1964 Provincial Speedway League
The 1964 Provincial Speedway League was the fifth and final season of the Provincial League in the United Kingdom. Twelve speedway teams took part. A second division of British speedway would not return until 1968. Season summary The 1964 season started in controversy which led to the Provincial League running 'black'. Officially the 1964 Provincial League season did not exist. Wolverhampton Wolves refused to move up to the National League after winning the Provincial League title in 1963. The two leagues could not agree about the situation which led to the Provincial League being outlawed by the Speedway Control Board. All National League riders were forbidden to ride on Provincial League tracks. Provincial League riders were warned by the Speedway Control Board that they were in breach of ACU regulations and could be suspended from all competitive racing. They were also barred from the Speedway World Championship. The Stoke Potters, St Austell Gulls and Rayleigh Rockets all ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Speedway Provincial League
The Provincial League was a league competition for speedway teams in the United Kingdom. The Provincial League created as a breakaway league from the National League and continued for five seasons between 1960 and 1964. History The 'Provincial League' name had previously been used for the second tier of the National League in the 1930s, although the name was dropped after two seasons, when it was renamed to National League Division Two. The new Provincial League was formed in the winter of 1959/60, when a group of promoters dissatisfied with the declining National League decided to form a breakaway league. Manchester businessman and sometime midget car driver Mike Parker had run a number of pirate meetings at Liverpool and Bradford and was involved with one at Cradley Heath in the summer of 1959. Interest was aroused by many people and a meeting was called in Manchester for like-minded people. A number of promoters and former riders including Reg Fearman and Ian Hoskins met to d ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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St Austell Gulls
The St Austell Gulls were a speedway team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1964 at the Cornish Stadium at Par, St Austell in Cornwall. In 1997 the team rode at the Clay Country Moto Parc until the club finally closed in 2000. Early years 1949–1954 The Cornish Stadium took two years to build but once in place works started on the track which was designed by famous riders Jack Parker, Vic Duggan and Bill Kitchen.Jackson, J. (2006) ''St Austell Speedway'', Stroud: Tempus Publishing. In 1949 the track operated under an open licence but ran a series of meetings under the team names, the St Austell Pixies and St Austell Badgers before finally settling on the Gulls nickname. In 1950 the Gulls entered National League Division Three and competed again in 1951. In 1952 they entered the Southern League, finishing bottom and again the following season but rising just the one place. Former West Ham Hammers and Harringay Racers star George Newton managed the team, hav ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ivor Brown (speedway Rider)
Ivor John Brown (30 May 1927 – 30 March 2005) was a motorcycle speedway rider from England. He was the captain of Cradley Heathens speedway team during the 1960s. After retiring from riding he became promoter of Long Eaton and Scunthorpe speedway. His off-track occupation was postmaster and grocer of the village General Stores in Wymeswold. Career Born in Wymeswold, Leicestershire, Ivor Brown started speedway racing at Long Eaton in 1952, following earlier grasstrack riding, and moved to second-half rides at Birmingham and then Leicester. He made a few team appearances for Leicester Hunters between 1953 and 1959,Jones, Alan (2004) ''Speedway in Leicester: The Hunters Era'', Automedia, p. 146-7 but it was at Yarmouth that he first made regular team appearances, when he was skipper of the Yarmouth Bloaters team in the Southern Area League and the 1960 inaugural Provincial League competition, scoring 176 points from 18 matches. With the closure of Yarmouth he transferred to Cra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Charlie Monk (speedway Rider)
Warren “Charlie” Monk (born 5 February 1940) is a former international speedway rider from Australia. Speedway career Monk won a bronze medal at the Speedway World Team Cup in the 1965 Speedway World Team Cup when he represented Great Britain (during the time period when Oceania riders were allowed to represent Britain). He rode in the top tier of British Speedway riding primarily for Glasgow Tigers. He was a four times British/Commonwealth finalist and also represented Scotland in test matches. World final appearances World Team Cup * 1965 - Kempten* (with Barry Briggs / Nigel Boocock / Ken McKinlay / Jimmy Gooch) - 3rd - 18pts (1) ''*Note: Monk rode for Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ... in the World Team Cup'' References 1940 ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Long Eaton Speedway
Long Eaton motorcycle speedway teams operated from 1950 until 1997 in Long Eaton, England. Teams have raced at the Long Eaton Stadium as the Long Eaton Archers, Long Eaton Rangers, Nottingham Outlaws and the Long Eaton Invaders. The Invaders returned in 2011, with home meetings taking place at the Leicester Lions' track. History Speedway events had been hosted at Long Eaton from as early as 1929, the first meeting being on 18 May 1929. The team were founder members of the 1929 Speedway English Dirt Track League but withdrew and had their results expunged. The ''Derby Evening Telegraph'' described the oval circuit as having four laps to the mile, with straights and the bends 'to allow broadsiding at 60 mph'. The last meeting of this era was on 10 June 1930. Speedway events returned to Long Eaton in 1950 with a team initially called the "Archers". The team operated until 1953 when the promotion closed. The "Archers" name was again used when the track re-opened in 1963 un ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Cradley Heath Heathens
Cradley Heathens was a motorcycle speedway team from Dudley, England. The team was founded in 1947 and competed at the top level of British speedway until its closure in 1995. It was revived as Dudley Heathens in 2010, competing in the National League, reverting to the Cradley Heathens name in 2013. It ceased operating after the 2019 season. History Cradley Heath speedway team was formed in 1947 and first raced at Dudley Wood Stadium on 21 June 1947 after a number of away appearances prior to the opening of the newly built stadium. They raced in the 1947 Speedway National League Division Three and took the name Cradley Heath Cubs for the first two seasons. After closure at the end of the 1952 season the track reopened in 1959 for one unlicensed meeting and in 1960 the Heathens entered the newly formed Provincial League. The club won their first silverware after winning the 1961 and 1963 Provincial League Knockout Cup (the second division cup). From 1973 to 1976 they rode under ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Middlesbrough Bears
