# 1998 Premier League speedway season

The 1998 Premier League speedway season was the second division of speedway in the United Kingdom and governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).

## Season summary

The League consisted of 13 teams for the 1998 season with the following the closure of the Long Eaton Invaders and the decision of the Oxford Cheetahs to compete in the Elite League. The addition of the Peterborough Panthers who dropped down from the Elite League limited the reduction in numbers.
The League was run on a standard format with no play-offs and was won by Peterborough.

## Final table

| Pos | | M | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Bon | Tot |
| 1 | Peterborough Panthers | 24 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 1206 | 945 | 34 | 12 | 46 |
| 2 | Reading Racers | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 1130 | 989 | 32 | 10 | 42 |
| 3 | Exeter Falcons | 24 | 14 | 1 | 9 | 1134 | 1023 | 31 | 7 | 38 |
| 4 | Hull Vikings | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 1098 | 1037 | 30 | 6 | 36 |
| 5 | Sheffield Tigers | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 1088 | 1064 | 26 | 7 | 33 |
| 6 | Isle of Wight Islanders | 24 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 1095 | 1055 | 24 | 8 | 32 |
| 7 | Glasgow Tigers | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 1085 | 1065 | 26 | 6 | 32 |
| 8 | Newport Wasps | 24 | 11 | 3 | 10 | 1067 | 1081 | 25 | 7 | 32 |
| 9 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 1078 | 1077 | 22 | 7 | 29 |
| 10 | Newcastle Diamonds | 24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 1041 | 1109 | 23 | 3 | 26 |
| 11 | Arena Essex Hammers | 24 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 995 | 1139 | 18 | 2 | 20 |
| 12 | Berwick Bandits | 24 | 7 | 1 | 17 | 982 | 1173 | 15 | 2 | 17 |
| 13 | Stoke Potters | 24 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 956 | 1198 | 6 | 1 | 7 |

## Fixtures & results

| Home \ Away | AE | BER | ED | EX | GLA | HV | IOW | ND | NW | PET | RR | SHE | STO |
| Arena Essex Hammers | | 50–40 | 46–44 | 44–46 | 46–43 | 47–43 | 45–45 | 45–45 | 43–47 | 50–40 | 40–49 | 56–34 | 55–34 |
| Berwick Bandits | 46–43 | | 47–43 | 39–51 | 44–46 | 43–46 | 37–53 | 45–45 | 52–38 | 48–42 | 41–49 | 44–46 | 48–42 |
| Edinburgh Monarchs | 49–41 | 39–51 | | 53–35 | 56–34 | 56–33 | 54–36 | 49–41 | 61–29 | 43–47 | 45–44 | 47–43 | 50–40 |
| Exeter Falcons | 49–40 | 66–24 | 62–28 | | 55–35 | 53–37 | 51–39 | 62–28 | 60–30 | 50–40 | 49–41 | 61–29 | 57–33 |
| Glasgow Tigers | 62–28 | 48–41 | 46–44 | 56–34 | | 52–38 | 48–42 | 48–41 | 47–43 | 37–46 | 48–42 | 56–34 | 51–38 |
| Hull Vikings | 53–37 | 56–34 | 53–37 | 56–34 | 49–41 | | 54–36 | 49–41 | 47–43 | 49–41 | 45–43 | 52–37 | 55–35 |
| Isle of Wight Islanders | 59–30 | 55–35 | 52–37 | 55–35 | 49–41 | 43–47 | | 57–32 | 37–53 | 45–45 | 52–38 | 47–43 | 50–39 |
| Newcastle Diamonds | 53–37 | 42–47 | 47–43 | 55–35 | 46–44 | 45–44 | 51–39 | | 45–45 | 47–42 | 40–50 | 39–48 | 49–40 |
| Newport Wasps | 43–46 | 61–28 | 50–40 | 45–45 | 53–37 | 54–36 | 49–35 | 38–51 | | 45–45 | 52–38 | 56–33 | 48–41 |
| Peterborough Panthers | 58–32 | 60–30 | 56–34 | 62–28 | 47–43 | 51–39 | 55–35 | 58–32 | 68–22 | | 54–36 | 50–39 | 61–29 |
| Reading Racers | 47–25 | 53–37 | 52–38 | 59–31 | 52–38 | 39–33 | 49–41 | 47–43 | 53–37 | 49–41 | | 54–35 | 55–35 |
| Sheffield Tigers | 62–28 | 50–40 | 52–38 | 56–34 | 57–33 | 56–34 | 40–50 | 55–35 | 51–38 | 41–49 | 46–44 | | 54–36 |
| Stoke Potters | 48.5–41.5 | 49–41 | 40–50 | 39–51 | 39–51 | 39–50 | 47–43 | 42–48 | 42–48 | 42–48 | 43–47 | 43–47 | |

## Premier League Knockout Cup

The 1998 Premier League Knockout Cup was the 31st edition of the Knockout Cup for tier two teams. Reading Racers were the winners of the competition.

