DURING the winter break, floodlights were installed and for the opening match of the 1950 season - before an estimated 10,000 crowd - speedway racing took place under a blaze of light. The meeting was a challenge match against Second Division Cradley Heath, but the Robins unfortunately went down to a 45-38 loss. New signing Alex Gray, a Londoner who moved down from Liverpool (exchanged for Alf Webster and Derek Glover), rode well, as did Danny Malone, a Bristol lad who had previously been noticed by Reg Witcomb. The Robins Monthly magazine, which was published for members of the ever-expanding Supporters' Club, urged fans to refrain from showering the riders with gifts, as sweets, apples and pears regularly had to be cleared from the racing strip!
A first-ever individual meeting was held at Blunsdon on 3 June, when Tamworth's Brian Wilson was triumphant with 14 points in the Swindon Silver Trophy. Oxford's Frank Boyle was second, while Harwood Pike of Leicester was third in the thrill-packed event. Two weeks later, a qualifying round of the World Championship was held at the Abbey, with Liverpool's Reg Duval emerging victorious on 14 points. Bill Clifton of Cradley Heath was second, with Sheffield's Jack Chignell in third place. For some time, Swindon topped the Third Division table, but injuries to Danny Malone and Ron Clark, who had been signed from defunct Hastings, put paid to their chances of success, although a final position of fourth in their first full season was a highly commendable achievement. The Robins' league record included away wins at Exeter, Leicester, Rayleigh and St Austell, although that was somewhat offset by three home defeats during the season.
Team changes during the campaign saw Frank Evans and Hugh Geddes join the club, while Bill Downton and Mick Mitchell moved on to pastures new. Mitchell had, in fact, started the season as team skipper, but upon his departure, the vacant position was taken over by Alex Gray. Second Division Walthamstow visited Blunsdon on 23 September, and although it was only a challenge match, the gulf between the two divisions was quite apparent, with the Robins suffering a 51-33 defeat. Jimmy Grant (11 points), George Newton (10) and Jim Boyd (9) led the way for the free-scoring Division Two side.
By the season's end, the Blunsdon track record had been lowered to 75.2 seconds by Oxford's Pat Clarke, who established the time on 7 October. Reg Lambourne and Bob Jones remained ever-present throughout the year, while three members of the team finished with 8-point averages from the league programme - Hugh Geddes (8.44), Mick Mitchell (8.21) and Alex Gray (8.15). Both Gray and Geddes made it through to the Division Three Riders' Championship at Walthamstow, but could only muster 6 points and 3 points, respectively.
With Buster Brown, on loan from Wembley, added to the team strength in 1951, the Robins had strong league title aspirations, but their hopes were to be dashed by a series of injuries. Firstly, Ron Clark fractured a leg at Long Eaton on 29 March, which regrettably spelled the end of his speedway career. Then Dennis Newton, a young novice who had shown brilliant form with a 16-point tally against Cardiff in a Festival of Britain match on 14 April, unfortunately broke a thigh in the very next home match against Exeter. Sadly, that brought his season to a premature end. That wasn't the end of Swindon's problems though, as Alex Gray suffered with poor health and Reg Lambourne missed several meetings with a damaged shoulder.
There was an unwanted first at Blunsdon on 11 August, when the league match against Wolverhampton was rained-off. Prior to that, the Abbey Stadium had hosted 65 consecutive meetings since opening in 1949. Under the captaincy of Bob Jones, the remaining Robins plugged away gamely to finish the season in fifth position, without any real top-end strength. Fifth place was a reasonable position though, considering the Robins boasted five riders with 7-point league averages, the highest of which was Buster Brown on 7.84. The others were Alex Gray (7.69), Hugh Geddes (7.54), Danny Malone (7.35) and Frank Evans (7.13). The side also battled past both Long Eaton and Poole to reach the Third Division final of the National Trophy, before going down by an aggregate score of 124-92 to Exeter.
