The Dukes in the World Championship 1967

The 1967 World Championship format reverted back to the same as 1965. With the final being staged at  Wembley, 6 places were guaranteed for British and Commonwleath riders through the British Final at West Ham, to join 10 from the European rounds.  A total of 7 Halifax riders took part, their respective records and achievements as follows:

Greg Kentwell:  Was drawn in the qualifying rounds at Newport, Glasgow and his home round at Halifax.  Unfortunately, Kentwell crashed in his first outing at Newport and took no further part.  He managed to score 3 points in the Glasgow round, followed by 8 in the Halifax leg, but his combined total of 11 points meant he was not going to qualify for the semi final stages.

Dennis Gavros:  Scored only 3 points in his first round at Hackney, which ultimately cost him an unlikely place in the semi finals.  Scores of 9 points at Glasgow and 10 at The Shay left Gavros on 22 points, 3 points adrift of the final qualifying spot.

Bert Kingston:  Was drawn to ride at King's Lynn and Glasgow in addition to his home leg, but the serious injuries he received from his crash against Glasgow at the end of April ruled Kingston out of the Championship, ultimately for the final time in his career.  His place was handed to team-mate Bob Jameson...

Bob Jameson:  Earning a late call up due to Kingston's injuries, Jameson was unable to take full advantage, scoring 2 points at King's Lynn, 1 point at Glasgow and 4 points at Halifax.

Maury Robinson:  Was reserve for the Halifax round, and although he took to the track, failed to score.

Eric Boothroyd:  The Dukes skipper scored only 5 points in the Sheffield round, and subsequently opted to not travel to Glasgow the next day for his second round.  Scored a creditable 10 points in the Halifax qualifier, but his world championship exploits ended there.

Dave Younghusband:  Was one of the top scorers from the qualifying rounds, with 12 points at King's Lynn, 11 at Wimbledon, and a winning 14 point total at Halifax putting him comfortably into the top 32 and the semi finals.  Unfortunately, he could not repeat his Wimbledon form, drawn in South London for his semi final, he only managed 3 points, and failed to reach the penultinate round before Wembley.

Eric Boocock:  Coasted through the qualifying rounds, dropping only 4 points from a possible 45, including a rare fall at his home leg (15 points at Newport, 14 points at Exeter, 12 at Halifax).  Followed that up with 13 points and 2nd place in the Sheffield semi final to earn a place in the British Final at West Ham.  11 points from his first 4 outings saw Boocock line up in heat 19 against Briggs and Mauger, with all 3 in with a chance of the title, but Boocock could only finish 3rd, and thus 3rd overall.  Nevertheless, Boocock was through to his first World Final at Wembley, and the Dukes number 1 let nobody down on the evening with 9 points (3,2,1,1,2) earning him joint 6th place overall, and top British rider overall, as Ove Fundin claimed his 5th title (after a run-off) under the Twin Towers. Eric's exploits at Wembley can be seen in the race-card as follows: