1998_Premier_League_speedway_season
1998 Premier League speedway season
British motorcycle speedway season
The 1998 Premier League speedway season was the second division of speedway in the United Kingdom and governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).
Quick Facts League, Champions ...
| League | Premier League |
|---|---|
| Champions | Peterborough Panthers |
| Knockout Cup | Reading Racers |
| Young Shield | Isle of Wight Islanders |
| Individual | Glenn Cunningham |
| Pairs | Peterborough Panthers |
| Fours | Peterborough Panthers |
| Highest average | Nicki Pedersen |
| Division/s above | 1998 Elite League |
| Division/s below | 1998 Conference League |
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The League consisted of 13 teams for the 1998 season with the following the closure of the Long Eaton Invaders and the decision of the Oxford Cheetahs to compete in the Elite League. The addition of the Peterborough Panthers who dropped down from the Elite League limited the reduction in numbers.
The League was run on a standard format with no play-offs and was won by Peterborough.[1]
| Pos | M | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Bon | Tot | |
| 1 | Peterborough Panthers | 24 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 1206 | 945 | 34 | 12 | 46 |
| 2 | Reading Racers | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 1130 | 989 | 32 | 10 | 42 |
| 3 | Exeter Falcons | 24 | 14 | 1 | 9 | 1134 | 1023 | 31 | 7 | 38 |
| 4 | Hull Vikings | 24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 1098 | 1037 | 30 | 6 | 36 |
| 5 | Sheffield Tigers | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 1088 | 1064 | 26 | 7 | 33 |
| 6 | Isle of Wight Islanders | 24 | 11 | 2 | 11 | 1095 | 1055 | 24 | 8 | 32 |
| 7 | Glasgow Tigers | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 1085 | 1065 | 26 | 6 | 32 |
| 8 | Newport Wasps | 24 | 11 | 3 | 10 | 1067 | 1081 | 25 | 7 | 32 |
| 9 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 1078 | 1077 | 22 | 7 | 29 |
| 10 | Newcastle Diamonds | 24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 1041 | 1109 | 23 | 3 | 26 |
| 11 | Arena Essex Hammers | 24 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 995 | 1139 | 18 | 2 | 20 |
| 12 | Berwick Bandits | 24 | 7 | 1 | 17 | 982 | 1173 | 15 | 2 | 17 |
| 13 | Stoke Potters | 24 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 956 | 1198 | 6 | 1 | 7 |
The 1998 Premier League Knockout Cup was the 31st edition of the Knockout Cup for tier two teams. Reading Racers were the winners of the competition.[2][3][4]
Northern Group
More information Pos, Team ...
| Pos | Team | Played | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Berwick Bandits | 11 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 2 | Sheffield Tigers | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 15 |
| 3 | Glasgow Tigers | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 15 |
| 4 | Edinburgh Monarchs | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 11 |
| 5 | Newcastle Diamonds | 9 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 6 | Hull Vikings | 12 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 8 |
| 7 | Stoke Potters | 8 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
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Southern Group
More information Pos, Team ...
| Pos | Team | Played | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peterborough Panthers | 10 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 14 |
| 2 | Reading Racers | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 11 |
| 3 | Arena Essex Hammers | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| 4 | Exeter Falcons | 10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 10 |
| 5 | Isle of Wight Islanders | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 9 |
| 6 | Newport Wasps | 10 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4 |
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Semi-finals
More information Date, Team one ...
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20/07 | Reading | 56-34 | Sheffield |
| 16/07 | Sheffield | 45-45 | Reading |
| 14/08 | Peterborough | 56-34 | Berwick |
| 22/08 | Berwick | 42-48 | Peterborough |
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Final
First leg
More information Peterborough PanthersPhilippe Bergé 10Simon Stead 9David Howe 8Glenn Cunningham 5Nigel Sadler 5Brett Woodifield 4Oliver Allen 3, 44 – 46 ...
| Peterborough Panthers Philippe Bergé 10 Simon Stead 9 David Howe 8 Glenn Cunningham 5 Nigel Sadler 5 Brett Woodifield 4 Oliver Allen 3 | 44 – 46 | Reading Racers Lee Richardson 14 Petri Kokko 12 Paul Clews 7 Dave Mullett 5 Jusin Elkins 5 Phil Morris 2 Krister Marsh 1 |
|---|---|---|
| [5] |
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Second leg
More information Reading RacersLee Richardson 18Dave Mullett 10Petri Kokko 10Krister Marsh 8Paul Clews 7Jusin Elkins 4Phil Morris R/R, 57 – 33 ...
