1946 Speedway National League
| League | National League |
|---|---|
| No. of competitors | 6 |
| Champions | Wembley Lions |
| National Trophy | Belle Vue Aces |
| A.C.U Cup | Belle Vue Aces |
| Riders' champion | Tommy Price |
| London Cup | Wembley Lions |
| Highest average | Eric Langton |
| Division/s below | Northern League |
The 1946 National League was the 12th season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain and the first post-war season.[1] [2]
The league had been abandoned seven years previously due to the outbreak of World War II. Record attendances were attracted with Wembley Lions attracting an average of 50,000 and the league as a whole a total of six and a half million.[3] From the abandoned 1939 season, Southampton Saints and Harringay Tigers were no longer racing whilst Odsal Boomerangs brought National League speedway to Bradford for the first time.[4] [5]
Wembley Lions won their second National League title.
On 6 July, a crowd of 34,0000 at Odsal Stadium witnessed Odsal Boomerangs lose to Belle Vue Aces. During the match Albert 'Aussie' Rosenfeld, son of Albert Rosenfeld hit the fence and was taken to St Luke's Hospital, Bradford, with a suspected fractured skull.[6] He died 10 days later, on 16 July 1946.[7]
National League Final table
[edit ]| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wembley Lions | 20 | 18 | 0 | 2 | 36 |
| 2 | Belle Vue Aces | 20 | 12 | 1 | 7 | 25 |
| 3 | Odsal Boomerangs | 20 | 9 | 1 | 10 | 19 |
| 4 | Wimbledon Dons | 20 | 8 | 1 | 11 | 17 |
| 5 | New Cross Rangers | 20 | 6 | 1 | 13 | 13 |
| 6 | West Ham Hammers | 20 | 4 | 2 | 14 | 10 |
Fixtures & results
[edit ]A fixtures
[edit ]| Home \ Away | BV | BRA | NC | WEM | WH | WIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belle Vue | 49–33 | 29–55 | 34–49 | 46–37 | 49–35 | |
| Odsal | 32–52 | 54–23 | 52–32 | 48–36 | 54–30 | |
| New Cross | 46–37 | 41–43 | 36–48 | 46–36 | 42–41 | |
| Wembley | 50–32 | 47–37 | 54–24 | 47–36 | 48–35 | |
| West Ham | 35–49 | 44–40 | 41–43 | 33–49 | 42–41 | |
| Wimbledon | 45–39 | 39–45 | 41–40 | 41–43 | 43–39 |
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
B fixtures
[edit ]| Home \ Away | BV | BRA | NC | WEM | WH | WIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belle Vue | 54–30 | 56–28 | 51–33 | 53–31 | 47–37 | |
| Odsal | 42–42 | 45–39 | 38–46 | 48–36 | 41–43 | |
| New Cross | 30–53 | 45–39 | 37–46 | 38–46 | 39–45 | |
| Wembley | 43–39 | 52–32 | 53–30 | 59–24 | 46–36 | |
| West Ham | 36–47 | 44–39 | 42–42 | 36–48 | 42–42 | |
| Wimbledon | 49–35 | 39–45 | 59–25 | 38–45 | 49–34 |
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
A.C.U. Cup
[edit ]On account of the small number of teams in the league the ACU Cup was run in a league format. Belle Vue Aces came out on top.
Final table
[edit ]| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Belle Vue Aces | 10 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 16 |
| 2 | Wembley Lions | 10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
| 3 | New Cross Rangers | 10 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
| 4 | Odsal Boomerangs | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 9 |
| 5 | Wimbledon Dons | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 8 |
| 6 | West Ham Hammers | 10 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 2 |
Such was the dearth of new riders caused by the war that all of the top ten riders were established pre-war riders and none were below the age of 32.
Top Ten Riders (League only)
[edit ]| Rider | Nat | Team | C.M.A. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eric Langton | England | Belle Vue Aces | 11.13 |
| 2 | Jack Parker | England | Belle Vue Aces | 11.00 |
| 3 | Bill Kitchen | England | Wembley Lions | 10.75 |
| 4 | Ron Johnson | Australia | New Cross Rangers | 10.69 |
| 5 | Eric Chitty | Canada | West Ham Hammers | 10.30 |
| 6 | Norman Parker | England | Wimbledon Dons | 10.12 |
| 7 | Tommy Price | England | Wembley Lions | 10.00 |
| 8 | Alec Statham | England | Odsal Boomerangs | 9.72 |
| 9 | Ron Clarke | England | Odsal Boomerangs | 9.50 |
| 10 | Bill Longley | Australia | Odsal Boomerangs | 9.20 |
National Trophy
[edit ]The 1946 National Trophy was the tenth edition (if including the 1939 abandoned competition) or ninth edition (if not including) of the Knockout Cup.[10] Teams from the lower 1946 Speedway Northern League competed in the event.
