Summary
The 1950 National League Division One was the 16th season of speedway in the United Kingdom and the fifth post-war season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1]
| League | National League Division One |
|---|---|
| No. of competitors | 9 |
| Champions | Wembley Lions |
| National Trophy | Wimbledon Dons |
| London Cup | Wembley Lions |
| Highest average | Graham Warren |
| Division/s below | National League (Div 2) National League (Div 3) |
Summary edit
Bristol Bulldogs joined the league. Wembley Lions won the National League for the fifth time.[2][3][4]
The Odsal Boomerangs became the Odsal Tudors during the season, the name change came at the end of July, possibly as a consequence of the events of 1 July. On 1 July 1950, 47-year-old Joe Abbott was killed instantly following a crash at Odsal Stadium in a league match against West Ham Hammers. After falling and hitting the safety fence he was hit by a rider behind. Jock Shead, a second rider was killed on the same night in a division 2 fixture.[5]
Final table edit
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Wembley Lions | 32 | 24 | 0 | 8 | 48 |
| 2 | Belle Vue Aces | 32 | 19 | 0 | 13 | 38 |
| 3 | Wimbledon Dons | 32 | 17 | 1 | 14 | 35 |
| 4 | New Cross Rangers | 32 | 16 | 1 | 15 | 33 |
| 5 | West Ham Hammers | 32 | 16 | 0 | 16 | 32 |
| 6 | Bradford Tudors | 32 | 16 | 0 | 16 | 32 |
| 7 | Bristol Bulldogs | 32 | 15 | 0 | 17 | 30 |
| 8 | Birmingham Brummies | 32 | 12 | 0 | 20 | 24 |
| 9 | Harringay Racers | 32 | 8 | 0 | 24 | 16 |
Top Ten Riders (League only) edit
| Rider | Nat | Team | C.M.A. | |
| 1 | Graham Warren | 
|
Birmingham | 10.55 |
| 2 | Norman Parker | 
|
Wimbledon | 10.17 |
| 3 | Tommy Price |
|
Wembley | 9.79 |
| 4 | Jack Parker |
|
Belle Vue | 9.42 |
| 5 | Vic Duggan |
|
Harringay | 9.30 |
| 6 | Alec Statham |
|
Wimbledon | 9.21 |
| 7 | Cyril Roger |
|
New Cross | 9.21 |
| 8 | Louis Lawson |
|
Belle Vue | 9.19 |
| 9 | Bert Roger |
|
New Cross | 9.04 |
| 10 | Eric French |
|
New Cross | 8.81 |
National Trophy Stage Three edit
The 1950 National Trophy was the 13th edition of the Knockout Cup. The Trophy consisted of three stages; stage one was for the third division clubs, stage two was for the second division clubs and stage three was for the top tier clubs. The winner of stage one would qualify for stage two and the winner of stage two would qualify for the third and final stage. Wimbledon Dons won the third and final stage and were therefore declared the 1950 National Trophy champions.[6]
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29/07 | Belle Vue | 80-28 | New Cross |
| 26/07 | New Cross | 48-60 | Belle Vue |
| 01/08 | Halifax | 50-58 | Harringay |
| 28/07 | Harringay | 68-39 | Halifax |
Second round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/08 | Belle Vue | 55-52 | Wimbledon |
| 14/08 | Wimbledon | 67-41 | Belle Vue |
| 10/08 | Wembley | 53-51 | Birmingham |
| 05/08 | Birmingham | 79-29 | Wembley |
| 12/08 | Bradford | 80-28 | Bristol |
| 11/08 | Bristol | 66-42 | Bradford |
| 11/08 | Harringay | 62-46 | West Ham |
| 08/08 | West Ham | 62-46 | Harringay |
| 01/09 replay |
Harringay | 49-59 | West Ham |
| 29/08 replay |
West Ham | 59-49 | Harringay |
Semifinals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12/09 | West Ham | 56-51 | Bradford |
| 09/09 | Bradford | 70-38 | West Ham |
| 28/08 | Wimbledon | 61-47 | Birmingham |
| 26/08 | Birmingham | 42-66 | Wimbledon |
Final edit
First leg
| Bradford Tudors Ron Clarke 16 Jack Biggs 14 Oliver Hart 10 Dick Seers 8 Ronnie Peace 6 Ernie Price 6 Norman Price 1 | 61 – 47 | Wimbledon Dons Dennis Gray 9 Ronnie Moore 9 Cyril Brine 7 Mike Erskine 6 Ernie Roccio 6 Norman Parker4 Jim Gregory 4 Alec Statham 2 |
|---|---|---|
| [7] |
Second leg
| Wimbledon Dons Dennis Gray 15 Cyril Brine 13 Norman Parker 11 Reg Trott 9 Ernie Roccio 8 Alec Statham 7 Ronnie Moore 7 Mike Erskine 2 | 72 – 36 | Bradford Tudors Ron Clarke 12 Jack Biggs 8 Dick Seers 4 Ernie Price 4 Norman Price 3 Ken Brown 3 Oliver Hart 2 Ron Peace 1 |
|---|---|---|
