Tommy Sweetman

Thomas Henry Sweetman (born 21 July 1930) is a former motorcycle speedway rider from England.[1][2]

Tommy Sweetman
Born21 July 1930 (1930-07-21) (age 93)
Islington, London, England
NationalityBritish (English)
Career history
1954Aldershot Shots
1954–1956California Poppies
1956Southern Rovers
1957Rayleigh Rockets
1958Norwich Stars
1959Swindon Robins
1959Rye House Rockets
1960–1961New Cross Rangers
1961–1965, 1969Wolverhampton Wolves
1966–1968Exeter Falcons
1969Hackney Hawks
Individual honours
1964Southern Riders' Championship
Team honours
1954Southern Area League
1963Provincial League

Career

Sweetman started his British leagues career for Aldershot Shots in the 1954 Southern Area League but the team withdrew and he finished the season with California Poppies, where he won the leagues with the club.[1]

He spent the 1955 and 1956 seasons with the Poppies but in 1956 he also rode for nomadic Southern Rovers. In 1957, he rode for the Rayleigh Rockets reserve team before taking the big step up to the National League, where he joined the Norwich Stars for the 1958 Speedway National League season.[3]

In 1959 he switched to Swindon Robins and doubled up with the Rye House Rockets in the Southern League, where he finished sixth in the league averages.[4] The following season he joined New Cross Rangers for the 1960 Speedway National League and also raced for them in 1961.[5] This was also the same year that he started his Wolverhampton Wolves career.

It was with Wolves that he won the 1963 Provincial Speedway League and won the Southern Riders' Championship in 1964.[6] He followed the team into the 1965 British League season, where he enjoyed another solid season. In 1966, he moved to Exeter Falcons and top scored for the team during the 1966 British League season, which earned him a place in the 1966 British League Riders' Championship.[7] He rode for Exeter for three seasons before having one final season with Hackney Hawks in 1969.

He went on to earn six international England caps.[1]

References
  1. "ULTIMATE RIDER INDEX, 1929-2022, Tommy Sweetman" (PDF). British Speedway. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  2. "Tommy Sweetman Q & A". Speedway Plus. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  3. "Tommy Sweetman". WWOS Backup. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  4. "1959 Southern League averages" (PDF). Speedway Researcher. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  5. "Speedway". South London Observer. 28 April 1960. Retrieved 1 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. "Southern Riders Championship". Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  7. "Briggs keeps rider's title despite rain". Coventry Evening Telegraph. 24 October 1966. Retrieved 1 June 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
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