Summary
The 1939 National League Division Two was the second season of British speedway's National League Division Two. The season was never completed, due to the outbreak of World War II.[1]
| League | National League Division Two |
|---|---|
| Champions | n/a |
| No. of competitors | 6 |
| National Trophy (Div 2 final) | Sheffield Tigers |
| Highest average | Frank Hodgson |
| Division/s above | 1939 National League (Division One) |
Summary edit
As with the previous season, there were several team changes. Southampton Saints had moved up to the National League and Bristol Bulldogs had moved down to take their place. Other new entrants were Crystal Palace Glaziers, Stoke and Middlesbrough. Absentees from the end of the previous season were Lea Bridge, West Ham Hawks (West Ham's reserve team), Birmingham (Hall Green) and Leeds Lions.
Newcastle were leading the league at the point of abandonment. Middlesbrough resigned after 8 matches, Crystal Palace Glaziers after 10 matches and Stoke after 14 matches. Belle Vue Aces provided a team to complete Stoke's fixtures.[2]
Uncompleted table Division Two edit
The season was incomplete due to the outbreak of World War II. Uncompleted table on September 1.
| Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| Newcastle Diamonds | 15 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 20 |
| Hackney Wick Wolves | 13 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 14 |
| Sheffield | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 12 |
| Norwich Stars | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 12 |
| Bristol Bulldogs | 14 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 10 |
| Stoke Potters+ Belle Vue Reserves+ |
14 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 8 |
+ Belle Vue Reserves replaced Stoke Potters mid-season. Stoke scored 4 points from 8 matches, Belle Vue reserves scored 4 points from 6 matches.
Middlesbrough and Crystal Palace Glaziers withdrew mid-season and their records were expunged.
Leading averages (league only) edit
| Rider | Team | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Frank Hodgson | Hackney | 11.29 |
| Ernie Evans | Sheffield | 11.25 |
| George Pepper | Newcastle | 11.13 |
| Broncho Dixon | Sheffield | 10.25 |
| Bert Spencer | Norwich | 9.67 |
National Trophy edit
The 1939 National Trophy was the ninth edition of the Knockout Cup. Wembley and Belle Vue were declared joint winners following the abandonment of the final fixture due to the outbreak of the war.[3][4] Sheffield Tigers won the Division 2 Final round and therefore qualified for the quarter finals proper (the round when the tier one sides entered the competition).
Qualifying quarterfinals edit
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01/06 | Sheffield | 69-38 | Norwich |
| 27/05 | Norwich | 60-46 | Sheffield |
| 16/05 | Bristol | 83-22 | Crystal Palace |
| 27/05 | Crystal Palace | 35-65 | Bristol |
| 13/05 | Hackney Wick | 80-28 | Stoke |
| 25/05 | Stoke | 68-39 | Hackney |
| 15/05 | Newcastle | 60-48 | Middlesbrough |
| 26/05 | Middlesbrough | 61-46 | Newcastle |
Qualifying semifinals edit
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30/06 | Bristol | 46-59 | Sheffield |
| 29/06 | Sheffield | 75-32 | Bristol |
| w/o | Hackney Wick | w/o | Middlesbrough |
Final edit
First leg
| Hackney Wick Wolves Frank Hodgson 15 Tiger Hart 13 Jim Baylais 11 George Saunders 9 Stan Dell 7 Nobby Stock 6 Arch Windmill 5 Doug Wells 1 | 67 – 39 | Sheffield Tigers Jack Dixon 12 Stan Williams 9 Ernie Evans 8 Ossie Powell 4 Harry Whitfield 4 Paddy Mills 2 Doug McLachlan 0 Geoff Godwin 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [5] |
Second leg
| Sheffield Tigers Ernie Evans 18 Stan Williams 15 Jack Dixon 11 Ossie Powell 10 Paddy Mills 8 Doug McLachlan 6 Harry Whitfield 5 Geoff Godwin 2 | 75 – 33 | Hackney Wick Wolves Frank Hodgson 7 Jim Baylais 7 Tiger Hart 6 George Saunders 5 Stan Dell 3 Arch Windmill 3 Nobby Stock 2 |
|---|---|---|
| [5] |
Sheffield were declared National League (Div 2) Champions, winning on aggregate 114–100.
Riders & final averages edit
Bristol
-
Bill Clibbett 7.70 - Jeff Lloyd 7.38
- Harry Shepherd 7.14
- Ron Howes 6.87
- Roy Dook 6.43
-
Jack Bibby 6.00 - Norman Lindsay 5.48
- George Craig 5.07
Hackney
- Frank Hodgson 11.29
- Jim Baylais 9.62
- Tiger Hart 8.71
- Arch Windmill 7.29
- Nobby Stock 6.93
- George Saunders 6.13
- Doug Wells 5.96
- Ken Brett 5.14
- Stan Dell 4.50
Newcastle
George Pepper 11.13- Rol Stobbart 9.29
- Billy Lamont 7.54
- Kid Curtis 7.60
- Maurice Stobbart 6.07
- Norman Hargreaves 5.40
- Reg Hay 5.40
- Will Goodall 4.00
- Syd Littlewood 3.40
Norwich
- Bert Spencer 9.67
- Wal Morton 8.63
- Wilf Jay 8.33
- Bill Birtwell 8.00
-
Jock Sweet 8.00 - Alan Brooks Smith 7.83
- Dick Wise 6.17
Keith Harvey 6.09- Fred Strecker 5.83
- Paul Goodchild 4.67
- Sid Hipperson 3.00
Sheffield
- Ernie Evans 11.25
- Broncho Dixon 10.25
- Stan Williams 9.48
- Paddy Mills (Horace Burke) 5.88
- Geoff Godwin 5.78
- Harwood Pike 4.80
- Doug McLachlan 3.74
- Ossie Powell 3.25
- Harry Whitfield 3.20
- Don Houghton 2.29
Stoke/Belle Vue
- Oliver Hart 8.25
- Alan Butler 6.74
- Ted Bravery 6.67
- Fred Tuck 5.47
- Tommy Allott 5.25
- Fred Strecker 5.22
- Jack Gordon 4.76
- Bill Birtwell 4.00