| Eastbourne Eagles | |||||||||||||
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| Club information | |||||||||||||
| Track address | Arlington Stadium Arlington Hailsham Sussex | ||||||||||||
| Country | England | ||||||||||||
| Founded | 1929 | ||||||||||||
| Closed | 2021 | ||||||||||||
| Website | www | ||||||||||||
| Club facts | |||||||||||||
| Colours | Blue & Yellow | ||||||||||||
| Track size | 275 metres (301 yd) | ||||||||||||
| Track record time | 54.9 seconds | ||||||||||||
| Track record holder | Jason Crump &Chris Holder | ||||||||||||
| Major team honours | |||||||||||||
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TheEastbourne Eagles were a Britishmotorcycle speedway team, based atArlington Stadium, nearEastbourne, England. They were founded in 1929 and are two times champions of Britain in1995 and2000. The team last raced on 31 July 2021.
During 1928 the Eastbourne Motorcycle Sports Club purchased a field inArlington for the purposes of dirt track racing.[1] Practice sessions took place before the official opening on 5 August 1929 by the Arlington Motor Sports Club.[2][3]
Over the following years the race meetings continued at regular intervals but there was still no team formed to compete in the British league system. However the Hailsham Cup was the main prize available and large attendances frequented the track. In 1937,George Newton broke the track record, which lasted until 1955.[1] In 1938, a team was formed to compete in the Sunday Amateur Dirt Track League. The team includedTiger Hart, Bob Lovell, Danny Lee, Charlie Dugard, Stan Johns, Charlie Page and Jack Collins.[1] Activity at Arlington ended during 1939 due to the outbreak ofWorld War II but did return for a one off meeting in March 1940.[4]
After the war, Charlie Dugard bought the track and it underwent extensive repairs before opening again on 14 July 1946.[1] The following season the team joined the1947 Speedway National League Division Three and led by captain Ken Tidbury and top scorerWally Green, they became champions. Despite winning the title at their first attempt they were forced to close down due to a petrol ban enforced at their Arlington Stadium. They decided to transfer their team toHastings Saxons and at the beginning of 1948 theSpeedway Control Board granted a licence to Hastings to stage speedway. Eastbourne would not compete again in the league until they joined theSouthern Area League in 1954, although challenge matches were held during 1950 and 1953.[5][1]
The team returned to compete in theSouthern Area League and struggled untilLeo McAuliffe and Jimmy Heard helped lift them to second place in 1956. McAuliffe won theSouthern Area League Riders' Championship the same year. Another second place in 1957 was followed by a season of challenge matches in 1958. In 1959, they won the1959 Southern Area League, which was the second division league.[6]
In 1960, the club were refused entry to the newProvincial league but continued to hold challenge meetings util 1964, when they joined the Metropolitan League. However, after 1964 the club closed for four years.[1] The Eagles returned for the1969 British League Division Two season.[7]
In 1971, the Eagles won silverware, winning the1971 British League Division Two. Despite losing their leading riderDave Jessup to division 1, Eastbourne triumphed by bringing in new signingMalcolm Ballard to support the Kennett brothersGordon and Dave.[8]
The club remained in division 2 until it was renamed the National League and they won their firstKnockout Cups in 1975.[9] They were National League champions in 1977 and won two more knockout Cups in 1977 and 1978 respectively.[10] In 1979, the team stepped up to compete in the top division for the first time.[5]
After competing in the top division for six years, the Eagles dropped back down to the National League. Eastbourne achieved the 'double double' by winning the National League and Cup double in both1986 and1987. The team was spearheaded byGordon Kennett,Martin Dugard andColin Richardson.[5]
In 1991, the team returned to the top league and in 1994 they won their sixth Knockout Cup (but first in the top flight). The following season in 1995, Eastbourne won their first highest league title, after they won the1995 Premier League speedway season. The gulf in quality of teams was evident after the merging of the two leagues, with the Eagles winning the title 56 points clear of bottom clubExeter Falcons.[11] Eastbourne had been an easy runner-up the previous year to runaway winnersPoole Pirates and retained four of their riders, Martin Dugard,Dean Barker,Stefan Dannö andStefan Andersson, which provided enough firepower to seal the Championship.[12]
After a second place finish and another top tier Knockout Cup win in 1997, the Eagles finished the decade with two mid-table finishes.
The Eagles became the British champions for the second time after winning the2000 Speedway Elite League, with Martin Dugard once again being the star for the team. They then topped the table in 2002 but lost the play off final, although consolation was gained by becomingElite League Knockout Cup winners in 2002.[13]
The Eagles continued to compete in theElite League and won their fourth highest division Knockout Cup win in 2008.[14]
The Eagles competed in the top league for 24 consecutive seasons until the end of the 2014 season.
In 2015, the team joined theNational League and gained success for four consecutive years, winning the third tier Knockout Cup four years running and winning the2018 league title. The Eagles moved up to the second tier in 2019.
After the leagues were cancelled in 2020 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, the Eagles competed in theSGB Championship 2021 (division 2) but withdrew from the league on 26 August because of financial problems. Their results were expunged as were theNDL results of their junior side called the Eastbourne Seagulls.[15] The last match was held on 31 July 2021.
As of 2023, a consortium continued to search for a new venue to bring back speedway to Eastbourne[16] and in 2024 the Arlington Staduium's owners (the Dugards) were approached to race NORA meetings.[17]
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2021 season |
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2021 team 2019 team
2018 team
2017 team
2016 team
2015 team
2014 team
2013 team 2012 team
Notes
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