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1987 British League season
British motorcycle speedway season
British motorcycle speedway season
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| competition | British League |
| competitors | 12 |
| domesticcup1 | Champions |
| domesticcup1 winners | Coventry Bees |
| domesticcup2 | Knockout Cup |
| domesticcup2 winners | Cradley Heathens |
| domesticcup3 | League Cup |
| domesticcup3 winners | Coventry Bees |
| domesticcup4 | Individual |
| domesticcup4 winners | Hans Nielsen |
| domesticcup5 | Pairs |
| domesticcup5 winners | Oxford Cheetahs |
| domesticcup6 | Midland Cup |
| domesticcup6 winners | Cradley Heathens |
| highest average | Hans Nielsen |
| leagues below | 1987 National League |
| prevseason | 1986 |
| nextseason | 1988 |
The 1987 British League season was the 53rd season of the top tier of speedway in the United Kingdom and the 23rd known as the British League.
Summary
Coventry Bees comfortably won the league finishing 16 points clear of Cradley Heath. The same five main riders who made up the 1986 team rode through the 1987 season but crucially four of them improved on their 1986 averages. Tommy Knudsen and Kelvin Tatum both hit over 10, while Rick Miller and David Bargh both improved by about 2 points on average. John Jørgensen also remained consistent for the Bees. Coventry also won the League Cup but lost to Cradley in the final of the Knockout Cup. The double defending champions Oxford Cheetahs were forced to release Simon Wigg to Hackney and Per Sorensen because of the 45 point limit. They finished second from bottom despite Hans Nielsen topping the averages once again.
The second leg replay of the League Cup final was the last ever meeting held at Hyde Road.
Final table
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | BP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coventry Bees | 22 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 52 |
| 2 | Cradley Heath Heathens | 22 | 13 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 36 |
| 3 | Swindon Robins | 22 | 12 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 33 |
| 4 | Sheffield Tigers | 22 | 13 | 0 | 9 | 6 | 32 |
| 5 | Bradford Dukes | 22 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 7 | 30 |
| 6 | Ipswich Witches | 22 | 10 | 3 | 9 | 6 | 29 |
| 7 | Reading Racers | 22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 28 |
| 8 | Belle Vue Aces | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 5 | 26 |
| 9 | Hackney Kestrels | 22 | 7 | 3 | 12 | 3 | 20 |
| 10 | Wolverhampton Wolves | 22 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 3 | 17 |
| 11 | Oxford Cheetahs | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 3 | 16 |
| 12 | King's Lynn Stars | 22 | 4 | 1 | 17 | 2 | 11 |
Fixtures and results
British League Knockout Cup
The 1987 Speedway Star British League Knockout Cup was the 49th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier one teams. Cradley Heath Heathens were the winners for the second successive year if including the tied 1986 final.
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/07 | Hackney | 48-42 | Bradford |
| 10/07 | Oxford | 51-39 | Belle Vue |
| 04/07 | Kings Lynn | 41-49 | Sheffield |
| 13/06 | Swindon | 47-43 | Wolverhampton |
| 04/06 | Sheffield | 51-39 | Kings Lynn |
| 01/06 | Wolverhampton | 44-46 | Swindon |
| 30/05 | Belle Vue | 47-43 | Oxford |
| 30/05 | Bradford | 49-41 | Hackney |
Quarter-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15/09 | Bradford | 41-49 | Cradley Heath |
| 15/08 | Swindon | 43-47 | Reading |
| 07/08 | Oxford | 48-42 | Ipswich |
| 06/08 | Ipswich | 47-43 | Oxford |
| 05/08 | Cradley Heath | 55-35 | Bradford |
| 27/07 | Reading | 48-41 | Swindon |
| 13/07 | Sheffield | 48-42 | Coventry |
| 11/07 | Coventry | 51-38 | Sheffield |
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30/09 | Coventry | 48-42 | Reading |
| 30/09 | Oxford | 47-43 | Cradley Heath |
| 16/09 | Cradley Heath | 39-33 A | Oxford |
| 07/09 | Reading | 47-43 | Coventry |
Final
First leg Tommy Knudsen 17 John Jørgensen 8 David Bargh 8 David Clarke 6 Wayne Broadhurst 3 Rick Miller 3 Kelvin Tatum 0 (inj) David Walsh 12 Erik Gundersen 11 Jan O. Pedersen 11 Simon Cross 8 Jan Jakobsen 2 Paul Fry 1 Nigel Leaver 0 Second leg Erik Gundersen 11 Jan O. Pedersen 11 David Walsh 11 Simon Cross 9 Paul Fry 4 Jan Jakobsen 2 Nigel Leaver 1 Tommy Knudsen 16 Kelly Moran (guest) 7 David Bargh 7 John Jørgensen 5 David Clarke 3 Rick Miller 3 Wayne Broadhurst 3
Cradley Heath were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 94-86.
