1956 Speedway National League Division Two

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1956 Speedway National League Division Two
LeagueNational League Division Two
ChampionsSwindon Robins
No. of competitors7
National Trophy
(Div 2 final)		Southampton Saints
Highest averagePer Olof Söderman
Division/s aboveNational League (Div 1)
Division/s belowSouthern League

1956 was the final season of the Speedway National League Division Two.[1]

Summary[]

With the number of sides competing at national level diminishing from 37 at the start of 1951 to just 14 in 1956, only a single national division would be in existence by 1957. Poole Pirates had been promoted to Division One and Exeter Falcons had closed leaving seven entrants.[2][3]

Swindon Robins captured the title by a single point.[4][5]

Southampton's 34-year-old captain Ernie Rawlins died in Southampton Hospital on 22 September 1956, following an accident in the match against Birmingham on 18 September.[6]

Final table[]

Pos Team M W D L Pts
1 Swindon Robins 24 16 0 8 32
2 Southampton Saints 24 15 1 8 31
3 Rayleigh Rockets 24 14 1 9 29
4 Ipswich Witches 24 13 0 11 26
5 Coventry Bees 24 12 0 12 24
6 Leicester Hunters 24 6 1 17 13
7 Oxford Cheetahs 24 6 1 17 13

Top Five Riders (League only)[]

Rider Nat Team C.M.A.
1 Per Olof Söderman Sweden Coventry Bees 11.74
2 Ken McKinlay Scotland Leicester Hunters 10.25
3 Dick Bradley England Southampton Saints 10.22
4 Bob Roger England Swindon Robins 9.53
5 Ian Williams Wales Swindon Robins 9.52

National Trophy Stage One[]

The 1956 National Trophy was the 19th edition of the Knockout Cup. The Trophy consisted of two stages; stage one was for the second tier clubs, stage two was for the top tier clubs. Southampton won stage one and qualified for second and final stage.[7]

Division Two First Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
21/04 Coventry 55-53 Ipswich
21/04 Rayleigh 74-34 Oxford
21/04 Swindon 65-43 Leicester
20/04 Leicester 65-43 Swindon
19/04 Ipswich 68-40 Coventry
19/04 Oxford 40-68 Rayleigh
05/05
replay		 Swindon 51-56 Leicester
04/05
replay		 Leicester 76-32 Swindon

Division Two Semi Finals[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
26/05 Rayleigh 68-39 Southampton
25/05 Leicester 67-40 Ipswich
22/05 Southampton 69-39 Rayleigh
21/05 Ipswich 46-62 Leicester

Division Two Final[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
22/06 Leicester 54-54 Southampton
19/06 Southampton 64-43 Leicester
  • For Stage Two - see Stage Two

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ http://www.speedwayresearcher.org.uk
  2. ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
  3. ^ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  5. ^ Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN 0-904584-45-3.
  6. ^ "Speedway Star Dies". Sunday Sun (Newcastle). 23 September 1956. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ^ "1956 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
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