Despite the injuries, support remained healthy and this was borne out by the fact that 1,500 Swindon fans followed their favourites down to Poole for a league match! The Abbey Stadium played host to two big individual meetings in 1951, with Hugh Geddes romping to success in a World Championship qualifying round with a 15-point maximum, while Bristol's Billy Hole won the Silver Trophy, also with maximum points. Two ‘C' Test Matches were staged at Blunsdon late on in the season, against New Zealand and America. On 1 September the Kiwis defeated England 57-51, and although Ken Middleditch plundered an 18-point maximum for the English, the rest of the homesters had no answer to New Zealand's three-pronged attack of Trevor Redmond (15 points), Bruce Abernethy (12) and Mick Holland (10).
England bounced back to beat the Americans 57-48 on 14 September, however, with Gerald Jackson scoring 14 points and Ken Middleditch 12. It was a much more solid England performance, although having said that, the visitors did boast three men in double figures, namely Ernie Roccio (13), Nick Nicolaides (12) and Don Hawley (12). Swindon riders Bob Jones, Buster Brown and Frank Evans proudly received caps during the Test series but, regrettably, Ray Ellis, an early-season signing from Harringay, missed out after he had suffered a fractured skull in the Robins' league match at Exeter on 20 August.
By the end of the season, Trevor Redmond had the distinction of being the track record holder, having scorched around Blunsdon in 74.2 seconds whilst representing Aldershot on 14 July. Buster Brown was one of three Swindon representatives at the Cardiff-staged Division Three Riders' Championship, but he only managed to score 6 points, while Danny Malone and meeting reserve Hugh Geddes recorded just a single point apiece.
The 1952 season was due to open at Blunsdon with a challenge match against Swedish side Kaparna, but unfortunately the weather intervened and the meeting was never staged. The following week (on 5 April), however, the tapes went up on the season with a match against Smederna, another Swedish team. Smederna were a powerful outfit and had finished the previous year as runners-up in their own First Division, so it was no surprise that they walloped the Robins by 55 points to 29. Rune Sormander and Bosse Andersson both stormed to paid maximums for the tourists, while Olle Segerstrom chalked up a paid 10 points. For the sorry homesters, the best showing came from Buster Brown, and even he could only muster a tally of 7 points. The Third Division was re-branded as the Southern League but, after starting with eleven teams competing, the number was reduced to ten when Long Eaton withdrew after 21 matches. Changes in the Robins' nest saw Hugh Geddes leave for Cardiff to be replaced by Bob Wells, a veteran rider purchased from Wembley.
However, perhaps the most significant signing was Welshman Ian Williams, younger brother of the Wembley riders Eric and Freddie (who was to become a double World Champion in 1950 and 1953). Ian made his debut against Long Eaton at Blunsdon on 12 April and scored 3 points. He was to develop into one of the finest riders ever to wear the Swindon colours and remained with the club all the way through until the end of the 1963 season.
Individual success during the year at the Abbey went to Cradley Heath's Harry Bastable in a World Championship qualifying round, and Dick Bradley of Bristol, who scooped the Silver Trophy. A representative match was staged at Blunsdon on 6 September, when Young England lost 62-46 to Young Overseas. Robin Hugh Geddes appeared for the Overseas side, but failed to score from either of his outings. Following a fall in his first outing, Maurice Dunn reeled off five straight wins to top-score for the victors, while England's best were Alan Smith (12 points) and George Wall (11).
The Robins ended up occupying sixth position in the Southern League and, at the end of the season, Reg Witcomb, who had done so much to make speedway a success in the town, left the club to be replaced by Bill Dutton. Frank Evans remained ever-present throughout Swindon's 36 league matches and topped the averages on 8.09, with Danny Malone finishing on 7.37, and Bob Jones on 7.32. ‘Joner', who also remained ever-present, plundered an impressive 5 full maximums during the campaign. After the end of the speedway season, a first-ever midget car meeting was held at Blunsdon on 11 October. Greyhound racing was also introduced shortly afterwards, on 1 November 1952.
