Plymouth Gladiators

Last updated

Plymouth Gladiators
Plymouth Gladiators speedway team logo.png
Club information
Track address Plymouth Coliseum
Coypool Road
Plymouth
PL7 4NW
CountryEngland
Founded1932
PromoterMark Phillips
Team managerGarry May
Team captainBen Barker
League SGB Championship
Website https://plymouth-speedway.com
Club facts
ColoursBlue, Yellow and Black
Track size228 metres
Track record time51.49
Track record date10th August 2024
Track record holder Chris Harris
Current team
RiderCMA
Flag of England.svg Alfie Bowtell
Flag of Norway.svg Lasse Fredriksen
Flag of England.svg Joe Thompson
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Mitchell Cluff
Major team honours
tier 2 Fours Winners 2016
tier 3 Knockout Cup Winners 1952, 2008
tier 3 Pairs winners 2010
Division 3 Trophy Winners2009

The Plymouth Gladiators are a speedway team in the British SGB Championship. The team competed during various seasons from 1932 to 1969, before reforming after a gap of thirty-six years in 2006. [1] In 2021, the club successfully applied to join the British second division, the SGB Championship. The team nicknames have included Tigers, Panthers, Devils and Bulldogs [2]

Contents

History

Origins and 1930s

The origins of speedway in Plymouth began when Western Speedways Ltd promoted the dirt track racing at Pennycross Stadium. The opening meeting was a challenge match against Exeter on 13 June 1931. [3] The general manager of the stadium Freddie Hore signed Australian Bert Spencer as the first star to ride at Plymouth. [4]

As the Plymouth Tigers the team were founder members of the first National League, competing in the 1932 Speedway National League. [5] The team included seven Australian riders, including Spencer, Eric Collins, Frank Pearce and Clem Mitchell. The team performed woefully, only managing to win two league matches but improved in 1933 and 1934. [6]

The speedway promotion suffered financial losses and put the entire team up for sale in early 1935, choosing to host a few open and challenge matches instead of competing in the league. [7]

The team returned in 1936 under the promotion of Jack Colebatch, to compete in the Provincial League and also changed the name their name to Plymouth Panthers. [8] Another poor season resulted in no speedway (with the exception of one fixture) before the outbreak of war.

1940s

Although the Pennycross Stadium conducted greyhound racing meetings throughout the war, [9] the speedway did not return until 1947. Now known as the Plymouth Devils, they raced in the 1947 Speedway National League Division Three, under Jimmy Baxter (the chairman of the third division promoters' association). [10]

Pete Lansdale was signed as the club's number 1 rider in 1948 and he was joined by Peter Robinson. Later signings included George Wall and Alan Smith and they finally turned Plymouth into a team that were hard to beat at home.

1950s

The club also signed Wally Mawdsley in 1950, who together with Pete Lansdale would later become the best known speedway promoters in the country. In 1952, the team achieved their first major success, winning the Division Three section of the National Trophy. They defeated Rayleigh Rockets in the final and the Devils trio of Wall, Smith and Lansdale finished in the first three positions of the league averages at the end of the season. [11]

After another season in the Southern League (1953) [12] they withdrew from the 1954 Speedway National League Division Two in July, due to financial losses. [13]

1960s

Seven years later in 1961, the Bristol Bulldogs were left without a home, following the sale of Knowle Stadium. The Bulldogs relocated to Plymouth and the Plymouth Bulldogs competed in the 1961 Provincial Speedway League. Australian Jack Scott led the team's averages in a season that saw the team finish runner-up in the league behind Poole Pirates. [14] After the 1962 season it would be another six year without speedway in Plymouth.

Speedway resurfaced again for two seasons (1968 and 1969) at Pennycross Stadium, with the Devils participating in British League Division Two. The 1968 season saw the Devils finish fourth and Mike Cake recorded an equal first league average of 10.22. Unfortunately after the 1969 season the speedway ended and Pennycross Stadium would close for good several years later in 1972.

2000s

Plymouth versus Oxford in 2007 2007 Oxford v Plymouth speedway.jpg
Plymouth versus Oxford in 2007

In 2006, temporary planning permission was awarded for a new speedway track in Plymouth at the St Boniface College playing fields (later to become the Plymouth Coliseum). [15] The Plymouth Devils returned after a 36-year absence to compete in the 2006 Speedway Conference League. During the season the Devils finished first in the regular season table but lost in the play off final to Scunthorpe Scorpions. [16]

Two years later in 2008, they repeated the feat of topping the table but once again lost in the playoffs, this time to Weymouth Wildcats. They did however gain consolation when winning the Conference League Knockout Cup. One year later in 2009, the Devils reached the play off final and won the Division 3 national trophy during the 2009 National League speedway season.

