1963 Speedway National League

The 1963 National League was the 29th season and the eighteenth post-war season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1]

1963 Speedway National League
LeagueNational League
Season1963
ChampionsBelle Vue Aces
No. of competitors7
National TrophyNorwich Stars
Highest averageOve Fundin
Division/s below1963 Provincial League

Summary

The seven entrants were the same as those that had finished the previous season and matches were ridden home and away twice. Belle Vue Aces won their first title in 27 years.[2][3][4][5]

Belle Vue's successful season was soured by a tragedy and the speedway world was in shock when the double world champion Peter Craven died following a challenge match at Edinburgh's Old Meadowbank stadium, on 20 September 1963.[6][7] Just six days after he lost world crown, Craven swerved to avoid hitting fallen race leader George Hunter and hit the safety fence. Craven was rushed to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, where he died on 24 September.[8][9]

Final table
Pos Team PL W D L Pts
1 Belle Vue Aces 24 17 0 7 34
2 Norwich Stars 24 13 2 9 28
3 Wimbledon Dons 24 12 1 11 25
4 Coventry Bees 24 11 2 11 24
5 Swindon Robins 24 10 2 12 22
6 Southampton Saints 24 11 0 13 22
7 Oxford Cheetahs 24 6 1 17 13

Top Ten Riders

The top ten riders are listed by their points average and only applies to the league.[10]

Rider Nat Team C.M.A.
1 Ove Fundin Norwich Stars 10.71
2 Dick Fisher Belle Vue Aces 10.19
3 Ronnie Moore Wimbledon Dons 10.17
4 The late Peter Craven Belle Vue Aces 10.13
5 Nigel Boocock Coventry Bees 9.84
6 Ron How Wimbledon Dons 9.68
7 Björn Knutsson Southampton Saints 9.27
8 Barry Briggs Southampton Saints 9.13
9 Ken McKinlay Coventry Bees 8.99
10 Peter Moore Swindon Robins 8.98

National Trophy

The 1963 National Trophy was the 25th edition of the Knockout Cup. Norwich were the winners.[11]

First Round
Date Team One Score Team Two
22/06Norwich60-24Wimbledon
17/06Wimbledon38-46Norwich
20/06Oxford39-45Swindon
15/06Swindon53-31Oxford
18/06Southampton46-37Coventry
15/06Coventry54-30Southampton

Semi Finals
Date Team One Score Team Two
21/08Belle Vue55-29Coventry
14/08Coventry41-43Belle Vue
09/08Swindon48-36Norwich
31/07Norwich49-35Swindon

First leg
Belle Vue Aces
Dick Fisher 14
Peter Craven 14
Sören Sjösten 10
Gordon McGregor 9
Cyril Maidment 4
Bill Powell 0
Jim Yacoby 0		51 – 33Norwich Stars
Trevor Hedge 9
Terry Betts 8
Olle Nygren 8
Billy Bales 4
Jimmy Gooch 2
John Debbage 1
Reg Trott 1
[12]

Second leg
Norwich Stars
Ove Fundin 15
Olle Nygren 14
Terry Betts 10
John Debbage 6
Reg Trott 5
Billy Bales 4
Jimmy Gooch 3		57 – 27Belle Vue Aces
Sören Sjösten 7
Gordon McGregor 7
Cyril Maidment 6
John Dews 3
Jim Yacoby 2
Norman Nevitt 1
Ernie Baker 0
[12]

Norwich were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 90–78.

See also

References
  1. "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
  2. "League Tables".
  3. "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  4. Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN 0-904584-45-3.
  5. "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - POST-WAR ERA (1946-1964)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  6. "Peter Craven Tragedy", Speedway Star, 28 September 1963, p. 18
  7. "In Memoriam". speedwayinmemoriam. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  8. "Crashed speedway rider serious". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 21 September 1963. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. "Speedway Ace Peter Craevn is Dead". Torbay Express and South Devon Echo. 25 September 1963. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. "Rider Averages" (PDF).
  11. "1963 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
  12. "1963 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
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