the stat reference comes easier to some than others, ever since I started wargaming, I've been able to remember the stats of pretty much anything very quickly,

I'm pretty fortunate in this regard, and one of my friends, until only recently, would just throw a handful of dice and then look expectantly at me to tell him how many hits/saves he made...

I'll also echo the 'make tactical decisions during your opponent's move' point, it's free time, let them agonise over how to arrange their formation and think about what to do next, also, don't second guess yourself, if you make a move and realise it's a mistake, chalk it down to experience and remember to avoid it next time, don't hesitate to move your formation, mulling over every possible permutation while you do so, try to be 90% confident you're happy with the action.... it's fine to change your mind once or twice a turn, but if you umm and ahh with every single model, it eats up play time

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You get quicker as you get more used to the game and the environment. What you just have to have in mind is that the clock is ticking, might be a good thing to remember how Space Hulk used to be played with a timer. As you get more tournament experience you get faster and still have time to chat with your opponents. Plus finishing a game quickly gets you more time to chat to others.

I must admit I suffer from this as well, although I am starting to deal with it by just saying 'what the hell' or throwing a dice to decide...

Thing is second guessing often makes things worse I find lol

If I can see the game going against me it becomes the perfect opportunity to try random things out that I'd not considered previously, I've got nothing to lose at that point!

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I have difficulty finishing games in the alloted time, and am probably guilty of most of the things on Curis' list.
A couple of other thoughts.

• Try to pick an army with 'basic' strategies - Eldar need much more thought than most armies for example, while Orks are pretty straightforward.
• Use lists with fewer units per formation. It is both faster to move, and you have less dice to throw / resolve - I think Tim's Speed Freak army came in at ~150 + units where most armies average around 60-90.
• Use lists with fewer different types in it (or remember the stats beforehand) to reduce delays, and
  consider creating your own abbreviated cross reference sheet.
• Start as soon as possible; before the 'official' time (if permitted) to make the most of it.
• Bring a tray for your army - to save time transporting it to other tables and for display purposes

Finally, I have found over the years that my games finish quickly when I am losing, but often drag out to a draw when I am winning, even though it feels that all are being played at the same rate. It could be a sign that you are making your opponent think hard as well

All the slow playing I've come across (or've done myself) has never been malicious. I was playing a 40K Grand Tournament once where my opponent slow-played his last turn (having gone first) in extremis - making two nonsense ref calls against me just so I wouldn't get my last turn. I didn't get my turn, round time expired, he won. Utter Cad. I had words with the referees after.

Only 140 units for my Call to Arms '05 & WPS GT '06 winning army. & yes, more units can mean more time to move and dice to roll, although I tend to be more slap-dash when I have more units which can lead to being caught in ways that I wouldn't have wanted if I'd been more careful in my deployment.

don't worry, it gets easier. All the rules and stats you need will eventually sink in, reducing time checking things - more experienced players rarely check up on stuff. Often they don't even bother to bring rule books!

Additionally you'll play faster - not just working through the steps but spending less time thinking about what you are going to do. You'll get a feel as you build experience. You'll be playing as much by instinct than by reasoning and odds calculations. More experienced players will know what their next move will be as soon as their opponent has finished his move (The next move will just 'come to them') and often well before that. If such a player actually has to think about his move, you know you're giving him a hard time.

Thanks for all the advice people.

There are a lot of tips here that can help speed up my game.

Much appreciated

Couple of other things; know what is a threat to your army so you can concentrate on it early, and ignore units that aren't a threat. With practise you'll quickly spot what will cause your army problems - its not always the biggest or the one with the most firepower.

Also, know what your units are there for and use them appropriately. For example my 4 units of death koptas have the following purpose; turn one act early along with my planes so i can out activate my opponent, forcing them to activate a big unit with no real target. This lets my big units activate unmolested without being concerned about getting caught out. Turn two the deth koptas loiter around mid board either triggering assaults or just moving so they're within double distance of all 6 objectives. Turn three they're saved untill very last so i can wait untill all my opponents units are activated and i can then move to contest/capture the appropriate objective. More than one game has been won by a single deth kopta.

Since i know vaguely what im going to do it makes my first 9 activations on turn one extremely quick - roughly 20 mins

And beer and clubbing never affect you either, Rug?