Peterborough Panthers: Scott Nicholls hopes way can be found for racing in 2024

Scott Nicholls captained Peterborough Panthers to the Premiership title in 2021

Former Peterborough Panthers captain Scott Nicholls hopes a way can still be found to enable the team to continue racing in 2024.

The Panthers said farewell to their East of England Showground with a special meeting on Saturday.

It had to be cut short after riders Niels Kristian Iversen and Ryan Douglas were injured in a crash.

"Miracles won't happen unless you push and pull, you never know," Nicholls told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire.

"It would be great if it did stay here - they can't develop on it straight away, so maybe something could happen, we'll cross our fingers and hope for the best."

"It'll (the Showground) be sadly missed but hopefully they can do something, so it's got another few years.

"But it's like anything, you just have to take the good memories, keep those close to heart and not dwell on it."

• Read more: Panthers bid farewell to Showground

The Panthers - Premiership champions as recently as 2021 - have been based at the Showground since their formation in 1970.

But the entire 165-acre site is set for a £50m redevelopment by its owners, Asset Earned Power Group (AEPG), which should lead to the creation of 400 jobs.

The East of England Arena is regarded as one of the country's best speedway facilities

Club owner Keith Chapman is looking for another site to build a stadium, but starting from scratch would take too long for the team to compete next year.

David Howe, a member of Peterborough's 1999 title-winning team, told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire: "It was lovely to see so many people here (for the farewell meeting), it felt like we were back in the mid-90s when the place was buzzing.

"It's a crying shame, I don't know behind the scenes things, but I'm pretty sure they're not going to be building on this place next week."

Another former Panthers rider, Ulrich Ostergaard, flew from Denmark for the meeting and said: "I bleed red and black, this is where my heart is. I'm still hoping can be sorted to save the club at some stage."

Iversen was awarded victory at the farewell meeting as he had scored the most points before the crash, which resulted in a section of fencing being seriously damaged.

He was taken to hospital to be checked over, but Douglas was able to walk away from the incident following treatment.

"Scans show nothing is broken, but I am pretty battered," Iversen posted on social media on Sunday.

"They kept me in hospital overnight for observation due to a knock to my chest. Thanks for all your concerns."