| Reading Racers Lee Richardson 18 Dave Mullett 10 Petri Kokko 10 Krister Marsh 8 Paul Clews 7 Jusin Elkins 4 Phil Morris R/R | 57 – 33 | Peterborough Panthers Leigh Lanham (guest) 11 Brett Woodifield 9 Philippe Bergé 5 Nigel Sadler 5 Ross Brady 3 Oliver Allen 0 David Howe 0 |
|---|---|---|
| [5] |
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Reading were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 103–77.
Glenn Cunningham won the Riders' Championship. The final was held on 13 September at Owlerton Stadium.[6]
More information Pos., Rider ...
| Pos. | Rider | Pts | Total | SF | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Glenn Cunningham | 2 2 3 3 3 | 13 | - | 3 |
| 2 | Carl Stonehewer | 3 3 2 1 3 | 12 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Peter Carr | 3 3 2 3 3 | 14 | - | 1 |
| 4 |  Nicki Pedersen | 2 2 3 2 2 | 12 | 3 | 0 |
| 5 |  Craig Watson | 1 3 2 2 2 | 11 | 1 | |
| 6 | Leigh Lanham | 0 3 0 3 3 | 10 | 0 | |
| 7 | Paul Bentley | 1 0 3 2 2 | 9 | ||
| 8 | Paul Pickering | 1 1 2 3 0 | 8 | ||
| 9 | Frank Smart | 2 1 1 1 2 | 7 | ||
| 10 | Scott Smith | 0 2 3 0 1 | 7 | ||
| 11 | Lee Richardson | 3 2 1 0 r | 6 | ||
| 12 | David Walsh | 0 0 1 2 1 | 6 | ||
| 13 | Paul Thorp | 3 r | 3 | ||
| 14 | Martin Dixon | 2 0 1 0 | 3 | ||
| 15 | Steve Masters | 1 1 0 t 1 | 3 | ||
| 16 | Derrol Keats | 0 0 1 1 1 | 3 | ||
| 17 | Mick Powell | 0 1 | 1 |
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- f=fell, r-retired, ex=excluded, ef=engine failure t=touched tapes
The Premier League Pairs Championship was held at Hayley Stadium on 26 July. The event was won by Peterborough Panthers.[7][8]
More information Group A, Pos ...
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Semi finals
- Peterborough bt Reading 5-4
- Exeter bt Newcastle 6-3
Final
- Peterborough bt Exeter 5-4
Peterborough Panthers won the Premier League Four-Team Championship, which was held on 30 August 1998, at the East of England Arena.[9]
More information Group A, Pos ...
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More information Final, Pos ...
| Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Peterborough | 24 | Cunningham 8, Berge 6 Woodifield 5 Sadler 5 |
| 2 | Hull | 19 | Thorp 7, Grahame 5, Bentley 4, Dicken 3, |
| 3 | Edinburgh | 19 | Carr P 8, McKinna 6, Little 4, Andersson 1 |
| 4 | Reading | 10 | Richardson 4, Kokko 4, Clews 2, Elkins 0, Mullett 0 |
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More information Rider, Team ...