The Middlesbrough Bears were a British speedway team which operated under various names from 1939 until their closure in 1996. History The team was initially nicknamed the Bears in 1939 by the club's general manager Vic Wieland. The track at Cleveland Park, which operated in the pioneer days of the late 1920s, was promoted by Albion Auto Racers of Stockport, Cheshire, ran sporadically throughout the 1930s and for a short spell in 1939, staged a couple of open meetings in 1945, then saw competitive league speedway from 1946 until 1948. The Bears won the Northern League in 1946 and Division Two in 1947 before the promotion moved to Newcastle in 1949. The Bears nickname was again used when the track re-opened in 1961 under the guidance of former rider turned promoter Reg Fearman, who was a multi track promoter and one of the brains behind setting up the Provincial League. At the end of the 1964 season the Bears team moved to Halifax and the track staged challenge matches in 1965 an ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sheffield Tigers
The Sheffield 'Tru Plant' Tigers are a motorcycle speedway team based in Sheffield, England. They currently race in the British SGB Premiership, and their home meetings take place at Owlerton Stadium. The Tigers traditionally hold their race nights on Thursdays between March and October. The Tigers are sponsored by Tru Plant, promoted by Damien Bates, Peter Mole and Julie Reading. History Owlerton was a purpose built speedway track built in 1929. The team were inaugural members of the English Dirt Track League and Northern league the following season. In 1930 they rode as the Sheffield Blades. It operated for most of the pre-war years and re-opened for a short spell in 1945. The team operated in the Northern League of 1946 and in the National League Division Two between 1947 and 1950. The team won their first trophy in 1947, after winning the British Speedway Cup (Div 2). It closed part way through 1951 and staged open meetings in 1952. The track re-opened in 1960 and ha ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Poole Pirates
Poole Pirates (also known as Poole Speedway) are a motorcycle speedway team based in Poole, England, competing in the SGB Championship. The club have been the champions of the United Kingdom on ten occasions. Poole Speedway is promoted by local businessman Matt Ford and son Danny Ford, who took over promoting rights of the club in 1998. The team is managed by past rider and former Great Britain team manager Neil Middleditch. Wimborne Road Stadium has been home to the club since it was founded in 1948. In August 2004, Poole hosted the Speedway World Cup final, which was won by Sweden. Stadium Poole Stadium (also known as Wimborne Road Stadium), has been the Pirates' home track since the club was created in 1948. It is situated near to the town centre and is owned by Poole Borough Council. The stadium's capacity was limited to 5,500 people in 2008 for safety reasons. Prior to 1948, the stadium had been used as a cycle track and had been home to Poole Town Football Club sinc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Exeter Falcons
The Exeter Falcons were a speedway team based in the city of Exeter. The Falcons operated from 1947 to 2005 at the County Ground Stadium in Exeter. History In 1947, the Falcons competed in a league for the first time when they finished fourth during the 1947 Speedway National League Division Three. The following season they won the 1948 Speedway National League Division Three. The next success came in 1951 when the club won the Division 3 National Trophy. After a five year absence the team returned to league action in the 1961 Provincial Speedway League and the following year won the 1962 Provincial League Knockout Cup. In 1973, the club signed New Zealander Ivan Mauger, a multiple world champion who would lead the club from 1973 to 1977 and bring Exeter their greatest success to date, when winning the 1974 British League title. In 1995 and 1996, the club ran a junior side called the Devon Demons. The Demons reappeared in 2014 as the junior side for the Plymouth Gladiato ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Edinburgh Monarchs
The Edinburgh Monarchs are a Scottish Speedway team, currently based in Armadale. They compete in the SGB Championship, racing on Friday nights during the Speedway season. The club is run by a board of directors, chaired by Alex Harkess. The club also runs a National Development League team called the Armadale Devils. History The club was founded in 1928 and operated at Marine Gardens, Portobello in 1929, 1930, 1931, 1938 and 1939. A few team matches were staged in 1929 and an Edinburgh team competed in the Northern League in 1930. The Edinburgh team of 1938 and 1939 was known as The Thistles and they staged a number of challenge matches. 1948 to 1969: Meadowbank and Coatbridge After the Second World War, Marine Gardens was not available and the potential of Old Meadowbank, then the home of Leith Athletic F.C., was said to have been spotted by Ian Hoskins. The Monarchs (Meadowbank Monarchs) were re-established in 1948 by a consortium including Frank Varey, ex-rider and Sheffi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hackney Hawks
Hackney Hawks speedway opened in 1963 at Hackney Wick Stadium, Waterden Road, London and operated until 1983. The team replaced the Hackney Wick Wolves who had raced at the stadium from 1935 to 1939. The Hawks were then themselves replaced by the Hackney Kestrels. Early days Originally opened by Mike Parker, the team joined the Provincial League in 1963.Rogers, Martin (1963) "Hackney Hawks Here to Stay?", ''Speedway Star'', 1 June 1963, p. 16 The team finished 10th in their debut season in the 1963 Provincial Speedway League. The promotion was then sold to Len Silver who was the club's promoter for the next twenty seasons. The riders and track staff marched onto the track to the sound of the theme tune of the film The Magnificent Seven and that tune inspires more memories for Hackney Hawks fans than anything else. The Hawks were closely linked with sister track the Rayleigh Rockets and latterly the Rye House Rockets. In 1971, Hackney won their only major honour when they beat Cra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |