1953 Speedway National League

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1953 Speedway National League
LeagueNational League
Season1953
ChampionsWembley Lions
No. of competitors9
National TrophyWimbledon Dons
Coronation CupHarringay Racers
Highest averageRonnie Moore
Division/s belowNational League (Div 2)
1953 Southern League

The 1953 National League Division One was the 19th season of speedway in the United Kingdom and the eighth post-war season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1]

Summary[]

New Cross Rangers folded in June. Wembley Lions won their fifth consecutive title and their eighth overall.[2][3][4]

Wimbledon Dons won the National Trophy for the fourth time and Harringay Racers completed a cup double winning the Coronation Cup and London Cup.

Novice rider Harry Eyre died in Poplar Hospital on 7 July 1953. He suffered fatal injuries earlier that evening at West Ham Stadium, in a second half novices match against Bradford.[5][6]

National League Final table[]

Pos Team PL W D L Pts
1 Wembley Lions 16 11 1 4 23
2 Harringay Racers 16 11 0 5 22
3 Birmingham Brummies 16 9 1 6 19
4 Bradford Tudors 16 8 1 7 17
5 Wimbledon Dons 16 8 0 8 16
6 West Ham Hammers 16 7 0 9 14
7 Norwich Stars 16 6 0 10 12
8 Belle Vue Aces 16 5 1 10 11
9 Bristol Bulldogs 16 5 0 11 10

New Cross Rangers withdrew mid-season - record expunged.

Coronation Cup Final table[]

The Coronation Cup was run in a league format. Harringay Racers came out on top.

Pos Team PL W D L Pts
1 Harringay Racers 16 12 0 4 24
2 Wembley Lions 16 9 0 7 18
3 Bradford Tudors 16 8 1 7 17
4 Belle Vue Aces 16 8 0 8 16
5 Norwich Stars 16 7 1 8 15
6 Wimbledon Dons 16 7 0 9 14
7 West Ham Hammers 16 7 0 9 14
8 Bristol Bulldogs 16 7 0 9 14
9 Birmingham Brummies 16 6 0 10 12

New Cross Rangers withdrew mid-season - record expunged.

Top Ten Riders (League only)[]

Rider Nat Team C.M.A.
1 Ronnie Moore New Zealand Wimbledon Dons 10.63
2 Jack Young Australia West Ham Hammers 10.61
3 Alan Hunt England Birmingham Brummies 10.47
4 Olle Nygren Sweden Bristol Bulldogs 10.25
5 Freddie Williams Wales Wembley Lions 10.13
6 Arthur Forrest England Bradford Tudors 9.94
7 Split Waterman England Harringay Racers 9.84
8 Eric Williams Wales Wembley Lions 9.66
9 Aub Lawson Australia Norwich Stars 9.19
10 Tommy Price England Wembley Lions 9.13

National Trophy[]

The 1953 National Trophy was the 16th edition of the Knockout Cup.[7]

First Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
25/04 Ipswich 57-51 Southampton
25/04 Swindon 68-40 Exeter
24/04 Plymouth 54-54 Oxford
23/04 Cardiff 80-28 St Austell
23/04 Oxford 66-42 Plymouth
21/04 Southampton 74-33 Ipswich
21/04 St Austell 55-53 Cardiff
20/04 Exeter 60-48 Swindon

Second Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
19/05 Cardiff 42.5-65.5 Leicester
15/05 Leicester 70-38 Cardiff
15/05 Motherwell 78-30 Swindon
15/05 Wolverhampton 71-37 Southampton
14/05 Oxford 51-57 Rayleigh
12/05 Southampton 49-59 Wolverhampton
11/05 Liverpool 40-68 Coventry
09/05 Coventry 76-32 Liverpool
09/05 Edinburgh 47-61 Glasgow White City
09/05 Rayleigh 67-41 Oxford
09/05 Stoke 69-39 Yarmouth
09/05 Swindon 62-46 Motherwell
06/05 Glasgow White City 75-33 Edinburgh
05/05 Yarmouth 52-55 Stoke

Third Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
24/06 Glasgow White City 76-32 Wolverhampton
29/05 Leicester 68-40 Rayleigh
29/05 Motherwell 73-35 Poole
29/05 Wolverhampton 49-59 Glasgow White City
25/05 Poole 62-46 Motherwell
23/05 Coventry 69-39 Stoke
23/05 Rayleigh 72-36 Leicester
21/05 Stoke 71-37 Coventry

Fourth Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
11/07 Bradford Odsal 63-45 Bristol
04/07 Belle Vue 50-58 Wimbledon
04/07 Harringay 85-23 Motherwell
04/07 Norwich 71-37 West Ham
04/07 Rayleigh 64-44 Glasgow White City
03/07 Bristol 65-42 Bradford Odsal
03/07 Motherwell 63-45 Harringay
01/07 Glasgow White City 69-39 Rayleigh
30/06 West Ham 59-49 Norwich
29/06 Wimbledon 77-31 Belle Vue

Quarter Finals[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
01/08 Stoke 38-70 Wimbledon
25/07 Norwich 58-49 Bristol
24/07 Bristol 64-44 Norwich
20/07 Wimbledon 89-19 Stoke
18/07 Harringay 40-68 Wembley
16/07 Wembley 60-48 Harringay
15/07 Glasgow White City 56-52 Birmingham
11/07 Birmingham 70-38 Glasgow White City

Semi Finals[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
10/08 Wimbledon 59-49 Bristol
08/08 Birmingham 62.5-45.5 Wembley
07/08 Bristol 46-62 Wimbledon
06/08 Wembley 78-29 Birmingham

Final[]

First leg[]

Wimbledon Dons
Ronnie Moore 17
Cyril Brine 14
Norman Parker 11
Geoff Mardon 10
Peter Moore 9
Barry Briggs 3
1
0		68 – 40Wembley Lions
Eric Williams 11
Tommy Price 9
Bill Kitchen 5
Eric French 4
Trevor Redmond 4
Jimmy Gooch 3
Brian Crutcher 2
Freddie Williams 2
[8]
Wimbledon Stadium

Second leg[]

Wembley Lions
Freddie Williams 17
Tommy Price 15
Eric Williams 8
Brian Crutcher 7
Trevor Redmond 7
Bill Kitchen 5
Eric French 4
Jimmy Gooch 3		66 – 42Wimbledon Dons
Ronnie Moore 11
Norman Parker 8
Peter Moore 7
Barry Briggs 6
Geoff Mardon 5
3
Cyril Brine 1
1
[8]
Wembley Stadium

Wimbledon were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 110–106.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
  2. ^ "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  3. ^ Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN 0-904584-45-3.
  4. ^ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  5. ^ "Cycle Speedway Teams Down the Ages". Cycle Speedway History. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Speed-rider killed". Daily Herald. 8 July 1953. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ^ "1953 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
  8. ^ a b "1953 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
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