Early in 1953, Swedish side Filbyterna visited the Abbey and Swindon supporters had their first glimpse of Ove Fundin, who raced to a 12-point maximum. Fundin was well supported by Joel Jansson's 11-point haul, but the Robins battled hard and eventually lost by just 4 points (44-40). During Bill Dutton's time at Swindon, a number of youngsters from New Zealand and Australia joined the club, namely John Lee, John Lawrie, Les Savill and Bluey McCoy. However, none of them stayed very long, with McCoy being the most successful of the bunch. Blunsdon again held a Young England versus Young Overseas match, with the English going down to a 47-36 defeat. Three Swindon riders appeared for England, with both Ian Williams and Danny Malone collecting 4 points apiece, while Bob Jones failed to score. The previously mentioned Bluey McCoy rode for the Overseas outfit, but could only muster a single point. Johnny Chamberlain was the pick of the riders on show, scorching to a 12-point maximum for the victors.
Swindon and Oxford raced for the Supporters' Cup and - over the two legs - the local rivalry was evident, as the Robins clinched a narrow aggregate victory by 101 points to 90. Swindon finished fourth in the eight-team Southern League and enjoyed some very good crowds. Ian Williams was at the helm of the scoring with 220 league points and a highly satisfactory 8.39 average. Danny Malone had a solid year, scoring 208 points for an 8.15 average. Ron Swaine, signed from Harringay, developed into a most useful rider and Mick Holland, who was signed following the early closure of Cardiff, was an excellent scorer, although his appearances were restricted by injuries.
The mid-1950s were difficult times for speedway, with the introduction of television gripping the nation. Swindon continued to enjoy good support though, and 1954 saw the Second Division and the Southern League join forces to form a National League Division Two, consisting of fifteen teams. Unfortunately, Glasgow and Wolverhampton both closed prior to riding any league matches, while Edinburgh and Plymouth also shut their doors after only a handful of meetings, thus reducing the league to just eleven sides.
At Swindon, an important signing was made when Norman Parker, the former Wimbledon rider and an international of note, joined the club as manager in place of Bill Dutton. Parker immediately began a team-building programme that saw Frank Evans, Bob Wells and Reg Lambourne move on and Bob Roger (from Birmingham), Ray Harris (from Stoke) and George White (from New Cross) come in as replacements. Parker had been impressed by ‘Chalky' White when he saw the diminutive rider winning an open meeting at Norwich the previous year, and his signing would prove to be a shrewd one. Bob Roger, too, was a marvellous rider to have on board, and he showed his paces when victorious in the Blunsdon-staged World Championship qualifying round on 10 July. Three weeks later, Poole's Ken Middleditch showed his liking for the Abbey raceway when scorching to victory in the Jack Parker 100 Guineas Trophy.
Earlier on, the season at Blunsdon had opened with a first-ever visit of the legendary Belle Vue team. Somewhat surprisingly, the Robins sent their illustrious visitors packing, winning 46-37. Ian Williams and Ron Swaine yielded 10 points each for the super Swindon side, with the Aces' top men being Ken Sharples and Harry Edwards, who each scored 9 points. Surprisingly, the ‘Wizard of Balance', Peter Craven, only managed to accumulate 6 points in what was a somewhat disappointing Belle Vue display. Swindon finished the season in third position and used just nine riders during their league campaign. Bob Roger was the leading rider, scoring 161 points for a brilliant 9.71 average. Ian Williams (8.26) and Mick Holland (8.00) provided solid backing, while George White had a year of steady progress, scoring 109 points from his 20 league matches. The Robins boasted two riders on the rostrum at the Belle Vue-staged Division Two Riders' Championship, with Ian Williams finishing second on 13 points, and Bob Roger joint third with 11 points. The Supporters' Cup probably meant as much as anything else to the fans of Swindon and Oxford, and to the delight of the Blunsdon faithful, it was the Robins who held on to the trophy with a brilliant 118-73 aggregate success.