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 04/05 | Birmingham | 56–48 | Norwich |
| 27/04 | Norwich | 53–51 | Birmingham |
Second round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25/05 | Birmingham | 61–45 | Middlesbrough |
| 16/05 | Middlesbrough | 58–50 | Birmingham |
| 29/04 | Newcastle | 49–56 | Middlesbrough |
| 25/04 | Middlesbrough | 55–51 | Newcastle |
| 25/04 | Sheffield | 61–47 | Glasgow White City |
| 24/04 | Glasgow White City | 61–47 | Sheffield |
| 09/05 replay |
Sheffield | 63–44 | Glasgow White City |
| 08/05 replay |
Glasgow White City | 62–45 | Sheffield |
Quarterfinals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22/06 | Birmingham | 31–77 | Wembley |
| 13/06 | Wembley | 80–27 | Birmingham |
| 20/07 | Bradford Odsal | 72–36 | Sheffield |
| 04/07 | Sheffield | 48–60 | Bradford Odsal |
| 02/07 | West Ham | 55–52 | Wimbledon |
| 01/07 | Wimbledon | 63–44 | West Ham |
| 08/06 | Belle Vue | 58–49 | New Cross |
| 12/06 | New Cross | 50–57 | Belle Vue |
Semifinals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25/07 | Wembley | 50–57 | Belle Vue |
| 13/07 | Belle Vue | 60–48 | Wembley |
| 19/08 | Wimbledon | 62–46 | Bradford Odsal |
| 03/08 | Bradford Odsal | 53–55 | Wimbledon |
Final
[edit ]First leg
| Wimbledon Dons Norman Parker 13 Lloyd Goffe 10 Oliver Hart 9 George Saunders 9 Arch Windmill 6 Dick Harris 6 Mike Erskine 5 Cyril Brine 1 | 61 – 46 | Belle Vue Aces Jack Parker 13 Bill Pitcher 10 Wally Lloyd 10 Eric Langton 8 Ron Mason 2 Jim Boyd 2 Ralph Horne 1 Dent Oliver 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [11] |
Second leg
| Belle Vue Aces Wally Lloyd 18 Jack Parker 14 Bill Pitcher 11 Eric Langton 8 Jim Boyd 6 Dent Oliver 3 Louis Lawson 2 Ron Mason 1 | 63 – 45 | Wimbledon Dons Norman Parker 11 Oliver Hart 10 Dick Harris 7 Mike Erskine 7 Lloyd Goffe 3 George Saunders 3 Cyril Brine 2 Arch Windmill 2 |
|---|---|---|
| [11] |
Belle Vue were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 109–106.
Riders' Championship
[edit ]Tommy Price won the British Riders' Championship final held at Empire Stadium on 12 September, in front of 85,000 spectators.[12] [13] There were no less than 23 qualifying rounds, where riders from National and Northern League tracks respectively, competed in six meetings each.[12]
| Pos. | Rider | Heat Scores | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England Tommy Price | 3 3 3 3 3 | 15 |
| 2 | England Bill Kitchen | 3 3 2 2 3 | 13 |
| 3 | England Jack Parker | 3 f 3 3 3 | 12 |
| 4 | England Eric Langton | 2 1 3 3 2 | 11 |
| 5 | England Malcolm Craven | 3 2 f 2 3 | 10 |
| 6 | England Norman Parker | 2 3 1 2 2 | 10 |
| 7 | Canada Eric Chitty | 2 1 3 1 2 | 9 |
| 8 | England Frank Hodgson | 1 3 2 1 1 | 8 |
| 9 | Australia Ron Johnson | f 2 3 2 f | 7 |
| 10 | Australia Bert Spencer | 1 1 1 0 2 | 5 |
| 11 | England Wally Lloyd | 0 2 2 0 1 | 5 |
| 12 | England Jeff Lloyd | 0 1 0 2 1 | 4 |
| 13 | Australia Bill Longley | 2 2 0 0 0 | 4 |
| 14 | England Tommy Allott | 0 0 0 1 1 | 2 |
| 15 | England Ernie Price | 1 0 1 0 0 | 2 |
| 16 | England Ron Clarke (res) | 1 1 0 | 2 |
| 16 | England Alec Statham | 0 0 0 - - | 0 |
- f=fell
London Cup
[edit ]First round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| New Cross | 59–49, 46–60 | Wimbledon |
| West Ham | 62–46, 43–65 | Wembley |
Final
[edit ]First leg
| Wimbledon Norman Parker 17 Oliver Hart 13 Archie Windmill 7 Cyril Brine 6 Dick Harris 2 George Saunders 1 Lloyd Goffe 1 Charlie Dugard 1 | 53–55 | Wembley Bill Kitchen 13 George Wilks 11 Tommy Price 9 Bill Gilbert 9 Alf Bottoms 7 Bob Wells 4 Roy Craighead 2 Charlie May 0 |
