# 1968 British League season

The 1968 British League season was the 34th season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the fourth season known as the British League.

## Summary

Edinburgh relocated to become the Coatbridge Monarchs. The Long Eaton team closed its doors, but a new team in Leicester returned to speedway to join the League. Long Eaton promoters Ron Wilson and Reg Fearman moved the speedway licence to Leicester Stadium because of concerns over increased stock car events damaging the Long Eaton Stadium speedway track.
Coventry Bees secured their first title on points difference and after they scored points in the last heat of their last match away at King's Lynn. The title win came after two consecutive years as being runner-up. Coventry's Nigel Boocock was again one of the league's leading riders with his average going well above ten for the fifth consecutive year. He was well supported by Ron Mountford and Czechoslovakian star Antonín Kasper Sr. Wimbledon Dons who could only manage a mid table finish went on to win the British League Knockout Cup.

## Final table

| | | M | W | D | L | F | A | Pts |
| 1 | Coventry Bees | 36 | 22 | 0 | 14 | 1436 | 1369 | 44 |
| 2 | Hackney Hawks | 36 | 21 | 2 | 13 | 1421 | 1383 | 44 |
| 3 | Exeter Falcons | 36 | 20 | 1 | 15 | 1556.5 | 1248.5 | 41 |
| 4 | Sheffield Tigers | 36 | 20 | 1 | 15 | 1463.5 | 1337.5 | 41 |
| 5 | Newcastle Diamonds | 36 | 20 | 0 | 16 | 1454 | 1350 | 40 |
| 6 | West Ham Hammers | 36 | 19 | 1 | 16 | 1454 | 1348 | 39 |
| 7 | Halifax Dukes | 36 | 19 | 1 | 16 | 1424 | 1379 | 39 |
| 8 | Coatbridge Monarchs | 36 | 18 | 1 | 17 | 1404 | 1397 | 37 |
| 9 | Wimbledon Dons | 36 | 18 | 0 | 18 | 1411 | 1384 | 36 |
| 10 | Belle Vue Aces | 36 | 18 | 0 | 18 | 1387 | 1417 | 36 |
| 11 | Swindon Robins | 36 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 1448 | 1353 | 35 |
| 12 | Leicester Lions | 36 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 1373 | 1430 | 35 |
| 13 | Newport Wasps | 36 | 17 | 1 | 18 | 1348 | 1457 | 35 |
| 14 | Cradley Heath Heathens | 36 | 15 | 4 | 17 | 1373 | 1430 | 34 |
| 15 | Oxford Cheetahs | 36 | 17 | 0 | 19 | 1319 | 1487 | 34 |
| 16 | Wolverhampton Wolves | 36 | 16 | 0 | 20 | 1388 | 1413 | 32 |
| 17 | Poole Pirates | 36 | 13 | 2 | 21 | 1327 | 1478 | 28 |
| 18 | King's Lynn Stars | 36 | 13 | 1 | 22 | 1330 | 1473 | 27 |
| 19 | Glasgow Tigers | 36 | 13 | 1 | 22 | 1312 | 1495 | 27 |
M = Matches; W = Wins; D = Draws; L = Losses; Pts = Total Points

