1958 Speedway National League

The 1958 National League was the 24th season and the thirteenth post-war season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1]

1958 Speedway National League
LeagueNational League
No. of competitors10
ChampionsWimbledon Dons
National TrophyBelle Vue Aces
Highest averageOve Fundin

Summary

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Bradford Tudors who had dropped out at the start of the previous season only to return in mid-season, had dropped out again along with the bottom side Rayleigh Rockets. Poole Pirates returned after a one-year absence. Wimbledon Dons won their fourth title in five years.[2][3][4]

Final table

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Pos Team PL W D L Pts
1 Wimbledon Dons 18 12 2 4 26
2 Norwich Stars 18 12 0 6 24
3 Southampton Saints 18 11 0 7 22
4 Leicester Hunters 18 11 0 7 22
5 Belle Vue Aces 18 10 0 8 20
6 Swindon Robins 18 10 0 8 20
7 Coventry Bees 18 9 1 8 19
8 Oxford Cheetahs 18 5 2 11 12
9 Poole Pirates 18 6 0 12 12
10 Ipswich Witches 18 1 1 16 3

Top Ten Riders (League only)

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Rider Nat Team C.M.A.
1 Ove Fundin   Norwich 11.60
2 Peter Craven   Belle Vue 11.00
3 Ken McKinlay   Leicester 10.82
4 Barry Briggs   Wimbledon 10.43
5 Brian Crutcher   Southampton 10.03
6 Jack Young   Coventry 10.02
7 Peter Moore   Ipswich 9.73
8 Jack Biggs   Poole 9.69
9 Ron How   Wimbledon 9.47
10 Ronnie Moore   Wimbledon 9.09

National Trophy

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The 1958 National Trophy was the 20th edition of the Knockout Cup. Belle Vue were the winners.[5]

First round

Date Team one Score Team two
30/05 Leicester 65-54 Southampton
29/05 Oxford 58-61 Poole
27/05 Southampton 84-36 Leicester
26/05 Poole 60-60 Oxford

Second round

Date Team one Score Team two
03/07 Ipswich 42-77 Swindon
30/06 Poole 49-71 Belle Vue
30/06 Wimbledon 67-53 Norwich
28/06 Belle Vue 80-40 Poole
28/06 Coventry 57-63 Southampton
28/06 Norwich 72-48 Wimbledon
28/06 Swindon 78-42 Ipswich
24/06 Southampton 78-42 Coventry

Semifinals

Date Team one Score Team two
16/08 Norwich 69-51 Swindon
12/08 Southampton 60-59 Belle Vue
09/08 Belle Vue 77-43 Southampton
09/08 Swindon 60-60 Norwich

Final

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First leg

Belle Vue Aces
Peter Craven 16
Ron Johnston 11
Dick Fisher 9
Eddie Rigg 8
Bob Duckworth 7
Bob McHugh 7
Slant Payling 6
Tink Maynard 4
Graham Beattie 4
Jack Kitchen 2
74 – 45Norwich Stars
Ove Fundin 16
Phil Clarke 8
Billy Bales 8
Aub Lawson 5
John Chamberlain 3
Clive Featherby 2
Dennis Newton 2
Jimmy Heard 1
Tommy Sweetman 0
Harry Edwards 0
[6]

Second leg

Norwich Stars
Ove Fundin 16
Billy Bales 10
Aub Lawson 5
Phil Clarke 4
Harry Edwards 4
John Chamberlain 8
Clive Featherby 4
Jimmy Heard 3
Tommy Sweetman 3
Dennis Newton 1
58 – 62Belle Vue Aces
Ron Johnston 10
Bob Duckworth 7
Peter Craven 15
Slant Payling 10
Dick Fisher 10
Tink Maynard 4
Eddie Rigg 2
Jack Kitchen 0
Graham Beattie 3
Bob McHugh 1
[6]

Belle Vue were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 136–103.

Riders & final averages

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Belle Vue

Coventry

Ipswich

Leicester

Norwich

Oxford

Poole

Southampton

Swindon

Wimbledon

See also

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References

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  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. ^ "1958 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
  6. ^ a b "1958 National Trophy". Speedway Archive. Retrieved 12 August 2021.