|---|---|---|
Second leg
| Wembley Tommy Price 16 Bill Kitchen 14 Bill Gilbert 8 Alf Bottoms 7 Roy Craighead 2 George Wilks 2 Bob Wells 1 Charlie May 1 | 66–42 | Wimbledon Norman Parker 10 Lloyd Goffe 7 Oliver Hart 7 Cyril Brine 7 Archie Windmill 6 George Saunders 3 Dick Harris 2 harlie Dugard 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [14] |
Wembley won on aggregate 121–95
Riders & final averages
[edit ]Belle Vue
- England Eric Langton 11.13
- England Jack Parker 11.00
- England Wally Lloyd 8.46
- England Bill Pitcher 6.91
- England Dent Oliver 5.00
- England Jim Boyd 4.92
- England Ron Mason 3.90
- England Harold Jackson 4.67
- England Louis Lawson 1.45
New Cross
- England Ron Johnson 10.69
- Republic of Ireland Eric French 9.52
- England Geoff Pymar 8.63
- England Les Wotton 8.24
- England Phil Bishop 4.14
- England Mick Mitchell 4.12
- England Frank Lawrence 3.78
- South Africa Keith Harvey 3.40
- England Les Webbon 3.06
- England Ray Moore 2.29
- England Jack Cooley 2.13
- England Jack White 0.57
Odsal
- England Alec Statham 9.72
- England Ron Clarke 9.50
- Australia Bill Longley 9.20
- England Ernie Price 8.39
- England Fred Tuck 6.90
- England Albert Rosenfeld 2.93
- England Vic Pitcher 2.86
- England Bill Osborne 2.00
- England Red Hamley 1.33
- England Jack White 1.25
- England Charlie Oates 1.24
- England Stan Beardsall 0.80
- England Ron Stringer 0.60
Wembley
- England Bill Kitchen 10.75
- England Tommy Price 10.00
- England George Wilks 9.00
- England Alf Bottoms 5.90
- England Bill Gilbert 5.72
- England Bob Wells 5.66
- England Roy Craighead 5.50
- England Bronco Wilson 5.11
- England Charlie May 4.90
West Ham
- Canada Eric Chitty 10.30
- England Malcolm Craven 9.03
- England Colin Watson 8.40
- England Bob Harrison 7.89
- England Jack Cooley 4.73
- England Cyril Anderson 4.14
- England Benny King 3.47
- Australia Buck Whitby 3.39
- England Frank Lawrence 3.23
- England Ron Howes 3.23
- England George Gower 3.00
- England Bert Roger 2.45
- England Dick Geary 2.29
Wimbledon
- England Norman Parker 10.12
- England Lloyd Goffe 8.23
- England Oliver Hart 7.58
- England Mike Erskine 6.29
- England George Saunders 5.82
- England Dick Harris 5.69
- England Arch Windmill 5.38
- England Charlie Dugard 4.38
- England Alex Gray 4.00
- England Cyril Brine 4.00
See also
[edit ]References
[edit ]- ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
- ^ "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
- ^ Dalling, P. (2011). The Golden Age Of Speedway. The History Press. ISBN 0-7524-5831-0
- ^ Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN 0-904584-45-3.
- ^ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
- ^ "Speedway's biggest 34,000" . Bradford Observer. 8 July 1946. Retrieved 11 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Injured speedway rider dies" . Hull Daily Mail. 16 July 1946. Retrieved 11 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "1946 fixtures & results". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
- ^ "1946 fixtures & results". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
- ^ "1946 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
- ^ a b "1946 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 10 August 2021.
- ^ a b "1946 fixtures" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 3 June 2023.
- ^ "Tommy Price wins Speedway Championship" . Daily Herald. 13 September 1946. Retrieved 3 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Wembley Win Cup Final" . South Western Star. 30 August 1946. Retrieved 16 September 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