## Fixtures & results

| Home \ Away | BV | CM | COV | CH | EX | GLA | HAC | HAL | KL | LE | ND | NW | OX | PP | SHE | SWI | WH | WIM | WOL |
| Belle Vue Aces | | 41–37 | 55–23 | 47–31 | 34–44 | 50–28 | 45–33 | 49–29 | 40–38 | 40–38 | 41–37 | 51–27 | 52–26 | 45–33 | 37–41 | 55–23 | 44–34 | 52–26 | 41–37 |
| Coatbridge Monarchs | 41–36 | | 38–40 | 51–27 | 39–39 | 48–30 | 53–25 | 52–26 | 49–29 | 43–35 | 46–32 | 48–30 | 54–24 | 44–34 | 42–36 | 43–35 | 48–30 | 46–32 | 53–23 |
| Coventry Bees | 37–41 | 47–31 | | 53–25 | 43–35 | 48–30 | 41–36 | 46–32 | 47–31 | 45–33 | 43–35 | 46–32 | 56–22 | 49–29 | 44–34 | 43–35 | 42–36 | 50–28 | 45–33 |
| Cradley Heathens | 45–33 | 54–24 | 37–41 | | 42–36 | 53–25 | 46–32 | 37–41 | 46–32 | 36–42 | 38–40 | 42–36 | 50–28 | 43–35 | 42–35 | 39–39 | 40–38 | 44–34 | 49–29 |
| Exeter Falcons | 46–31 | 53–25 | 51–27 | 53–25 | | 50–28 | 51–27 | 58–19 | 59–19 | 56–22 | 47–31 | 53–25 | 50–28 | 52–26 | 50–28 | 49–29 | 41–37 | 49–29 | 51–27 |
| Glasgow Tigers | 44–34 | 38–40 | 47–31 | 39–39 | 36–42 | | 36–42 | 34–44 | 44–34 | 47–31 | 41–37 | 55–23 | 49–29 | 46–32 | 38–40 | 43–35 | 31–47 | 40–38 | 49–29 |
| Hackney Hawks | 48–30 | 40–36 | 42–36 | 43–35 | 43–35 | 47–31 | | 46–32 | 41–37 | 43–35 | 42–36 | 48–30 | 46–32 | 47–31 | 42–35 | 47–31 | 42–36 | 52–26 | 42–36 |
| Halifax Dukes | 52–26 | 51–27 | 42–36 | 56–22 | 43–35 | 50–27 | 54–24 | | 44–34 | 47–31 | 40–38 | 47–31 | 52–26 | 42–36 | 39–39 | 45–33 | 43–35 | 50–28 | 49–29 |
| King's Lynn Stars | 41–37 | 50–28 | 37–41 | 39–39 | 45–33 | 36–42 | 36–42 | 43–35 | | 41–37 | 41–37 | 40–38 | 48–30 | 50–28 | 49–29 | 42–36 | 38–40 | 47–26 | 40–38 |
| Leicester Lions | 44–34 | 40–38 | 37–41 | 50–27 | 40–38 | 43–35 | 39–39 | 41–37 | 48–30 | | 44–34 | 51–27 | 44–34 | 41–37 | 39–37 | 45–33 | 41–37 | 43–35 | 40–38 |
| Newcastle Diamonds | 59–19 | 48–30 | 52–26 | 40–38 | 50–28 | 45–33 | 46–32 | 50–28 | 40–38 | 40–38 | | 53–25 | 41–37 | 43–35 | 46–32 | 46–32 | 49–29 | 49–28 | 40–38 |
| Newport Wasps | 46–32 | 43–35 | 42–36 | 47–31 | 41–37 | 49–29 | 46–32 | 45–33 | 42–36 | 44–33 | 51–27 | | 53–25 | 48–29 | 49–29 | 47–31 | 39–39 | 46–32 | 45–33 |
| Oxford Cheetahs | 43–35 | 43–35 | 41–37 | 30–47 | 43–35 | 42–36 | 45–33 | 51–26 | 43–35 | 43–35 | 41–37 | 54–24 | | 42–36 | 42–36 | 38–40 | 46–32 | 43–35 | 44–34 |
| Poole Pirates | 36–42 | 38–40 | 43–35 | 39–39 | 40–38 | 45–33 | 39–39 | 42–36 | 45–33 | 43–35 | 44–34 | 43–35 | 49–29 | | 43–35 | 38–40 | 41–37 | 45–32 | 42–36 |
| Sheffield Tigers | 54–24 | 46–32 | 51–27 | 53–25 | 44.5–33.5 | 51–27 | 43–35 | 42–36 | 51–27 | 45–33 | 50–27 | 51–27 | 49–29 | 51–27 | | 50–28 | 41–37 | 50–28 | 44–34 |
| Swindon Robins | 56–22 | 57–20 | 43–34 | 36–42 | 50–28 | 61–17 | 36–42 | 48–30 | 51–27 | 43–35 | 38–39 | 54–24 | 45–33 | 53–24 | 47–31 | | 36–42 | 39–38 | 46–32 |
| West Ham Hammers | 41–36 | 43–35 | 46–32 | 39–38 | 48–30 | 36–42 | 41–37 | 42–35 | 48–30 | 50–28 | 44–34 | 50–28 | 41–37 | 45–33 | 48–29 | 37–40 | | 43–35 | 52–25 |
| Wimbledon Dons | 54–24 | 51–26 | 54–24 | 42–36 | 50–28 | 49–29 | 46–32 | 42–35 | 49–29 | 47–31 | 46–31 | 49–29 | 37–41 | 41–37 | 55–22 | 43–34 | 41–37 | | 41–37 |
| Wolverhampton Wolves | 45–32 | 51–27 | 33–44 | 45–33 | 43–35 | 45–33 | 40–38 | 54–24 | 50–28 | 46–31 | 47–31 | 43–34 | 43–35 | 48–30 | 49–29 | 43–35 | 41–37 | 34–44 | |