| [8] |
Wimbledon were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 119–97, the trophy was presented by Vera Lynn.[7]
London Cup edit
First round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| New Cross | 45–62, 33–74 | Wimbledon |
| West Ham | 66–42, 46–62 | Walthamstow |
Semi final round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| Wembley | 58–50, 51–56 | Harringay |
| Wimbledon | 56–50, 54–54 | West Ham |
Final edit
First leg
| Wembley Tommy Price 13 Freddie Williams 12 George Wilks 8 Bob Oakley 7 Bill Gilbert 7 Eric Williams 6 Bruce Abernethy 2 Bill Kitchen 1 | 56–51 | Wimbledon Ronnie Moore 13 Ernie Roccio 11 Norman Parker 9 Cyril Brine 6 Mike Erskine 5 Alec Statham 3 Dennis Gray 2 Jim Gregory 2 |
|---|---|---|
Second leg
| Wimbledon Cyril Brine 13 Ernie Roccio 10 Norman Parker 10 Mike Erskine 9 Ronnie Moore 6 Dennis Gray 3 Reg Trott 3 Alec Statham 2 | 56–52 | Wembley Bob Oakley 14 Tommy Price 10 Freddie Williams 9 Bruce Abernethy 7 Bill Gilbert 6 George Wilks 4 Bill Kitchen 2 Eric Williams 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [9] |
Wembley won on aggregate 108–107
Riders & final averages edit
Belle Vue
-
Jack Parker 9.42 - Louis Lawson 9.19
- Dent Oliver 8.42
-
Ron Johnston 8.00 -
Charles Cullum 7.02 - Ken Sharples 6.58
Henry Long 5.88- George Smith 5.44
- Ron Mason 5.34
- Dennis Parker 4.90
- Gerry Hickson 1.33
Birmingham
-
Graham Warren 10.55 - Geoff Bennett 8.19
- Arthur Payne 7.07
- Doug McLachlan 6.46
- Fred Perkins 4.73
- Jim Tolley 4.44
- Ron Mountford 3.92
- Dennis Hitchings 3.61
- Bob Wells 3.33
- Wilf Willstead 2.61
Bradford
- Jack Biggs 8.78
- Ron Clarke 8.35
- Eddie Rigg 7.89
- Joe Abbott 5.95
- Dick Seers 5.53
- Oliver Hart 7.54
- Ernie Price 5.66
- Norman Price 4.61
- Ron Peace 4.85
- Ken Brown 4.08
- Eric Smith 1.67
Bristol
- Billy Hole 7.15
- Fred Tuck 6.78
- Dick Bradley 6.36
- Jack Mountford 5.94
- Geoff Pymar 5.93
- Eric Salmon 5.73
- Roger Wise 5.51
- Johnny Hole 4.91
- Mike Beddoe 4.64
-
Chris Boss 4.57 - Jack Summers 3.20
Harringay
- Vic Duggan 9.28
- Split Waterman 8.22
- Danny Dunton 7.71
- Jeff Lloyd 6.33
- Cliff Watson 6.08
- Joe Bowkis 5.43
- Geoff Pymar 5.25
- Lloyd Goffe 4.82
- Alf Viccary 4.00
- Nobby Stock 4.12
- Fred Pawson 3.78
- Jimmy Grant 3.40
- Arthur Bush 3.13
- Sid Clark 3.10
New Cross
- Cyril Roger 9.21
-
Eric French 8.81 - Bert Roger 9.04
- Jeff Lloyd 7.17
- Bill Longley 7.00
- Frank Lawrence 5.88
- Ron Johnson 5.60
- Ray Moore 5.13
- Bob Baker 3.82
- Don Gray 3.40
- Ronnie Genz 0.80
Wembley
- Tommy Price 9.79
- Freddie Williams 8.75
- George Wilks 8.44
- Bill Kitchen 7.88
- Bob Oakley 7.37
- Bill Gilbert 7.33
- Eric Williams 7.22
- Bruce Abernethy 6.16
- Alf Bottoms 4.17
- Bob Wells 3.70
- Jimmy Gooch 3.11
- Den Cosby 2.67
- Jack Gates 1.45
West Ham
- Aub Lawson 8.79
- Wally Green 8.03
- Malcolm Craven 7.66
Eric Chitty 7.52- Reg Fearman 5.70
- Lloyd Goffe 5.53
- Howdy Byford 5.14
- Kid Curtis 5.00
- Frank Bettis 4.75
- Cliff Watson 3.43
- Trevor Davies 2.52
Wimbledon
- Norman Parker 10.17
- Alec Statham 9.21
- Cyril Brine 8.66
- Ronnie Moore 7.23
- Ernie Roccio 6.88
- Dennis Gray 5.98
- Mike Erskine 5.94
- Jim Gregory 4.89
- Dick Harris 4.30
- Reg Trott 4.16
- Bruce Semmens 3.08
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
- ^ "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
- ^ Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN 0-904584-45-3.
- ^ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
- ^ "Twod Riders Killed". Weekly Dispatch (London). 2 July 1950. Retrieved 12 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "1950 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
- ^ a b "1950 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
- ^ "Odsal beaten in speedway final". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer. 26 September 1950. Retrieved 26 November 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Speedway Fans boo cup result". South Western Star. 15 September 1950. Retrieved 24 September 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.