Swindon's track record was further lowered in 1954, with Bristol rider Dick Bradley being credited with a remarkable time of 71.0 seconds. Bradley's time was set on 8 May, a night when all the other heat times fluctuated between 75.0 and 78.8 seconds. To this day, many people still question the time given for his heat five ride. Some four years later, when nobody had got close to Bradley's time, it was decided that - due to the introduction of a different type of tyre - a new track record should be established. Finally for 1954, another sport was introduced to Blunsdon on 25 September, with the first-ever stock car meeting going ahead at the stadium.
In 1955, much was expected in an eleven-team Second Division but, regrettably, things went wrong. On the main speedway front, both Bristol and Weymouth closed, and Swindon were shocked when Mick Holland retired after just three matches before returning home to his native New Zealand. As if this wasn't enough, Norman Parker resigned early in the season, due to pressure of business. Vic Scales, who had joined Swindon to take care of the mechanical side of things, took over as team boss. To add insult to injury, soon after Parker's resignation, George White suffered a broken wrist. Jimmy Gooch subsequently joined the Robins on loan from Wembley and did very well, but White was replaced in the main by guest riders, which was fine, except that the popular ‘Chalky' was simply irreplaceable. Nobody was quite able to get the crowd on their toes like wee George could.
Three big open meetings were staged at Blunsdon during the season, the first of which was a World Championship qualifying round on 9 July; this was won by Ian Williams with a stellar 15-point maximum. Dick Bradley was triumphant in the Jack Parker 100 Guineas Trophy the following month, while Exeter's Neil Street lifted the Sir Noel Arkell Trophy in September after plundering a full 15 points. Swindon's final home meeting of the season saw the first visit to the Abbey of the brilliant Wembley side. To say that Swindon were pulverized would be an understatement, for they crashed to a 67-29 reverse. Bob Roger and Danny Malone did their best to stem the tide with 11 points apiece, but they received little in the way of backing. For the free-scoring visitors, Brian Crutcher bagged a 15-point maximum, while Eric French recorded a paid 15-pointer and Freddie Williams plundered a paid 13 tally.
In an average sort of season, Swindon just avoided the wooden spoon, which went to Exeter. Bob Roger (with 327 league points) and Ian Williams (with 239) did their best to keep the Swindon flag flying, but with an endless string of guest riders and some mediocre performances, the Robins didn't really deserve to finish any higher. The only good news in a difficult season was an aggregate 125-91 victory over local rivals Oxford in the Supporters' Club Cup.
In 1956, there were but seven teams in the Second Division of the National League, and the Robins boasted as fine a heat-leader trio as any side in Bob Roger, George White and Ian Williams. Vic Scales had moved on, and Swindon replaced him from within their own ranks by offering the team manager's post to Bob Jones, who had been an essential part of the club since the very first meeting. The opening meeting didn't bode well for the season ahead, though, with the Robins losing 53-42 to Swedish touring side, Monarkerna. The visitors were superbly led by a full-house from the legendary Ove Fundin, while Bernt Nilsson was paid for 15 and Olle Nygren picked up 12 points after suffering an engine failure first time out. The Robins scored solidly throughout, but none of them reached double figures in a very disappointing start to the campaign.
However, once the league programme got underway, Swindon definitely looked the part, winning most of their home matches comfortably, as well as picking up away wins at Oxford, Ipswich (twice), Coventry and Leicester. The Robins won 16 of their 24 league matches to pip Southampton by a point and win the Championship. A home defeat at the hands of Rayleigh in June almost upset the apple-cart, but the riders just about held their collective nerve in a nail-biting finish to the season. Fearless Bob Roger led the Swindon averages with a massive 9.53 figure, which included 7 full maximums along the way. There wasn't much to choose at the top end of the Robins' attack, for Ian Williams finished with a 9.52 average, only fractionally behind Bob Roger's figure. ‘Chalky' White also boasted a 9-point average, having yielded 262 points from his 24 matches.
