Summary
The 1956 Southern Area League was the third season of the regional third tier/division of speedway racing in the United Kingdom British teams. Brafield Flying Foxes were no longer competitors with Southern Rovers taking their place. Southern Rovers had no track and raced all their 'home' fixtures on away tracks.[1]
| League | Southern Area League |
|---|---|
| No. of competitors | 4 |
| Champions | Rye House Roosters |
| Riders' Champion | Leo McAuliffe |
| Division/s above | National League Div 1 National League Div 2 |
Summary edit
Rye House Roosters were the champions for the second consecutive season.[2][3]
Although the Southern Area League continued, it became the second tier division instead of the third tier division. There was not another third division of British speedway until 1996 when the Conference was inaugurated.
Final table edit
| pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Rye House Roosters | 12 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 17 |
| 2 | Eastbourne Eagles | 12 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 13 |
| 3 | Southern Rovers | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 10 |
| 4 | California Poppies | 12 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 8 |
Riders' Championship edit
Leo McAuliffe won the Riders' Championship. The final was held at Rye House Stadium on 30 September, after initially being postponed on the 9 September because of rain.[4][5]
| Pos. | Rider | Club | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leo McAuliffe | Eastbourne | 14 |
| 2 | Jim Heard | Eastbourne | 12+3 |
| 3 | Dave Slater | Rye House | 12+2 |
| 4 | Pete Mould | California | 12+1 |
| 5 | Gerry King | Rye House | 8 |
| 6 | Brian Brett | Rye House | 8 |
| 7 | Jimmy Gleed | California | 7 |
| 8 | Vic Ridgeon | Rye House | 7 |
| 9 | Ron Webb | California | 5 |
| 10 | Eric Eadon | Southern Rovers | 5 |
| 11 | Tom Reader | Eastbourne | 5 |
| 12 | Neil Roberts (res) | Southern Rovers | 5 |
| 13 | Bobby Croombs | Rye House | 4 |
| 14 | Ross Gilbertson | California | 4 |
| 15 | Dave Collett | Eastbourne | 3 |
| 16 | Jim Chalkley | Rye House | 2 |
| 17 | Ron Walton | California | 2 |
| 18 | Colin Gooddy (res) | Southern Rovers | 1 |
Southern Area League Cup edit
The 1956 Southern Area League Cup was won by Rye House Roosters.[2]
First round
| Team one | Team two | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Southern Rovers | Rye House | 50–58 |
| Eastbourne | California | 46–61 |
Final edit
First leg
| California Peter Mould 13 Ross Gilbertson 9 Jim Gleed 9 Ron Sharp 8 Ron Webb 7 Phil Shepherd 6.5 Roy Gutteridge 3 Ron Walton 2 | 60.5 – 46.5 | Rye House Vic Ridgeon 15 Bobby Croombs 13 Les Searle 10 Dave Slater 6 Jim Chalkley 4 Porky Veal 3 Gerry King 2 Brian Brett 1.5 |
|---|---|---|
Second leg
| Rye House Vic Ridgeon 18 Bobby Croombs 11 Dave Slater 10 Gerald King 9 Jim Chalkley 7 Brian Brett 5 Porky Veal 5 Ernie Baker 5 | 70 – 38 | California Pete Mould 13 Gil Goldfinch 12 Ron Webb 3 Jimmy Gleed 3 Phil Shepherd 3 Roy Gutteridge 2 Ron Walton 1 John Day 1 |
|---|---|---|
Riders & final averages edit
California
- Pete Mold 9.67
- Gil Goldfinch 9.50
- Ross Gilbertson 8.86
- Ron Sharp 8.57
- Jimmy Gleed 6.93
- Ron Walton 4.91
- Phil Sheppard 4.47
- Roy Gutteridge 3.50
- John Day 3.33
- Ron Webb 2.88
Eastbourne
- Leo McAuliffe 8.57
- Jimmy Heard 7.14
- Tom Reader 7.00
- Gerry Bridson 5.87
- Dave Collett 5.33
- Bob Bunney 4.80
- Jim Preddy 2.00
Rye House
- Al Sparrey 9.67
- Vic Ridgeon 9.50
- Bobby Croombs 8.60
- Dave Slater 9.67
- Brian Brett 7.56
- Gerry King 7.20
- Jim Chalkley 5.80
- Les Searle 2.00
Southern Rovers
- Eric Hockaday 9.47
- Tommy Sweetman 9.09
- Colin Gooddy 8.52
- Brian Meredith 7.33
- Eric Eadon 7.11
- Brian Miller 5.33
- Tony Eadon 4.31
- Mike Lawrence 4.24
- Neil Roberts 4.00
- Hank Bird 3.08
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Major League Competitions". Speedway Archive.
- ^ a b "1956 season results" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 29 October 2023.
- ^ "Southern Area League 1956 averages" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
- ^ "Surprises at the last speedway meeting". Eastbourne Gazette. 10 October 1956. Retrieved 10 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Southern Area League Riders Championship". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 10 June 2023.