# 1975 New National League season

The 1975 New National League was contested as the second division/tier of Speedway in the United Kingdom when British League Division Two was renamed. It was subsequently named the National League. The change came about following unrest between some of the clubs and the speedway authorities in previous seasons.

## Summary

The league increased by one team for the fourth season in a row, despite the loss of three teams; the Barrow Bombers, Long Eaton Archers and Sunderland Gladiators. Sunderland closed for good but in November 1974, Ian Thomas bought the defunct Sunderland licence and transferred it to re-form the Newcastle Diamonds. Three other new teams entered, in addition to the Newcastle Diamonds and they were Crayford Kestrels (returning for their first season since 1970), while Mildenhall Fen Tigers and Paisley Lions both competed in their inaugural seasons. Paisley would race at a new track constructed around Love Street, home of St Mirren F.C..
Birmingham Brummies, winners of the last British League Division Two, retained their title and were promoted to the British League for 1976. Birmingham won the league by 5 points despite losing their leading rider Phil Herne to Newport in division 1. Birmingham relied heavily on Arthur Browning, Alan Grahame and Keith White, improved performances by Ricky Day and Carl Askew and solid seasons once again from John Hart and George Major.
Newcastle finished runner-up on their return to league action, with the Owen brothers Joe Owen and Tom Owen topping the league averages.

## Final table

| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Birmingham Brummies | 38 | 29 | 1 | 8 | 59 |
| 2 | Newcastle Diamonds | 38 | 27 | 0 | 11 | 54 |
| 3 | Stoke Potters | 38 | 26 | 0 | 12 | 52 |
| 4 | Eastbourne Eagles | 38 | 25 | 0 | 13 | 50 |
| 5 | Boston Barracudas | 38 | 24 | 2 | 12 | 50 |
| 6 | Workington Comets | 38 | 23 | 2 | 13 | 48 |
| 7 | Berwick Bandits | 38 | 21 | 3 | 14 | 45 |
| 8 | Crayford Kestrels | 38 | 20 | 2 | 16 | 42 |
| 9 | Ellesmere Port Gunners | 38 | 19 | 1 | 18 | 39 |
| 10 | Canterbury Crusaders | 38 | 19 | 0 | 19 | 38 |
| 11 | Bradford Barons | 38 | 17 | 2 | 19 | 36 |
| 12 | Coatbridge Tigers | 38 | 17 | 1 | 20 | 35 |
| 13 | Scunthorpe Saints | 38 | 17 | 0 | 21 | 34 |
| 14 | Rye House Rockets | 38 | 13 | 2 | 23 | 28 |
| 15 | Paisley Lions | 38 | 14 | 0 | 24 | 28 |
| 16 | Crewe Kings | 37 | 13 | 1 | 23 | 27 |
| 17 | Teesside Tigers | 38 | 13 | 0 | 25 | 26 |
| 18 | Peterborough Panthers | 37 | 13 | 0 | 24 | 26 |
| 19 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 38 | 11 | 1 | 26 | 23 |
| 20 | Weymouth Wizards | 38 | 8 | 2 | 28 | 18 |

