The 1951 National League Division One was the 17th season of speedway in the United Kingdom and the sixth post-war season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain. [1]
| League | National League Division One |
|---|---|
| No. of competitors | 9 |
| Champions | Wembley Lions |
| National Trophy | Wimbledon Dons |
| London Cup | Wembley Lions |
| Highest average | Aub Lawson |
| Division/s below | National League (Div 2) National League (Div 3) |
Summary
editThe entrants were the same as the previous season as were the top three positions at the end of the season. Wembley Lions won the National League for the sixth time.[2][3][4]
Final table
edit| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wembley Lions | 32 | 25 | 0 | 7 | 50 |
| 2 | Belle Vue Aces | 32 | 19 | 1 | 12 | 39 |
| 3 | Wimbledon Dons | 32 | 17 | 1 | 14 | 35 |
| 4 | West Ham Hammers | 32 | 16 | 1 | 15 | 33 |
| 5 | Birmingham Brummies | 32 | 16 | 0 | 16 | 32 |
| 6 | Bristol Bulldogs | 32 | 15 | 1 | 16 | 31 |
| 7 | Harringay Racers | 32 | 15 | 1 | 16 | 31 |
| 8 | New Cross Rangers | 32 | 9 | 1 | 22 | 19 |
| 9 | Bradford Tudors | 32 | 9 | 0 | 23 | 18 |
Top Ten Riders (League only)
edit| Rider | Nat | Team | C.M.A. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aub Lawson | 
|
West Ham | 10.31 |
| 2 | Ronnie Moore | 
|
Wimbledon | 9.91 |
| 3 | Freddie Williams | 
|
Wembley | 9.76 |
| 4 | Alan Hunt | 
|
Birmingham | 9.75 |
| 5 | Norman Parker |
|
Wimbledon | 9.56 |
| 6 | Eddie Rigg |
|
Bradford | 9.29 |
| 7 | Malcolm Craven |
|
West Ham | 9.25 |
| 8 | Split Waterman |
|
Harringay | 9.07 |
| 9 | Jack Parker |
|
Belle Vue | 9.03 |
| 10 | Geoff Pymar |
|
Bristol | 8.95 |
National Trophy Stage Three
editThe 1951 National Trophy was the 14th edition of the Knockout Cup. The Trophy consisted of three stages; stage one was for the third division clubs, stage two was for the second division clubs and stage three was for the top tier clubs. The winner of stage one would qualify for stage two and the winner of stage two would qualify for the third and final stage. Wimbledon won the third and final stage and were therefore declared the 1951 National Trophy champions.[5]
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/08 | Bristol | 74-34 | Norwich |
| 20/08 | Norwich | 75-33 | Bristol |
| 07/08 | West Ham | 72-35 | Bradford Odsal |
| 25/08 | Bradford Odsal | 43-65 | West Ham |
Second round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 05/09 | Belle Vue | 46-62 | Wembley |
| 09/08 | Wembley | 52-55 | Belle Vue |
| 11/08 | Birmingham | 55-53 | Wimbledon |
| 20/08 | Wimbledon | 64-44 | Birmingham |
| 25/08 | Norwich | 63-45 | Harringay |
| 24/08 | Harringay | 65-42 | Norwich |
| 04/09 | West Ham | 62-46 | New Cross |
| 29/08 | New Cross | 65-43 | West Ham |
Semifinals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 04/10 | Wembley | 78-29 | New Cross |
| 26/09 | New Cross | 53-55 | Wembley |
| 03/09 | Wimbledon | 65-43 | Harringay |
| 07/09 | Harringay | 40-68 | Wimbledon |
Final
editFirst leg
| Wimbledon Dons Ronnie Moore 15 Dennis Gray 15 Norman Parker 9 Cyril Brine 6 Ernie Roccio 3 Mike Erskine 3 Reg Trott 3 Jimmy Gibb 1 | 58 – 50 | Wembley Lions Eric Williams 11 Tommy Price 8 Bob Oakley 7 Freddie Williams 7 Bruce Abernethy 5 George Wilks 6 Bill Kitchen 3 Jimmy Gooch 3 |
|---|---|---|
| [6] |
Second leg
| Wembley Lions Eric Williams 8 Bill Kitchen 6 Bob Oakley 6 Freddie Williams 5 George Wilks 5 Jimmy Gooch 5 Bruce Abernethy 4 Tommy Price 2 | 41 – 67 | Wimbledon Dons Dennis Gray 18 Ronnie Moore 14 Ernie Roccio 13 Cyril Brine 11 Norman Parker 7 Jimmy Gibb 2 Reg Trott 1 Mike Erskine 1 |
|---|---|---|
| [6] |
Wimbledon were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 125–91.
