Carmarthen Dragons were a British

motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...

team who operated at the United Counties Showground in Nantyci,

Carmarthen Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, ...

, Wales, between 2002 and 2005 and later the

Loomer Road Stadium Loomer Road Stadium is a former sports stadium situated in Chesterton, Staffordshire. The building had considerable parking facilities, covered terracing and a bar with a view of the track. It had a capacity of 5,000. The stadium was construct ...

, between 2017 and 2019. The team were founded by Nigel Meakins and entered the Conference League (third division) and during their inaugural

2002 Speedway Conference League The 2002 Speedway Conference League was the third tier/division of British speedway. Summary The title was won by Peterborough Pumas, the junior club belonging to the Peterborough Panthers. On 1 May, David Nix was killed after crashing into the ...

season finished in 7th place. They competed in the 2003 Speedway Conference League and

2004 Speedway Conference League The 2004 Speedway Conference League was the third-tier division of British speedway. Summary The title was won by Mildenhall Fen Tigers. Final league table Conference League Knockout Cup The 2004 Conference League Knockout Cup was the seventh ...

finishing in 11th and 12th respectively. In 2005, the team disbanded but the venue remained open for training during the season. The team returned to compete in the Midland Development League from 2017 to 2018 and the Midland & Southern Developmnent League during 2019, at the

Notable riders

*Steve Bishop *Shane Colvin *Dean Felton *

Ben Powell Benjamin Richard Powell (born 28 November 1984 in Helensvale, Queensland) is a former Australian motorcycle speedway rider. Career Club Powell signed for Sheffield Tigers's Conference League side, Sheffield Prowlers in 2002. He then spent t ...

* Ben Wilson

Season summary

Conference League summary

2002 team The Dragons made their debut in 2002, winning their first meeting 46-43 at local rivals Newport Mavericks. The first home meeting at the Carmarthen Showground saw a 53-35 win against King's Lynn Kids with a crowd of 1,000 in attendance. The season saw 9 wins and 10 defeats finishing 7th out of 11. The Dragons fared better in the Conference Trophy, winning 7 and losing 3 to finish 2nd in the group to

Mildenhall Fen Tigers The Mildenhall Fen Tigers are a British speedway team, founded in 1975 and currently riding in the National Development League. History 1971–1989 The original track was built in 1971 on farm land owned by Terry Waters, with chef Bernie Kla ...

. Star performer was Shane Colvin who completed six full maximums with an average of 10.23. 2003 team The second season saw crowds decline which led to financial problems for the Dragons. On the track, without Colvin, the Dragons struggled and finished 11th out of 13 in the league, bottom of the Conference Trophy and knocked out of the KO Cup by

Rye House Raiders The Rye House Rockets were a speedway team based at Rye House Stadium, Hoddesdon, England. They competed in various British speedway leagues from 1954 to 2018. History Rye House began life in 1934 hosting open meetings. Whilst at Hackney in 1 ...

. Matthew Cross finished top of the averages for the club with 8.15, although

joined midway through the season to finish the season on a 7.34 average. 2004 team The Dragons remained in the Conference League but Nigel Meakins failed to secure a major sponsor. On the track, Carmarthen again struggled and finished 12th of 13 in the league and were beaten in the KO Cup by Mildenhall. Steve Bishop averaged 9.27 over the season and Ben Wilson rode for the Dragons in away matches near his northern base and averaged 8.80, although Ben Powell struggled, primarily due to bike problems and Shane Colvin's return only resulted in an average of 6.40.

References

Defunct speedway teams in the United Kingdom {{motorcycle-speedway-team-stub

Notable riders

Season summary

Conference League summary

See also

References