## Fixtures and results

| Home \ Away | BER | BIR | BOS | BRA | CAN | COA | CRY | CK | EAS | EP | MIL | NEW | PAI | PET | RH | SCU | STO | TEE | WEY | WOR |
| Berwick | | 42–35 | 41–37 | 47–31 | 50–27 | 39–39 | 56–22 | 43–35 | 47–31 | 48–30 | 52–26 | 43–35 | 52–26 | 53–25 | 47–31 | 47–30 | 50–27 | 48–29 | 41–36 | 44–34 |
| Birmingham | 54–24 | | 41–36 | 55–22 | 45–33 | 52–25 | 49–29 | 55–23 | 45–33 | 51–27 | 57–20 | 46–32 | 53–25 | 59–19 | 52–26 | 56–22 | 44–34 | 49–29 | 53–25 | 47–31 |
| Boston | 48–30 | 45–33 | | 47–31 | 47–31 | 52–26 | 54–24 | 49–29 | 48–30 | 60–18 | 50–28 | 42–36 | 56–22 | 54–24 | 39–38 | 64–14 | 34–44 | 45–33 | 61–17 | 37–41 |
| Bradford | 51–27 | 36–42 | 39–39 | | 43–35 | 48–30 | 49–29 | 48–30 | 42–36 | 47–29 | 51–27 | 45–33 | 40–38 | 47–31 | 54–24 | 53–25 | 45–33 | 43–35 | 63–15 | 39–39 |
| Canterbury | 61–17 | 49–28 | 45–32 | 55–23 | | 52–26 | 49–29 | 42–36 | 40–37 | 43–35 | 53–23 | 38–40 | 59–19 | 60–18 | 44–34 | 55–23 | 43–35 | 49–29 | 43–35 | 37–41 |
| Coatbridge | 50–28 | 34–43 | 37–41 | 50–27 | 45–32 | | 53–25 | 41–37 | 38–40 | 46–31 | 58–20 | 43–35 | 54–24 | 43–35 | 43–34 | 49–29 | 38–40 | 45–32 | 51–27 | 43–35 |
| Crayford | 58–20 | 43–35 | 46–30 | 59–19 | 47–31 | 45–31 | | 48–30 | 38–40 | 57–20 | 50–28 | 37–41 | 55–23 | 53–25 | 46–32 | 43–35 | 50–28 | 48–30 | 50–27 | 57–21 |
| Crewe | 50–28 | 32–46 | 39–39 | 54–24 | 50–28 | 51–26 | 37–41 | | 31–46 | 47–31 | 47–31 | 38–39 | 42–36 | 46–32 | 58–20 | 36–40 | 37–41 | 41–37 | 59–19 | 42–36 |
| Eastbourne | 50–28 | 45–33 | 52–26 | 63–15 | 48–30 | 55–23 | 55–23 | 55–23 | | 53–24 | 61–17 | 37–40 | 60–18 | 59–19 | 52–26 | 57–21 | 52–26 | 53–25 | 43–34 | 46–32 |
| Ellesmere Port | 45–33 | 39–39 | 46–32 | 51–27 | 46–32 | 46–32 | 55–23 | 44–33 | 48–30 | | 54–24 | 41–37 | 40–38 | 45–32 | 51–27 | 45–33 | 34–44 | 44–34 | 51–27 | 43–35 |
| Mildenhall | 46–32 | 26–52 | 31–47 | 49–29 | 44–34 | 40–38 | 39–38 | 36–41 | 37–41 | 41–37 | | 41–37 | 57–20 | 37–41 | 39–39 | 37–41 | 21.5–55.5 | 51–27 | 46–32 | 40–37 |
| Newcastle | 54–24 | 38–40 | 47–31 | 62–16 | 49–29 | 49–29 | 46–32 | 50–28 | 44–34 | 40–38 | 49–29 | | 46–32 | 52–26 | 52–26 | 47–29 | 44–34 | 50–28 | 54–24 | 42–36 |
| Paisley | 33–45 | 45–32 | 47–31 | 35–43 | 43–35 | 38–40 | 44–33 | 46–32 | 45–32 | 47–31 | 41–37 | 46–30 | | 48–30 | 48–29 | 47–31 | 36–41 | 41–37 | 42–36 | 37–41 |
| Peterborough | 35–43 | 38–40 | 31–46 | 43–34 | 30–48 | 40–38 | 45–33 | nh | 44–34 | 41–37 | 42–36 | 37–41 | 47–29 | | 47–31 | 40–38 | 40–38 | 47–31 | 50–28 | 38–40 |
| Rye House | 46–32 | 33–45 | 38–39 | 49–29 | 39–38 | 46–32 | 39–39 | 53–25 | 31–45 | 47–30 | 47–30 | 36–42 | 49–28 | 47–31 | | 44–34 | 32–46 | 48–29 | 44–33 | 45–32 |
| Scunthorpe | 48–30 | 32–46 | 34–44 | 41–37 | 41–37 | 52–26 | 38–40 | 41–37 | 40–38 | 46–32 | 47–31 | 38–40 | 41–37 | 42–36 | 43–34 | | 44–34 | 51–27 | 45–33 | 37–41 |
| Stoke | 42–36 | 48–30 | 44–34 | 49–29 | 53–25 | 48–30 | 36–42 | 54–24 | 54–24 | 53–25 | 51–27 | 41–37 | 58–20 | 56–21 | 44–34 | 58–20 | | 49–29 | 46–32 | 52–26 |
| Teesside | 37–41 | 33–44 | 37–40 | 49–29 | 52–26 | 50–28 | 42–35 | 52–26 | 38–40 | 37–41 | 45–33 | 35–43 | 47–30 | 48–30 | 48–30 | 49–29 | 42–36 | | 58–20 | 42–36 |
| Weymouth | 39–39 | 38–39 | 28–50 | 50–28 | 35–42 | 34–43 | 39–39 | 43–35 | 33–45 | 37–41 | 50–28 | 34–44 | 53–25 | 48–30 | 43–35 | 41–37 | 37–41 | 44–34 | | 30–48 |
| Workington | 39–39 | 41–36 | 53–25 | 47–30 | 55–23 | 46–32 | 49–29 | 44–34 | 40–38 | 48–30 | 58–20 | 40–38 | 64–14 | 43–35 | 54–24 | 36.5–41.5 | 41–37 | 43–35 | 40–38 | |

