Provincial League

[van wolfswinkel]

Tracks I used to go to...New Cross , West Ham , Harringay , White City , Hackney .

 

Not even the stadiums left. No hope!

I started following those orange and black Rangers in 1963 as a 7-year-old living just dahn the road in Nunhead S.E.15. First match against Ackney. Even though New Cross were poor loved watching number 1 Squibbo, my fav Geoff Penniket, and the Reeves Reg and Eddie(sound like 2 gangsters from Bermondsey!). Also went to West Am Hackney and Wimbledon after they closed, Bjorn Knutson was one of my favs, with Sverre Harrfeldt, and Ollie Nygren, Reg Luckhurst and Trevor Hedge at Plough Lane.

Remember Wolves Poole(who won the last ever meeting at the frying pan)Newcastle Stoke Sheffield Cradley Heath Middlesboro Long Eaton Exeter Edinburgh Ackney Rayleigh St.Austell...Mauger Silver Kitchen Brian Craven Trigg Monk Gilbertson Wayne Briggs. Barry Briggs rode for Southampton, who also folded that year, at The Pan. From what I remember my now local club Swindon were in the top-tier with Belle Vue, Norwich, The Dons, Oxford, Coventry. Only 3 still in top-tier 51 years on!

Also remember the sad death of Peter Craven that year, as I had his rosette on my bedroom wall.

Saw Ove Fundin win the World Final at Wembley beating Knutson and Briggo. Nigel Boocock rode.

The year of The Beatles and the killing of JFK.

Edited October 19, 2014 by BIG RON

[customhouseregular]

I started following those orange and black Rangers in 1963 as a 7-year-old living just dahn the road in Nunhead S.E.15. First match against Ackney. Even though New Cross were poor loved watching number 1 Squibbo, my fav Geoff Penniket, and the Reeves Reg and Eddie(sound like 2 gangsters from Bermondsey!). Also went to West Am Hackney and Wimbledon after they closed, Bjorn Knutson was one of my favs, with Sverre Harrfeldt, and Ollie Nygren, Reg Luckhurst and Trevor Hedge at Plough Lane.

Remember Wolves Poole(who won the last ever meeting at the frying pan)Newcastle Stoke Sheffield Cradley Heath Middlesboro Long Eaton Exeter Edinburgh Ackney Rayleigh St.Austell...Mauger Silver Kitchen Brian Craven Trigg Monk Gilbertson Wayne Briggs. Barry Briggs rode for Southampton, who also folded that year, at The Pan. From what I remember my now local club Swindon were in the top-tier with Belle Vue, Norwich, The Dons, Oxford, Coventry. Only 3 still in top-tier 51 years on!

Also remember the sad death of Peter Craven that year, as I had his rosette on my bedroom wall.

Saw Ove Fundin win the World Final at Wembley beating Knutson and Briggo. Nigel Boocock rode.

The year of The Beatles and the killing of JFK.

This is a post to bring the memories flooding back.

[BOBBATH]

When I think about it what about Bert harkins-he was a true PL discovery and kept going till 1980(I think)

[yesterdaysman]

Anybody still alive on this forum who remembers the PL (1960-64)-best speedway ever. My favorite riders of that league were Ivor Brown(CH), and the 1964 Newport team(Alby Golden, Peter Vandenberg, Dick Bradley, Jon Erskine , Geoff Penniket, Ray Harris , Vic White etc etc).. I recall the 2nd leg of the 1964 KO Cup Final at CH-where Newport had a huge lead from the 1st leg and just scraped home at CH in the 2nd leg by about 2 points on aggregate. No question CH would have won if George Major had been able to ride. John Edwards of CH rode extremely well.. Anyone else in forumland attend that meeting-if so I'll buy them a pint next time I'm in UK. CH supporters were the best and very welcoming-always recall the pork sarnies-and having a pint with them at a nearby pub the name of which I've forgotten. Wish we could return to those days!!