## Top Ten Riders (League averages)

| | Rider | Team | C.M.A. |
| 1 | Ivan Mauger | Newcastle | 11.40 |
| 2 | Barry Briggs | Swindon | 10.88 |
| 3 | Nigel Boocock | Coventry | 10.79 |
| 4 | Martin Ashby | Exeter | 10.68 |
| 5 | Charlie Monk | Sheffield | 10.14 |
| 6 | Eric Boocock | Halifax | 10.13 |
| 7 | Anders Michanek | Leicester | 10.07 |
| 8 | Norman Hunter | West Ham | 9.94 |
| 9 | Sverre Harrfeldt | West Ham | 9.88 |
| 10 | Torbjörn Harrysson | Newport | 9.82 |

## British League Knockout Cup

The 1968 British League Knockout Cup was the 30th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier one teams. Wimbledon were the winners.
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 27/04 | Coatbridge | 66–42 | Glasgow |
| 27/04 | Halifax | 57–51 | Exeter |
| 16/04 | West Ham | 55–52 | Hackney |
Second round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 01/06 | Belle Vue | 64–44 | West Ham |
| 14/05 | Leicester | 52–56 | Coventry |
| 20/05 | Newcastle | 77–30 | Coatbridge |
| 23/05 | Sheffield | 71–37 | Cradley Heath |
| 25/05 | Swindon | 58–50 | Oxford |
| 23/05 | Wimbledon | 60–48 | Kings Lynn |
| 22/05 | Poole | 56–52 | Newport |
| 17/05 | Wolverhampton | 60–47 | Halifax |
Third round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 17/08 | Belle Vue | 65–42 | Sheffield |
| 26/07 | Poole | 54–54 | Swindon |
| 27/06 | Wimbledon | 64–44 | Newcastle |
| 28/06 | Wolverhampton | 58–50 | Coventry |
| 23/08 replay | Swindon | 60–47 | Poole |
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 20/09 | Wolverhampton | 67–40 | Belle Vue |
| 12/09 | Wimbledon | 80–28 | Swindon |

### Final

First leg
Second leg
Wimbledon Dons were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 118-98.

## Riders' Championship

Barry Briggs won the British League Riders' Championship for the fourth consecutive year, held at Hyde Road on 19 October. Briggs defeated Boocock in a run off for the title.
| Pos. | Rider | Heat Scores | Total |
| 1 | Barry Briggs | 3 3 3 2 3 | 14 |
| 2 | Nigel Boocock | 3 3 3 3 2 | 14 |
| 3 | Ivan Mauger | 2 3 3 3 2 | 13 |
| 4 | Torbjörn Harrysson | 3 2 3 3 f | 11 |
| 5 | Martin Ashby | 3 2 2 1 3 | 11 |
| 6 | Terry Betts | 1 2 1 3 1 | 8 |
| 7 | Sören Sjösten | 2 r 2 1 3 | 8 |
| 8 | Anders Michanek | 0 3 1 2 2 | 8 |
| 9 | Hasse Holmqvist | 2 1 1 2 1 | 7 |
| 10 | Bernt Persson | 1 1 2 2 1 | 7 |
| 11 | Charlie Monk | 2 2 0 0 1 | 5 |
| 12 | Norman Hunter | 1 1 ef 0 3 | 5 |
| 13 | Nigel Boocock | ef 0 2 1 2 | 5 |
| 14 | Olle Nygren | 0 1 ef 1 0 | 2 |
| 15 | Colin Pratt | 1 ef 1 0 0 | 2 |
| 16 | Roy Trigg | ef ns 0 0 0 | 0 |
* ef=engine failure, f=fell, exc=excluded

