# 2013 National League speedway season

The 2013 season of the National League, the third tier of British speedway was contested by eight teams.

## Summary

Scunthorpe Saints and Rye House Cobras were both missing from the 2012 league. Two newcomers were the Coventry Storm and the newly formed Kent Kings.
The Dudley Heathens were champions.

## Final table

| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Dudley Heathens | 13 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 37 |
| 2 | King's Lynn Young Stars | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 27 |
| 3 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 25 |
| 4 | Isle of Wight Islanders | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 22 |
| 5 | Coventry Storm | 14 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 19 |
| 6 | Buxton Hitmen | 14 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 18 |
| 7 | Kent Kings | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 15 |
| 8 | Stoke Potters | 12 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 7 |
PL = Matches; W = Wins; D = Draws; L = Losses; Pts = Total Points
Scoring system: Home loss by any number of points = 0 Home draw = 1 Home win by between 1 and 6 points = 2 Home win by 7 points or more = 3 Away loss by 7 points or more = 0 Away loss by 6 points or fewer = 1 Away draw = 2 Away win by between 1 and 6 points = 3 Away win by 7 points or more = 4

## Fixtures & results

| Home \ Away | BUX | COV | DH | IOW | KK | KL | MIL | STO |
| Buxton Hitmen | | 46–47 | 43–46 | 45–44 | 60–31 | 59–31 | 54–35 | 41–49 |
| Coventry Storm | 48–45 | | 41–49 | 42–50 | 59–33 | 39–53 | 40–48 | 56–39 |
| Dudley Heathens | 60–32 | 62–30 | | 60–31 | 53–39 | 56–36 | 56–36 | 66–28 |
| Isle of Wight Islanders | 55–37 | 48–42 | 37–52 | | 48–42 | 54–39 | 60–33 | 68–22 |
| Kent Kings | 55–38 | 54–39 | 49–41 | 47–43 | | 40–49 | 39–52 | 53–42 |
| King's Lynn Young Stars | 53–42 | 42–48 | n/a | 49–41 | 58–35 | | 52–40 | 38–21 |
| Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 44–46 | 48–41 | 48–42 | 50–40 | 53–39 | 52–36 | | 50–40 |
| Stoke Potters | 46–47 | 37–55 | 38–50 | 53–37 | n/a | 41–49 | n/a | |

## Playoffs

Top four teams race off in two-legged semi-finals and final to decide the championship. Dudley Heathens defeated King's Lynn Young Stars in the final.
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 02/10 | King's Lynn | 57-39 | Mildenhall |
| 01/10 | Isle of Wight | 43-47 | Dudley |
| 29/09 | Mildenhall | 49-41 | King's Lynn |
| 24/09 | Dudley | 59-31 | Isle of Wight |

### Final

| 8 October | Dudley Heathens Ashley Morris 15 Lewis Blackbird 11 Paul Starke 8 Max Clegg 6 Gareth Isherwood 5 Dan Greenwood 5 Nathan Greaves 3 | 53–30 | King's Lynn Young Stars Lewis Kerr 12 Darren Mallett 9 Lewis Rose 6 Robert Lambert 6 Jake Knight 3 Shane Waldron 3 Josh Bailey 1 | Monmore Green Stadium |
| 9 October | King's Lynn Young Stars Robert Lambert 10 Lewis Rose 10 Darren Mallett 9 Lewis Kerr 7 Jake Knight 5 Shane Waldron 4 Josh Bailey 1. | 46–47 | Dudley Heathens Ashley Morris 13 Lewis Blackbird 8 Dan Greenwood 7 Paul Starke 6 Nathan Greaves 6 Gareth Isherwood 4 Max Clegg 3 | King's Lynn Stadium |

## National League Knockout Cup

The 2013 National League Knockout Cup was the 16th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier three teams. Dudley Heathens were the winners.
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 04/08 | Buxton | 47-43 | Dudley |
| 09/07 | Isle of Wight | 61-32 | Kent |
| 24/06 | Kent | 44-49 | Isle of Wight |
| 19/06 | King's Lynn | 64-26 | Stoke |
| 08/06 | Stoke | 57-32 | King's Lynn |
| 04/06 | Dudley | 55-39 | Buxton |
| 26/05 | Mildenhall | 48-42 | Coventry Storm |
| 17/05 | Coventry Storm | 45-47 | Mildenhall |
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 24/10 | Mildenhall | 44-46 | Isle of Wight |
| 15/10 | Isle of Wight | 46-44 | Mildenhall |
| 08/10 | Isle of Wight | 50-40 | Mildenhall |
| 5/09 | King's Lynn | 44-46 | Dudley |
| 22/09 | Mildenhall | 50-40 | Isle of Wight |
| 10/09 | Dudley | 56-34 | King's Lynn |

