# 2009 Premier League speedway season

The 2009 Premier League season was the second division of motorcycle speedway racing in the United Kingdom and the 15th season since its creation in 1995. The league is governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).

## Summary

The League consisted of 14 teams for the 2009 season with the re-admission of the Newport Wasps and the loss of Mildenhall Fen Tigers, Isle of Wight Islanders (Both dropped to National League) and the Reading Racers (Loss of Stadium). New rules introduced for 2009 with a complete revamp of the points scoring system. The team finishing at the top of the league table at the end of the season after accumulating the most points were declared the Premier League champions. The four highest placed teams were entered into promotion play-offs, whereby the Premier League play-off winner faced the bottom Elite League team over two legs. Teams finishing in fifth to twelfth at the time of the fixture cut-off date compete in the Young Shield.
The Kings Lynn Stars were crowned the Premier League champions after ending the season as the highest placed team. The Edinburgh Monarchs finished second, Newcastle Diamonds third and the Birmingham Brummies fourth. All four teams took part in the promotion play-off with Edinburgh and King's Lynn reaching the final. Edinburgh won 97–83 on aggregate and faced Elite League team Belle Vue Aces, but lost the two-legged promotion/relegation final.

## New points scoring system

A new points scoring systems was devised for the 2009 season in an effort to make teams more competitive even when losing. If a Home team were to win by 7 or more points they would receive 3 points for the win. However, if the away team restricted the win from 1-6 points, the home team would receive only 2 points for the win, and the away team would be awarded 1 point for losing by less than 7 away from home. If the match was a draw, the home team would be awarded 1 point and the away team awarded 2. If the away team won the match by between 1-6 points, they would be awarded 3 points with the home team collecting 0. And finally if the away team won by 7 or more points, they would collect 4 points with the home team again collecting 0.

## Fixtures & results

| Home \ Away | BER | BIR | ED | GLA | KL | ND | NW | RED | RYE | SCU | SHE | SOM | STO | WOR |
| Berwick Bandits | | 42–48 | 51–41 | 47–46 | 46–49 | 51–39 | 45–45 | 50–40 | 51–42 | 47–43 | 63–29 | 48–42 | 54–42 | 42–48 |
| Birmingham Brummies | 54–39 | | 41–49 | 44–46 | 55–36 | 50–39 | 52–43 | 47–43 | 58–36 | 57–38 | 49–43 | 50–43 | 58–34 | 53–39 |
| Edinburgh Monarchs | 60–30 | 38–34 | | 50–39 | 46–45 | 55–40 | 51–41 | 60–33 | 50–42 | 51–40 | 51–39 | 42–33 | 60–31 | 55–39 |
| Glasgow Tigers | 42–48 | 49–41 | 55–38 | | 41–49 | 43–47 | 66–26 | 45–48 | 48–42 | 49–43 | 40–50 | 48–45 | 48–42 | 41–49 |
| King's Lynn Stars | 65–25 | 55–38 | 54–38 | 64–29 | | 64–28 | 59–33 | 57–38 | 66–27 | 56–37 | 59–35 | 59–33 | 69–23 | 60–34 |
| Newcastle Diamonds | 55–39 | 48–45 | 54–38 | 53–27 | 51–42 | | 66–27 | 64–26 | 55–38 | 52–43 | 47–37 | 55–37 | 52–40 | 62–28 |
| Newport Wasps | 44–45 | 41–51 | 43–47 | 50–40 | 44–46 | 38–52 | | 49–43 | 48–42 | 44–46 | 51–41 | 44–48 | 44–44 | 47–43 |
| Redcar Bears | 53–40 | 49–43 | 47–39 | 49–41 | 38–54 | 47–47 | 52–39 | | 52–41 | 50–40 | 59–37 | 52–41 | 53–42 | 51–41 |
| Rye House Rockets | 59–33 | 43–46 | 56–36 | 56–37 | 46–43 | 61–32 | 45–44 | 49–44 | | 53–39 | 52–38 | 57–35 | 65–30 | 58–35 |
| Scunthorpe Scorpions | 51–42 | 45–48 | 49–44 | 50–40 | 57–35 | 51–45 | 56–39 | 49–44 | 49–41 | | 57–38 | 47–43 | 59–31 | 51–39 |
| Sheffield Tigers | 51–39 | 55–41 | 42–51 | 51–39 | 50–40 | 58–37 | 60–34 | 36–42 | 62–33 | 52–38 | | 59–32 | 54–39 | 46–46 |
| Somerset Rebels | 61–35 | 48–42 | 50–40 | 58–36 | 46–44 | 54–39 | 59–34 | 53–40 | 46–44 | 53–40 | 48–42 | | 54–40 | 52–41 |
| Stoke Potters | 49–41 | 47–43 | 49–40 | 50–42 | 33–57 | 51–38 | 51–39 | 47–43 | 48–42 | 56–37 | 45–44 | 49–40 | | 48–42 |
| Workington Comets | 59–35 | 51–44 | 45–45 | 48–45 | 42–51 | 49–44 | 53–43 | 46–38 | 49–41 | 50–40 | 47–43 | 50–45 | 57–35 | |