## Final leading averages

| | Rider | Team | C.M.A. |
| 1 | Ivan Mauger | Newcastle | 11.37 |
| 2 | Barry Briggs | Swindon | 10.87 |
| 3 | Nigel Boocock | Coventry | 10.74 |
| 4 | Martin Ashby | Exeter | 10.72 |
| 5 | Anders Michanek | Leicester | 10.19 |
| 6 | Eric Boocock | Halifax | 10.17 |
| 7 | Charlie Monk | Sheffield | 10.07 |
| 8 | Sverre Harrfeldt | West Ham | 9.78 |
| 9 | Torbjörn Harrysson | Newport | 9.82 |
| 10 | Norman Hunter | West Ham | 9.71 |
| 11 | Ron Mountford | Coventry | 9.62 |
| 12 | Hasse Holmqvist | Wolverhampton | 9.58 |
| 13 | Colin Pratt | Hackney | 9.58 |
| 14 | Terry Betts | King's Lynn | 9.45 |
| 15 | Malcolm Simmons | King's Lynn | 9.40 |
| 16 | Ole Olsen | Newcastle | 9.39 |
| 17 | Ray Wilson | Leicester | 9.37 |
| 18 | Olle Nygren | Wimbledon | 9.39 |
| 19 | Bernt Persson | Edinburgh | 9.28 |
| 20 | Jim Airey | Wolverhampton | 9.24 |

## London Cup

Wimbledon won the London Cup.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts |
| 1 | Wimbledon Dons | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 233 | 198 | 6 |
| 2 | West Ham Hammers | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 225 | 207 | 5 |
| 3 | Hackney Hawks | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 189 | 242 | 1 |
Results
| Team | Score | Team |
| West Ham | 59–49 | Hackney |
| Wimbledon | 56–22 | West Ham |
| West Ham | 60–48 | Wimbledon |
| Wimbledon | 63–44 | Hackney |
| Hackney | 42–66 | Wimbledon |
| Hackney | 54–54 | West Ham |

## Midland Cup

Swindon won the Midland Cup for the second consecutive season. The competition consisted of six teams.
First round
| Team one | Team two | Score |
| Oxford | Wolverhampton | 42–36, 41–37 |
| Leicester | Cradley | 45–32, 41–37 |
Semi final round
| Team one | Team two | Score |
| Leicester | Cradley | 45–32, 36–42 |
| Swindon | Oxford | 46–32, 39–38 |