London Cup
editFirst round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| Wimbledon | 55–51, 44–64 | Wembley |
| Walthamstow | 53–55, 29–78 | West Ham |
Semi final round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| West Ham | 57–51, 42–65 | Harringay |
| New Cross | 45–63, 38–70 | Wembley |
Final
editFirst leg
| Wembley Eric Williams 12 Bruce Abernethy 9 Tommy Price 9 Bob Oakley 8 Freddie Williams 6 George Wilks 6 Bill Kitchen 5 Jimmy Gooch 3 | 59–49 | Harringay Olle Nygren 17 Jack Biggs 15 Jeff Lloyd 6 Ron How 4 Maurice McDermott 2 Jimmy Squibb 2 Danny Dunton 2 Nobby Stock 1 |
|---|---|---|
Second leg
| Harringay Olle Nygren 16 Split Waterman 15 Jack Biggs 6 Ron How 4 Nobby Stock 3 Cliff Watson 3 Jeff Lloyd 2 Jimmy Squibb 0 | 49–59 | Wembley Eric Williams 11 Bruce Abernethy 10 Freddie Williams 9 Tommy Price 8 Bob Oakley 7 Jimmy Gooch 6 George Wilks 4 Bill Kitchen 4 |
|---|---|---|
| [7] |
Wembley won on aggregate 118–98
Riders & final averages
editBelle Vue
-
Jack Parker 9.03 - Ken Sharples 7.84
- Louis Lawson 7.66
-
Ron Johnston 7.46 
Henry Long 7.23- George Smith 6.03
- Dennis Parker 5.61
- Ron Mason 4.54
- Angus McKenzie 3.48
- Val Morton 2.89
- Bob Serrurier 1.60
Birmingham
- Alan Hunt 9.75
- Ron Mountford 8.17
-
Graham Warren 7.92 - Arthur Payne 7.33
- Eric Boothroyd 6.20
- Cyril Page 6.00
- Jim Tolley 4.95
- Ivor Davies 4.52
- Lionel Watling (James Goldingay) 4.04
- Fred Perkins 4.50
- Bill Jemison 2.12
- Geoff Bennett inj
Bradford
- Eddie Rigg 9.29
- Dent Oliver 7.04
- Oliver Hart 6.00
- Arthur Bush 4.88
- Arthur Wright 4.74
- Lloyd Goffe 4.59
- Ron Peace 4.15
- Eric Smith 3.92
- Ken Brown 3.69
- Alec Burrows 3.65
Bristol
- Geoff Pymar 8.94
- Dick Bradley 8.80
- Jack Mountford 7.05
- Billy Hole 6.80
- Johnny Hole 5.90
-
Chris Boss 5.28 - Eric Salmon 5.51
- Mike Beddoe 5.07
- Jack Summers 2.22
Harringay
- Split Waterman 9.07
-
Olle Nygren 8.31 - Jeff Lloyd 8.13
- Jack Biggs 8.29
- Nobby Stock 6.39
- Danny Dunton 5.91
- Cliff Watson 5.45
- Maury McDermott 5.09
- Ron How 4.75
- Jimmy Squibb 4.10
- Ron Barrett 4.00
New Cross
- Cyril Roger 8.82
-
Eric French 8.38 - Bert Roger 8.05
- Frank Lawrence 6.45
- Tom Oakley 6.27
- Bill Longley 4.90
- Ron Johnson 3.76
- Don Gray 3.73
- Ray Moore 3.64
- Harold McNaughton 3.62
- Ronnie Genz 2.18
- Dick Shepherd 1.67
- Bernie Aldridge 1.50
- Eric Minall 0.67
Wembley
- Freddie Williams 9.76
- Bob Oakley 8.36
- Bruce Abernethy 8.27
- Tommy Price 8.11
- Eric Williams 7.62
- George Wilks 7.53
- Bill Kitchen 7.06
- Jimmy Gooch 5.74
- Bob Wells 2.94
- Den Cosby 2.67
West Ham
- Aub Lawson 10.31
- Malcolm Craven 9.25
- Wally Green 7.92
Eric Chitty 7.05- Arthur Atkinson 5.30
- Howdy Byford 5.27
- Kid Curtis 5.00
- Reg Fearman 3.41
- Lloyd Goffe 2.86
- Geoff Woodger 1.43
- Johnny Guilfoyle 1.40
Wimbledon
- Ronnie Moore 9.95
- Norman Parker 9.56
- Cyril Brine 8.31
- Dennis Gray 6.97
-
Ernie Roccio 6.74 - Jimmie Gibb 5.18
- Jim Gregory 3.79
- Reg Trott 3.65
- Mike Erskine 3.00
- Craig Jones 1.44
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
- ^ "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
- ^ 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 12 August 2021.
- ^ "1951 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
- ^ a b "1951 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
- ^ "Wembley's Cup Final Win". Daily Herald. 15 September 1951. Retrieved 26 September 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.