## League table

* Key:
* Premier League play-offs
Home: 3W = Home win by 7 points or more; 2W = Home win by between 1 and 6 points
Away: 4W = Away win by 7 points or more; 3W = Away win by between 1 and 6 points; 1L = Away loss by 6 points or less M = Meetings; D = Draws; L = Losses; F = Race points for; A = Race points against; +/- = Race points difference; Pts = Total Points
Last updated: October 20, 2010
Source: BSPA

## Premier League play-offs

Semi-finals
Leg 1
Leg 2
Grand final
First leg
9+2 :
| | 2 | Michał Rajkowski | 0, 3, 3, 0 | 6 |
| | 3 | Andrew Tully | 3, 0, 3, 3 | 9 |
| | 4 | Matthew Wethers | 2', 3, 2', 2' | 9+3 |
| | 5 | Kevin Wölbert | 3, 3, 3, 2, 3 | 14 |
| | 6 | Aaron Summers | 3, 0, 2', 0 | 5+1 |
| | 7 | Kalle Katajisto | 0, X, 1, 3 | 4 |
| Manager: Alan Bridgett |||
11+1 :
| | 2 | Tomáš Topinka | , , | R/R |
| | 3 | Chris Schramm | 2, X, 2, 3, 4^, X | 11 |
| | 4 | Emiliano Sanchez | 1, 1', 1', 1, 1 | 5+2 |
| | 5 | Josh Auty (guest) | 2, 1, 1, 0, X | 4 |
| | 6 | Linus Eklöf | 2, 0, 0, 1', 0 | 3+1 |
| | 7 | Jan Graversen | 1', 1', 0, N | 2+2 |
| Manager: Rob Lyon |||
Second leg
9+2 :
| | 2 | Kozza Smith | , , | R/R |
| | 3 | Emiliano Sanchez | 3, 1', X, 1', 1' | 6+3 |
| | 4 | Chris Schramm | 2', 2, 2, 3, 2 | 11+1 |
| | 5 | Ty Proctor (guest) | 0, 3, 3, X | 6 |
| | 6 | Linus Eklöf | 1', 1', 1, 0, 2, 2' | 7+3 |
| | 7 | Jan Graversen | 2, 2, 2, 2, 0 | 8 |
| Manager: Rob Lyon |||
8 :
| | 2 | Michał Rajkowski | 0, 0, F | 0 |
| | 3 | Andrew Tully | 1, 0, 2, 3, 0 | 6 |
| | 4 | Matthew Wethers | 0, 2, 1', 0 | 3+1 |
| | 5 | Kevin Wölbert | 3, 3, 0, 3, 3 | 12 |
| | 6 | aron Summers | 0, 0, 3, 0 | 3 |
| | 7 | Kalle Katajisto | 3, 1, 3, 1', 1 | 9+1 |
| Manager: Alan Bridgett |||