### Northern Group

| Pos | Team | Played | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Berwick Bandits | 11 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 2 | Sheffield Tigers | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 15 |
| 3 | Glasgow Tigers | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 15 |
| 4 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 11 |
| 5 | Newcastle Diamonds | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 6 | Hull Vikings | 12 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 8 |
| 7 | Stoke Potters | 8 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 6 |

### Southern Group

| Pos | Team | Played | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Peterborough Panthers | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 14 |
| 2 | Reading Racers | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 11 |
| 3 | Arena Essex Hammers | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| 4 | Exeter Falcons | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 10 |
| 5 | Isle of Wight Islanders | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 9 |
| 6 | Newport Wasps | 10 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 |

### Semi-finals

| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 20/07 | Reading | 56-34 | Sheffield |
| 16/07 | Sheffield | 45-45 | Reading |
| 14/08 | Peterborough | 56-34 | Berwick |
| 22/08 | Berwick | 42-48 | Peterborough |

### Final

First leg
Second leg
Reading were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 103–77.

## Riders' Championship

Glenn Cunningham won the Riders' Championship. The final was held on 13 September at Owlerton Stadium.
| Pos. | Rider | Pts | Total | SF | Final |
| 1 | Glenn Cunningham | 2 2 3 3 3 | 13 | - | 3 |
| 2 | Carl Stonehewer | 3 3 2 1 3 | 12 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Peter Carr | 3 3 2 3 3 | 14 | - | 1 |
| 4 | Nicki Pedersen | 2 2 3 2 2 | 12 | 3 | 0 |
| 5 | Craig Watson | 1 3 2 2 2 | 11 | 1 |
| 6 | Leigh Lanham | 0 3 0 3 3 | 10 | 0 |
| 7 | Paul Bentley | 1 0 3 2 2 | 9 |
| 8 | Paul Pickering | 1 1 2 3 0 | 8 |
| 9 | Frank Smart | 2 1 1 1 2 | 7 |
| 10 | Scott Smith | 0 2 3 0 1 | 7 |
| 11 | Lee Richardson | 3 2 1 0 r | 6 |
| 12 | David Walsh | 0 0 1 2 1 | 6 |
| 13 | Paul Thorp | 3 r | 3 |
| 14 | Martin Dixon | 2 0 1 0 | 3 |
| 15 | Steve Masters | 1 1 0 t 1 | 3 |
| 16 | Derrol Keats | 0 0 1 1 1 | 3 |
| 17 | Mick Powell | 0 1 | 1 |
* f=fell, r-retired, ex=excluded, ef=engine failure t=touched tapes

## Pairs

The Premier League Pairs Championship was held at Hayley Stadium on 26 July. The event was won by Peterborough Panthers.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Exeter | 18 | Coles 11, Smart 7 |
| 2 | Reading | 17 | Mullett 9, Kokko 8 |
| 3 | Arena Essex | 12 | Pedersen 10, Lanham 2 |
| 4 | Edinburgh | 7 | Carr P 4, McKinna 3 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Peterborough | 21 | Cunningham 12, Woodifield 9 |
| 2 | Newcastle | 16 | Pedersen 12, Olsen 4 |
| 3 | Newport | 12 | Watson 9, Fry 3 |
| 4 | Hull | 7 | Bentley 7, Lobb 0 |
Semi finals
* Peterborough bt Reading 5–4
* Exeter bt Newcastle 6–3
Final
* Peterborough bt Exeter 5–4

## Fours

Peterborough Panthers won the Premier League Four-Team Championship, which was held on 30 August 1998, at the East of England Arena.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Peterborough | 17 | Berge 6, Cunningham 4, Woodifield 4 Sadler 5 |
| 2 | Hull | 14 | Grahame 5, Bentley 3, Dicken 3, Thorp 3 |
| 3 | Newport | 11 | Fry 3, Henriksson 3, Watson 3, Pegler 2 |
| 4 | Newcastle | 6 | Werner 4, Birkenshaw 1, Olsen 1, Swales 0 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Reading | 16 | Richardson 6, Kokko 5, Clews 4, Mullett 1 |
| 2 | Edinburgh | 12 | McKinna K 6 |
| 3 | Arena Essex | 11 | Lanham 5 |
| 4 | Exeter | 9 | Coles 4 Smart 2 |
Final :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Peterborough | 24 | Cunningham 8, Berge 6 Woodifield 5 Sadler 5 |
| 2 | Hull | 19 | Thorp 7, Grahame 5, Bentley 4, Dicken 3, |
| 3 | Edinburgh | 19 | Carr P 8, McKinna 6, Little 4, Andersson 1 |
| 4 | Reading | 10 | Richardson 4, Kokko 4, Clews 2, Elkins 0, Mullett 0 |

