# 2022 National Development League speedway season

The 2022 National Development League was the third division/tier of British speedway for the 2022 season. It is a semi-professional development league, containing the junior sides of many SGB Premiership and SGB Championship clubs.

## Summary

Eight clubs competed for the League Championship, with Armadale, Belle Vue, Berwick, Kent, Leicester and champions Mildenhall all returning. Kent would switch venues from Central Park Stadium to the Iwade Speedway Stadium and would only enter the Royals in the National League. Oxford and Plymouth would also enter junior sides, taking the total to eight sides
The Championship Play Offs also returned in 2022 to determine the League Champions, as would the Knockout Cup. Leicester Lion Cubs dominated the season by winning the league and successfully defending their National League Knockout Cup title (from 2019) and winning the Pairs Championship.

## Regular season

League 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 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 708 | 547 | 35 | +161 |
| 2 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 14 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 674 | 573 | 30 | +101 |
| 3 | Berwick Bullets | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 668 | 583 | 29 | +85 |
| 4 | Oxford Chargers | 14 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 652 | 600 | 26 | +52 |
| 5 | Belle Vue Colts | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 682 | 572 | 25 | +110 |
| 6 | Kent Royals | 14 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 590 | 667 | 23 | -77 |
| 7 | Plymouth Centurions | 14 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 536 | 721 | 7 | -185 |
| 8 | Armadale Devils | 14 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 499 | 746 | 6 | -247 |
Fixtures & Results
| Home \ Away | ARM | BEL | BER | KEN | LEI | MIL | OXF | PLY |
| Armadale | | 51–36 | 38–52 | 42–48 | 36–53 | 38–50 | 42–48 | 51–39 |
| Belle Vue | 69–21 | | 50–40 | 64–26 | 50–40 | 64–26 | 57–33 | 58–32 |
| Berwick | 56–28 | 55–35 | | 53–37 | 49–41 | 48–42 | 50–40 | 67–23 |
| Kent | 55–35 | 47–43 | 46–44 | | 50–40 | 45–45 | 42–47 | 47–43 |
| Leicester | 65–25 | 59–32 | 52–37 | 56–34 | | 49–40 | 51–39 | 57–32 |
| Mildenhall | 60–27 | 41–47 | 57–33 | 57–32 | 39–50 | | 55–32 | 56–34 |
| Oxford | 65–25 | 48–41 | 50–39 | 60–29 | 45–45 | 39–51 | | 50–39 |
| Plymouth | 50–40 | 53–37 | 44–45 | 38–52 | 40–50 | 35–55 | 34–56 | |
League Scoring System
* Home loss by any number of points = 0
* Home draw = 1
* Home win by any number of points = 3
* Away loss by 7 points or more = 0
* Away loss by 6 points or less = 1
* Away draw = 2
* Away win by between 1 and 6 points = 3
* Away win by 7 points or more = 4

## Championship Play Offs

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| 1 | Leicester Lion Cubs | 44 | 52 | 96 | | | | | |
| 4 | Oxford Chargers | 46 | 38 | 84 | | | | | |
| 4 | Oxford Chargers | 46 | 38 | 84 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 52 | 62 | 114 |
| | | | | | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 37 | 28 | 65 |
| 3 | Berwick Bullets | 46 | 22 | 68 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 37 | 28 | 65 |
| 2 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 43 | 67 | 110 | | | | | |
Home team scores are in bold Overall aggregate scores are in red

### Final

First Leg
| 27 October | Mildenhall Fen Tigers Jason Edwards 16 Luke Muff 9 Ashton Boughen 5 Alex Spooner 4 Josh Warren 2 Jack Kingston 1 James Shanes r/r | 37–52 | Leicester Lion Cubs Dan Thompson 14 Joe Thompson 10 Connor Coles 8 Max Perry 7 Vinnie Foord 6 Mickie Simpson 5 Tom Spencer 2 | Mildenhall Stadium Referee(s): Mick Bates |
Second Leg
| 4 November | Leicester Lion Cubs Max Perry 11 Dan Thompson 11 Joe Thompson 11 Tom Spencer 10 Vinnie Foord 7 Mickie Simpson 7 Max James 5 Connor Coles r/r | 62–28 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers Jason Edwards 17 Ashton Boughen 5 Tom Woolley 3 James Laker 2 Bailey Fellows 1 James Jessop 0 James Shanes r/r | Adrian Flux Arena |

## Knockout Cup

The 2022 National Development League Knockout Cup was the 23rd edition of the Knockout Cup for tier three teams. It returned after being cancelled in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final | Grand Final |
| 1 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 51 | 42 | 93 | | | | | |
| 4 | Kent Royals | 39 | 48 | 87 | | | | | |
| 4 | Kent Royals | 39 | 48 | 87 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 29 | 27 | 56 |
| | | | | | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 55 | 61 | 116 |
| 3 | Berwick Bullets | 27 | 41 | 68 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Leicester Lion Cubs | 55 | 61 | 116 |
| 2 | Leicester Lion Cubs | 63 | 49 | 112 | | | | | |
Home team scores are in bold Overall aggregate scores are in red