## Top five riders (league averages)

| | Rider | Team | C.M.A. |
| 1 | Joe Owen | Newcastle | 10.89 |
| 2 | Tom Owen | Newcastle | 10.78 |
| 3 | Alan Molyneux | Stoke | 10.10 |
| 4 | Paul Gachet | Eastbourne | 10.08 |
| 5 | Les Rumsey | Canterbury | 10.01 |

## National League Knockout Cup

The 1975 National League Knockout Cup was the eighth edition (first under its new name) of the Knockout Cup for tier two teams. Eastbourne Eagles were the winners of the competition.
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 15/04 | Ellesmere Port | 43-35 | Coatbridge |
| 11/04 | Coatbridge | 50-28 | Ellesmere Port |
| 14/04 | Newcastle | 44-34 | Berwick |
| 05/04 | Berwick | 40-38 | Newcastle |
| 21/03 | Peterborough | 42-36 | Boston |
| 16/03 | Boston | 40-38 | Peterborough |
| 14/04 | Birmingham | 51-27 | Crayford |
| 15/04 | Crayford | 37-40 | Birmingham |
Second round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 05/05 | Scunthorpe | 38-40 | Teesside |
| 01/05 | Teesside | 45-32 | Scunthorpe |
| 30/05 | Coatbridge | 39-39 | Newcastle |
| 19/05 | Newcastle | 50-27 | Coatbridge |
| 10/05 | Paisley | 43-34 | Workington |
| 30/05 | Workington | 45-33 | Paisley |
| 05/05 | Crewe | 38-40 | Bradford |
| 14/05 | Bradford | 48-30 | Crewe |
| 09/05 | Peterborough | 49-29 | Weymouth |
| 29/04 | Weymouth | 50-28 | Peterborough |
| 11/05 | Rye House | 31-46 | Birmingham |
| 05/05 | Birmingham | 60-18 | Rye House |
| 10/05 | Canterbury | 40-37 | Eastbourne |
| 11/05 | Eastbourne | 49-29 | Canterbury |
Quarter-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 07/08 | Teesside | 32-46 | Newcastle |
| 28/07 | Newcastle | 54-24 | Teesside |
| 24/08 | Workington | 47-31 | Stoke |
| 21/08 | Stoke | 42-36 | Workington |
| 23/09 | Weymouth | 42-36 | Eastbourne |
| 09/07 | Bradford | 47-31 | Weymouth |
| 14/07 | Birmingham | 41-37 | Eastbourne |
| 06/07 | Eastbourne | 45-33 | Birmingham |
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
| 19/09 | Workington | 48-30 | Newcastle |
| 15/09 | Newcastle | 48-30 | Workington |
| 23/09 | Weymouth | 42-36 | Eastbourne |
| 21/09 | Eastbourne | 60-18 | Weymouth |
| 29/09 replay | Newcastle | 37-41 | Workington |
| 26/09 replay | Workington | 51-27 | Newcastle |

### Final

First leg
Second leg
Eastbourne were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 83–72.

## Riders' Championship

Laurie Etheridge won the Riders' Championship, held at Wimbledon Stadium on 27 September.
| Pos. | Rider | Pts | Total |
| 1 | Laurie Etheridge | 3 2 2 3 3 | 13+3 |
| 2 | Brian Collins | 3 3 3 3 1 | 13+2 |
| 3 | Arthur Browning | 2 2 3 1 2 | 10+3 |
| 4 | Les Rumsey | 2 3 0 2 3 | 10+2 |
| 5 | Michael Lee | 1 1 3 2 3 | 10+1 |
| 6 | John Jackson | 3 1 3 1 1 | 9 |
| 7 | Tom Leadbitter | 0 2 2 1 3 | 8 |
| 8 | Joe Owen | 2 0 1 3 2 | 8 |
| 9 | Paul Gachet | 3 3 fex 2 0 | 8 |
| 10 | Bob Coles | 2 2 2 0 1 | 7 |
| 11 | Brian Clark | 0 1 2 3 f | 6 |
| 12 | Alan Molyneux | 1 1 1 0 2 | 5 |
| 13 | Brian Foote | 0 f 1 2 2 | 5 |
| 14 | Colin Meredith | 1 0 1 1 | 4 |
| 15 | Lou Sansom | 0 3 0 0 0 | 3 |
| 16 | Tony Childs | 1 0 0 0 0 | |
* f=fell, r-retired, ex=excluded, ef=engine failure

