1985 National League season

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1985 National League season
LeagueNational League
ChampionsEllesmere Port Gunners
No. of competitors19
Knockout CupEastbourne Eagles
IndividualNeil Middleditch
PairsEllesmere Port Gunners
FoursMiddlesbrough Tigers
Highest averageGordon Kennett
Division/s above1985 British League

The 1985 National League was contested as the second division of Speedway in the United Kingdom.[1]

Team changes[]

A new team called the Barrow Blackhawks entered the league.

Summary[]

The title was won by the Ellesmere Port Gunners. Barrow Blackhawks withdrew in May and had their results expunged.[2][3]

Final table[]

Pos Team PL W D L Pts
1 Ellesmere Port Gunners 36 25 2 19 52
2 Poole Pirates 36 25 1 10 51
3 Middlesbrough Tigers 36 25 1 10 51
4 Wimbledon Dons 36 23 1 12 47
5 Hackney Kestrels 36 22 0 14 44
6 Arena Essex Hammers 36 20 2 14 42
7 Peterborough Panthers 36 19 2 15 40
8 Stoke Potters 36 20 0 16 40
9 Berwick Bandits 36 19 1 16 39
10 Eastbourne Eagles 36 18 2 16 38
11 Milton Keynes Knights 36 16 1 19 33
12 Exeter Falcons 36 16 0 20 32
13 Rye House Rockets 36 15 0 21 30
14 Birmingham Brummies 36 14 1 21 29
15 Mildenhall Fen Tigers 36 14 0 22 28
16 Canterbury Crusaders 36 14 0 22 28
17 Glasgow Tigers 36 10 2 24 22
18 Long Eaton Invaders 36 9 2 25 20
19 Edinburgh Monarchs 36 9 0 27 18

Leading averages[]

Rider Team Average
Gordon Kennett Eastbourne 10.47
Joe Owen Ellesmere Port 10.47
Mike Ferreira Wimbledon 9.82
Poole 9.79
Carl Blackbird Mildenhall 9.64
Roger Johns Wimbledon 9.64
Neil Middleditch Arena Essex 9.47
Steve Lawson Glasgow 9.39
Louis Carr Ellesmere Port 9.37
Kevin Smith Poole 9.32

National League Knockout Cup[]

The 1985 National League Knockout Cup was the 18th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier two teams. Eastbourne Eagles were the winners of the competition.[4]

First Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
24/04 Wimbledon 62-16 Poole
23/04 Poole 38-40 Wimbledon
06/05 Canterbury 45-33 Eastbourne
03/05 Peterborough 45-33 Arena Essex
28/04 Eastbourne 47-31 Canterbury
26/04 Edinburgh 38.5-38.5 Ellesmere Port
25/04 Ellesmere Port 43-35 Edinburgh
23/04 Barrow 18-24a Exeter
22/04 Exeter 58-20 Barrow
21/04 Birmingham 50-28 Glasgow
19/04 Glasgow 42-36 Birmingham
18/04 Arena Essex 55-23 Peterborough

Abandoned[clarification needed]

Second Round[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
26/06 Wimbledon 43-35 Arena Essex
24/06 Exeter 50.5-27.5 Berwick
20/06 Arena Essex 40-38 Wimbledon
08/06 Berwick 57-21 Exeter
26/05 Eastbourne 50-28 Milton Keynes
21/05 Milton Keynes 36-42 Eastbourne
06/05 Birmingham 38-39 Ellesmere Port
05/05 Mildenhall 42-35 Hackney
04/05 Stoke 33-45 Middlesbrough
03/05 Hackney 44-34 Mildenhall
02/05 Middlesbrough 48-30 Stoke

Quarter Finals[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
18/08 Berwick 33-45 Ellesmere Port
16/08 Ellesmere Port 56-22 Berwick
11/08 Eastbourne 44-33 Wimbledon
07/08 Wimbledon 39-39 Eastbourne
14/07 Middlesbrough 45-33 Rye House
12/07 Hackney 47-31 Long Eaton
05/06 Long Eaton 33-45 Hackney
02/06 Rye House 37-41 Middlesbrough

Semi Finals[]

Date Team One Score Team Two
27/09 Hackney 49-29 Ellesmere Port
26/09 Ellesmere Port 50-28 Hackney
12/09 Middlesbrough 48-30 Eastbourne
25/08 Eastbourne 49-29 Middlesbrough

Final[]

First leg

Eastbourne Eagles
Gordon Kennett 10
Colin Richardson 10
Martin Dugard 8
Andy Buck 7
Paul Clarke 6
Chris Mulvihill 4
Keith Pritchard 1		46 – 32Ellesmere Port Gunners
Joe Owen 9
Louis Carr 9
Dave Morton 8
David Walsh 4
Miles Evans 1
Phil Alderman 1
Richie Owen 0
[5][6]

Second leg

Ellesmere Port Gunners
Louis Carr 13
Joe Owen 9
Dave Morton 9
David Walsh 4
Gary O'Hare 2
Phil Alderman 2
Richie Owen 2		41 – 37Eastbourne Eagles
Gordon Kennett 12
Andy Buck 9
Colin Richardson 7
Martin Dugard 4
Paul Clarke 2
Chris Mulvihill 2
Keith Pritchard 1
[5][6]
Ellesmere Port Stadium

Eastbourne were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 83–73.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
  2. ^ "1985 fixtures" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  3. ^ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - BRITISH LEAGUE ERA (1965-1990)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  4. ^ "1985 National League Knockout Cup". Speedway archive.
  5. ^ a b "1985 KO cup final" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Ellesmere Port KO cup final" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
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