League Cup
The League Cup was contested as a league format. Coventry Bees won the final over two legs defeating Belle Vue Aces 84–72 on aggregrate. It was the last time that the competition was contested.
Qualifying table
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coventry Bees | 22 | 16 | 1 | 5 | 43 |
| 2 | Oxford Cheetahs | 22 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 39 |
| 3 | Belle Vue Aces | 22 | 14 | 1 | 7 | 38 |
| 4 | Cradley Heathens | 22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 36 |
| 5 | Sheffield Tigers | 22 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 33 |
| 6 | Reading Racers | 22 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 31 |
| 7 | Swindon Robins | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 26 |
| 8 | Wolverhampton Wolves | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 23 |
| 9 | Bradford Dukes | 22 | 8 | 2 | 12 | 22 |
| 10 | Hackney Kestrels | 22 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 17 |
| 11 | King's Lynn Stars | 22 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 12 |
| 11 | Ipswich Witches | 22 | 4 | 1 | 17 | 10 |
Results
Semi-finals
| Team one | Team two | Scores |
|---|---|---|
| Oxford | Belle Vue | 42–36, 34–44 |
| Coventry | Cradley Heath | 45–33, 42–36 |
Final
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15/09 | Coventry | 41–37 | Belle Vue |
| 18/10 | Belle Vue | 41–37 | Coventry |
Replay first leg Tommy Knudsen 11 Kelvin Tatum 11 Rick Miller 8 David Bargh 7 John Jørgensen 6 David Clarke 3 Wayne Broadhurst 0 Peter Ravn 11 Paul Thorp 7 Andy Smith 5 Chris Morton 4 Kenny McKinna 4 Glen Hornby 1 David Blackburn 0 Replay second leg Chris Morton 14 Peter Ravn 11 Kenny McKinna 8 Richard Knight 4 Glen Hornby 2 David Blackburn 1 Bernie Collier 0 David Bargh 10 Tommy Knudsen 8 Kelvin Tatum 8 Rick Miller 5 John Jørgensen 4 David Clarke 3 Wayne Broadhurst 0
Coventry were declared League Cup winners, winning on aggregate 84-72.
Riders' Championship
Hans Nielsen won the British League Riders' Championship for the second successive year. It was the held at Hyde Road on 12 October, shortly before the venue closed for good.
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- ef=engine failure, f=fell, x=excluded r-retired
Pairs
The British League Pairs Championship was held at Smallmead Stadium on 12 July and was won by Oxford for the third consecutive year.
| Group A | Pos | Team | Pts | Riders | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cradley | 17 | Pedersen 9 | ||||||
| Gundersen 8 | ||||||||
| Belle Vue | 14 | Thorp 10 | ||||||
| Morton 4 | ||||||||
| Sheffield | 12 | Moran S 12 | ||||||
| Carr 0 | ||||||||
| King's Lynn | 11 | Knight 6 | ||||||
| Regeling 5 |
| Group B | Pos | Team | Pts | Riders | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxford | 17 | Nielsen 12 | ||||||
| Grahame 5 | ||||||||
| Swindon | 16 | Shirra 9 | ||||||
| Nilsen 7 | ||||||||
| Hackney | 14 | Galvin 8 | ||||||
| Wigg 6 | ||||||||
| Bradford | 5 | King 3 | ||||||
| Evitts 2 |
| Group C | Pos | Team | Pts | Riders | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wolves | 14 | Eriksen 9 | ||||||
| Ermolenko 5 | ||||||||
| Coventry | 14 | Tatum 8 | ||||||
| Knudsen 6 | ||||||||
| Reading | 13 | Jonsson 7 | ||||||
| Andersson 6 | ||||||||
| Ipswich | 13 | Doncaster 8 | ||||||
| Niemi 5 |
| Semi Final | Pos | Team | Pts | Riders | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swindon | 16 | Shirra 8, Nilsen 8 | ||||||
| Oxford | 14 | Nielsen 12 Grahame 2 | ||||||
| Cradley | 13 | Pedersen 7, Gundersen 6 | ||||||
| Wolverhampton | 11 | Ermolenko 11, Eriksen 0 |
Final
In the final Nilsen fell and was excluded and Shirra touched the tapes and was excluded, leaving Nielsen and Grahame to complete a 7-0 (pts) uncontested heat.
