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Longest League Careers Post War


BOBBATH

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Somebody will know the answer to this (Norbold, BL65??) I'm back on Jim Squibb-I recall he started a riders strike in the 1963 PL Riders Final at Belle Vue -wot I can't remember is whether he was in the 64 PL Riders Final-whether he qualified or not. BTW the 1964 PL Riders Final sounded like a hell of a meeting-I avidly read in the Star about the various Riders chances-I would have given anything to be there-sadly a lack of the needful prevented my attendance. Was any forumlander there.. If anybody said which meeting could you back in time to watch-what would it be-that would have been mine.(actually that might be a good thread to start)!!!

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So a revised look then

 

Jimmy Squibb 30 (1946-1975)
Neil Collins 29 (1978-2006)
Les Collins 29(1975-2003)
Ken McKinlay 28 (1948-1975)
Malcolm Simmons 28 (1963-1989,1993)

Nigel Boocock 26 (1955-1980)
Alan Mogridge 26 (1981-2006)

Must be some current riders looking to break into that table and probably one or two from the past who make it.Scott Nicholls i think started out in 1995,so would have done 23 seasons now,although did he miss a year and only rode in Poland(Sweden when he was in the GPs?Not sure

Edited by iris123
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Two riders who narrowly miss out on a listing are probably Jack Winstanley 1947-1968 and Wal Morton 1946-1964. I think there may have been years in their careers when they were not involved with league teams?

Edited by Guest
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Two rider who narrowly miss out on a listing are probably Jack Winstanley 1947-1968 and Wal Morton 1946-1964. I think there may have been years in their careers when they were not involved with league teams?

No probably about it.And i have checked......Jim Tebby also misses out :P:lol:

 

Checked a few that came to mind.Leigh Lanham had what seemed a fairly long career,but doesn't make it from what i found.

 

Rob Hollingworth was another that had a career spanning 4 decades,but he missed a few years as far as i can tell,although still going in amateur speedway

 

Kevin Teager was another i checked.Still going on grasstrack,but seemed to have stpped league racing in the UK quite a while ago now

 

Mark Burrows is another who's career spanned a long time,but looking at records he missed quite a number of seasons during that time!!!

 

Ermolenko is one foeign rider who came to mind,but because he still until recently had a ride or two i didn't realise it was so long ago he retired from the league

Edited by iris123
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Jack Biggs' British career spanned 1947 to 1970... 24 years.

 

And that certainly wasn't his whole career. He was killed in action in Australia in 1972 at the age of 50. Not sure when he started racing in Australia - can anyone provide the year?

 

All the best

Rob

 

EDIT Rob Hollingworth made his league debut for Berwick in 1973. His final league season was at Boston in 2005. There was a gap in the middle.

Edited by lucifer sam
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Mauger went home at the end of 1958 and didn't return to British speedway until 1963 I think!

 

Ivan didn't ride League speedway in 1982 and 83. He only returned in 1984 to help out a desperately shorthanded Exeter on their return to the British League where he managed to blackmail the authorities into allowing him to ride home meetings only!!

Ivan Mauger 1957 - 1984 (28 years)......though it has to be said a bit on and off at the beginning and end! So probably only 22 years in total.

So a revised look then

 

Jimmy Squibb 30 (1946-1975)
Neil Collins 29 (1978-2006)
Les Collins 29(1975-2003)
Ken McKinlay 28 (1948-1975)
Malcolm Simmons 28 (1963-1989,1993)

Nigel Boocock 26 (1955-1980)
Alan Mogridge 26 (1981-2006)

Must be some current riders looking to break into that table and probably one or two from the past who make it.Scott Nicholls i think started out in 1995,so would have done 23 seasons now,although did he miss a year and only rode in Poland(Sweden when he was in the GPs?Not sure

Simmo didn't ride in 1988 when he was co-promotor at King's Lynn!

 

Scotty had his first League rides in 1994 for Peterborough and has been going ever since apart from a brief spell at the start of one season where he tried missing Britissh speedway in a failed attempt to enhance his GP career. If you count complete years of racing then Scotty I think started racing in junior grasstrack in the mid 1980's!

 

Rob Hollingworth retired in 1986 and came back via amateur speedway in late 1998!

Edited by 25yearfan
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Yes,I wasn't sure,but something in my memory was saying he held a Polish licence and the reason was probably because he wasn't riding in GB

I think he rode on a German licence, same as Marvyn Cox.

 

This is why it gets interesting, because the span of a career can be very different to the actual seasons ridden - particularly when it comes to British league racing.

 

Steve

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