| League | National League Division One |
|---|---|
| No. of competitors | 7 |
| Champions | Belle Vue Aces |
| National Trophy | Belle Vue Aces |
| A.C.U Cup | Belle Vue Aces |
| London Cup | Harringay Tigers |
| Highest average | Bluey Wilkinson |
The 1935 National League Division One was the seventh season of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1][2][3]
Summary
Walthamstow relocated to Hackney Wick Wolves. Plymouth Tigers and Birmingham dropped out so there were only 7 teams, 6 of which were located in London. Bluey Wilkinson of West Ham Hammers topped the rider averages.
The only non-London club, Belle Vue Aces, won their third consecutive national title and Knockout Cup and second treble after winning the A.C.U Cup.[4]
British champion Tom Farndon of the New Cross Lambs was fatally injured in a scratch race at New Cross Stadium, on 28 August. He was involved in a crash with Ron Johnson, who clipped the safety fence and fell causing Farndon to crash into Johnson's bike. Farndon suffered a fractured skull and spine injury and was unconscious when he was transferred to the Miller General Hospital in Greenwich. He died two days later on 30 August.[5][6][7]
Final table
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Belle Vue Aces | 24 | 17 | 2 | 5 | 36 |
| 2 | Harringay Tigers | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 26 |
| 3 | West Ham Hammers | 24 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 25 |
| 4 | Wembley Lions | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 22 |
| 5 | Hackney Wick Wolves | 24 | 10 | 1 | 13 | 21 |
| 6 | New Cross Lambs | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 20 |
| 7 | Wimbledon Dons | 24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 16 |
Top Ten Riders
| Rider | Nat | Team | C.M.A. | |
| 1 | Bluey Wilkinson | West Ham | 10.57 | |
| 2 | Dicky Case | Hackney | 10.12 | |
| 3 | Tom Farndon | New Cross | 9.74 | |
| 4 | Max Grosskreutz | Belle Vue | 9.57 | |
| 5 | Bill Kitchen | Belle Vue | 9.18 | |
| 6 | Jack Parker | Harringay | 9.13 | |
| 7 | Eric Langton | Belle Vue | 9.10 | |
| 8 | Ron Johnson | New Cross | 8.78 | |
| 9 | Jack Ormston | Harringay | 8.75 | |
| 10 | Tommy Croombs | West Ham | 8.74 | |
National Trophy
The 1935 National Trophy was the fifth edition of the Knockout Cup.[8]
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13/07 | Belle Vue | 55-52 | New Cross |
| 13/07 | Harringay | 70-35 | Hackney Wick |
| 11/07 | Wembley | 55-52 | West Ham |
| 10/07 | New Cross | 54-54 | Belle Vue |
| 09/07 | West Ham | 67-41 | Wembley |
| 08/07 | Hackney Wick | 47-61 | Harringay |
| Wimbledon | Bye |
Semifinals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/08 | Belle Vue | 64-34 | West Ham |
| 06/08 | West Ham | 54-53 | Belle Vue |
| 05/08 | Wimbledon | 41-64 | Harringay |
| 03/08 | Harringay | 69-39 | Wimbledon |
Final
First leg
| Harringay Tigers Jack Ormston 11 Norman Parker 11 Jack Parker 9 Phil Bishop 5 Bill Pitcher 5 Les Wotton 4 | 45 – 63 | Belle Vue Aces Eric Langton 17 Bill Kitchen 17 Max Grosskreutz 15 Joe Abbott 10 Frank Varey 3 Bob Harrison 1 Wally Hull 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [9] |
Second leg
| Belle Vue Aces Max Grosskreutz 18 Eric Langton 13 Bob Harrison 12 Joe Abbott 9 Bill Kitchen 6 Frank Varey 5 | 63 – 43 | Harringay Tigers Norman Parker 12 Jack Parker 12 Bill Pitcher 5 Jack Ormston 4 Billy Dallison 3 Les Wotton 3 Phil Bishop 2 Fred Strecker 2 |
|---|---|---|
| [9] |
Belle Vue were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 126-88.
