National Development League
Current season, competition or edition: 2024 National Development League speedway season | |
| Formerly | Conference League |
|---|---|
| Sport | Speedway |
| Founded | 2009 |
| No. of teams | 6 |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Most recent champion(s) | Leicester Lion Cubs |
| Most titles | 2 titles: Birmingham Brummies Mildenhall Fen Tigers Leicester Lion Cubs |
| Official website | SpeedwayGB |
| Notes | |
| Leagues above SGB Premiership (div 1) SGB Championship (div 2) | |
The National Development League formerly called the National League was formed in 2009 as the third division of speedway in the United Kingdom, replacing the Conference League.[1] It follows the same rules and regulations as the SGB Premiership and SGB Championship, including the use of rider averages. It is however regarded as the league for junior riders or in some cases other riders returning to the sport.
History
There were two previous speedway leagues in Britain sharing the 'National League' name, the main
The rebranded league started in 2009 and consisted of eleven teams. Over the following years the teams have changed significantly with only four of the original eleven teams still operating in 2023.[2] In recent years, the majority of the clubs that compete are junior sides of teams from the top two divisions.
Rules
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.[3]
Champions
| Season | Champions | Second |
|---|---|---|
2009
|
Bournemouth Buccaneers
|
Plymouth Devils
|
2010
|
Buxton Hitmen | Newport Hornets
|
2011
|
Scunthorpe/Sheffield | Mildenhall Fen Tigers |
2012
|
Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Dudley Heathens
|
2013
|
Dudley Heathens
|
King's Lynn Young Stars
|
2014
|
Cradley Heathens | Coventry Storm
|
2015
|
Birmingham Brummies | Eastbourne Eagles |
| 2016 | Birmingham Brummies | Eastbourne Eagles |
2017
|
Belle Vue Colts | Eastbourne Eagles |
2018
|
Eastbourne Eagles | Mildenhall Fen Tigers |
2019
|
Leicester Lion Cubs | Kent Kings |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |
| 2021 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | Berwick Bullets |
| 2022 | Leicester Lion Cubs | Mildenhall Fen Tigers |
| 2023 | Oxford Chargers
|
Leicester Lion Cubs |
See also
References
- ^ "British Speedway Official Website". www.speedwaygb.co. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "HISTORY ARCHIVE - British Speedway Official Website". www.speedwaygb.co. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "SCB Rulebook", SCB, retrieved 2012-03-31
United Kingdom Speedway Seasons | ||
|---|---|---|
| Tier One League Top division |
|  |
| Tier Two League Second division |
| |
| Tier Three League Third division | ||
| Champions | ||