| Rider | Team | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Nicki Pedersen | Newcastle | 9.97 |
| Carl Stonehewer | Sheffield | 9.93 |
| Lee Richardson | Reading | 9.60 |
| Paul Thorp | Hull | 9.56 |
| Glenn Cunningham | Peterborough | 9.55 |
| Dave Mullett | Reading | 9.48 |
 Petri Kokko | Reading | 9.36 |
| Mick Powell | Glasgow | 9.32 |
| Jan Andersen | Peterborough | 9.29 |
| Peter Carr | Edinburgh | 9.26 |
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Arena Essex
- Leigh Lanham 9.03
- Jan Pedersen 8.71
- Colin White 7.90
- Troy Pratt 6.96
- David Mason 4.69
- Matt Read 4.00
- Paul Lydes-Uings 2.60
- Nathan Morton 2.52
- Anthony Barlow 2.27
- Oliver Allen 2.26
- Gavin Hedge 2.07
Berwick
- Rene Madsen 8.45
- Scott Lamb 8.22
- James Grieves 8.00
- David Walsh 7.47
- Peter Scully 6.77
- Jörg Pingel 6.46
- Scott Robson 6.45
- Martin Dixon 6.31
- David Meldrum 5.25
- Craig Taylor 4.68
- David McAllan 2.99
- Wesley Waite 2.74
Edinburgh
- Peter Carr 9.26
- Kenny McKinna 8.66
- Kevin Little 7.95
- Marcus Andersson 5.63
- Robert Larsen 5.49
- Barry Campbell 5.33
- Paul Gould 4.76
- Blair Scott 4.37
Exeter
- Frank Smart 9.03
- Michael Coles 8.38
- Peter Jeffery 7.90
- Mark Simmonds 7.71
- Graeme Gordon 6.54
- Roger Lobb 4.83
- Gary Lobb 4.31
- Paul Oughton 4.26
- Chris Courage 2.43
Glasgow
- Mick Powell 9.32
- Kaj Laukkanen 8.93
- David Steen 7.53
- Grant MacDonald 6.67
- Daniel Andersson 6.17
- Sean Courtney 5.68
- Will Beveridge 5.56
- Brian Turner 4.81
Hull
- Paul Thorp 9.56
- Paul Bentley 8.93
- Alan Grahame 6.67
- Lee Dicken 6.54
- Paul Lee 5.28
- John Wilson 4.69
- Simon Cartwright 2.92
Isle of Wight
- Ray Morton 8.40
- Philippe Berge 8.29
- Steve Masters 8.21
- Jason Bunyan 7.21
- Neville Tatum 7.15
- Scott Swain 7.14
- Wayne Carter 6.59
- Danny Bird 3.60
- Anthony Barlow 3.59
Newcastle
- Nicki Pedersen 9.97
- Brent Werner 8.26
- Jesper Olsen 8.17
- Stuart Swales 6.96
- James Birkinshaw 3.77
- Jonathan Swales 3.13
- David McAllan 2.84
- Malcolm Hogg 0.95
Newport
- Craig Watson 8.36
- Paul Fry 8.00
- Anders Henriksson 7.52
- Scott Pegler 5.82
- Martin Willis 4.93
- David Mason 4.60
- Jon Armstrong 3.40
- Chris Neath 3.29
Peterborough
- Glenn Cunningham 9.55
- Jan Andersen 9.29
- Nigel Sadler 8.20
- Philippe Bergé 7.83
- David Howe 7.79
- Brett Woodifield 7.01
- Simon Stead 5.46
- Paul Clews 4.84
- Oliver Allen 4.04
- Ross Brady 1.90
Reading
- Lee Richardson 9.60
- Dave Mullett 9.48
- Petri Kokko 9.36
- Phil Morris 5.15
- Krister Marsh 4.67
- Justin Elkins 4.61
- Paul Clews 4.04
- Lee Driver 2.70
Sheffield
- Carl Stonehewer 9.93
- Scott Smith 7.23
- Rene Aas 6.65
- Andre Compton 6.44
- Steve Knott 5.58
- Tommy Palmer 5.13
- Derrol Keats 5.10
Stoke
- Paul Pickering 9.00
- Neil Collins 7.37
- Mark Burrows 5.78
- Craig Taylor 5.03
- Stewart McDonald 4.63
- Dean Felton 4.39
- Rob Clarence 2.07
- "BRITISH LEAGUE TABLES - MODERN ERA (1991-PRESENT)". Official British Speedway website. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
- "1998 Premier League Knockout Cup". Speedway archive.
- "Racers on verge of cup triumph". Reading Evening Post. 21 September 1998. Retrieved 1 October 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Super Racers are the KO Cup Winners". Reading Evening Post. 22 September 1998. Retrieved 1 October 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "1998 KO cup final" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
- "Stonehewer second best". Nottingham Evening Post. 14 September 1998. Retrieved 24 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "1998 fixtures" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
- "Speedway". Birmingham Daily Post. 27 July 1998. Retrieved 27 May 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Last heat fury". Hull Daily Mail. 31 August 1998. Retrieved 24 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.