It would seem that in hindsight George Major may well have been able to ride in the return leg at Cradley! George tells it like this: In the meeting at Newport, just before my ride against Peter Vandenburg, Roy Morton, (team manager) said, if Vandenburg gets away push him hard, he won't fight as he is at Belle Vue in the PR final tomorrow. I said, Err, I'm at Belle Vue tomorrow as well! Nah, don't worry, you push him hard, he won't mix it. So I did and he did mix it and I ended up going into the fence! I was carted off to hospital for X rays on my right arm & leg but they found nothing broken, though I was in a lot of pain. they asked if anywhere else hurt & I said just a slight pain in my left wrist, so they X rayed that & said I had broken the Scaphoid. I said it wasn't too bad so if I could have some pain killers for the other side I'd be fine, as I had a big meeting next day, but would get the wrist fixed after that. They told me it was vital to get it sorted straight away, as I may lose the use of my hand if it were left too long. So I excepted their advice & a plaster cast, saying goodbye to my chances at Belle Vue & the rest of the season. After many weeks & several more X rays at the Hospital in Oxford, it was thought it may have been an old injury & when I thought about it I remembered I had been troubled with a painful wrist for most of the season two years before, at Neath. In the winter of '64 I moved up to live in the Midlands & took all my notes to the hospital in Walsall. The old guy there was of the view that it would never mend now & I would just have to live with it, which I did! In the '90's I developed Arthritis which locked the movement in my wrist, but my hand works ok. So with hindsight I could possibly have carried on riding for the rest of the season!

[BOBBATH]

Thanx for posting this yesterdays man- I remember all this very well-good on George and he's absolutely right-he would have made all the difference to CH in the KO Cup Final. Also too bad he didn't get to ride in the PLRC Final-I think his place was taken by Norman Storer.

[britmet]

One pint please, Bob, - or make that 4, me being: i) a Prov.Lge follower, ii) a Cradley fan since childhood, (1940s), iii) a devoted Ivor Brown fan, (saw him off in Wymswold in 2005), iv) an attendee at all 5 PLRCs , '60- '64, - Cradley, Harringay & Belle Vue.

Just to square the circle on this subject, following my earlier post, and so linking those days, viz Cradley, Ivor Brown, George Major, which started with me as a schoolboy: . . In the '70s when Brum re-opened I served as George's dope&oil man for several years, and have yet more fond memories, of those later days, traveling with him around the newer BL.Div2 tracks.

[BOBBATH]

Another pint for you Britmet-hope George still doing well-last time I saw him race was for Doncaster v. Reading in Sep. 1970(was back over on vacation). Still got program-George scored 8 from 3 rides-finishing second to team mate Chris Harrison. George's picture was in program. Noticed Gordon McGregor scored 11, dropping only point to Richard May. Gordon must have been in his forties then. I think May and Harrison have also passed away. Re CH with the demise of Dudley Wood is there anywhere in black Country I could get a similar pork sarnie as used to be sold there-could do with one now-its snowing here(Toronto).

[britmet]

Another pint for you Britmet - hope George still doing well-last time I saw him race was for Doncaster v. Reading in Sep. 1970(was back over on vacation). Still got program-George scored 8 from 3 rides-finishing second to team mate Chris Harrison. George's picture was in program. Noticed Gordon McGregor scored 11, dropping only point to Richard May. Gordon must have been in his forties then. I think May and Harrison have also passed away. Re CH with the demise of Dudley Wood is there anywhere in black Country I could get a similar pork sarnie as used to be sold there-could do with one now-its snowing here(Toronto).

Pork Sarnie ? (or "a piecie", as we used say before the Liverpudlian term for the same spread country-wide in the wake of the Mersey Sound.)

- If you'd asked the previous seasons the answer would have been Yes, as they turned up at Monmore many times, particularly for specials. Quote from a past mtg preview "Traditional Cradley pork sandwiches will be available and there will be an auction of the top three race jackets in the bar immediately after the event."

 

Whether they'll span the great divide from Black Country to Brummegum in the 2015 season, we'll have to wait and see. (But I guess there'll still be a hot pork sandwich shop in the likes of Quarry Bank, Cradley Heath and Dudley High streets somewhere.)

George is on the Isle of Wight, - had a heart attack some years ago but taking it easy.

[arnieg]

I think May and Harrison have also passed away.

Fairly sure Richard is still with us.The "Speedway in memoriam" site erroneously reported him as having died but that was corrected.