# 2019 National Development League speedway season

The National League speedway 2019 now known as the National Development League for the 2019 season was the third tier/division of British speedway. There were several team changes for the 2019 league season with reigning league champions and KO cup winners Eastbourne Eagles, along with the Birmingham Brummies, moving into the SGB Championship. Coventry Bees, who rode their home meetings at Leicester the previous season, did not enter the league, but Leicester Lions entered a team (Leicester Lion Cubs). Cradley Heathens fully entered the league after the previous season National Trophy only commitment, while the Buxton Hitmen decided not compete and only run open meetings (friendlies). It was announced on Tuesday 10 September before the end of the 2019 National Development League season that Stoke Potters' home venue at Loomer Road Stadium had been sold and that the team would not be operating in 2020.

## Regulation changes

At the Speedway AGM in November 2018, the team averages were reduced to 36.00 points per team.

## Results

| Home \ Away | BVC | CH | IOW | KK | LLC | MIL | PLY | STK |
| Belle Vue Colts | | 65–25 | 56–34 | 44–45 | 50–40 | 64–25 | 50–40 | 63–27 |
| Cradley Heathens | 42–48 | | 47–43 | 46–44 | 39–51 | 46–44 | 47–43 | 48–42 |
| Isle of Wight Warriors | 51–39 | 53–37 | | 51–39 | 51–38 | 39–51 | 42–48 | 48–42 |
| Kent Kings | 47–43 | 41–37 | 45–45 | | 40–50 | 59–31 | 50–37 | 53–37 |
| Leicester Lion Cubs | 51–38 | 57–33 | 57–33 | 51–39 | | 54–36 | 59–30 | 50–40 |
| Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 44–46 | 38–51 | 50–40 | 51–38 | 48–42 | | 53–37 | 53–37 |
| Plymouth Gladiators | 38–52 | 40–49 | 46–44 | 44–46 | 38–52 | 44–46 | | 48–41 |
| Stoke Potters | 42–48 | 51–36 | 45–45 | 42–44 | 40–50 | 51–38 | 54–36 | |
Teams face each other two times: once home and once away.

## Final table

| Pos. | Club | M | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | F | A | Pts | +/− |
| Pos. | Club | M | W | D | L | 4W | 3W | D | 1L | L | F | A | Pts | +/− |
| 1 | Leicester Lion Cubs | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 702 | 555 | 38 | +147 |
| 2 | Belle Vue Colts | 14 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 706 | 551 | 32 | +155 |
| 3 | Kent Kings | 14 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 630 | 609 | 26 | +21 |
| 4 | Cradley Heathens | 14 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 583 | 650 | 24 | -77 |
| 5 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 14 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 608 | 648 | 23 | -40 |
| 6 | Isle of Wight Warriors | 14 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 619 | 640 | 21 | -21 |
| 7 | Stoke Potters | 14 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 591 | 660 | 12 | -69 |
| 8 | Plymouth Gladiators | 14 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 569 | 685 | 10 | -116 |