Winning the league was a team effort, though, and the ‘big three' were ably backed throughout the year by Ernie Lessiter, Ray Harris and Ron Swaine. Others who made appearances as and when required were Al Sparrey, Roy Taylor and Glyn Chandler, but the saddest event of the year was the retirement of stalwart Danny Malone, who was forced to quit after just six league matches, due to injury. Not satisfied with topping the averages, Bob Roger stormed to maximums as he took victory in both big meetings at Blunsdon during the year - the World Championship qualifying round in July and the Jack Parker 100 Guineas Trophy in September.
In a welcome alternative to the cut-and-thrust of National League racing, the homeless Southern Rovers side used the Blunsdon circuit for one of their Southern Area League fixtures on 25 August, when they defeated California 42-41. Once again, Swindon retained the Supporters' Club Cup with an aggregate 113-102 success over Oxford. Wembley returned to Swindon in an end-of-season challenge match and, as a measure of the Robins' improvement since the famous Lions' previous visit, it was the homesters who ran out winners by 49 points to 47. Bob Roger blitzed the opposition with a full 15 points, while George White gleaned 12, and Ian Williams took 10. Brian Crutcher (13) and Eric French (12) were top scorers for a Wembley team that also included future Swindon star Mike Broadbank. Long after the dust had settled on the season's racing, Wimbledon staged a meeting on Boxing Day, namely ‘The Christmas Vase', which was won in fine style by the Robins' throttle merchant, Bob Roger.
The 1957 season was an unhappy one for speedway in general, although an excellent one for Swindon. The First Division lost Wembley, Poole and Bradford (although Bradford would later replace Birmingham in mid-season). The withdrawal of those teams had much to do with the remaining First and Second Division teams amalgamating to form the National League. In an equalization of team strengths, Swindon signed Ken Middleditch (who had long been one of the most popular visitors) from Poole, and for £50 secured the services of Mike Broadbank from Wembley. This must surely rank as the bargain of the decade, as ‘Broady' went on to become a brilliant rider, a fine team skipper and World Finalist during his time with the Robins. Later on, Neil Street, who had stayed in his native Australia following the closure of Exeter in 1955, returned to begin a career of distinction at the Abbey Stadium.
Swindon - once the league campaign began - did not have a weak link. For the first time they completed their home league programme with a 100 per cent record, which included several thrashings, most notably against Birmingham (77-19), Coventry (70-26), Leicester (64-32), Belle Vue (63-33) and Rayleigh (63-33). Away from Blunsdon, the Robins chalked up victories at Ipswich, Oxford, Rayleigh, Southampton and Wimbledon. In a quite stunning campaign, which went down to the wire, it was the Swindon men who took the Championship, finishing just a single point ahead of second-placed Belle Vue.
Bob Roger enjoyed another great season, scoring 250 league points, and his team riding with Ken Middleditch during the season was a joy to behold. Ray Harris and Ron Swaine had moved out and Swindon used just nine riders during the domestic campaign, plus a guest appearance by Dick Bradley at Coventry (where he scored 15 points). Ever-present Bob Roger's final average was a monumental 10.27, and his fantastic riding also yielded 8 full and 2 paid maximums. George White scored 195 points for an 8.61 average, while Ian Williams finished with an 8.17 figure. Super team-man Middleditch posted a 7.54 average over the course of the season, while Neil Street (6.70), Ernie Lessiter (6.44) and Mike Broadbank (5.21) all played major roles. Al Sparrey made a couple of appearances, with Glyn Chandler partaking in just a single match. What a wonderful season, with Bob Jones doing the team managing and taking care of any mechanical problems.
With a 121-71 aggregate victory over Oxford, Swindon yet again retained the Supporters' Club Cup - that being the Robins' fifth successive victory over the old enemy in the competition. Meanwhile, in the Britannia Shield, Swindon failed to go beyond the group stage after winning only four of their 10 matches. A single individual meeting was held at Blunsdon during the year, with Ian Williams recording a maximum when winning a World Championship qualifying round. Swindon boasted three World Finalists in Bob Roger, George White and Ian Williams: indeed, they were unlucky not to have four, as Ken Middleditch just missed qualifying by the skin of his teeth. The final at Wembley on 21 September saw Roger score 8 points, while White collected 4 and Williams claimed 3. The meeting, incidentally, was won by a man who would later become a real Robins legend, namely Barry Briggs, who beat Ove Fundin in a run-off after both had finished on 14 points. Bob Roger also challenged Peter Craven for the Golden Helmet and, having won in brilliant style at Swindon, lost out to the Belle Vue star at Hyde Road and in the subsequent decider at Norwich.
