| Barrow Bombers | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Club information | |
| Track address | Holker Street Barrow-in-Furness |
| Country | England |
| Founded | 1930 |
| Closed | 1985 |
| Club facts | |
| Colours | Yellow |
| Track size | 379 metres (414 yd) |
The Barrow Bombers were a speedway team promoted in Barrow-in-Furness that existed at various times from 1930 to 1985. [1]
Speedway arrived in Barrow during 1930 when a number of meetings were conducted at Holker Street, the home of Barrow A.F.C., the town's football club. [2] Organised by the Northern Sports Club, the first meeting was held on 12 June 1930. [3]
Racing moved to Little Park in Roose during 1931 but crowd levels were insufficient. [4] [5]
In 1972, speedway returned to Barrow after a 42-year absence. The former Romford Bombers promotion who started the season at the West Ham Stadium in London moved the team north to Holker Street, which had recently installed a circuit around the pitch. [6] The team were initially called the Barrow Happy Faces as their sponsor at the time was Duckhams Oil - its happy face logo was prominently displayed on the team's race jackets. The team finished 9th during the 1972 British League Division Two season. [7]
The team were renamed Barrow Bombers for the 1973 and 1974 seasons, where they finished 10th and 12th respectively. [8] Despite good crowds, a new home had to be found for the team after the end of the 1974 season, when problems with ground sharing became insurmountable. [9]
Local businessman Cliff Hindle built a new stadium at Park Road, which opened halfway through the 1977 season for a short series of open meetings. In 1978 a team was entered under the name Barrow Furness Flyers, but they finished bottom of the National League. Crowds were poor and the track closed after only one season. [10]
Speedway in Barrow was revived once again in 1984, under the promotion of ex-Barrow rider Chris Roynon. A series of challenge matches were held to gauge public support. Interest was such that a team was entered for the 1985 season under the name of the Barrow Blackhawks. [11] After a disastrous start to the season with an understrength team, the Blackhawks were thrown out of the league. A number of challenge matches were held for the remainder of the season in front of low crowds before the track once again closed. [10]
| Year and league | Position | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 British League Division Two season | 9th | rode as Happy Faces |
| 1973 British League Division Two season | 10th | |
| 1974 British League Division Two season | 12th | |
| 1978 National League season | 20th | rode as Furness Flyers |
| 1985 National League season | N/A | rode as Blackhawks, withdrew, results expunged |
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