## Play-Offs

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 53 | 64 | 117 | | | | | |
| Cradley Heathens | Cradley Heathens | 37 | 26 | 63 | | | | | |
| Cradley Heathens | Cradley Heathens | 37 | 26 | 63 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 59 | 47 | 106 |
| | | | | | Kent Kings | Kent Kings | 31 | 43 | 74 |
| Belle Vue Colts | Belle Vue Colts | 47 | 36 | 83 | Kent Kings | Kent Kings | 31 | 43 | 74 |
| Kent Kings | Kent Kings | 43 | 53 | 96 | | | | | |
Home team scores are in bold Overall aggregate scores are in red
Semi-finals
| 2 October | Cradley Heathens | 37–53 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Perry Barr Stadium Referee(s): Seth Perkin |
| 5 October | Leicester Lion Cubs | 64–26 | Cradley Heathens | Beaumont Park Stadium Referee(s): Dave Watters |
| 4 October | Belle Vue Colts | 47–43 | Kent Kings | National Speedway Stadium Referee(s): Craig Ackroyd |
| 7 October | Kent Kings | 53–36 | Belle Vue Colts | Central Park Stadium Referee(s): Paul Carrington |
Grand Final
| 16 October | Leicester Lion Cubs Danyon Hume 16 Ellis Perks 14 Joe Thompson 12 Ryan Terry-Daley 8 Dan Thompson 5 Josh Embleton 4 Luke Ruddick R/R | 59–31 | Kent Kings Dan Gilkes 7 Drew Kemp 7 Robert Ledworth 6 Anders Rowe 6 Jake Mulford 3 Alex Spooner 1 Jordan Jenkins 1 | Beaumont Park Stadium Referee(s): Mick Bates |
| 28 October | Kent Kings Robert Ledworth 11 Dan Gilkes 9 Drew Kemp 9 Jordan Jenkins 7 Jake Mulford 4 Alex Spooner 3 Anders Rowe R/R | 43–47 | Leicester Lion Cubs Danyon Hume 13 Ellis Perks 12 Joe Thompson 9 Ryan Terry-Daley 8 Dan Thompson 5 Josh Embleton 0 Luke Ruddick R/R | Central Park Stadium Referee(s): Chris Gay |

## Leading Final Averages

| Rider | Team | Average |
| Max Clegg | Cradley | 10.36 |
| Ellis Perks | Leicester | 10.04 |
| Georgie Wood | Isle of Wight | 9.94 |
| Ben Morley | Isle of Wight | 9.85 |
| Jordan Palin | Belle Vue | 9.76 |
| Danyon Hume | Leicester | 9.61 |
| Ben Wilson | Plymouth | 9.22 |
| Kyle Bickley | Belle Vue | 9.12 |
| Leon Flint | Belle Vue | 8.95 |
| Anders Rowe | Kent | 8.86 |

## Knockout Cup

The 2019 National Development League Knockout Cup was the 22nd edition of the Knockout Cup for tier three teams.
| Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Stoke Potters | Stoke Potters | 50 | 42 | 92 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Plymouth Gladiators | Plymouth Gladiators | 39 | 48 | 87 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Plymouth Gladiators | Plymouth Gladiators | 39 | 48 | 87 | Stoke Potters | Stoke Potters | 36 | 31 | 67 | | | | | |
| | | | | | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 54 | 59 | 113 | | | | | |
| Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 34 | 52 | 86 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 54 | 59 | 113 | | | | | |
| Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 55 | 38 | 93 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 55 | 38 | 93 | | | | | | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 45 | 43 | 88 |
| | | | | | | | | | | Belle Vue Colts | Belle Vue Colts | 27 | 47 | 74 |
| Cradley Heathens | Cradley Heathens | 49 | 46 | 95 | | | | | | | | | | | Belle Vue Colts | Belle Vue Colts | 27 | 47 | 74 |
| Isle of Wight Warriors | Isle of Wight Warriors | 41 | 44 | 85 | | | | | | | | | | |
| Isle of Wight Warriors | Isle of Wight Warriors | 41 | 44 | 85 | Cradley Heathens | Cradley Heathens | 39 | 35 | 84 | | | | | |
| | | | | | Belle Vue Colts | Belle Vue Colts | 45 | 55 | 100 | | | | | |
| Kent Kings | Kent Kings | 39 | 43 | 82 | Belle Vue Colts | Belle Vue Colts | 45 | 55 | 100 | | | | | |
| Belle Vue Colts | Belle Vue Colts | 51 | 45 | 96 | | | | | | | | | | |
Home team scores are in bold Overall aggregate scores are in red
Quarter-finals
| 6 July | Stoke Potters | 50–39 | Plymouth Gladiators | Loomer Road Stadium Referee(s): Michael Breckon |
| 12 July | Plymouth Gladiators | 48–42 | Stoke Potters | Plymouth Coliseum Referee(s): Chris Durno |
| 12 May | Leicester Lion Cubs | 55–34 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Beaumont Park Stadium Referee(s): Phil Griffin |
| 26 May | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 52–38 | Leicester Lion Cubs | West Row Arena Referee(s): Stuart Wilson |
| 9 May | Isle of Wight Warriors | 41–49 | Cradley Heathens | Smallbrook Stadium Referee(s): Dave Robinson |
| 20 May | Cradley Heathens | 46–44 | Isle of Wight Warriors | Monmore Green Referee(s): Chris Durno |
| 20 June | Belle Vue Colts | 51–39 | Kent Kings | National Speedway Stadium Referee(s): Graham Flint |
| 24 June | Kent Kings | 43–45 | Belle Vue Colts | Central Park Stadium Referee(s): Christina Turnball |
Semi-finals
| 3 August | Stoke Potters | 36–54 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Loomer Road Stadium Referee(s): Chris Durno |
| 5 October | Leicester Lion Cubs | 59–31 | Stoke Potters | Beaumont Park Stadium Referee(s): Dave Watters |
| 16 September | Cradley Heathens | 39–45 | Belle Vue Colts | Monmore Green Referee(s): Phil Griffin |
| 18 September | Belle Vue Colts | 55–35 | Cradley Heathens | National Speedway Stadium Referee(s): Craig Ackroyd |
Grand Final
| 23 October | Leicester Lion Cubs Joe Thompson 12 Danyon Hume 11 Ellis Perks 8 Dan Thompson 7 Ryan Terry-Daley 6 Josh Embleton 1 Luke Ruddick R/R | 45–27 | Belle Vue Colts Kyle Bickley 7 Leon Flint 6 Jordan Palin 4 Connor Bailey 3 Danny Phillips 3 Ben Rathbone 3 Ben Woodhull 1 | Beaumont Park Stadium Referee(s): Graeme Hunter |
| 29 October | Belle Vue Colts Connor Bailey 12 Leon Flint 11 Kyle Bickley 8 Jordan Palin 7 Danny Phillips 5 Ben Woodhull 4 Ben Rathbone 0 | 47–43 | Leicester Lion Cubs Dan Thompson 11 Ellis Perks 11 Danyon Hume 10 Joe Thompson 5 Josh Embleton 4 Ryan Terry-Daley 2 Luke Ruddick R/R | National Speedway Stadium Referee(s): Jim McGregor |