After the previous year's success, everything seemed to go horribly wrong for Swindon in 1958. Firstly, Ken Middleditch wanted to retire in order to concentrate on his business interests and Swindon sportingly let him return to his former base at Poole. Having run with an open licence the previous season, the Pirates had re-opened under promoter Vic Gooden, who had moved his Rayleigh set-up lock, stock and barrel to Dorset. The second disaster of the year occurred on Easter Monday (7 April) and again involved Poole. While guesting for the Pirates against Southampton at Wimborne Road, Swindon's main man, Bob Roger, was involved in a very nasty heat eight crash with Split Waterman and Brian Crutcher, which left him with a fractured skull. Regrettably, although Roger later attempted a track return, the accident prematurely finished his speedway career as a top-end rider.
Swindon welcomed Swedish tourists Monarkerna to Blunsdon again, but the visitors failed to provide any spark, with the Robins racing to a superb 63-30 victory. Olle Nygren and Birger Forsberg collected 8 points apiece for the Swedes, but received little support against the rampant Robins, for whom George White scorched to a paid maximum. Heat fourteen of the match was farcical, though, as all the riders stopped at the end of the first lap after seeing the red lights switched on. However, this was apparently because Roy Moreton had been excluded for a tapes offence and, eventually, Mike Broadbank continued on his way. Olle Nygren and Bengt Brannefors were not as quick to react and before they had got going again, ‘Broady' had lapped them. He went on to win in a time of 139.2 seconds - the slowest ever recorded at Blunsdon!
There was controversy in the away league match at Belle Vue on 21 June, when the fixture was run in far from ideal conditions. The Swindon boys were unhappy to continue riding after heat six and asked the referee to inspect the track. The meeting official refused to do this and put the riders for the next race on the 2-minute time allowance. With neither Swindon rider (Mike Broadbank and guest Ken McKinlay) making it to the start, Belle Vue rode to an untroubled 5-0 race victory. Swindon then decided to contest the rest of the match, but asked that heat seven be re-run with its original line-up! The referee agreed and the race subsequently ended up as a 3-3, much to the disgust of Belle Vue, who then rode under protest. Swindon went on to win the match 51-45 but, following an appeal, the original result of heat seven was reinstated, but although this affected the final result, Swindon still won by 48 points to 47.
The Abbey Stadium played host to two big individual meetings during the year, and these saw George White win the Midland Riders' Championship qualifying round, while Ron How took the honours in a World Championship qualifying round. On 11 June, Blunsdon staged the prestigious first Test between England and Australasia. The spectators were treated to a feast of speedway, which saw the Australasians claim a hard-fought 57-51 victory. The great Barry Briggs led the victors' scoring with a classy 18-point maximum, while Neil Street and Peter Moore weighed in with a dozen points apiece. England were led by 16 points from Peter Craven, but he received scant support. Three Swindon riders appeared for the English, namely George White (8 points), Mike Broadbank (7 points) and Ian Williams (4 points).
Swindon also entered a side in the newly-established Junior League but, although they ran two home matches, none of the competing teams fulfilled their quota of fixtures and the competition ended in disarray. In August, it was decided that because a different type of tyre had been introduced to the sport, a new track record should be established at Blunsdon. Nobody had ever got near to Dick Bradley's debatable record that was set in 1954 and, frankly, this seemed like a good excuse to wipe the slate clean. Peter Craven was quick to set a new record time of 74.8 seconds on 23 August, although this was 3.8 seconds slower than Bradley's previous record!
