my forum is run by a host therefore i dont think; from what i can see, that i can paste the meta tag as google state i should.
This is what they tell me to do -
Before we show detailed stats and information about your site, we need to know you're really the site owner.
Site URL http://www.ukbikerrally.co.uk/
Verification status NOT VERIFIED
Verification method Meta tag HTML file
Copy the meta tag below, and paste it into your site's home page. It should go in the <head> section, before the first <body> section.
<meta name="verify-v1" content="Should be Issued Google Meta Tag Code in Here=">
Show me an example
<html>
<head>
<meta name="verify-v1" content="Should be Issued Google Meta Tag Code in Here=">
<title> My title </title>
</head>
<body>
page contents
</body>
</html>
I will contact my host when they open on Monday, to see if they can add this meta tag.
or i can try what you suggested; but i need direction on how to do it.