The current National Development League formerly the National League was formed in 2009 as the third division of speedway in the United Kingdom, replacing the Conference League. It follows the same rules and regulations as the SGB Premiership and SGB Championship, including the use of rider averages.
There were two previous speedway leagues in Britain sharing the 'National League' name, the main league that operated from 1932 to 1964, and British League Division Two, which was renamed the National League between 1975 and 1990.
The current National Development League, originally the Conference League, was formed in 2009 with ten teams.[1] Several teams were in the league in the past, but are no longer in speedway for various reasons, such as Newport, Bournemouth, and Weymouth. These were replaced in more recent years by Kent in 2013, along with Birmingham and Eastbourne, former Elite League teams.[2] After a decline in National League teams to eight in 2013, the National League has increased to 11 teams as of late 2017.[3]
2009-2013Edit
In the early years of the National League, Plymouth was a National League team; however, they went into the Premier League at the start of the 2011 season.[4] The teams Newport, Bournemouth, and Weymouth left speedway around this time.
2014-presentEdit
At the start of the 2014 season, the Dudley Heathens National League team changed its name to Cradley Heathens.[5] This was accompanied in 2014 by short spells of the teams Devon and Scunthorpe. These two teams returned completely to the Premier League in 2015, but Eastbourne and Birmingham joined the National League that same year.
In 2017, the Plymouth Devils, under new management, joined the National League.[6] In 2019, Leicester Lion Cubs joined the newly named National Development League, with Birmingham and Eastbourne leaving the league and moving up to the SGB Championship and Coventry not applying to race in 2019.
RulesEdit
The rules follow those of the SGB Premiership and SGB Championship with some relaxation of regulations. Riders who hold a non-British FMN licence are not permitted to compete in the National League.[7]
national, development, league, league, that, operated, between, 1932, 1964, national, league, 1932, 1964, renamed, second, tier, british, speedway, between, 1975, 1990, british, league, division, current, formerly, national, league, formed, 2009, third, divisi. For the league that operated between 1932 and 1964 see National League 1932 1964 For the renamed second tier of British speedway between 1975 and 1990 see British League Division Two The current National Development League formerly the National League was formed in 2009 as the third division of speedway in the United Kingdom replacing the Conference League It follows the same rules and regulations as the SGB Premiership and SGB Championship including the use of rider averages National Development LeagueCurrent season competition or edition 2023 National Development League speedway seasonFormerlyConference LeagueSportSpeedwayFounded2009No of teams6CountryUnited KingdomMost recentchampion s Leicester Lion CubsMost titles2 titles Birmingham BrummiesMildenhall Fen TigersLeicester Lion CubsOfficial websiteSpeedwayGBNotesLeagues aboveSGB Premiership div 1 SGB Championship div 2 There were two previous speedway leagues in Britain sharing the National League name the main league that operated from 1932 to 1964 and British League Division Two which was renamed the National League between 1975 and 1990 Contents 1 History 1 1 Overview 1 2 2009 2013 1 3 2014 present 2 Rules 3 Champions 4 See also 5 ReferencesHistory EditOverview Edit The current National Development League originally the Conference League was formed in 2009 with ten teams 1 Several teams were in the league in the past but are no longer in speedway for various reasons such as Newport Bournemouth and Weymouth These were replaced in more recent years by Kent in 2013 along with Birmingham and Eastbourne former Elite League teams 2 After a decline in National League teams to eight in 2013 the National League has increased to 11 teams as of late 2017 3 2009 2013 Edit In the early years of the National League Plymouth was a National League team however they went into the Premier League at the start of the 2011 season 4 The teams Newport Bournemouth and Weymouth left speedway around this time 2014 present Edit At the start of the 2014 season the Dudley Heathens National League team changed its name to Cradley Heathens 5 This was accompanied in 2014 by short spells of the teams Devon and Scunthorpe These two teams returned completely to the Premier League in 2015 but Eastbourne and Birmingham joined the National League that same year In 2017 the Plymouth Devils under new management joined the National League 6 In 2019 Leicester Lion Cubs joined the newly named National Development League with Birmingham and Eastbourne leaving the league and moving up to the SGB Championship and Coventry not applying to race in 2019 Rules EditThe rules follow those of the SGB Premiership and SGB Championship with some relaxation of regulations Riders who hold a non British FMN licence are not permitted to compete in the National League 7 Champions EditSeason Champions Second2009 Bournemouth Buccaneers Plymouth Devils2010 Buxton Hitmen Newport Hornets2011 Scunthorpe Sheffield Mildenhall Fen Tigers2012 Mildenhall Fen Tigers Dudley Heathens2013 Dudley Heathens King s Lynn Young Stars2014 Cradley Heathens Coventry Storm2015 Birmingham Brummies Eastbourne Eagles2016 Birmingham Brummies Eastbourne Eagles2017 Belle Vue Colts Eastbourne Eagles2018 Eastbourne Eagles Mildenhall Fen Tigers2019 Leicester Lion Cubs Kent Kings2020 Cancelled due to the COVID 19 pandemic2021 Mildenhall Fen Tigers Berwick Bullets2022 Leicester Lion Cubs Mildenhall Fen TigersSee also EditList of United Kingdom Speedway League ChampionsReferences Edit British Speedway Official Website www speedwaygb co Retrieved 2017 12 06 HISTORY ARCHIVE British Speedway Official Website www speedwaygb co Retrieved 2017 12 06 British Speedway Official Website www speedwaygb co Retrieved 2017 12 06 British Speedway Official Website www speedwaygb co Retrieved 2017 12 06 British Speedway Official Website www speedwaygb co Retrieved 2017 12 06 British Speedway Official Website www speedwaygb co Retrieved 2017 12 06 SCB Rulebook SCB retrieved 2012 03 31 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title National Development League amp oldid 1159311856, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