## Leading averages

| Rider | Team | Average |
| Nicki Pedersen | Newcastle | 9.97 |
| Carl Stonehewer | Sheffield | 9.93 |
| Lee Richardson | Reading | 9.60 |
| Paul Thorp | Hull | 9.56 |
| Glenn Cunningham | Peterborough | 9.55 |
| Dave Mullett | Reading | 9.48 |
| Petri Kokko | Reading | 9.36 |
| Mick Powell | Glasgow | 9.32 |
| Jan Andersen | Peterborough | 9.29 |
| Peter Carr | Edinburgh | 9.26 |

## Riders & final averages

Arena Essex
* Leigh Lanham 9.03
* Jan Pedersen 8.71
* Colin White 7.90
* Troy Pratt 6.96
* David Mason 4.69
* Matt Read 4.00
* Paul Lydes-Uings 2.60
* Nathan Morton 2.52
* Anthony Barlow 2.27
* Oliver Allen 2.26
* Gavin Hedge 2.07
Berwick
* Rene Madsen 8.45
* Scott Lamb 8.22
* James Grieves 8.00
* David Walsh 7.47
* Peter Scully 6.77
* Jörg Pingel 6.46
* Scott Robson 6.45
* Martin Dixon 6.31
* David Meldrum 5.25
* Craig Taylor 4.68
* David McAllan 2.99
* Wesley Waite 2.74
Edinburgh
* Peter Carr 9.26
* Kenny McKinna 8.66
* Kevin Little 7.95
* Marcus Andersson 5.63
* Robert Larsen 5.49
* Barry Campbell 5.33
* Paul Gould 4.76
* Blair Scott 4.37
Exeter
* Frank Smart 9.03
* Michael Coles 8.38
* Peter Jeffery 7.90
* Mark Simmonds 7.71
* Graeme Gordon 6.54
* Roger Lobb 4.83
* Gary Lobb 4.31
* Paul Oughton 4.26
* Chris Courage 2.43
Glasgow
* Mick Powell 9.32
* Kaj Laukkanen 8.93
* David Steen 7.53
* Grant MacDonald 6.67
* Daniel Andersson 6.17
* Sean Courtney 5.68
* Will Beveridge 5.56
* Brian Turner 4.81
Hull
* Paul Thorp 9.56
* Paul Bentley 8.93
* Alan Grahame 6.67
* Lee Dicken 6.54
* Paul Lee 5.28
* John Wilson 4.69
* Simon Cartwright 2.92
Isle of Wight
* Ray Morton 8.40
* Philippe Berge 8.29
* Steve Masters 8.21
* Jason Bunyan 7.21
* Neville Tatum 7.15
* Scott Swain 7.14
* Wayne Carter 6.59
* Danny Bird 3.60
* Anthony Barlow 3.59
Newcastle
* Nicki Pedersen 9.97
* Brent Werner 8.26
* Jesper Olsen 8.17
* Stuart Swales 6.96
* James Birkinshaw 3.77
* Jonathan Swales 3.13
* David McAllan 2.84
* Malcolm Hogg 0.95
Newport
* Craig Watson 8.36
* Paul Fry 8.00
* Anders Henriksson 7.52
* Scott Pegler 5.82
* Martin Willis 4.93
* David Mason 4.60
* Jon Armstrong 3.40
* Chris Neath 3.29
Peterborough
* Glenn Cunningham 9.55
* Jan Andersen 9.29
* Nigel Sadler 8.20
* Philippe Bergé 7.83
* David Howe 7.79
* Brett Woodifield 7.01
* Simon Stead 5.46
* Paul Clews 4.84
* Oliver Allen 4.04
* Ross Brady 1.90
Reading
* Lee Richardson 9.60
* Dave Mullett 9.48
* Petri Kokko 9.36
* Phil Morris 5.15
* Krister Marsh 4.67
* Justin Elkins 4.61
* Paul Clews 4.04
* Lee Driver 2.70
Sheffield
* Carl Stonehewer 9.93
* Scott Smith 7.23
* Rene Aas 6.65
* Andre Compton 6.44
* Steve Knott 5.58
* Tommy Palmer 5.13
* Derrol Keats 5.10
Stoke
* Paul Pickering 9.00
* Neil Collins 7.37
* Mark Burrows 5.78
* Craig Taylor 5.03
* Stewart McDonald 4.63
* Dean Felton 4.39
* Rob Clarence 2.07