## Premier League Knockout Cup

The 2009 Premier League Knockout Cup was the 42nd edition of the Knockout Cup for tier two teams. King's Lynn Stars were the winners of the competition.
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 09/05 | Stoke Potters | 48-42 | Berwick Bandits |
| 06/05 | Berwick Bandits | 50-39 | Stoke Potters |
| 10/05 | Newcastle Diamonds | 48-42 | Scunthorpe Scorpions |
| 08/05 | Scunthorpe Scorpions | 65-25 | Newcastle Diamonds |
| 29/04 | Birmingham Brummies | 43-47 | Rye House Rockets |
| 09/05 | Rye House Rockets | 53-37 | Birmingham Brummies |
| 14/05 | Redcar Bears | 52-38 | Newport Wasps |
| 21/06 | Newport Wasps | 40-50 | Redcar Bears |
| 08/05 | Somerset Rebels | 46-44 | Glasgow Tigers |
| 24/05 | Glasgow Tigers | 45-44 | Somerset Rebels |
| 28/05 | Sheffield Tigers | 56-34 | Edinburgh Monarchs |
| 08/05 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 59-31 | Sheffield Tigers |
Quarter-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 20/05 | King's Lynn Stars | 58-32 | Berwick Bandits |
| 20/06 | Berwick Bandits | 26-57 | King's Lynn Stars |
| 13/06 | Rye House Rockets | 56-34 | Somerset Rebels |
| 12/06 | Somerset Rebels | 53-37 | Rye House Rockets |
| 20/06 | Workington Comets | 47-43 | Edinburgh Monarchs |
| 19/06 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 56-34 | Workington Comets |
| 13/08 | Redcar Bears | 46-44 | Scunthorpe Scorpions |
| 31/07 | Scunthorpe Scorpions | 50-39 | Redcar Bears |
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 09/10 | Scunthorpe Scorpions | 45-27 | King's Lynn Stars |
| 06/10 | King's Lynn Stars | 70-20 | Scunthorpe Scorpions |
| 19/09 | Rye House Rockets | 49-41 | Edinburgh Monarchs |
| 11/09 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 63-27 | Rye House Rockets |

### Final

First leg
Second leg
King's Lynn were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 98–81.

## Riders' Championship

Ricky Ashworth won the Riders' Championship. The final was held on 27 September at Owlerton Stadium.
| Placing | Rider | Total | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | Pts | Pos | 21 | 22 |
| 1 | (10) Ricky Ashworth (SHE) | 13 | | | 3 | | | 2 | | | | | | 2 | | | 3 | | 3 | | | | 13 | 1 | | 3 |
| 2 | (15) Darcy Ward (KL) | 11 | | | | 3 | | | 1 | | | 3 | | | | | | 3 | 1 | | | | 11 | 2 | | 2 |
| 3 | (12) Ty Proctor (RED) | 11 | | | 2 | | | | | 3 | | 2 | | | 2 | | | | | | 2 | | 11 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 4 | (11) David Howe (SS) | 10 | | | 1 | | | | 2 | | 3 | | | | | 3 | | | | | | 1 | 10 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| 5 | (5) William Lawson (GLA) | 10 | | 3 | | | 2 | | | | | 1 | | | | | 2 | | | | | 2 | 10 | 4 | 1 | |
| 6 | (7) Andre Compton (WOR) | 10 | | 0 | | | | | 3 | | | | | 1 | 3 | | | | | 3 | | | 10 | 5 | 0 | |
| 7 | (1) Kenni Larsen (ND) | 9 | 3 | | | | 3 | | | | 1 | | | | 0 | | | | 2 | | | | 9 | 7 | | |
| 8 | (6) Jordan Frampton (NW) | 9 | | 2 | | | | 3 | | | 2 | | | | | | | 1 | | | 1 | | 9 | 8 | | |
| 9 | (4) Ryan Fisher (EDI) | 8 | 1 | | | | | | | 2 | | | | 0 | | | | 2 | | | | 3 | 8 | 9 | | |
| 10 | (13) Jason Lyons (BIR) | 7 | | | | 0 | 1 | | | | | | | 3 | | 0 | | | | | 3 | | 7 | 10 | | |
| 11 | (2) Steve Johnston (SOM) | 6 | 2 | | | | | 0 | | | | 0 | | | | 2 | | | | 2 | | | 6 | 11 | | |
| 12 | (8) Jason Bunyan (STO) | 5 | | 1 | | | | | | 1 | | | 2 | | | 1 | | | 0 | | | | 5 | 12 | | |
| 13 | (14) Tomáš Topinka (KL) | 5 | | | | 2 | | 1 | | | | | 1 | | 1 | | | | | | | R | 5 | 13 | | |
| 14 | (3) Magnus Karlsson (SS) | 3 | 0 | | | | | | 0 | | | | 3 | | | | 0 | | | | 0 | | 3 | 14 | | |
| 15 | (16) Chris Neath (RH) | 2 | | | | 1 | | | | 0 | 0 | | | | | | 1 | | | EF | | | 2 | 15 | | |
| 16 | (9) Michal Makovsky (BER) | 1 | | | 0 | | 0 | | | | | | 0 | | | | | 0 | | 1 | | | 1 | 16 | | |
| | (17) Adam Wrathall | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 | | | |
| | (18) Gary Irving | 0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | 0 | | | |
| Placing | Rider | Total | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | Pts | Pos | 21 | 22 |
m - exclusion for exceeding two minute time allowance • t - exclusion for touching the tapes • x - other exclusion • e - retired or mechanical failure • f - fell • ns - non-starter • nc - non-classify
| gate A - inside | gate B | gate C | gate D - outside |