A.C.U Cup
The 1935 Auto-Cycle Union Cup was the second edition of the Cup and was won by Belle Vue for the second time.[10]
First round
Group 1
| Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| Belle Vue Aces | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Wembley Lions | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Wimbledon Dons | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
Group 2
| Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| Harringay Tigers | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| West Ham Hammers | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| New Cross Lambs | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| Hackney Wick Wolves | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
Final
| Date | Team one | Team two | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 31/08 | Belle Vue | Harringay | 73–34 |
| 31/08 | Harringay | Belle Vue | 54-54 |
London Cup
First round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| Hackney Wick | 48–57, 39–69 | West Ham |
| Wimbledon | 39–64, 32–75 | Harringay |
Semi final round
| Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|
| Wembley | 50–55, 41–66 | Harringay |
| West Ham | 63.5–41.5, 47–58 | New Cross |
Final
First leg
| Harringay Norman Parker 16 Jack Parker 16 Jack Ormston 16 Bill Pitcher 9 Phil Bishop 8 Les Wotton 3 | 68–37 | West Ham Bluey Wilkinson 12 Arthur Atkinson 8 Tommy Croombs 6 Tiger Stevenson 4 Rol Stobart 4 Ken Brett 2 Stan Dell 1 George Saunders 0 |
|---|---|---|
Second leg
| West Ham Bluey Wilkinson 15 Tommy Croombs 15 Tiger Stevenson 8 Arthur Atkinson 8 Rol Stobart 3 Stan Dell 3 George Saunders 2 Ken Brett 1 | 55–52 | Harringay Jack Ormston 15 Norman Parker 12 Jack Parker 9 Phil Bishop 8 Bill Pitcher 4 Billy Dallison 3 Fred Strecker 1 Les Wotton 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [11] |
Harringay won on aggregate 120–97
Riders & final averages
Belle Vue
-
Max Grosskreutz 9.57 -
Bill Kitchen 9.18 -
Eric Langton 9.10 -
Joe Abbott 8.34 -
Bob Harrison 7.19 -
Wally Hull 5.41 -
Frank Varey 4.95 -
Eric Blain 3.23 -
Tommy Allott 2.29 -
Oliver Langton 2.18 -
Acorn Dobson 1.89
Hackney
-
Dicky Case 10.12 -
Dusty Haigh 7.89 -
Morian Hansen 6.23 -
Wally Lloyd 6.16 -
Bill Clibbett 5.62 -
Clem Thomas 4.89 -
Squib Burton 4.78 -
Mick Murphy (John Glass) 4.62 -
Fred Tate 4.44 -
George Wilks 3.50 -
Cliff Parkinson 3.00
Harringay
-
Jack Parker 9.13 -
Jack Ormston 8.75 -
Norman Parker 6.86 -
Les Wotton 6.21 -
Bill Pitcher 5.97 -
Norman Evans 5.00 -
Fred Strecker 5.33 -
Phil Bishop 4.78 -
Billy Dallison 3.16
New Cross
-
Tom Farndon 9.74 -
Ron Johnson 8.78 -
Joe Francis 7.17 -
Norman Evans 6.80 -
Stan Greatrex 6.02 -
Nobby Key 4.86 -
George Newton 4.53 -
Harry Shepherd 4.00 -
Roger Frogley 4.00 -
Mike Erskine 3.86 -
Roy Dook 3.37 -
Fred Leavis 1.23
Wembley
-
Frank Charles 8.60 -
Wally Kilmister 8.33 -
Lionel Van Praag 7.79 -
Ginger Lees 6.35 -
Gordon Byers 6.11 -
Norman Evans 6.11 -
Broncho Dixon 5.74 -
Eric Gregory 5.04 -
Dick Smythe 4.73
West Ham
-
Bluey Wilkinson 10.57 -
Tommy Croombs 8.74 -
Arthur Atkinson 6.67 -
Mick Murphy (John Glass) 6.50 -
Tiger Stevenson 6.44 -
George Saunders 4.76 -
Arthur Warwick 4.27 -
Rol Stobbart 4.22 -
Stan Dell 3.70 -
Ken Brett 3.13
Wimbledon
-
Vic Huxley 8.71 -
Syd Jackson 6.37 -
Gus Kuhn 5.91 -
Wal Phillips 5.66 -
Jack Sharp 5.52 -
Geoff Pymar 5.46 -
Wal Morton 5.07 -
Claude Rye 4.74 -
Eric Collins 3.83
See also
References
- ↑ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
- ↑ Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN 0-904584-45-3.
- ↑ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - PRE-WAR ERA (1929-1939)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ↑ "Year by Year". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ↑ "Tom Farndon still unconscious in hospital". Hartlepool Northern Daily Mail. 29 August 1935. Retrieved 6 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "Tom Farndon and Johnson injured". Daily Mirror. 29 August 1935. Retrieved 6 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "Farndon dies form injuries". Daily Herald. 31 August 1935. Retrieved 6 August 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ↑ "1935 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
- 1 2 "1935 National Trophy" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ↑ "1935 ACU Cup" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
- ↑ "Harringay take Speedway Cup". Daily Herald. 2 October 1935. Retrieved 16 September 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.