## National Trophy
### Results

| Home \ Away | IOW | KK | MIL | PLY |
| Isle of Wight Warriors | | 48–42 | 49–40 | 42–48 |
| Kent Kings | 54–35 | | 48–41 | 56–34 |
| Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 51–39 | 41–43 | | 61–29 |
| Plymouth Gladiators | 45–45 | 46–44 | 41–49 | |
Teams face each other two times: once home and once away.

### Final table

| Pos. | Club | M | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | F | A | Pts | +/− |
| Pos. | Club | M | W | D | L | 4W | 3W | D | 1L | L | F | A | Pts | +/− |
| 1 | Kent Kings | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 287 | 245 | 14 | +42 |
| 2 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 283 | 249 | 10 | +34 |
| 3 | Isle of Wight Warriors | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 258 | 280 | 8 | -22 |
| 4 | Plymouth Gladiators | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 243 | 297 | 7 | -54 |

## Riders' Championship

Raced at the Eddie Wright Raceway, Scunthorpe on 20 October. The meeting was decided on count back for riders first three rides, after rain prevented the meetings full conclusion. Scores below are from the referee's official National League Riders Individual Championship score sheet.
| Pos. | Rider | Team | Total |
| 1 | Anders Rowe | Kent Kings | 9 |
| 2 | Drew Kemp | Kent Kings | 8 |
| 3 | Max Clegg | Cradley Heathens | 8 |
| 4 | Ellis Perks | Leicester Lion Cubs | 7 |
| 5 | Leon Flint | Belle Vue Colts | 7 |
| 6 | Ryan Kinsley | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 6 |
| 7 | Kyle Bickley | Belle Vue Colts | 6 |
| 8 | Ben Morley | Isle of Wight | 6 |
| 9 | Jordan Palin | Belle Vue Colts | 3 |
| 10 | Jason Edwards | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 3 |
| 11 | Jack Smith | Cradley Heathens | 3 |
| 12 | Tom Spencer (res) | Cradley Heathens | 3 |
| 13 | Joe Thompson | Leicester Lion Cubs | 2 |
| 14 | Connor Coles | Belle Vue Colts | 1 |
| 15 | Danno Verge | Isle of Wight Islanders | 1 |
| 16 | Joe Lawlor | Stoke Potters | 0 |
| 17 | Tom Young | Plymouth Gladiators | 0 |
| 18 | Sam Woods (res) | Unattached | 0 |

