1978 Miscellany

Other Fixtures:  

The Dukes annual encounters in the Northern Trophy saw them take 4 wins, including a rare win on the road at Hull - but it was still not enough to stop Belle Vue taking the trophy after they also won on the road at Hull and Sheffield.  Hull relieved the Dukes of the Yorkshire Cup in October, after a weakened Halifax could only build up a 4 point first leg lead.  And the Dukes were beaten in all three challenge matches at the Shay, losing to Belle Vue on August Bank Holiday Monday in the annual Warburtons cash challenge, an Overseas Stars side, and a powerful Ipswich side, with the Dukes threadbare.

They fared little better in the 4-Team tournaments, losing heavily at both Hull and Sheffield in the Autumn, before a season-ending win in the Northern Fours at the Shay.

Details of each match can be found in the archive pages for 1978.

Individual Meetings:  

Halifax staged three individual meetings during 1978.  New Dukes signing Eric Broadbelt had the meeting of his season when he won the World Championship/Grand Prix qualifying round in May, but any promise of more to come quickly evaporated as a mixture of injuries, poor machinery and a loss of confidence ruined his season.  The Dews Trophy in June was won by Belle Vue skipper Alan Wilkinson, a mere 7 days before his crash at Hyde Road which would ultimately see him spend the rest of his life in a wheelchair.  And Sheffield's Reg Wilson emerged the winner of a close Autumn Classic in October after the top seven riders all scored double figures, in one of the most competitive individual meetings seen at the Shay.  Details of each match can be found in the archive pages for 1978.

The Juniors/Second-Half Riders:  

There were a few new faces to get opportunities in Shay Stampede races after the main meeting, with several being called upon to fill in at the bottom end of the team as the injuries mounted up.  Klaus Lohmann and local teenage sensation Kenny Carter were joined by a host of existing and new riders, all looking to make the breakthrough - many thanks to:  Paul Wood, Mick Warren, Paul Sheard, Peter Wilson, W Fieldhouse, A Sparks, Alan Stansfield, Paul Hollingworth, Jurgen Johansson and Ken Murray.

Golden Helmet Match-Race Championship:

Once again Dukes riders were overlooked as challengers for the Golden Helmet during 1978, with the Championship still being run on a monthly "invitational" basis.  Belle Vue number one and former World Champion Peter Collins incredibly retained the title all season, defeating John Davis, Scott Autrey, Michael Lee, Tony Davey, Malcolm Simmons, John Titman and Dave Jessup to keep the Helmet going into 1979.