## Pairs

The Premier League Pairs Championship was held at Oaktree Arena on 26 June. The event was won by Birmingham Brummies.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | King's Lynn | 24 | Topinka 14, Ward 10 |
| 2 | Somerset | 23 | Johnston 12, Kramer 11 |
| 3 | Scunthorpe | 20 | Karlsson 11, Howe 9 |
| 4 | Berwick | 13 | Franc 7, Makovsky 6 |
| 5 | Rye House | 10 | Sundstrom 10, Neath 0 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Workington | 27 | Rymek 14, Doolan 13 |
| 2 | Birmingham | 19 | Lyons 12, Piszcz 7 |
| 3 | Edinburgh | 17 | Tully 9, Fisher 8 |
| 4 | Redcar | 16 | Havelock 10, Proctor 6 |
| 5 | Glasgow | 11 | Grieves 7, Brown 4 |
Semi finals
* Birmingham bt King's Lynn 6–3
* Somerset bt Workington 7–2
Final
* Birmingham bt Somerset 6–3

## Fours

Workington Comets won the Premier League Four-Team Championship for the fifth time, the Championship was held on 25 July 2009, at the Derwent Park.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Berwick | 14 | Makovsky 5, Franc 4, Clews 3, Aarnio 2 |
| 2 | Somerset | 12 | Johnston 4, Kramer 4, Gathercole 4, Walker 0, Sedgmen 0 |
| 3 | King's Lynn | 11 | Topinka 6, Schramm 4, Sanchez 1, Graversen 0, Smith 0 |
| 4 | Redcar | 11 | Proctor 5, Stonehewer 3, Havelock 2, Wilson 1 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Workington | 18 | Compton 6, Rymel 5, Doolan 4, Lawson 3 |
| 2 | Edinburgh | 12 | Wethers 5, Fisher 3, Rajkowski 3, Summers 1 |
| 3 | Rye House | 12 | Neath 3, Mear 3, Sundstrom 3, Bowen 3 |
| 4 | Scunthorpe | 6 | Karlsson 3, Howe 3, Wilkinson 0, Lambert 0 |
Final :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Workington | 27 | Compton 9, Rymel 9, Doolan 7, Lawson 2 |
| 2 | Somerset | 18 | Johnston 8, Gathercole 6, Kramer 2, Sedgmen 2, Walker 0 |
| 3 | Edinburgh | 14 | Fisher 5, Wethers 4, Summers 3, Rajkowski 2 |
| 4 | Berwick | 13 | Clews 5, Makovsky 4, Franc 4, Aarnio 0 |

## Final Leading averages

| Rider | Team | Average |
| Darcy Ward | Kings Lynn | 9.71 |
| Tomáš Topinka | Kings Lynn | 9.62 |
| Steve Johnston | Somerset | 9.46 |
| Kevin Doolan | Workington | 9.35 |
| David Howe | Scunthorpe | 9.18 |
| Mark Lemon | Newcastle | 9.17 |
| James Grieves | Glasgow | 8.97 |
| Shane Parker | Glasgow | 8.93 |
| Ryan Fisher | Edinburgh | 8.89 |
| Kevin Wölbert | Edinburgh | 8.97 |