## Pairs

The National League Pairs was held at Hyde Road on 17 May and was won by Newcastle Diamonds.
Group A :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Eastbourne | 14 | Gachet 9 Middleditch 5 |
| 2 | Scunthorpe | 10 | McKinlay 6 Childs 4 |
| 3 | Workington | 8 | Sansom 7 Gardner 1 |
| 4 | Paisley | 4 | Sheldrick 4 Roynon 0 |
Group B :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Crayford | 14 | Sage 8 Etheridge 6 |
| 2 | Birmingham | 10 | Hart 8 Browning 2 |
| 3 | Bradford | 9 | Featherstone 6 Baugh 3 |
| 4 | Rye House | 3 | Foote 3 Clarke 0 |
Group C :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Ellesmere P | 12 | Jackson 9 Goad 3 |
| 2 | Peterborough | 11 | Clark 6 Matthews 5 |
| 3 | Coatbridge | 7 | Collins 6 Gallacher 1 |
| 4 | Stoke | 6 | Molyneux 4 Millen 2 |
Group D :
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Newcastle | 13 | Havelock 8 Owen T 5 |
| 2 | Crewe | 10 | Drury 8 Wasley 2 |
| 3 | Teesside | 9 | Reading 5 Durham 4 |
| 4 | Berwick | 4 | Gifford 4 Templeton W 0 |
Semi finals
* Ellesmere Port bt Eastbourne
* Newcastle bt Crayford
Final
* Newcastle bt Eastbourne

## Leading final averages

| | Rider | Team | C.M.A. |
| 1 | Joe Owen | Newcastle | 10.65 |
| 2 | Tom Owen | Newcastle | 10.65 |
| 3 | Alan Molyneux | Stoke | 10.14 |
| 4 | Les Rumsey | Canterbury | 9.90 |
| 5 | Paul Gachet | Eastbourne | 9.87 |