### Final

First Leg
| 15 October | Leicester Lion Cubs Dan Thompson 12 Joe Thompson 11 Connor Coles 10 Mickie Simpson 7 Vinnie Foord 7 Max Perry 4 Tom Spencer 4 | 55–29 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers Jason Edwards 8 Josh Warren 7 Luke Muff 5 Alex Spooner 4 Lee Complin 4 James Laker 1 Jack Kingston r/r | Paul Chapman and Sons Arena Referee(s): Seth Perkin |
Second Leg
| 27 October | Mildenhall Fen Tigers Jason Edwards 13 Luke Muff 8 James Laker 4 Alex Spooner 2 Josh Warren 0 Jack Kingston DNR James Shanes r/r | 27–61 | Leicester Lion Cubs Tom Spencer 12 Max Perry 12 Dan Thompson 11 Joe Thompson 9 Vinnie Foord 7 Mickie Simpson 5 Max James 5 Connor Coles r/r | Mildenhall Stadium Referee(s): Mick Bates |

## Pairs Championship

The National League Pairs Championship, was held at Beaumont Park Stadium, on 20 August 2022. The event was won by Joe Thompson and Dan Thompson of the Leicester Lion Cubs.
Group A :
| Pos | Club | Riders | Pts |
| 1st | Leicester Q | Joe Thompson & Dan Thompson | 21 |
| 2nd | Armadale Q | Tom Woolley & Elliot Kelly | 13 |
| 3rd | Berwick | Greg Blair & Luke Crang | 12 |
| 4th | Belle Vue | Jack Smith & Harry McGurk | 8 |
Group B :
| Pos | Club | Riders | Pts |
| 1st | Plymouth Q | Adam Roynon & Rhys Naylor | 16 |
| 2nd | Oxford Q | Jordan Jenkins & Sam Hagon | 14 |
| 3rd | Mildenhall | Jason Edwards & Jack Kingston | 14 |
| 4th | Kent | Ben Morley & Sam Woolley | 9 |
Semi-finals
| Team one | Team two | Score | Result |
| Leicester | Oxford | 7-2 | D. Thompson, J. Thompson, Jenkins, Hagon |
| Armadale | Plymouth | 5-4 | Roynon, Kelly, Woolley, Naylor (f.exc) |
Final
| Team one | Team two | Score | Result |
| Leicester | Armadale | 7-2 | D. Thompson, J. Thompson, Kelly, Woolley |

## Leading Averages

| | Rider | Team | Average |
| 1 | Dan Thompson | Leicester | 10.81 |
| 2 | Jason Edwards | Mildenhall | 10.50 |
| 3 | Alfie Bowtell | Kent | 10.30 |
| 4 | Ben Morley | Kent | 10.00 |
| 5 | Nathan Stoneman | Oxford | 9.73 |
* averages include NDL, KO Cup, min 6 matches

## Riders' Championship

The 2022 edition of the National Development League Riders Championship, took place on Sunday 25 September at The Eddie Wright Raceway, Scunthorpe.
| Pos. | Rider | Total |
| 1 | Jordan Jenkins | 14 |
| 2 | Max Clegg | 13+3 |
| 3 | Jason Edwards | 13+2 |
| 4 | Lee Complin | 11 |
| 5 | Ben Morley | 10 |
| 6 | Dan Thompson | 10 |
| 7 | Joe Thompson | 9 |
| 8 | Jack Kingston | 9 |
| 9 | Tom Woolley | 7 |
| 10 | Jack Smith | 7 |
| 11 | Ben Trigger | 5 |
| 12 | Jody Scott | 4 |
| 13 | Harry McGurk | 3 |
| 14 | Luke Harrison | 2 |
| 15 | Mason Watson | 2 |
| 16 | Luke Crang | 1 |
| 17 | Jack Shimelt (res) | 0 |

## Squads & final averages
### Armadale Devils

* Lee Complin 8.28
* William Lawson 7.29
* Tom Woolley 7.12
* Danny Phillips 6.95
* Josh Embleton 4.80
* Elliot Kelly 4.38
* Gregor Millar 3.85
* Kyran Lyden 2.50
* Lewis Millar 1.68

### Belle Vue Colts

* Jake Mulford 8.72
* Jack Smith 8.67
* Harry McGurk 8.30
* Nathan Ablitt 7.68
* Sam McGurk 6.75
* Archie Freeman 6.31
* Freddy Hodder 5.61

### Berwick Bullets

* Kyle Bickley 9.44
* Greg Blair 8.16
* Luke Crang 7.17
* Ace Pijper 7.11
* Mason Watson 5.32
* Ben Rathbone 4.50
* Kieran Douglas 3.87

### Kent Royals

* Max Clegg 12.00
* Alfie Bowtell 10.30
* Ben Morley 10.00
* Joe Alcock 8.19
* Connor King 6.14
* Danno Verge 5.55
* Sam Woolley 4.22
* Jamie Halder 3.52
* Chris Watts 2.61
* Sam Woods 2.00

### Leicester Lion Cubs

* Dan Thompson 10.81
* Joe Thompson 9.69
* Connor Coles 9.29
* Max Perry 7.25
* Tom Spencer 6.11
* Vinnie Ford 5.57
* Mickie Simpson 5.12

### Mildenhall Fen Tigers

* Jason Edwards 10.50
* Jack Kingston 7.06
* Sam Bebee 7.02
* James Shanes 7.00
* Alex Spooner 6.83
* Josh Warren 6.21
* Luke Muff 5.88

### Oxford Chargers

* Nathan Stoneman 9.73
* Jordan Jenkins 9.65
* Henry Atkins 8.23
* Jody Scott 6.63
* Sam Hagon 6.35
* Arran Butcher 5.25
* Jacob Clouting 4.98
* Ben Hopwood 2.91

### Plymouth Centurions

* Dan Gilkes 10.67
* Adam Roynon 8.83
* Richard Andrews 6.20
* Ben Trigger 5.96
* Rhys Naylor 5.33
* Adam Extance 4.93
* David Abraham 3.20
* Eli Meadows 0.80