Swindon had to rely on guest riders throughout the year and, with George White and Ian Williams slightly down on scoring power, the Robins slumped to sixth position in a ten-team league. However, it was not all alarm at the Abbey, as Mike Broadbank continued to make excellent progress, actually topping the league averages with an impressive 8.42 figure. Neil Street was a model of consistency scoring 166 points. Ernie Lessiter, such a brilliant reserve during the 1957 season, retired after completing ten league matches for a disappointing 3.89 average. Ron Swaine came out of retirement to help the Robins during an injury crisis and the experienced Roy Moreton also made a comeback at Blunsdon.
The Robins made it through to the semi-final of the National Trophy, but they were unable to contain Norwich and went down to a 129-111 aggregate loss. Swindon did much better than they had done the previous season in the Britannia Shield, finishing second in the southern group. However, only the top position was good enough for a passage through to the final and that honour went to Wimbledon. The whole club was given a great boost when Mike Broadbank qualified for the World Final at Wembley, where he scored 5 points. It was the first of five full World Finals for the popular Broady, a real speedway stylist and one of the most loyal riders to ever don a Swindon race-jacket.
The start of the 1959 season saw Swindon fans rocked when the ‘Red Devil', Mike Broadbank, asked for a transfer, a request he thankfully withdrew in July. Swindon signed Gerry King from Wimbledon and gave opportunities to the promising Leo McAuliffe. Trevor Redmond was also signed, and although he had vast experience, unfortunately he failed at Swindon, while King suffered a very bad injury and was out of action almost as soon as he arrived. Another signing was fence-scraping Australian Johnny Board, who made the 12,000-mile journey to this country after being recommended by Neil Street. One lucky break came with the signing of Tadeusz Teodorowicz, a Polish international who was seeking political asylum and living in Holland. The popular ‘Teo' quickly overcame an international ban and went on to score 111 league points for Swindon.
A National Reserve League was formed to brighten the second-half of meetings and Swindon finished in the cellar position but, having started late, the league was never completed. On the individual front, three top meetings were held at the Abbey Stadium during the season. Firstly, Leicester's Jack Geran was victorious in the Midland Riders' Championship qualifying round on 23 May, when he saw off strong challenges from both George White and Mike Broadbank. Broady made sure of success in the next ‘big-one' at Blunsdon, though, defeating Poole's Les McGillivray in a run-off to win a World Championship qualifying round on 11 July. The Jack Parker Trophy on 7 August saw a marvellous field of riders assembled, with the great Ove Fundin taking the plaudits after notching a magnificent 15-point maximum. Just to show how strong the line-up was, Peter Craven finished second, while Ronnie ‘Mirac' Moore was third.
There was a general decline in some of the riders' performances, culminating in the Robins slipping to eighth place in the nine-team league. Mike Broadbank proved to be the top man, scoring 187 league points for an impressive 9.40 average. Second in the team figures was George White on a 7.78 figure, with Ian Williams third on 7.22. Chalky White rode in the World Final at Wembley and scored 7 points, which was one of the few bright spots of a hugely disappointing season. Local rivals Oxford finished one place above Swindon in the final league table and - just to rub salt into the wound - it was the Cheetahs who plundered the Supporters' Club Cup for the first-ever time, following a 116-100 victory over the Robins. Swindon again failed to progress beyond the group stage in the Britannia Shield, having to be satisfied with fourth position out of five teams.
The final meeting of the year at Blunsdon was the third Test between England and Australasia. In a superb encounter, it was England who scraped home to record a narrow 55-53 victory, with Peter Craven heading the score-chart on 13 points. Mike Broadbank and Ron How yielded 11 points apiece, with Ian Williams collecting 8. For the Australasians, the mighty Barry Briggs amassed 16 points and, just for good measure, reduced the track record to 72.0 seconds in the opening heat. Track alterations began in the winter of 1959, reducing the 410-yard Blunsdon circuit to 395 yards in time for the opening of the 1960 season.
CALL FOR SITES
Swindon Motorsports Ltd launches "Call for Sites" to help identify new motorsports arena in Swindon.