The St Austell Gulls were a

speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta *Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana Types of races and race cours ...

team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1964 at the Cornish Stadium at Par,

St Austell St Austell (; kw, Sans Austel) is a town in Cornwall, England, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon. St Austell is one of the largest towns in Cornwall; at the 2011 census it had a population of 19,958. History St Austell wa ...

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. 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 Victor Duggan (16 October 1910, West Maitland, New South Wales – 24 March 2007, Queensland)Addison J. (1948). ''The People Speedway Guide''. Odhams Press Limited was a motorcycle speedway racer who won the London Riders' Championship in 1947 ...

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 The West Ham Hammers were a speedway team, first promoted by Jimmy Baxter in 1929. History They operated from the West Ham Stadium until the outbreak of World War II under several different promotions, most successfully under the control o ...

and

Harringay Racers Harringay Racers refers to multiple British ice hockey teams based in Harringay, London, United Kingdom. Harringay Racers The first team to use the Harringay Racers moniker was founded in 1936 and initially played alongside Harringay Greyhou ...

star George Newton managed the team, having ridden for the Gulls in 1951. In 1954 the Southern League was disbanded. Without a league to race in, the Gulls applied to join the National League Division Two. However, the Speedway Control Board decided against giving the club a licence and the riders were reallocated.

1962–63

League racing was not seen again at the stadium until 1963 when the Gulls entered the

Provincial League Provincial League (formerly known as Professional League) also known as Pro League was the old regional Football league in Thailand in 1999–2008. It was founded in 1999 under the name "Provincial League" organized by Sports Authority of Thailan ...

, although the Neath Dragons did finish off their 1962 Provincial League fixtures at the stadium under promoter

Trevor Redmond Trevor John Redmond (16 June 1927 – 17 September 1997)Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2003) ''Bristol Bulldogs: 50 Greats'', Stroud: Tempus Publishing. was a New Zealand speedway rider who mainly rode for the Aldershot Shots, and the Wembley Lio ...

.Bamford, R. & Shailes, G. (2003) ''Bristol Bulldogs: 50 Greats'', Stroud: Tempus Publishing. Redmond promoted the Gulls in 1963 but it turned out to be their only season of league racing until 1997.

1997–2000

In 1997 permission was given to build a track in a disused

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pit. A small track was built with very basic facilities, the referee's control room was a converted

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, which was replaced eventually by a

double decker bus A double-decker bus or double-deck bus is a bus that has two storeys or decks. They are used for mass transport in the United Kingdom, the United States, New Zealand, Europe, Asia and also in cities such as Sydney; the best-known example is the ...

. The Gulls entered the Amateur League, which became the Conference League.Bamford, R. & Stallworthy, D. (2002) ''Clay Country Speedway'', Stroud: Tempus Publishing. The track was rather rutted as it bedded in but by the start of the 1998 season, the team of mainly local riders started to become a solid outfit. Future 2007 British Speedway Grand Prix winner Chris Harris made his League debut at fifteen years of age. By the end of the season, the team had completed the League Championship and Knockout Cup double. In 1999, the Gulls retained the Knockout Cup. The Gulls final season came in 2000 when it was becoming obvious the club was ready to join the

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

. The current owners of the club felt that they could not take the club further and the track lease was handed over to another consortium who opened up in 2001 as the

Trelawny Tigers Trelawny Tigers operated as a British Premier League (speedway), Premier League Motorcycle speedway, speedway team from 2001 to 2003 at the Clay Country Moto Parc. History The club was formed in 2001, as a replacement for the St Austell Gull ...

Early years

1949–1954

1962–63

1997–2000

Season summary

Notable riders

References