Leading final averages
| Rider | Team | Average |
|---|---|---|
| DEN Hans Nielsen | Oxford | 11.38 |
| DEN Erik Gundersen | Cradley Heath | 10.44 |
| DEN Tommy Knudsen | Coventry | 10.25 |
| ENG Kelvin Tatum | Coventry | 10.06 |
| USA Sam Ermolenko | Wolverhampton | 9.86 |
| ENG Jeremy Doncaster | Ipswich | 9.67 |
| SWE Jimmy Nilsen | Swindon | 9.61 |
| DEN Jan O. Pedersen | Cradley Heath | 9.60 |
| USA Shawn Moran | Sheffield | 9.47 |
| ENG Simon Wigg | Hackney | 9.38 |
Midland Cup
Cradley Heath won the Midland Cup. The competition consisted of six teams.
First round
| Team one | Team two | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Reading | Swindon | 38–39, 37–41 |
| Wolverhampton | Cradley | 38–39, 31–47 |
Semi final round
| Team one | Team two | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Coventry | Swindon | 48–30, 36–42 |
| Cradley | Oxford | 43–35, 40–38 |
Final
Because of cancellations due to bad weather the final of the competition doubled up as the Knockout Cup final (see above for details).
Riders & final averages
Belle Vue
- 8.92
- 8.41
- 8.38
- 6.35
- 5.82
- 5.55
- 3.92
- 2.65
Bradford
- 8.58
- 8.47
- 7.35
- 7.31
- 5.73
- 5.71
- 4.97
- 1.48
Coventry
- 10.25
- 10.06
- 8.20
- 7.80
- 7.46
- 3.44
- 2.58
- 2.18
- 2.13
Cradley Heath
- 10.44
- 9.60
- 9.33
- 5.10
- 4.94
- 3.94
- 3.79
- 3.47
- 1.18
Hackney
- 9.38
- 7.03
- 6.10
- 5.60
- 5.40
- 5.22
- 5.20
- 5.08
Ipswich
- 9.67
- 8.00
- 7.61
- 6.39
- 5.03
- 4.58
- 4.05
- 3.97
- 2.20
King's Lynn
- 8.35
- 6.67
- 6.42
- 6.25
- 5.34
- 5.27
- 4.94
- 4.93
- 4.39
Oxford
- 11.38
- 8.53
- 7.87
- 5.68
- 4.39
- 3.72
- 3.63
- 3.04
Reading
- 9.34
- 8.99
- 6.95
- 6.60
- 6.45
- 6.02
- 2.57
- 1.33
Sheffield
- 9.47
- 9.23
- 7.59
- 7.26
- 5.50
- 4.72
- 3.88
Swindon
- 9.61
- 9.36
- 7.35
- 6.73
- 6.55
- 6.37
- 5.73
- 1.54
- 0.63
Wolverhampton
- 9.86
- 7.28
- 6.33
- 6.01
- 5.48
- 4.74
- 3.20
- 1.26
- 0.40
References
References
- "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
- "1987 league tables". Speedway GB.
- Bamford/Shailes, Robert/Glynn. (2007). "The Story of Oxford Speedway". Tempus Publishing Ltd.
- "1987 fixtures & results". Speedway Researcher.
- "1987 British League Knockout Cup". Speedway archive.
- "Coventry Bees 1987 season".
- "Coventry Bees results".
- "1987 fixtures & results". Speedway Researcher.
- (12 October 1987). "Nielsen retains title after scare". Sandwell Evening Mail.
- (13 July 1987). "Oxford Wins Hans Down". Reading Evening Post.
- (22 October 1987). "Speedway". Daily Mirror.
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