| Cradley Heathens | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Club information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Track address | Dudley Wood Stadium (1947–1995) Monmore Green Stadium (2010–2015) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Country | England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Founded | 1947, 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Closed | 1995, 2019[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Club facts | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Colours | Green, white and red | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Major team honours | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Cradley Heathens were amotorcycle speedway team fromDudley, England. The team was founded in 1947 and competed primarily at the top level of British speedway atDudley Wood Stadium until its closure in 1995. The team was revived asDudley Heathens in 2010, competing in theNational League, reverting to the Cradley Heathens name in 2013 but ceased operating after the 2019 season.[1]
In 1917, Cradley Heath St Lukes Football Club found farmland that was suitable for a pitch and constructed a basic football ground and stadium east of the Dudley Wood Road.[2][3] Due to financial issues, members of the club formed Cradley Sports Enterprise, who constructed speedway and greyhound tracks around the pitch.[4]
The Cradley Heath speedway team was formed for the1947 season, with the team name taken from Dudley Wood stadium's proximity toCradley Heath town centre, though it lies in the borough of Dudley, centred about 3 miles (4.8 km) away. At the time of formation the two towns were in different counties -Staffordshire andWorcestershire, but both towns are now part of the county ofWest Midlands. Riding as theCradley Heath Cubs they competed in their first match away toHanley Potters on 8 May 1947.[5] They first raced atDudley Wood Stadium on 21 June 1947 againstWombwell Colliers.[6] The Cubs would finish runner-up in their inaugural league season toEastbourne Eagles, only missing out on the title on points difference.[7] The team finished runner-up again in 1948 before a change in the club's nickname and division ensued for 1949. Having gained promotion from theNational League Division Three to theNational League Division Two, they adopted the name of Cradley Heathens.
The Heathens raced in division 2 from 1950 to 1952 before they were forced to disband following the withdrawal of the promoter Eli Sumner due to financial issues.[8] The track reopened seven years later in 1959 for one unlicensed meeting.
In 1960 the Heathens entered the newly formedProvincial League under the promotion of Morris Jephcott.[9] The club won their first major silverware in 1961, winning theProvincial League Knockout Cup (the second division cup). Watched by 10,000 in the home leg, they defeatedEdinburgh Monarchs in the September two-legged final, withIvor Brown andHarry Bastable scoring heavily.[10][11]
Ivor Brown topped the league averages in 1962[12] before the team secured a second Knockout Cup title during the 1963 season, defeatingNewcastle Diamonds in the final.[13][14]
After one more season in division 2, the Heathens were founder members of the newBritish League (the top division of British speedway). The Heathens struggled for the next few years, managing a best placed finish of 7th in 1969.[15]
The Heathens continued to find the British League a challenge, continually finishing in the lower half of the league table despite the performances ofBernt Persson,Bob Andrews andRoy Trigg. From 1973 to 1976 they rode under the name Cradley United but results only marginally improved.[16]
The United name was dropped for the 1977 season and Cradley signed former world championAnders Michanek. The season resulted in a much improved 7th place finish, which was then followed in 1978 by new signings;Bruce Penhall replacing Michanek at number 1 andAlan Grahame arriving from Birmingham. The Heathens won their first top division silverware in 1978 (jointly withCoventry Bees), winning theBritish League Pairs Championship held atFoxhall Stadium on 12 October. The meeting was abandoned after 14 heats due to fog but the result stood, withSteve Bastable and Penhall claiming the honours.[17][18]
The decade ended with further success when the team won the 1979 Knockout Cup, a season which also saw the arrival of the 19-year-old DaneErik Gundersen.