2010s

In 2010, Nicki Glanz and Mark Simmonds won the National League Pairs Championship, held at Hayley Stadium, on 7 August. [17]

In 2011, the club moved up to division 2 bringing in Ben Barker as number 1. The Devils continued to compete in the second tier and introduced a junior side called the Devon Demons in 2014, previously the Demons had been the junior side for the Exeter Falcons. [18]

During their final season in the second tier the Devils won the Premier League Four-Team Championship, held on 23 and 24 July 2016, at the East of England Arena. The team consisted of the Australian brothers Brady Kurtz and Todd Kurtz in addition to Jack Holder and Kyle Newman. [19] The team dropped back down to division 3 for 2017.

In 2019, the club name was changed from the Devils to the Gladiators.

2020s

Following a season lost to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Gladiators returned to the second division for 2021, called the SGB Championship. In 2022, the club re-signed Ben Barker and also ran a NDL side called the Centurions. [20]

Season summary

Extended content
Year and leaguePositionNotes
1932 Speedway National League 9thTigers
1933 Speedway National League 9thTigers
1934 Speedway National League 8thTigers
1936 Provincial Speedway League 5thPanthers
1947 Speedway National League Division Three 8thDevils
1948 Speedway National League Division Three 7thDevils
1949 Speedway National League Division Three 5thDevils
1950 Speedway National League Division Two 9thDevils
1951 Speedway National League Division Three 6thDevils
1952 Speedway Southern League 3rdDevils, National Trophy (div 3) winners
1953 Speedway Southern League 8thDevils
1954 Speedway National League Division Two N/ADevils, withdrew
1961 Provincial Speedway League 2ndBulldogs
1962 Provincial Speedway League 6thDevils
1968 British League Division Two season 4thDevils
1969 British League Division Two season 15thDevils
2006 Speedway Conference League 1stDevils, Play off final
2007 Speedway Conference League 3rdDevils
2008 Speedway Conference League 1stDevils, Play off semi final & Knockout Cup winners
2009 National League speedway season 3rdDevils, Play off final, national trophy
2010 National League speedway season 6thDevils, pairs
2011 Premier League speedway season 13thDevils
2012 Premier League speedway season 13thDevils
2013 Premier League speedway season 11thDevils
2014 Premier League speedway season 9thDevils
2014 National League speedway season 7thDemons (juniors)
2015 Premier League speedway season 6thDevils
2016 Premier League speedway season 12thDevils, fours
2017 National League speedway season 8thDevils
2018 National League speedway season 7thDevils
2019 National Development League speedway season 8thGladiators
SGB Championship 2021 10thGladiators
SGB Championship 2022 4thPlay off QF, Gladiators
2022 National Development League speedway season 7thCenturions (juniors)
SGB Championship 2023 9thGladiators
SGB Championship 2024 8thGladiators

Notable riders

Riders previous seasons

Extended content

2007 team

2008 team

2009 team

2010 team

2013 team

2014 team

2015 team

2016 team

2018 team

  • Flag of England.svg Ellis Perks
  • Flag of England.svg Henry Atkins
  • Flag of England.svg Tim Webster
  • Flag of England.svg Richard Andrews
  • Flag of New Zealand.svg Ryan Terry-Daley
  • Flag of England.svg Kelsey Dugard
  • Flag of England.svg Macauley Leek
  • Also rode
  • Flag of England.svg Adam Sheppard
  • Flag of England.svg Adam Roynon
  • Flag of England.svg James Cockle
  • Flag of New Zealand.svg Bradley Andrews

2019 team

2021 team

2022 team

Also Rode

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References

  1. ↑ Bamford, Robert (1 March 2007). Tempus Speedway Yearbook 2007. NPI Media Group. ISBN   978-0-7524-4250-1.
  2. ↑ "Plymouth Speedway". Defunct Speedway. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  3. ↑ "1931 season" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  4. ↑ "New Speedway at Plymouth" . Western Morning News. 21 May 1931. Retrieved 26 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  5. ↑ "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - PRE-WAR ERA (1929-1939)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  6. ↑ "Rider averages 1929 to 2009" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  7. ↑ "Little hope for speedway" . Western Morning News. 30 March 1935. Retrieved 26 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ↑ "Speedway racing" . Western Morning News. 16 April 1936. Retrieved 26 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  9. ↑ "Sport during Alerts" . Western Morning News. 10 December 1940. Retrieved 26 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  10. ↑ "Speedway" . Western Morning News. 11 April 1947. Retrieved 26 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  11. ↑ "1952 National Trophy". Speedway archive.
  12. ↑ Rogers, Martin (1978). The Illustrated History of Speedway. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 129. ISBN   0-904584-45-3.
  13. ↑ "Plymouth Speedway to close down" . Coventry Evening Telegraph. 2 July 1954. Retrieved 26 April 2024– via British Newspaper Archive.
  14. ↑ "158 to 1963". Cyber Morotcycles. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  15. ↑ "Speedway back on track". BBC. 6 January 2006. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  16. ↑ "Final table". Speedway archive.
  17. ↑ "Buccaneers Face A Devil Of A Meeting". Bournemouth Speedway. Retrieved 2 July 2023.
  18. ↑ "Devon". Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  19. ↑ "2016 fixtures and results" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 8 July 2023.
  20. ↑ "CENTURIONS ARE LAUNCHED". Official British Speedway website. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2021.
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