The Rayleigh Rockets were a

Speedway Speedway may refer to: Racing Race tracks *Daytona International Speedway, a race track in Daytona Beach, Florida. *Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta. *Indianapolis Motor Spe ...

team which operated from 1949 until their closure in 1973 from the

Rayleigh Weir Stadium Rayleigh Weir Stadium was a speedway, greyhound racing and stock car stadium in Weir between Rayleigh and Thundersley in England. It is not to be confused with the Rayleigh Greyhound Sports Stadium that existed in O’Tooles Meadow on Down H ...

Rayleigh Rayleigh may refer to: Science *Rayleigh scattering *Rayleigh–Jeans law *Rayleigh waves *Rayleigh (unit), a unit of photon flux named after the 4th Baron Rayleigh *Rayl, rayl or Rayleigh, two units of specific acoustic impedance and characte ...

, Essex .

History

Origins and 1940s

In June 1948, the Speedway Control Board granted a permit for speedway to be held at the recently constructed Rayleigh Weir Stadium. The first was a challenge match on 17 July 1948. The following season the club organised a training school for novices and Messrs. Greavey and Rundle entered a team (the Rockets) into the 1949 Speedway National League Division Three. During the Rockets inaugural league season they finished in 12th place.

1950s

After two more seasons in Division Three (1950 and 1951) they joined the Southern League (which was a new name for the third division). The club became champions of the league during the 1952 Speedway Southern League season, with riders Jack Unstead, Gerry Jackson and New Zealander Peter Clark all averaging over 9 and the team winning the league title by ten clear points. Despite the loss of Jack Unstead to

Bristol Bulldogs The Bristol Bulldogs were a British motorcycle speedway team based at the Knowle Stadium, Bristol, England from 1928 to 1961Bamford, R & Jarvis J.(2001). ''Homes of British Speedway''. and later Eastville Stadium from 1977 to 1978. History ...

, the Rockets retained their league title during the 1953 Speedway Southern League season, with Jackson and Clark particulalry prominent. In 1954 Rayleigh were in division 2 and they struggled, finishing last but improved dramatically to 3rd the following season with largely the same riders. Another strong season resulted in 1956 but in 1957 the leagues were re-organised and Rayleigh found themselves in the top division for the first time. The team failed to strengthen sufficiently and only managed five wins that season. The following season, promoter Vic Gooden decided to take over the promotion at

Poole Pirates Poole Pirates (also known as Poole Speedway) are a motorcycle speedway team based in Poole, England, competing in the SGB Championship. The club have been the champions of the United Kingdom on ten occasions. Poole Speedway is promoted by l ...

and transferred the entire team, leaving Rayleigh with no speedway.

1960s

The Rockets re-opened again in 1960 under the promotion of

Wally Mawdsley Walter Mawdsley (30 November 1926 – 12 February 2009) was a motorcycle speedway rider, manager and promoter from England. He was the team manager of the England national speedway team from to 1983 to 1984. Biography Mawdsley, born in Salfo ...

and rider

Pete Lansdale Harry Douglas Lansdale (26 December 1912 – 24 June 1993) was a motorcycle speedway rider and promoter from England. Biography Lansdale, born in Marylebone, London on 26 December 1912, was riding speedway bikes during the 1930s but began his ...

. The team entered the

Provincial League Provincial League (formerly known as Professional League) also known as Pro League was the old regional Football league in Thailand in 1999–2008. It was founded in 1999 under the name "Provincial League" organized by Sports Authority of Thailan ...

(the second division of speedway at the time). The Rockets top two riders, Reg Reeves and Alan Smith were instrumental in helping Rayleigh win their third piece of silverware, after winning the 1960 Provincial Speedway League title. After a fifth place finish in 1961, speedway ended again because of falling gates and rider wage demands. In 1964, the Rockets entered a regional Metropolitan League but this was the last league racing seen until 1968, when

Len Silver Leonard George Silver (2 February 1932 – 13 October 2024) was an English motorcycle speedway rider and promoter. He has also served as the Team Manager for the England and Great Britain national speedway team during two separate spells in 197 ...

took over as promoter. The team returned for the 1968 British League Division Two season, finishing 5th in both 1968 and 1969, the latter season saw New Zealander

Graeme Smith Graeme Craig Smith (born 1 February 1981) is a South African cricket commentator and former cricketer who played for South Africa national cricket team, South Africa in all formats. In 2003, he was appointed Captain (cricket), captain of the So ...

star.

1970s

The Rockets rode at the stadium until the end of the 1973 season, when it was announced that the stadium had been sold to developers and the Rockets would need to find a new home. Len Silver moved the promotion to

Hoddesdon Hoddesdon () is a town in the Borough of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, lying entirely within the London Metropolitan Area and Greater London Urban Area. The area is on the River Lea and the Lee Navigation along with the New River. Hoddesdon ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

to start the 1974 season as a new team called the

Rye House Rockets The Rye House Rockets were a motorcycle speedway, speedway team based at Rye House Stadium, Hoddesdon, England. They competed in various British speedway leagues from 1954 to 2018. History Origins & 1930s Rye House began life in 1934, host ...

.Jacobs, N. ''Speedway in East Anglia'', The former site of Rayleigh Stadium is now a retail park. Many former Rayleigh fans supported the Essex speedway team, the

Lakeside Hammers The Lakeside Hammers (formerly the Arena-Essex Hammers) were a speedway team who raced in the British league system from 1984 to 2018, most recently racing in the SGB Championship in 2018. The team were nicknamed the Hammers after the West Ham H ...

, who raced at the

Arena Essex Raceway Arena Essex Raceway was a stock car and speedway racing track located near Purfleet, Essex. It opened in 1978 and closed in 2018. The Lakeside Shopping Centre was built close to the venue. The stadium The Arena-Essex Raceway Complex was the i ...

, next to the Lakeside Shopping Centre, until their closure in 2018.

Season summary

Notable riders

* Peter Clark * Gerry Jackson *

* Les McGillivray * Reg Reeves * Alan Smith *

* Jack Unstead

References

{{Reflist Speedway teams in Essex Defunct speedway teams in the United Kingdom Rayleigh, Essex 1949 establishments in England Sports clubs and teams established in 1949 1973 disestablishments in England Sports clubs and teams disestablished in 1973