## Riders & final averages

Berwick
* Michal Makovský 8.49
* Josef Franc 8.28
* Stanisław Burza 7.60
* Paul Clews 7.39
* William Lawson 6.02
* Tero Aarnio 5.55
* Guglielmo Franchetti 4.43
* Danny Warwick 4.00
* Tamas Sike 2.81
* Frank Facher 2.59
* Greg Blair 2.33
Birmingham
* Tomasz Piszcz 8.64
* Jason Lyons 8.42
* Richard Sweetman 7.20
* Russell Harrison 6.91
* Ludvig Lindgren 6.73
* Robert Ksiezak 6.12
* Lee Smart 5.25
* Manuel Hauzinger 5.10
* Jay Herne 4.64
* Marek Mroz 3.52
* James Cockle 3.13
* Ben Taylor 2.31
Edinburgh
* Ryan Fisher 8.89
* Kevin Wolbert 8.87
* Andrew Tully 7.83
* Matthew Wethers 7.74
* Thomas H. Jonasson 7.44
* Michał Rajkowski 7.06
* Aaron Summers 6.26
* Sean Stoddart 3.53
* Byron Bekker 3.17
* Max Dilger 2.54
Glasgow
* James Grieves 8.97
* Shane Parker 8.93
* William Lawson 7.79
* Josh Grajczonek 6.78
* Russell Harrison 5.76
* Anders Andersen 5.50
* Lee Dicken 4.91
* Mitchell Davey 4.51
* Peter Juul 2.40
King's Lynn
* Darcy Ward 9.71
* Tomáš Topinka 9.62
* Chris Schramm 8.49
* Emiliano Sanchez 8.12
* Kozza Smith 7.40
* Christian Henry 6.93
* Linus Eklöf 6.39
* Jan Graversen 5.92
* Darren Mallett 5.08
Newcastle
* Mark Lemon 9.17
* Kenni Larsen 8.19
* René Bach 8.17
* Jason King 7.83
* Derek Sneddon 5.86
* Steve Boxall 5.57
* Trent Leverington 5.52
* Craig Branney 4.78
* Adam McKinna 4.10
* Casper Wortmann 2.18
Newport
* Mark Lemon 8.00
* Leigh Lanham 7.64
* Jordan Frampton 7.36
* Paul Fry 6.40
* Chris Kerr 6.19
* Brent Werner 6.00
* James Holder 5.20
* Jonas Andersson 4.14
* Kyle Newman 2.26
Redcar
* Ty Proctor 8.55
* Gary Havelock 8.23
* Ben Wilson 7.90
* Carl Stonehewer 6.97
* Robbie Kessler 6.59
* Stuart Swales 5.18
* Benji Compton 3.85
* Arlo Bugeja 3.52
Rye House
* Chris Neath 7.82
* Linus Sundström 7.46
* Robert Mear 7.42
* Joe Haines 7.39
* Luke Bowen 6.97
* Andrew Silver 6.20
* Tommy Allen 5.11
Scunthorpe
* David Howe 9.18
* Magnus Karlsson 8.67
* Carl Wilkinson 7.04
* Simon Lambert 5.77
* Viktor Bergström 5.67
* Ritchie Hawkins 5.08
* Jerran Hart 4.89
* Byron Bekker 3.52
Sheffield
* Ricky Ashworth 8.42
* Richard Hall 7.88
* Josh Auty 7.51
* Joel Parsons 6.21
* Chris Mills 5.88
* Hugh Skidmore 5.87
* Paul Cooper 5.71
* Ritchie Hawkins 5.39
* Scott Smith 4.53
Somerset
* Steve Johnston 9.46
* Emil Kramer 8.79
* Cory Gathercole 8.23
* Simon Walker 5.77
* Justin Sedgmen 5.16
* Nick Simmons 4.89
* Jay Herne 4.57
* Tom Brown 4.30
* Jari Makinen 2.27
Stoke
* Jason Bunyan 8.55
* Lee Complin 7.63
* Phil Morris 5.89
* Klaus Jakobsen 5.82
* Tom P. Madsen 5.76
* Jesper Kristiansen 5.62
* Robert Ksiezak 5.06
* Craig Branney 4.00
* Glen Phillips 3.38
Workington
* Kevin Doolan 9.35
* Adrian Rymel 8.74
* Andre Compton 8.18
* Richard Lawson 5.57
* John Branney 5.37
* Charles Wright 5.36
* Craig Cook 3.93
* Luke Priest 2.54