Lynn]; Premier Trophy winner: 2006, 2007, 2009 [all King’s Lynn].
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 9.10 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: The Czech was first identified in the colours of King's Lynn in 1993, making his official debut for the club on 10 July. His name has been synonymous with the Norfolk outfit pretty much ever since and he has rarely ridden elsewhere in a glittering career. In fact, one of the only times he plied his trade elsewhere occurred in 1996, when he represented Oxford in a year that King's Lynn didn't operate.
In 1999, he started the campaign with the Stars but moved to Ipswich in mid-term. Then, after missing the 2000 season, Topinka was a late-season signing by Belle Vue in August 2001. The rider was all set to link with Reading in 2002 until his work permit application was turned down. He subsequently sought legal advice and, after re-applying, was able to resume his British career with Coventry after missing the first six weeks of the campaign.

He rejoined King's Lynn in 2003 and his testimonial meeting was held at Saddlebow Road a year later, on 21 March 2004, when Mark Loram was victorious in an individual event. With the Czech's tall scoring and leadership qualities, the go-ahead Norfolk club went on to attain a large tophy haul from 2005 onwards. And, in 2009, Topinka led King's Lynn to League Championship and Premier Trophy glory, but missed out on the club's Knock-Out Cup success after suffering concussion, double vision, a black eye and ankle damage in a crash during the prestigious Czech Golden Helmet at Pardubice on 4 October.

Having again been named in the Stars' line-up for 2010, he began the campaign with 544 official club appearances to his name; that figure left the loyal speedster in second place - ahead of 1970s favourite Ian Turner (505 matches) - in the club's records, whilst King's Lynn legend Terry Betts (649 matches) remained in top spot.

On 17 April, King's Lynn journeyed to Rye House for a Premier Trophy encounter and the Stars' No. 1 was to sustain a broken fibula and severe bruising to his right hand as a result of a horrifying heat five accident. The race saw the home duo of Luke Bowen and Jordan Frampton gate ahead of Topinka, before the Czech endeavoured to drive outside the two Rockets in a single move coming off the fourth bend.

However, although he succeeded in getting past Frampton, he locked together with Bowen and took himself and the Harlow-born speedster into the first bend safety fence in a truly frightening crash. The match was delayed for half-an-hour while paramedics attended to the pair, who were - amazingly - able to walk away from the incident, with the home rider suffering torn shoulder ligaments and bruising. A little over a month later, on 19 May, Topinka returned to action for the Stars in a home league match versus Berwick and rode as if he'd never been away, notching a five-ride paid maximum tally of 11+4 points.

FIM Speedway Grand Prix Record:
Grand Prix ridden: 2 – 107th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix points: 15 – 80th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix races: 13 – 81st on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix race wins: 2 – 79th on SGP all-time list
Grand Prix wins: 0 – n/a      
Grand Prix finals: 0 – n/a

FIM Speedway World Cup Record:
SWC tournaments: 4
Events: 9 – 4th on Czech Republic’s list; 34th on SWC all-time list
Points: 64 – 4th on Czech Republic’s list; 33rd on SWC all-time list
Finals: 1
Gold medals: 0

TRÉSARRIEU, Mathieu (Mat)
DATE OF BIRTH: 2 March 1986, Bordeaux, France.
BRITISH CAREER: (2002-03) Isle of Wight; (2005) Reading; (2006) Redcar, Oxford, Wolverhampton; (2007) Redcar; (2010) Peterborough.
MAJOR HONOURS: French Champion: 2002, 2007, 2009.
RIDER LINKS: Brother of Stephane Trésarrieu (born: 27 February 1975, Bordeaux, France) and Sebastien Trésarrieu (born: 10 January 1981, Cenon, France).
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 3.12 (EL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Having overcome an injury earlier in the 2007 season, Trésarrieu went on to seal third place overall – courtesy of a run-off success over Stephan Katt for the podium spot – in the final round of the World Long-track Championship at Marmande in his homeland on 13 July. However, Redcar’s popular Frenchman suffered a body-blow in September that year, when he crashed during practice for the European Grass-track Championship at Swingfield in Kent, suffering a broken fibula and smashed knee socket. He was to undergo two major operations and was ruled out of action for the whole of the 2008 campaign while he recuperated.

He belatedly returned to the UK late in 2009, appearing in home and away challenge matches for Ipswich against Poole, on 8 and 14 October, respectively. And, he stepped-up his quest for a regular return to the British scene in 2010, after making a 1,500-mile road trip from Bordeaux to appear in after-the-meeting practice at Peterborough on 20 May. Having impressed the Panthers’ management, he quickly agreed terms to fill a reserve berth as the Cambridgeshire outfit dispensed with their ‘doubling-up’ duo of Klaus Jakobsen and Linus Eklöf.  