## Pairs

The National League Pairs Championship, was held at Owlerton Stadium, on 25 August 2019. The event was won by Drew Kemp and Anders Rowe of the Kent Kings.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Leicester | 18 | Perks 12, Hume 6 |
| 2 | Kent | 18 | Kemp 11, Rowe 7 |
| 3 | Isle of Wight | 10 | Morley 8, Widman 2 |
| 4 | Stoke | 8 | Perry 8, Lawlor 0 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Plymouth | 18 | Wilson 12, Stoneman 6 |
| 2 | Mildenhall | 17 | Edwards 9, Kinsley 8 |
| 3 | Belle Vue | 13 | Bickley 9, Flint 4 |
| 4 | Cradley | 6 | Davies 6, McGurk H 0 |
Final :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Kent | 19 | Kemp 10, Rowe 9 |
| 2 | Leicester | 17 | Perks 12, Hume 5 |
| 3 | Plymouth | 10 | Stoneman 6, Wilson 4 |
| 4 | Mildenhall | 8 | Kinsley 6, Edwards 2 |

## Fours

Stoke won the NDL Fours, held on 13 July 2019 at Loomer Road Stadium.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Stoke | 18 | Lawlor 6, Coles 5, Priest 4, Perry 3 |
| 2 | Isle of Wight | 14 | Morley 6, Verge 4, Wood 3 Wirtzfield 1 |
| 3 | Leicester | 8 | Thompson D 4 Thompson J 2, Terry-Daley 1 Hume 1 |
| 4 | Cradley | 8 | Smith 4, halsey 3, Spencer 1, McGurk 0 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Mildenhall | 16 | Ayres 6, Atkins 4, Edwards 4, Marson 2 |
| 2 | Kent | 14 | Jenkins 6, Kemp 3, Rowe 3, Fellows 2 |
| 3 | Belle Vue | 9 | Bailey 3, Palin 3, Bickley 3, Phillips 0 |
| 4 | Plymouth | 8 | Wilson 5, Andrews 3, Chessell 0, Wallinger 0 |
Final :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Stoke | 15 | Perry 4, Lawlor 4, Priest 4, Coles 3 |
| 2 | Isle of Wight | 14 | Morley 6, Wood 5, Wirtzfield 2, Verge 1 |
| 3 | Mildenhall | 13 | Ayres 5, Edwards 5, Atkins 3, Marson 0 |
| 4 | Kent | 6 | Kemp 4, Rowe 1, Jenkins 1, Fellows 0 |

