The 2013 season of the National League, the third tier of British speedway was contested by eight teams.[2]
| League | National League |
|---|---|
| Champions | Dudley Heathens |
| Knockout Cup | Dudley Heathens |
| Individual | Steve Boxall[1] |
| Pairs | Dudley Heathens |
| Fours | Dudley Heathens |
| National Trophy | Isle of Wight Islanders |
| Division/s above | 2013 Elite League 2013 Premier League |
Summary
Scunthorpe Saints and Rye House Cobras were both missing from the 2012 league. Two newcomers were the Coventry Storm and the newly formed Kent Kings.
The Dudley Heathens were champions.[3]
Final table
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts |
| 1 | Dudley Heathens | 13 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 37 |
| 2 | King's Lynn Young Stars | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 27 |
| 3 | Mildenhall Fen Tigers | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 25 |
| 4 | Isle of Wight Islanders | 14 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 22 |
| 5 | Coventry Storm | 14 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 19 |
| 6 | Buxton Hitmen | 14 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 18 |
| 7 | Kent Kings | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 15 |
| 8 | Stoke Potters | 12 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 7 |
[4] PL = Matches; W = Wins; D = Draws; L = Losses; Pts = Total Points
Scoring system:
Home loss by any number of points = 0
Home draw = 1
Home win by between 1 and 6 points = 2
Home win by 7 points or more = 3
Away loss by 7 points or more = 0
Away loss by 6 points or fewer = 1
Away draw = 2
Away win by between 1 and 6 points = 3
Away win by 7 points or more = 4
Playoffs
Top four teams race off in two-legged semi-finals and final to decide the championship. Dudley Heathens defeated King's Lynn Young Stars in the final.[5]
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 02/10 | King's Lynn | 57-39 | Mildenhall |
| 01/10 | Isle of Wight | 43-47 | Dudley |
| 29/09 | Mildenhall | 49-41 | King's Lynn |
| 24/09 | Dudley | 59-31 | Isle of Wight |
Final
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 08/10 | Dudley | 53-30 | King's Lynn |
| 09/10 | King's Lynn | 46-47 | Dudley |
National League Knockout Cup
The 2013 National League Knockout Cup was the 16th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier three teams. Dudley Heathens were the winners.[6] [7]
First round
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 04/08 | Buxton | 47-43 | Dudley |
| 09/07 | Isle of Wight | 61-32 | Kent |
| 24/06 | Kent | 44-49 | Isle of Wight |
| 19/06 | King's Lynn | 64-26 | Stoke |
| 08/06 | Stoke | 57-32 | King's Lynn |
| 04/06 | Dudley | 55-39 | Buxton |
| 26/05 | Mildenhall | 48-42 | Coventry Storm |
| 17/05 | Coventry Storm | 45-47 | Mildenhall |
Semi-finals
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24/10 | Mildenhall | 44-46 | Isle of Wight |
| 15/10 | Isle of Wight | 46-44 | Mildenhall |
| 08/10 | Isle of Wight | 50-40 | Mildenhall |
| 5/09 | King's Lynn | 44-46 | Dudley |
| 22/09 | Mildenhall | 50-40 | Isle of Wight |
| 10/09 | Dudley | 56-34 | King's Lynn |
Final
| Date | Team one | Score | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29/10 | Dudley | 58-33 | Isle of Wight |
| 30/10 | Isle of Wight | 48-44 | Dudley |
Riders' Championship
Steve Boxall won the Riders' Championship for the second time. The final was held on 21 September at Rye House Stadium.[8]
| Pos. | Rider | Total |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Steve Boxall | 14+3 |
| 2 | Lewis Kerr | 14+2 |
| 3 | Lewis Blackbird | 12 |
| 4 | Steve Worrall | 11 |
| 5 | Robert Lambert | 11 |
| 6 | Stefan Nielsen | 9 |
| 7 | Charles Wright | 8 |
| 8 | Ben Morley | 6 |
| 9 | Paul Starke | 6 |
| 10 | Tom Perry | 5 |
| 11 | Joe Jacobs | 5 |
| 12 | James Sarjeant | 5 |
| 13 | Liam Carr | 4 |
| 14 | Ashley Morris | 4 |
| 15 | Josh Bates | 0 |
| 16 | Adam Ellis | 0 |
Pairs
The National League Pairs Championship, was held at Mildenhall Stadium, on 30 June 2013. The event was won by Ashley Morris and Lewis Blackbird of the Mildenhall Fen Tigers.[9]
| Group B | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Mildenhall | 14 | Halsey 9, Bates 5 |
| 2 | Kent | 14 | Boxall 12, Morley 2 |
| 3 | Coventry | 13 | Sarjeant 7, Branford 6 |
| 4 | Buxton | 13 | Wright 11, McKinna 2 |
| Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 17 | Blackbird 9, Morris 8 |
| 2 | Mildenhall | 15 | Halsey 10, Bates 5 |
| 3 | Kent | 14 | Boxall 8, Morley 6 |
| 4 | Stoke | 8 | Priest 6, Smart 2 |
Fours
Dudley won the National League Fours, held on 18 August 2013 at Loomer Road Stadium.[10]
| Group B | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 17 | Starke 6, Blackbird 5, Morris 4, Isherwood 1, Ward 1 |
| 2 | Kent | 12 | Boxall 6, Compton 5, Mason 1, Morley 0 |
| 3 | Stoke | 11 | Worrall 4, Hughes 4, Priest 3, Payne 0 |
| 4 | Buxton | 8 | McKinna 3, Wright 3, Carr 2, Blacklock 0 |
| Final | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos | Team | Pts | Riders |
| 1 | Dudley | 14 | Starke 6, Morris 5, Blackbird 3, Isherwood 0 |
| 2 | Kent | 13 | Boxall 5, Compton 4, Morley 2, Mason 2 |
| 3 | Mildenhall | 11 | Halsey 5, Bates 4, Armstrong 2, Stoneman 0 |
| 4 | King's Lynn | 10 | Kerr 5, Mallett 3, Rose 1, Knight 1 |
National Trophy
| Pos | team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Isle of Wight | 8 | 22 |
| 2 | Mildenhall | 8 | 17 |
| 3 | Stoke | 8 | 13 |
| 4 | Buxton | 8 | 7 |
| 5 | Kent | 8 | 3 |
Final leading averages
| Rider | Team | Average |
|---|---|---|
| Lewis Blackbird | Dudley | 10.49 |
| Charles Wright | Buxton | 10.37 |
| Robert Lambert | Kings Lynn | 10.30 |
Teams and final averages
Development Leagues
Midland Development League
| Pos | team | P | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Belle Vue Colts | 12 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 16 |
| 2 | Milton Keynes | 11 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| 3 | Kings Lynn | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 14 |
| 4 | Stoke | 12 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 12 |
| 5 | Castleford | 11 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 9 |
| 6 | Coventry | 12 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 9 |
| 7 | Long Eaton | 12 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 7 |
Northern Junior League
| Pos | team | P | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Redcar | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 13 |
| 2 | Workington | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 12 |
| 3 | Northside | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 4 | Newcastle | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 |
| 5 | Berwick | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 |