Summary
The 1954 Southern Area League was the first season of the newly named regional third tier of speedway racing in the United Kingdom for Southern British teams. It replaced the defunct Southern League. With most of the Southern League teams moving up to Speedway National League Division Two, six new teams started the season—many of them making their debut in league speedway.[1]
| League | Southern Area League |
|---|---|
| No. of competitors | 5 |
| Champions | California Poppies |
| Riders' Championship | Alby Golden |
| Highest average | Ernie Lessiter |
| Division/s above | National League Div 1 National League Div 2 |
Summary edit
Three teams finished equal on points at the top but California Poppies from California, Berkshire were champions by the slenderest possible margin of a single race point with all their rivals having an fixture in hand that was never ridden.
Aldershot Shots withdrew mid-season.[2] Ernie Lessiter of Ringwood topped the averages.[3]
Final table edit
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | California Poppies | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 18 |
| 2 | Ringwood Turfs | 15 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 18 |
| 3 | Rye House Roosters | 15 | 9 | 0 | 6 | 18 |
| 4 | Brafield Flying Foxes | 15 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 16 |
| 5 | Eastbourne Eagles | 15 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 6 |
Withdrawal (Record expunged) : Aldershot Shots
Leading Averages edit
| Rider | Team | C.M.A. | |
| 1 | Ernie Lessiter | Ringwood | 10.86 |
| 2 | Gil Goldfinch | California | 10.48 |
| 3 | Jimmy Gleed | California | 10.21 |
| 4 | Peter Mould | California | 9.83 |
| 5 | Vic Hall | Brafield | 9.46 |
Riders' Championship edit
Alby Golden won the Riders' Championship. The final was held at Rye House Stadium on 3 October.[4][5]
| Pos. | Rider | Club | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alby Golden | Ringwood | 14+3 |
| 2 | Ernie Lessiter | Ringwood | 14+2 |
| 3 | Vic Ridgeon | Rye House | 12 |
| 4 | Dave Slater | Rye House | 10 |
| 5 | Fran Greasley | Brafield | 10 |
| 6 | Vic Hall | Brafield | 8 |
| 7 | Jimmy Gleed | California | 7 |
| 8 | Jack Taylor | Eastbourne | 7 |
| 9 | Pete Mould | California | 6 |
| 10 | Geoff Woodger | Rye House | 6 |
| 11 | Gil Goldfinch | California | 6 |
| 12 | Bob Bunney | Aldershot/Eastbourne | 5 |
| 13 | Bill Simpson (res) | Rye House | 5 |
| 14 | Ron Burnett | Aldershot | 4 |
| 15 | Syd George | Brafield | 2 |
| 16 | Eric Hockaday | California | 2 |
| 17 | Harry Wilson | Eastbourne | 2 |
| 18 | Gordon Richards (res) | Eastbourne/Ringwood | 0 |
Riders & final averages edit
Aldershot (withdrew)
- Jack Taylor 9.06
- Ron Burnett 9.00
- Eric Hockaday 8.33
- Bob Bunney 7.33
- Tommy Sweetman 7.08
- Frank Turner 6.24
- Peter Mason 5.58
- Jim Smith 4.50
Brafield
- Vic Hall 9.65
- Syd George 8.19
- Doug Jackson 8.00
- Frank Greasley 7.91
- Johnny Jones 7.17
- Brian Meredith 6.13
- John Cherry 4.84
- Tony Wintour 4.70
- Neil Roberts 4.50
- Nick Nicholls 3.76
- Dave Hankins 4.00
- Eric Eadon 3.33
- John Benson 0.80
California
- Gil Goldfinch 10.54
- Jimmy Gleed 10.29
- Pete Mold 9.83
- Bob Andrews 8.89
- Tommy Sweetman 6.62
- Eric Hockaday 6.40
- Ron Sharp 5.82
- George Bason 4.63
- Jim Webb 3.62
- Ted Pankhurst 3.53
- Ross Gilbertson 2.91
- Tom Albury 2.11
- Bob Mitchell 1.33
Eastbourne
- Harry Wilson 6.91
- Steve Bole 6.21
- Jim Preddy 5.67
- Dan English 5.57
- Johnny Fry 5.42
- Wally Wilson 5.26
- Bob Bunney 4.80
- Bob Gladwin 4.67
- Johnny Gronow 4.16
- Gordon Richards 2.40
Ringwood
- Ernie Lessiter 10.86
- Alby Golden 9.12
- Merv Hannam 8.63
- Gordon Richards 7.33
- Harold Carder 6.60
- Tom Worrall 5.73
- Tom Reader 5.69
- Tony Lockyer 6.56
- Gil Graham 5.00
- Ted Lewis 5.00
- Gerry Bridson 4.50
- Tony Golding 4.35
Rye House
- Vic Ridgeon 9.07
- Al Sparrey 8.00
- Jimmy Heard 7.65
- Bill Simpson 7.64
- Dave Clark 7.44
- Stan Bedford 6.97
- Dave Slater 6.95
- Geoff Woodger 6.19
- Vernon Brown 6.11
- Dave Still 6.07
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Major League Competitions". Speedway Archive.
- ^ http://www.speedwayresearcher.org.uk/docs/1954/leaguetables.pdf[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Southern Area League 1954" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
- ^ "Motor Cycling". Daily Herald. 4 October 1954. Retrieved 10 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Southern Area League Riders Championship". Edinburgh Speedway. Retrieved 10 June 2023.