The Elite League is the top division of Speedway in the United Kingdom and in 1997 was governed by the Speedway Control Board (SCB), in conjunction with the British Speedway Promoters' Association (BSPA).[1]

Season summary

In 1997, the single speedway league in Great Britain separated after two seasons, forming a new top division. The inaugural league consisted of ten teams. The league operated on a standard format without play-offs.[2]

Final table

M W D L F A Pts Bon Tot
Bradford Dukes 36 23 1 12 1733 1506 47 15 62
Eastbourne Eagles 36 20 0 16 1665 1570 40 11 51
Swindon Robins 36 20 1 15 1662 1578 41 9 50
Ipswich Witches 36 16 2 17 1671 1616 34 13 47
King's Lynn Stars 36 18 3 15 1592 1645 39 8 47
Belle Vue Aces 36 18 0 18 1646 1587 36 9 45
Wolverhampton Wolves 36 18 0 18 1572 1658 36 6 42
Coventry Bees 36 15 1 20 1582 1653 31 7 38
Poole Pirates 36 13 2 21 1551 1684 28 6 34
Peterborough Panthers 36 14 0 22 1556 1679 28 5 33

Leading averages

Rider Team Average
Sweden Tony Rickardsson Ipswich 10.09
United States Billy Hamill Belle Vue 10.07
United States Greg Hancock Coventry 9.85
England Joe Screen Bradford 9.77
Australia Leigh Adams Swindon 9.76
Australia Jason Crump Peterborough 9.71
England Mark Loram Bradford 9.59
Australia Craig Boyce Poole 9.43
England Chris Louis Ipswich 9.42
Denmark Brian Andersen Coventry 9.02

Elite League Knockout Cup

The 1997 Elite League Knockout Cup was the 59th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier one teams but the first under its new name. Eastbourne Eagles were the winners of the competition.[3]

First Round

Group A

Date Team One Score Team Two
15/03 Coventry 51-40 Swindon
16/03 Swindon 41-49 Coventry
21/03 Belle Vue 48-42 Coventry
22/03 Coventry 45-45 Wolverhampton
22/03 Bradford 56-34 Swindon
23/03 Swindon 47-42 Bradford
24/03 Wolverhampton 52-38 Swindon
28/03 Belle Vue 56-33 Wolverhampton
29/03 Swindon 56-34 Belle Vue
29/03 Bradford 58-32 Wolverhampton
31/03 Coventry 49-41 Bradford
31/03 Wolverhampton 52-38 Belle Vue
04/04 Belle Vue 46-44 Bradford
05/04 Bradford 52-38 Coventry
05/04 Swindon 65-25 Wolverhampton
11/04 Belle Vue 52-40 Swindon
12/04 Coventry 51-41 Belle Vue
14/04 Wolverhampton 50-40 Coventry
19/04 Bradford 57-33 Belle Vue
28/04 Wolverhampton 44-46 Bradford
Pos Team P W D L
1 Bradford 8 5 0 3
2 Coventry 8 4 1 3
3 Belle Vue 8 4 0 4
4 Wolverhampton 8 3 1 4
5 Swindon 8 3 0 5

Group B

Date Team One Score Team Two
20/03 Ipswich 47-43 Peterborough
21/03 Peterborough 41-49 Kings Lynn
23/03 Eastbourne 53-37 Ipswich
28/03 Ipswich 50-40 Kings Lynn
28/03 Peterborough 62-27 Eastbourne
30/03 Eastbourne 54-36 Poole
02/04 Poole 53-37 Kings Lynn
03/04 Ipswich 44-46 Eastbourne
06/04 Eastbourne 55-35 Kings Lynn
09/04 Kings Lynn 46-44 Eastbourne
09/04 Poole 52-38 Peterborough
10/04 Ipswich 41-49 Poole
11/04 Peterborough 38-52 Poole
12/04 Kings Lynn 37-52 Poole
16/04 Kings Lynn 47-43 Peterborough
16/04 Poole 57-33 Ipswich
18/04 Peterborough 48-42 Ipswich
19/04 Eastbourne 52-37 Peterborough
23/04 Poole 73-17 Eastbourne
30/04 Kings Lynn 41-49 Ipswich
Pos Team P W D L
1 Poole 8 7 0 1
2 Eastbourne 8 5 0 3
3 King's Lynn 8 3 0 5
4 Peterborough 8 3 0 5
5 Ipswich 8 2 0 6

Semi Finals

Date Team One Score Team Two
02/07 Poole 53-37 Coventry
15/06 Coventry 48-42 Poole
15/07 Bradford 56-34 Eastbourne
13/04 Eastbourne 58-32 Bradford

Final

Date Team One Score Team Two
04/09 Poole 43-49 Eastbourne
07/09 Eastbourne 67-23 Poole

External links

See also

List of United Kingdom Speedway League Champions

References

  1. ^ "Historic league tables". Speedway Archive.
  2. ^ "1997 league tables". Speedway GB.
  3. ^ "1997 Elite League Knockout Cup". Speedway archive.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_Elite_League_speedway_season