## Teams and final averages

Belle Vue Colts
* Jordan Palin 9.76
* Kyle Bickley 9.12
* Leon Flint 8.95
* Connor Bailey 8.55
* Danny Phillips 7.07
* Ben Woodhull 4.67
* Ben Rathbone 4.59
7 June Connor Bailey replaced the injured Paul Bowen in the Belle Vue Colts team
Cradley Heathens
* Max Clegg 10.36
* Jack Smith 6.93
* Danny Halsey 6.87
* Luke Harris 6.71
* Tom Spencer 4.60
* Harry McGurk 3.87
* Sheldon Davies 3.13
* Lewis Whitmore 1.14
* Tom Brennan (1 match only)
21 May Jack Smith replaced the injured Tom Brennan in the Cradley Heathens team 6 June Sheldon Davies replaced Lewis Whitmore in the Cradley Heathens team
Isle of Wight Warriors
* Georgie Wood 9.94
* Ben Morley 9.85
* Danno Verge 6.54
* Ryan Terry-Daley 5.60
* Scott Campos 5.36
* Chad Wirtzfeld 4.52
* Chris Widman 4.50
* Connor King 4.47
1 July Scott Campos replaced Ryan Terry-Daley in the Isle of Wight team
Kent Kings
* Anders Rowe 8.86
* Drew Kemp 8.68
* Dan Gilkes 8.53
* Jake Mulford 8.33
* Jordan Jenkins 7.40
* Rob Ledwith 6.22
* Alex Spooner 6.35
* Nathan Ablitt 6.12
* Jacob Clouting 3.63
2 June Jacob Clouting replaced the injured Dan Gilkes in the Kent Kings team 15 August Jake Mulford replaced the injured Nathan Ablitt in the Kent Kings team 6 September Alex Spooner replaced Jacob Clouting in the Kent Kings team
Leicester Lion Cubs
* Ellis Perks 10.04
* Danyon Hume 9.61
* Luke Ruddick 8.44
* Joe Thompson 7.52
* Dan Thompson 6.42
* Ryan Terry-Daley 6.31
* Josh Embleton 6.00
* Ryan MacDonald 3.59
11 April Ryan MacDonald replaced Kelsey Dugard in the Leicester Lion Cubs team 9 July Ryan Terry-Daley replaced the injured Jamie Halder in the Leicester Lion Cubs team 29 August Josh Embleton replaced Ryan MacDonald in the Leicester Lion Cubs team
Mildenhall Fen Tigers
* Danny Ayres 10.57
* Macauley Leek 8.67
* Ryan Kinsley 8.38
* Jason Edwards 8.00
* Charlie Brooks 7.07
* Matt Marson 6.40
* Henry Atkins 6.05
* David Wallinger 5.50
* Elliot Kelly 4.30
* Arran Butcher 3.13
16 June Henry Atkins and Arran Butcher replaced the injured Macauley Leek and David Wallinger in the Mildenhall team 13 August Ryan Kinsley replaced the injured Danny Ayres in the Mildenhall Fen Tigers team
Plymouth Gladiators
* Ben Wilson 9.22
* Nathan Stoneman 8.81
* Richard Andrews 7.03
* Adam Extance 6.67
* Scott Campos 4.75
* David Wallinger 4.48
* Jamie Bursill 3.71
* Adam Sheppard 3.71
* Luke Chessell 2.29
* Tom Young 2.00
* Kris Andrews 0.57
26 June David Wallinger replaced Scott Campos in the Plymouth team 10 July Luke Chessell replaced the injured Nathan Stoneman in the Plymouth team 28 August Tom Young and Kris Andrews replaced the injured Adam Extance and David Wallinger in the Plymouth team 6 September Nathan Stoneman replaced Luke Chessell in the Plymouth team
Stoke Potters
* Tom Perry 8.71
* Joe Lawlor 8.09
* Connor Coles 8.00
* Luke Priest 6.19
* Joe Alcock 5.27
* Shelby Rutherford 4.73
* Corban Pavitt 2.33
* Kieran Douglas 1.33
9 January Shelby Rutherford replaced Paul Burnett in the Stoke Potters team 9 May Lawlor replaced Luke Chessell in the Stoke Potters team 23 July Corban Pavitt quit the Stoke Potters team for personal reasons 31 August Kieran Douglas replaced Corban Pavitt in the Stoke Potters team

## Development Leagues
### Midland & Southern Development League

| Pos | team | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Birmingham Bulls | 12 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 20 |
| 2 | Exeter | 12 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 17 |
| 3 | Isle of Wight | 12 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 16 |
| 4 | Reading Racers | 12 | 7 | 0 | 5 | 14 |
| 5 | Carmarthen Dragons | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 12 |
| 6 | Milton Keynes | 12 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 3 |
| 7 | Weymouth | 12 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 2 |

### Northern Junior League

| Pos | team | P | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Newcastle | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 2 | Berwick | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| 3 | Ashfield | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| 4 | Redcar | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 5 |
| 5 | Edinburgh | 8 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 2 |