## Riders & final averages

Berwick
* Dave Gifford 8.58
* Graham Jones 7.65
* Colin Farquharson 7.41
* Steve Finch 6.75
* Willie Templeton 6.34
* Denny Morter 4.89
* Dave Trownson 4.86
* Bernie Hornby 4.85
Birmingham
* Arthur Browning 9.35
* Alan Grahame 8.38
* Keith White 8.22
* John Hart 8.00
* Keith Anderson 7.58
* Ricky Day 7.34
* George Major 7.31
* Carl Askew 6.91
Boston
* Michael Lee 9.04
* Bruce Forrester 8.22
* David Gagen 7.83
* Rob Hollingworth 7.30
* Billy Burton 7.19
* Les Glover 6.95
* Dave Piddock 6.17
* Rob Mouncer 6.13
* Trevor Whiting 4.53
Bradford
* Tony Featherstone 8.34
* Colin Meredith 7.92
* Dave Baugh 7.42
* Tony Boyle 7.11
* Steve Wilcock 5.75
* Andy Cowan 5.55
* Alan Knapkin 5.48
* Mick Fielding 4.49
* Brenton Langlois 4.34
* Dave Parkin 3.06
* Barry Weaver 1.82
Canterbury
* Les Rumsey 9.90
* Dave Gooderham 8.63
* Barney Kennett 8.23
* Graham Clifton 5.31
* Bob Spelta 5.11
* Jimmy Squibb 5.00
* Gerald Purkiss 4.85
* Terry Casserley 3.77
Coatbridge
* Brian Collins 9.46
* Mitch Shirra 8.37
* Jimmy Gallacher 7.54
* Grahame Dawson 6.39
* Mick McKeon 5.64
* Doug Templeton 4.94
* John Wilson 4.73
* Paul Heller 4.00
* Eddie Argall 3.90
* Derek Richardson 3.71
* Barry Booth 1.68
Crayford
* Laurie Etheridge 9.74
* Alan Sage 8.51
* Trevor Barnwell 7.72
* Pete Wigley 6.26
* Bob Young 5.86
* Les Ott 5.78
* Alan Johns 5.68
* George Barclay 5.34
* Dave Shepherd 4.92
* Bill Archer 4.11
Crewe
* Graham Drury 8.70
* Chris Turner 8.13
* Nigel Wasley 7.75
* Chris Emery 6.3
* Ricky Day 6.06
* Stuart Cope 5.83
* Les Collins 5.25
* Max Brown 4.99
* Geoff Ambrose 4.96
* Cliff Anderson 4.90
* Ian Robertson 3.27
Eastbourne
* Paul Gachet 9.87
* Neil Middleditch 9.62
* Steve Weatherley 8.07
* Pete Jarman 7.32
* Mike Sampson 7.28
* Eric Dugard 5.49
* Colin Richardson 5.24
* Terry Barclay 3.78
Ellesmere Port
* John Jackson 9.78
* Colin Goad 7.13
* Wayne Hughes 6.76
* Nicky Allott 6.41
* Duncan Meredith 5.78
* Mick McKeon 4.86
* Steve Casey 4.52
* Gerald Smitherman 4.37
* Barry Booth 4.00
* Andy Reid 3.68
Mildenhall
* Bob Coles 8.82
* Chris Julian 6.74
* Stan Stevens 6.02
* John Gibbons 5.93
* Kevin Jolly 5.76
* John McNeill 4.77
* Paul Clipstone 3.59
* Paul Gilbert 3.43
* Fred Mills 2.97
Newcastle
* Joe Owen 10.65
* Tom Owen 10.65
* Brian Havelock 6.72
* Ron Henderson 5.81
* Mike Watkin 5.59
* Robbie Blackadder 5.45
* Tim Swales 5.23
* Phil Micheledies 5.05
Paisley
* Sid Sheldrick 8.00
* Mike Fullerton 7.20
* Alan Bridgett 7.12
* Chris Roynon 6.00
* Tom Davie 5.26
* Bernie Foot 5.20
* Stuart Mountford 4.47
* Mick Sheldrick 4.00
* Geoff Snider 4.00
Peterborough
* Brian Clark 9.00
* Russ Osborne 7.14
* Roy Carter 6.67
* Ken Matthews 6.66
* Mike Cake 5.53
* Jack Walker 4.70
* Ian Clark 4.36
* Roy Sizmore 4.33
* Steve Taylor 3.52
* Phil Cornwell 1.33
Rye House
* Brian Foote 8.39
* Hugh Saunders 7.46
* Bob Cooper 6.75
* Kelvin Mullarkey 6.25
* Tiger Beech 5.69
* John Gibbons 5.25
* Bob Young 4.73
* Dingle Brown 4.62
* Karl Fiala 4.58
* Barry Duke 4.33
* Steve Clarke 3.87
Scunthorpe
* Tony Childs 8.35
* Keith Evans 7.52
* Ken McKinlay 6.46
* Andy Hines 5.99
* Colin Cook 5.91
* Tony Gillias 5.55
* Andy Sims 5.38
* Ray Watkins 4.24
* Chris Emery 4.13
* Ian Silk 2.09
Stoke
* Alan Molyneux 10.14
* Steve Bastable 8.04
* Steve Holden 7.92
* Andy Cusworth 7.52
* Jack Millen 6.96
* Phil Bass 6.93
* Jim Wells 6.55
* Mick Handley 6.09
* Alan Bridgett 4.62
Teesside
* Tom Leadbitter 9.40
* Doug Underwood 8.34
* Alan Emerson 8.33
* Roger Wright 7.68
* Dave Durham 6.05
* Pete Reading 5.69
* Harry Maclean 5.25
* Trevor Stead 3.44
* David Levings 3.08
* Colin Pestell 2.83
* Ian Silk 2.29
Weymouth
* Martin Yeates 8.31
* Brian Woodward 7.77
* Vic Harding 6.82
* Chris Robins 5.15
* Geoff Swindells 4.77
* Nigel Couzens 4.73
* Melvin Soffe 4.24
* Tony Freegard 3.59
* Ricky Owen 3.09
* Roger Stratton 2.86
Workington
* Lou Sansom 8.81
* Taffy Owen 8.37
* Robbie Gardner 7.38
* Kym Amundson 6.94
* Mick Newton .6.63
* Roger Wright 6.24
* Terry Kelly 6.07
* Steve Watson 4.42
* Steve Lawson 3.64