1962 Speedway National League
LeagueNational League
ChampionsSouthampton Saints
No. of competitors7
National TrophyWimbledon Dons
Highest averageRonnie Moore
Division/s below1962 Provincial League

The 1962 National League was the 28th season and the seventeenth post-war season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1]

Summary

With the withdrawal of New Cross Rangers and with Leicester Hunters moving down to the Provincial League, the entry list was 8 teams and so home and away fixtures were raced twice. Southampton Saints broke the domination of Wimbledon Dons by winning their first National League title.[2][3][4]

Ipswich Witches' season was a complete disaster. Their new signing Olle Nygren did not even start the season due to ill-health and then Jack Unstead was killed in the first recorded fatal crash at Foxhall Stadium, on 13 April 1962.[5] The club later withdrew from the league due to financial issues and their results were expunged.[6]

Final table

Pos Team PL W D L Pts
1 Southampton Saints 24 18 0 6 36
2 Wimbledon Dons 24 14 1 9 29
3 Coventry Bees 24 13 0 11 26
4 Belle Vue Aces 24 12 0 12 24
5 Norwich Stars 24 12 0 12 24
6 Swindon Robins 24 9 2 13 20
7 Oxford Cheetahs 24 4 0 20 8

Top Ten Riders (League only)

Rider Nat Team C.M.A.
1 Ronnie Moore New Zealand Wimbledon 10.14
2 Björn Knutson Sweden Southampton 9.89
3 Olle Nygren Sweden Swindon/Norwich 9.86
4 Peter Craven England Belle Vue 9.75
5 Barry Briggs New Zealand Southampton 9.64
6 Ove Fundin Sweden Norwich 9.30
7 Ron How England Wimbledon 9.30
8 Peter Moore Australia Ipswich/Swindon 9.02
9 Bob Andrews New Zealand Wimbledon 8.82
10 Ron Mountford England Coventry 8.74

National Trophy

The 1962 National Trophy was the 24th edition of the Knockout Cup. Wimbledon were the winners.[7]

First round

Date Team one Score Team two
25/06Wimbledon49-35Belle Vue
23/06Belle Vue46-38Wimbledon
23/06Swindon51-33Ipswich
22/06Ipswich42-40Swindon
19/06Southampton56-28Coventry
16/06Norwich33-51Oxford
14/06Oxford47-37Norwich
16/06Coventry41-43Southampton

Semi-finals

Date Team one Score Team two
23/08Oxford45-39Swindon
18/08Swindon59-25Oxford
14/08Southampton42-42Wimbledon
13/08Wimbledon50-33Southampton

Final

First leg

Wimbledon Dons
Ronnie Moore 14
Ron How 14
Bob Andrews 11
Gerry Jackson 7
Cyril Brine 5
Leo McAuliffe 3
Jim Tebby 1		55 – 29Swindon Robins
Mike Broadbank 9
Arne Carlsson 7
Ian Williams 4
Martin Ashby 3
Peter Moore 3
Brian Brett 2
Neil Street 1
[8]

Second leg

Swindon Robins
Martin Ashby 15
Mike Broadbank 7
Peter Moore 7
Arne Carlsson 6
Neil Street 5
Ian Williams 3
Brian Brett 2		45 – 39Wimbledon Dons
Ronnie Moore 13
Ron How 12
Bob Andrews 9
Cyril Brine 3
Gerry Jackson 2
Jim Tebby 0
Leo McAuliffe 0
[8]

Wimbledon were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 94–74.

Riders & final averages

Belle Vue

Coventry

Ipswich (resigned mid season)

Norwich

Oxford

Southampton

Swindon

Wimbledon

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. ↑ "Rider killed in Speedway crash". Birmingham Daily Post. 14 April 1962. Retrieved 1 January 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. ↑ "Close-Down at Ipswich". Daily Mirror. 27 July 1962. Retrieved 1 January 2024 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ↑ "1962 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
  8. 1 2 "1962 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
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