### Final

| 29 October | Dudley Heathens Ashley Morris 14 Paul Starke 11 Lewis Blackbird 10 Dan Greenwood 9 Nathan Greaves 5 Max Clegg 5 Gareth Isherwood 4 | 58–33 | Isle of Wight Islanders Steve Worrall 10 Tom Perry 8 Lee Payne 5 Ben Hopwood 4 Chris Widman 4 Reece Downes 2 Brendan Johnson R/R | Monmore Green Stadium |
| 30 October | Isle of Wight Islanders Steve Worrall 14 Ben Hopwood 10 Tom Perry 8 Reece Downes 7 Luke Priest 5 Chris Widman 4 Darryl Ritchings R/R | 48–44 | Dudley Heathens Ashley Morris 11 Lewis Blackbird 10 Paul Starke 8 Dan Greenwood 5 Nathan Greaves 4 Gareth Isherwood 3 Max Clegg 3 | Smallbrook Stadium |

## Riders' Championship

Steve Boxall won the Riders' Championship for the second time. The final was held on 21 September at Rye House Stadium.
| Pos. | Rider | Total |
| 1 | Steve Boxall | 14+3 |
| 2 | Lewis Kerr | 14+2 |
| 3 | Lewis Blackbird | 12 |
| 4 | Steve Worrall | 11 |
| 5 | Robert Lambert | 11 |
| 6 | Stefan Nielsen | 9 |
| 7 | Charles Wright | 8 |
| 8 | Ben Morley | 6 |
| 9 | Paul Starke | 6 |
| 10 | Tom Perry | 5 |
| 11 | Joe Jacobs | 5 |
| 12 | James Sarjeant | 5 |
| 13 | Liam Carr | 4 |
| 14 | Ashley Morris | 4 |
| 15 | Josh Bates | 0 |
| 16 | Adam Ellis | 0 |

## Pairs

The National League Pairs Championship, was held at Mildenhall Stadium, on 30 June 2013. The event was won by Ashley Morris and Lewis Blackbird of the Mildenhall Fen Tigers.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 18 | Morris 10, Blackbird 8 |
| 2 | Stoke | 15 | Smart 9, Priest 6 |
| 3 | Isle of Wight | 11 | Hopwood 9, Ritchings 2 |
| 4 | King's Lynn | 10 | Waldron 5, Worrall S 5 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Mildenhall | 14 | Halsey 9, Bates 5 |
| 2 | Kent | 14 | Boxall 12, Morley 2 |
| 3 | Coventry | 13 | Sarjeant 7, Branford 6 |
| 4 | Buxton | 13 | Wright 11, McKinna 2 |
Final :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 17 | Blackbird 9, Morris 8 |
| 2 | Mildenhall | 15 | Halsey 10, Bates 5 |
| 3 | Kent | 14 | Boxall 8, Morley 6 |
| 4 | Stoke | 8 | Priest 6, Smart 2 |

## Fours

Dudley won the National League Fours, held on 18 August 2013 at Loomer Road Stadium.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | King's Lynn | 16 | Kerr 6, Mallett 5, Rose 4, Knight 1 |
| 2 | Mildenhall | 15 | Armstrong 5, Stoneman 4, Bates 3, Halsey 3 |
| 3 | Isle of Wight | 10 | Ritchings 4, Hopwood 2, Johnson 2, Ellis 2 |
| 4 | Coventry | 7 | Sarjeant 5, Greenwood 2, Terry-Daley 0, Shanes 0 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 17 | Starke 6, Blackbird 5, Morris 4, Isherwood 1, Ward 1 |
| 2 | Kent | 12 | Boxall 6, Compton 5, Mason 1, Morley 0 |
| 3 | Stoke | 11 | Worrall 4, Hughes 4, Priest 3, Payne 0 |
| 4 | Buxton | 8 | McKinna 3, Wright 3, Carr 2, Blacklock 0 |
Final :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 14 | Starke 6, Morris 5, Blackbird 3, Isherwood 0 |
| 2 | Kent | 13 | Boxall 5, Compton 4, Morley 2, Mason 2 |
| 3 | Mildenhall | 11 | Halsey 5, Bates 4, Armstrong 2, Stoneman 0 |
| 4 | King's Lynn | 10 | Kerr 5, Mallett 3, Rose 1, Knight 1 |

## National Trophy

| Pos | team | P | Pts |
| 1 | Isle of Wight | 8 | 22 |
| 2 | Mildenhall | 8 | 17 |
| 3 | Stoke | 8 | 13 |
| 4 | Buxton | 8 | 7 |
| 5 | Kent | 8 | 3 |

## Final leading averages

| Rider | Team | Average |
| Lewis Blackbird | Dudley | 10.49 |
| Charles Wright | Buxton | 10.37 |
| Robert Lambert | Kings Lynn | 10.30 |

## Development Leagues
### Midland Development League

| Pos | team | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Belle Vue Colts | 12 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
| 2 | Milton Keynes | 11 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 3 | Kings Lynn | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 14 |
| 4 | Stoke | 12 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 12 |
| 5 | Castleford | 11 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 9 |
| 6 | Coventry | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 9 |
| 7 | Long Eaton | 12 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 7 |

### Northern Junior League

| Pos | team | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Redcar | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| 2 | Workington | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 12 |
| 3 | Northside | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 4 | Newcastle | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 |
| 5 | Berwick | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 |