In early July, the Frenchman caught his foot in a hole and twisted it. Afterwards, the foot was too swollen to even get his boot on, but thankfully he was told nothing was broken during a subsequent trip to hospital and he was able to quickly return to action for the Panthers. However, he was to miss the the final month of the campaign after undergoing surgery on a troublesome groin injury on 27 September, having aggravated the problem when Peterborough exited the Play-Offs at the semi-final stage at home to Coventry seven days earlier.

TULLY, Andrew Bruce
DATE OF BIRTH: 26 May 1987, Douglas, Isle of Man.
BRITISH CAREER: (2003-05) Armadale; (2006) Scunthorpe; (2007) Edinburgh, Scunthorpe; (2008) Edinburgh; (2009) Edinburgh, Peterborough; (2010) Edinburgh.
CLUB HONOURS: Conference Trophy winner: 2005 [Armadale], 2006 [Scunthorpe], 2007 [Scunthorpe]; League Championship winner: 2006 [Scunthorpe], 2007 [Scunthorpe], 2008 [Edinburgh], 2010 [Edinburgh]; Knock-Out Cup winner: 2006 [Scunthorpe]; Conference Shield winner: 2006 [Scunthorpe]; Premier Trophy winner: 2008 [Edinburgh]; Play-Off winner: 2008, 2009 [Edinburgh].
2010 STARTING AVERAGE: 7.15 (PL).
ADDITIONAL INFO: Tully is currently the only rider appearing in British speedway who was born on the beautiful Isle of Man – the home of the famous TT races. His speedway career began at Linlithgow in 1997 and, having regularly appeared in second-half events at Edinburgh, he made his official debut for Armadale in a Knock-Out Cup tie at Buxton on 11 May 2003. He was to spend three seasons with the Devils – who initially competed only in the Conference Trophy and then stepped-up to the Conference League in 2004 – before joining Scunthorpe in 2006.

His time with both clubs was trophy-laden, as he emerged as a highly talented and determined rider, the only downside being when he broke both bones in his left leg in a crash during a Conference Trophy encounter at Buxton on 10 July 2005; this occurred in the opening heat, when he was unable to avoid hitting fallen team-mate Blair Scott.

Having turned down previous Premier League approaches in order to gain more experience, he eventually stepped-up to speedway’s middle tier with the senior Edinburgh side in 2007, whilst also continuing to represent Scunthorpe at Conference level. More success came his way with both clubs and, after making the full-time switch to the PL, culminated in him playing a key role in the Monarchs’ fabulous League Championship, Premier Trophy and Play-Off treble in 2008.

Remaining with Edinburgh in 2009, Tully also linked with top-flight Peterborough in a ‘doubling-up’ capacity; however, he lost the position with the Panthers upon Claus Vissing’s return from injury at the end of April – although he did agree to stay on as their official No. 8 rider. Having harnessed his great ability to leap up to second position in the Monarchs’ averages, the Douglas-born rider’s season appeared to have come to a crunching end on 3 August, when he fell in heat three of the Midland Open Championship at Wolverhampton, sustaining a broken pelvis. Tully initially felt he had aggravated an old problem in the accident at Monmore Green, and amazed doctors by being able to walk into hospital with the injury.

Edinburgh reacted by offering Thomas H. Jonasson the chance of a late run in the side, but the Swede turned down the opportunity because of his busy schedule and, instead, highly-rated German Kevin Wölbert joined the Scottish outfit to plug the gap. Remarkably, Tully regained fitness quicker than anyone had imagined and was re-declared in the Monarchs’ line-up in mid-September at the expense of Max Dilger.

And although he subsequently aggravated his injuries during a Scottish Cup encounter versus Glasgow at Armadale on 2 October, he only missed one meeting before bouncing back to help Edinburgh defeat Newcastle in the Play-Off semi-final. Indeed, amid great drama, he followed team-mate Kevin Wölbert home for a 5-1 in the second of two Golden Heats after the sides had drawn on aggregate.

Remarkably, the Monarchs went on to defeat King’s Lynn in the final for the second season on the spin. It was confirmed in December that the popular rider would remain on board with Edinburgh for their last season of racing at Armadale in 2010. And he was to enjoy another solid campaign, posting an average in excess of 7.5 points per meeting as the Scottish outfit secured a second League Championship in three seasons; this remarkably being the fourth title success of Tully’s career.

Regrettably, his campaign came to a painful end shortly afterwards, however, when he sustained a fractured and dislocated forearm whilst representing the Monarchs in heat four of the Scottish Cup against Glasgow at Ashfield Stadium on 3 October. His final statistics for the season were 320 points from forty-two official appearances, which yielded a real-time average of 7.78.