| Competition: | National League Division One |
| Competitors: | 7 |
| Leagues Below: | 1937 Provincial League |
| Domesticcup1: | Champions |
| Domesticcup1 Winners: | West Ham Hammers |
| Domesticcup2: | National Trophy |
| Domesticcup2 Winners: | Belle Vue Aces |
| Domesticcup3: | A.C.U Cup |
| Domesticcup3 Winners: | Belle Vue Aces |
| Domesticcup4: | London Cup |
| Domesticcup4 Winners: | New Cross Rangers |
| Highestaverage: | Jack Milne |
| Prevseason: | 1936 |
| Nextseason: | 1938 |
The 1937 National League Division One was the ninth season of the highest tier of motorcycle speedway in Great Britain.[1] [2] [3]
The entrants were the same seven teams as the previous season.[4]
West Ham Hammers won their first national title despite finishing bottom the previous season. In the process they stopped Belle Vue Aces from claiming a fifth consecutive title win. Belle Vue did however go on to win the cup double winning the Knockout Cup for the fifth successive year and the A.C.U Cup for the fourth successive year.[5]
Roy Clarence Vigor (Reg Vigor) was fatally injured during a match at Wimbledon Stadium on 27 September. He hit a safety fence and his bike landed on top of him. He died in Nelson Hospital, Merton, three days later.[6] [7] His death came just one month after the death of Stan Hart in the 1937 Provincial Speedway League.
| Pos | Team | PL | W | D | L | Pts | |
| 1 | West Ham Hammers | 24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 36 | |
| 2 | Wembley Lions | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 32 | |
| 3 | New Cross Rangers | 24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 32 | |
| 4 | Belle Vue Aces | 24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 26 | |
| 5 | Hackney Wick Wolves | 24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 20 | |
| 6 | Harringay Tigers | 24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 18 | |
| 7 | Wimbledon Dons | 24 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 4 |
| Rider | Nat | Team | C.M.A. | ||
| 1 | Jack Milne | New Cross | 11.09 | ||
| 2 | Lionel van Praag | Wembley | 10.53 | ||
| 3 | Eric Langton | Belle Vue | 10.18 | ||
| 4 | Bluey Wilkinson | West Ham | 10.14 | ||
| 5 | Bill Kitchen | Belle Vue | 9.88 | ||
| 6 | Jack Parker | Harringay | 9.71 | ||
| 7 | Cordy Milne | Hackney | 9.38 | ||
| 8 | Eric Chitty | West Ham | 9.32 | ||
| 9 | Joe Abbott | Belle Vue | 8.98 | ||
| 10 | Frank Charles | Wembley | 8.96 |
The 1937 National Trophy was the seventh edition of the Knockout Cup.[8]
Southampton Saints won the Provincial final and therefore secured a place in the quarter-finals.
Quarterfinals
| width=80 | Date | width=250 | Team one | width=80 | Score | width=250 | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 05/06 | Harringay | 41-65 | New Cross | ||||
| 09/06 | New Cross | 76-31 | Harringay | ||||
| 07/06 | Wimbledon | 39-68 | Belle Vue | ||||
| 12/06 | Belle Vue | 80-28 | Wimbledon | ||||
| 08/06 | West Ham | 58-46 | Hackney Wick | ||||
| 11/06 | Hackney Wick | 60-48 | West Ham | ||||
| 25/06 replay | Hackney Wick | 65-43 | West Ham | ||||
| 29/06 | Southampton | 40-44 | Wembley | ||||
| 29/06 replay | West Ham | 55-53 | Hackney Wick |
Semifinals
| width=80 | Date | width=250 | Team one | width=80 | Score | width=250 | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15/07 | Wembley | 50-58 | New Cross | ||||
| 14/07 | New Cross | 59-48 | Wembley | ||||
| 16/07 | Hackney Wick | 56-52 | Belle Vue | ||||
| 17/07 | Belle Vue | 69-39 | Hackney Wick |
First leg
Second leg
Belle Vue were National Trophy Champions, winning on aggregate 115-110.
The 1937 Auto-Cycle Union Cup was the fourth edition of the Cup and was won by Belle Vue for the fourth time. The groups were decided on the number of heat points scored within matches, rather than match wins.[9]
First round
Group 1
| Team | PL | W | D | L | Race Pts | |
| Wembley Lions | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 319.5 | |
| New Cross Rangers | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 311.5 | |
| Harringay Tigers | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 269 | |
| Wimbledon Dons | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 240 |
| Team | PL | W | D | L | Race Pts | |
| Belle Vue Aces | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 202 | |
| West Ham Hammers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 190 | |
| Hackney Wick Wolves | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 181 |
| width=80 | Date | width=250 | Team one | width=250 | Team two | width=120 | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 07/10 | Wembley | Belle Vue | 49–45 | ||||
| 09/10 | Belle Vue | Wembley | 61-35 |
First round
| width=250 | Team one | width=120 | Score | width=250 | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Cross | 65–43, 65–42 | Wimbledon | |||
| Wembley | 58–49, 61–46 | Harringay |
Semi final round
| width=250 | Team one | width=120 | Score | width=250 | Team two |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hackney Wick | 49–59, 21–87 | West Ham | |||
| New Cross | 62–46, 56–50 | Wembley |
First leg
Second leg
New Cross won on aggregate 117–97
Belle Vue
Hackney
Harringay
New Cross
Wembley
West Ham
Eric Chitty 9.37Wimbledon