1963 Provincial Speedway League
The 1963 Provincial Speedway League was the fourth season of the Provincial League in the United Kingdom.[1] Thirteen speedway teams took part.
League | Provincial League |
---|---|
Champions | Wolverhampton Wolves |
No. of competitors | 13 |
Knockout Cup | Cradley Heathens |
Individual | Ivan Mauger |
Highest average | George Hunter |
Division/s above | 1963 National League |
Season summary
Wolverhampton won the league but there was controversy at the end of the year when Wolverhampton refused to move up to the National League which was dwindling in numbers. This would lead to the Provincial League running outside of the jurisdiction of the Speedway Control Board in 1964. At the start of the year Neath had folded, and their place was taken by the new track at St Austell. After finishing at the bottom of the table the previous year, Bradford and Leicester were no longer running due to financial difficulties and Plymouth had also withdrawn. Long Eaton returned to competitive racing after ten years, a new track opened at Hackney, and Rayleigh returned under new ownership after a missing the 1962 season. New Cross Rangers also returned but closed in August, never to re-open.[2][3][4][5]
Final table
Pos | Team | M | W | D | L | Pts |
1 | Wolverhampton Wolves | 24 | 15 | 1 | 8 | 31 |
2 | Stoke Potters | 24 | 14 | 1 | 9 | 29 |
3 | Poole Pirates | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 28 |
4 | Sheffield Tigers | 24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 28 |
5 | St Austell Gulls | 24 | 13 | 2 | 9 | 28 |
6 | Newcastle Diamonds | 24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 27 |
7 | Exeter Falcons | 24 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 25 |
8 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 24 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 25 |
9 | Cradley Heath Heathens | 24 | 11 | 1 | 12 | 23 |
10 | Hackney Hawks | 24 | 10 | 1 | 13 | 21 |
11 | Middlesbrough Bears | 24 | 9 | 2 | 13 | 20 |
12 | Long Eaton Archers | 24 | 7 | 2 | 15 | 16 |
13 | Rayleigh Rockets | 24 | 5 | 1 | 18 | 11 |
M = Matches; W = Wins; D = Draws; L = Losses; Pts = Total Points
- New Cross Rangers resigned in mid-season - record expunged.
Top Five Riders (League only)
Rider | Nat | Team | C.M.A. | |
1 | George Hunter | ![]() |
Edinburgh Monarchs | 11.09 |
2 | Ivan Mauger | ![]() |
Newcastle Diamonds | 10.42 |
3 | Ivor Brown | ![]() |
Cradley Heathens | 10.30 |
4 | Jimmy Squibb | ![]() |
New Cross Rangers/Exeter Falcons | 10.30 |
5 | Clive Featherby | ![]() |
Sheffield Tigers | 10.05 |
Provincial League Knockout Cup
The 1963 Provincial League Knockout Cup was the fourth edition of the Knockout Cup for the Provincial League teams. Cradley Heathens were the winners.[6]
First round
Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
---|---|---|---|
30/04 | New Cross | 58–37 | St Austell |
03/06 | Rayleigh | 35–61 | Stoke |
18/06 | Long Eaton | 43–52 | Newcastle |
20/06 | Middlesbrough | 58–38 | Wolverhampton |
20/06 | Sheffield | 57–39 | Exeter |
03/07 | Poole | 50–46 | Edinburgh |
Second round
Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
---|---|---|---|
08/07 | Newcastle | 65–31 | Middlesbrough |
10/07 | Hackney | 54–42 | New Cross |
10/07 | Poole | 44–52 | Sheffield |
05/08 | Cradley Heath | 55–41 | Stoke |
Semi-finals
Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
---|---|---|---|
12/08 | Newcastle | 60–36 | Hackney |
31/08 | Cradley Heath | 61–35 | Sheffield |
Final
Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
---|---|---|---|
30/09 | Newcastle | 50–45 | Cradley Heath |
02/10 | Cradley Heath | 64–32 | Newcastle |
References
- "Championship History". Poole Speedway. 2008. Archived from the original on 16 May 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-18.
- "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
- "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 13 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 13 August 2021.
- "1963 Provincial League Knockout Cup". Speedway archive. Retrieved 13 August 2021.