### Final

First leg
Second leg
Swindon won on aggregate 78–77

## Riders & final averages

Belle Vue
* Sören Sjösten 9.13
* Tommy Roper 8.50
* Sándor Lévai 7.40
* Cyril Maidment 7.34
* Bill Powell 5.62
* Norman Nevitt 5.56
* Taffy Owen 4.48
* Ken Eyre 4.29
* Chris Pusey 3.65
* Eric Broadbelt 2.78
Coatbridge
* Bernt Persson 9.28
* Reidar Eide 9.02
* George Hunter 6.48
* Bert Harkins 6.36
* Doug Templeton 6.05
* Brian Collins 4.39
* Alec Hughson 3.62
Coventry
* Nigel Boocock 10.74
* Ron Mountford 9.62
* Antonín Kasper Sr. 7.51
* Col Cottrell 7.09
* Les Owen 6.46
* Rick France 6.13
* Roger Hill 5.46
* Tom Ridley 4.73
* Chris Harrison 3.40
* Dave Callington 1.88
Cradley Heath
* Roy Trigg 8.91
* Bob Andrews 7.70
* Graham Coombes 6.71
* Chris Julian 6.32
* Lars Jansson 6.20
* Ivor Brown 5.67
* Tommy Bergqvist 5.02
* Ken Wakefield 5.02
* Archie Wilkinson 4.19
* Peter Wrathall 3.62
* Alan Totney 3.16
Exeter
* Martin Ashby 10.72
* Wayne Briggs 7.70
* Neil Street 7.51
* Jimmy Squibb 7.46
* Tommy Sweetman 7.31
* Mike Cake 6.37
* Chris Blewett 5.71
* Chris Bass 4.64
Glasgow
* Jimmy McMillan 8.31
* Oyvind Berg 7.91
* Alf Wells 7.43
* Bo Josefsson 6.79
* Russ Dent 5.78
* Lars Jansson 5.68
* Willie Templeton 4.92
* Bill McMillan 4.79
* Åke Andersson 4.17
* Brian Whaley 2.37
Hackney
* Colin Pratt 9.58
* Bengt Jansson 8.99
* Les McGillivray 6.74
* Des Lukehurst 6.24
* Jack Biggs 6.08
* Malcolm Brown 5.31
* Alan Jackson 4.40
* Gary Everett 4.08
* Laurie Etheridge 3.17
Halifax
* Eric Boocock 10.17
* Dave Younghusband 8.83
* Eric Boothroyd 7.95
* Alan Jay 6.27
* Greg Kentwell 5.94
* Dennis Gavros 5.43
* Les Sharpe 3.88
* Bob Jameson 3.75
* Maury Robinson 3.69
King's Lynn
* Terry Betts 9.45
* Malcolm Simmons 9.40
* Clive Featherby 6.11
* Howard Cole (Kid Bodie) 5.94
* Brian Davies 5.24
* David Crane 5.10
* Geoff Penniket 4.34
* Alan Bellham 4.29
* Allan Brown 4.00
Leicester
* Anders Michanek 10.19
* Ray Wilson 9.37
* John Boulger 6.62
* George Major 5.51
* John Hart 5.43
* Norman Storer 5.24
* Vic White 4.06
* Graham Plant 2.80
* Roger Mills 2.58
Newcastle'
* Ivan Mauger 11.37
* Ole Olsen 9.39
* Dave Gifford 6.86
* Alan Butterfield 6.08
* Goog Allan 5.76
* Mike Watkin 5.48
* Alf Wells 5.09
* Alan Jay 5.05
* Alan Paynter 3.67
* Gary Peterson 3.56
* Murray Burt 2.24
Newport
* Torbjörn Harrysson 9.73
* Jimmy Gooch 7.97
* Jon Erskine 6.56
* Norman Strachan 6.47
* Bob Hughes 6.26
* Cyril Francis 5.69
* Alby Golden 5.72
* Terry Shearer 2.00
Oxford
* Ronnie Genz 8.53
* Eddie Reeves 7.32
* Colin Gooddy 6.87
* Leo McAuliffe 6.58
* Rick Timmo 5.52
* John Bishop 4.38
* Peter Seaton 2.77
Poole
* Bill Andrew 8.32
* Geoff Mudge 7.67
* Pete Smith 7.46
* Odd Fossengen 6.94
* Bruce Cribb 5.71
* Ted Laessing 5.25
* Maury Mattingley 5.14
* Tim Bungay 4.53
* Tony Lewis 4.36
Sheffield
* Charlie Monk 10.07
* Bengt Larsson 7.97
* Arnold Haley 7.54
* Bob Paulson 6.79
* John Dews 6.39
* Brian Maxted 6.13
* Billy Bales 4.76
* Dave Baugh 1.49
Swindon
* Barry Briggs 10.87
* Mike Broadbank 8.51
* Bob Kilby 8.20
* Mike Keen 6.18
* Clive Hitch 5.99
* Frank Shuter 5.25
* Pete Munday 4.94
* Peter Jackson 4.29
West Ham
* Sverre Harrfeldt 9.78
* Norman Hunter 9.71
* Ken McKinlay 9.11
* Brian Leonard 5.36
* Tony Clarke 4.95
* Stan Stevens 4.46
* George Barclay 3.33
* Barry Crowson 2.57
Wimbledon
* Olle Nygren 9.31
* Trevor Hedge 9.15
* Reg Luckhurst 7.93
* Garry Middleton 5.87
* Jim Tebby 5.61
* Alan Cowland 5.49
* Bob Dugard 5.18
* Peter Murray 3.54
Wolverhampton
* Hasse Holmqvist 9.58
* Jim Airey 9.24
* Peter Vandenberg 7.68
* James Bond 6.82
* Pete Jarman 5.97
* Dave Hemus 4.86
* Mick Handley 4.30
* Doug White 2.86
* Geoff Ambrose 2.35
* Dave Parry 2.29