SPEEDWAY ROYAL

Evening Star, Issue 20720, 17 February 1931, Page 7

SPEEDWAY ROYAL

ENGLAND V. HEW ZEALAND Weather conditions on Saturday caused a postponement of the big meeting at the Speedway Royal, hut tomorrow an event iu dirt track racing never before attempted in Now Zealand will take place, the first test match, England v. New Zealand. England will be represented by “ Squib ” Burton, George Greenwood, 'Roger Eroglcy, Norman Evans, Jim Kempster, and Frank Bond. Each of these riders has been seen in action at the Speedway Royal, and without exception they can bo classed as. expert performers, who have all had experience in team racing. “Squib” Burton’s performances in New Zealand have been outstanding, record after record going by the board, while tho other members of the team have defeated New Zealand’s best, and in turn have been beaten by them, so that to-morrow’s big contest should provide patrons with one thrilling battle niter another, culminating m the Champions’ Scratch Race, which should lie fought at a terrific pace. New Zealand will ho represented by a very strong team in Alf. Mattson (Auckland), Frank Day (Auckland), Wally Kilmister (Wellington), Charlie Blacklock, Percy Lunn (Christchurch), and Harry Maugham (Dunedin). Tho test match will bo decided in nine matches, each of four laps, from a rolling start. The riders will bo paired, each Now Zealand pair meeting in turn each English pair. The points awarded will he throe, two, and one. Immediately tho tost has been decided tho Champions’ Scratch Race will bo run, the competitors being: First heat, tho fastest three Englishmen; second heat, fastest three New Zealanders; the final being contested by the winner of each heat and the fastest second. Another series of events will ho tho Consolation English and New Zealand Scratch -Race for riders not, appearing in tho Champions’ Match, which will bo rim in exactly the same manner as the former match. To-morrow night will undoubtedly be tho greatest.night’s entertainment over offered to broadsiding patrons anywhere in New Zealand, this being tho first time, on record since the inception of speedway racing that a contest of this kind has been staged, and owing to tho excessive cost of gathering so many champions together for one meeting, it seems likely that a considerable period will elapse before another lost match will ho staged in Dunedin.