The golden years of Cradley speedway arrived during the 1980s, the club won two league titles (1981 and 1983),[19] a further seven Knockout Cups from 1980 to 1989[20] and fourMidland Cups.[21][22][23]
Along withOxford Cheetahs and Coventry Bees, the three teams dominated British speedway during the decade. Cradley developed a reputation for discovering young talent, which included Americans Penhall,Bobby Schwartz andLance King, Danes Gundersen andJan O. Pedersen, along with homegrown talents such as Grahame,Phil Collins,Simon Wigg andSimon Cross. Individual success would also come for these riders, Penhall won back-to-back world titles in 1981 and ’82, Gundersen winning three in 1984, ’85 and ’89, and Pedersen adding his own in 1991. The 1980s promotion teams consisted of Dan McCormick, followed by Peter Adams in 1981 and then he was replaced by former riderColin Pratt, who joined in 1984.[24]
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The club had operated continuously at top flight level from 1965 but the decade started without Gundersen, who had suffered a horrific accident on 17 September 1989, leaving him partially paralyzed.[25] The club dipped back into the American talent pool and signed future world championsGreg Hancock in 1989 andBilly Hamill in 1990. The club's fortunes however would begin to fade both on and off the track, heat leader Pedersen was also forced to retire prematurely less than a year after winning his world title due to a back injury, and property developers began to mount pressure on the club due to the high value of the stadium’s land. Some success was experienced when in 1995, Hancock, Hamill, Cross andScott Smith won thePremier League Four-Team Championship, which was held on 6 August 1995, at theEast of England Arena.[26]
Unfortunately after the 1995 season, the team were evicted by the new landlords, who had bought the stadium to redevelop into housing. The team survived for one additional year, competing at theLoomer Road Stadium inStoke in 1996, under the name 'Cradley and Stoke' Heathens, following a merger with theStoke Potters.
Supporters of the club continued to campaign to resurrect speedway in the local area and plans were submitted toDudley Council for a new site in 2009. The Birmingham promoter, Tony Mole and Bob Edwards (on behalf of supporters group, CRASH – Cradley Raising Aid Saving Heathens) led the planning application[27] and an online petition to show support for the application which was linked from the Cradley Heath speedway website.[28]
The team returned in 2010 as theDudley Heathens, competing in the third tierNational League, with home meetings initially shared between two stadiums – Monmore Green (home track of Wolverhampton) and the Perry Bar Stadium (home track of Birmingham).[29] The team manager was Will Pottinger, and the club was promoted bySky Sports speedway presenter Nigel Pearson, and then by Chris Van Straaten & Gary Patchett.
Between 2011 and 2014 home matches were solely at Monmore Green[30] and the team experienced considerable success as a third tier team, winning the league and cup double in both 2013 and 2014, in addition to various other trophies.[31][32]
The Heathens raced atPerry Barr Stadium in Birmingham for the 2015 season[33] Monmore Green during 2016.Max Clegg won the Riders' Championship during the2016 National League speedway season.
The team's final season was the2019 National League speedway season, in which the Heathens finished in fourth place.
A team bearing the Heathens name has operated under the NORA umbrella on the Isle of Wight from 2021 and also at Iwade Speedway in 2024.In 2022 the A.R.H Heathens won the Michael Richardson Trophy and followed this by winning the Vince Mapley Trophy in 2023 as well as the Junior Heathens winning trophies in 2023 and 2024.[1]
The club also operated a junior team in theBritish Junior League in the years 1986 to 1992 inclusive, being Runners-Up in 1986 and Winners in 1991.
British League
Champions: 1981, 1983
Knockout Cup (Div 1)
Winners: 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1986+, 1987, 1988, 1989 (+shared with Oxford)
Knockout Cup (Div 2)
Winners: 1961, 1963
League Cup
Winners: 1982, 1984, 1986+ (+shared with Oxford)
Inter-League Cup
Winners: 1979
Premiership
A season-opening challenge match, held over two legs, between the previous year's League and KO Cup winners (similar toEnglish football'sCharity Shield).[35]
Winners: 1982, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990
Inter-League Four Team Tournament
Winners: 1980
Premier League Four Team Tournament
Winners: 1995
Midland Cup/Lge/Shield
Winners: 1950, 1951, 1963, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1987
National League
Bob Andrews
Harry BastableSteve BastableGeoff Bennett
John BoulgerIvor BrownMax CleggGil CravenPhil CollinsBruce CribbSimon CrossAlan GrahameAndy Grahame
Erik GundersenGert HandbergJohn HartAlan Hunt
Lance KingBilly HamillGreg Hancock
Anders MichanekJan O. PedersenBruce PenhallBernt PerssonColin PrattBobby SchwartzRoy TriggSimon WiggExtended content |
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World Champion Under-21 World Champion Long Track World Champion
British Under-21 Champion
Intercontinental Champion Overseas Champion
British League Riders Champion
National League Riders Champion
American Champion
Danish Champion
Swedish Champion
Scottish Open Champion
Australasian Champion South Australian Champion
Western Australian Champion
Victorian Champion (Aust)
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