Edinburgh vs Australians 11/06/1938

Edinburgh 29	11 June 1938
Australians 24	Challenge
Edinburgh 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 T B 1. Drew McQueen 2 3 3 8 2. Clune Johnstone 0 2' n 2 1 3. George Pepper 3 3 0 6 4. Stanley Gargan 1 0 2 3 5. Kid Curtis 3 3 2 8 6. Bill Nisbet 0 2' 0 2 1 7. Dick Dennie dnr 8. Leo Lungo dnr . Australians 1. Charlie Spinks 3 f 3 6 2. Ken Ellis 1 1 1 3 3. Ray Duggan 0 1 3 4 4. Mick Murphy 2 f 1 3 5. Aussie Powell 1' 1' n 2 2 6. Wally Little 2 2 2 6 7. Mutt Jones dnr 8. Norman Newton dnr
Heat 1 Spinks, McQueen, Ellis, Johnstone 1min 25.4 2 4 2 4 Heat 2 Pepper, Murphy, Gargan, Duggan 1min 24.4 4 2 6 6 Heat 3 Curtis, Little, Powell, Nisbet 1min 26.4 3 3 9 9 Heat 4 McQueen, Johnstone, Duggan, Murphy (F) 1min 26.6 5 1 14 10 Heat 5 Pepper, Little, Powell, Gargan 1min 25.4 3 3 17 13 Heat 6 Curtis, Nisbet, Ellis, Spinks 1min 27.6 5 1 22 14 Heat 7 McQueen, Little, Powell (N), Johnstone (N) 1min 26.6 3 2 25 16 Heat 8 Spinks, Gargan, Ellis, Pepper 1min 26.2 2 4 27 20 Heat 9 Duggan, Curtis, Murphy, Nisbet 1min 27 2 4 29 24 Captains Match Race Drew McQueen Bt Charlie Spinks 1min 24.2 Reserves Race Dick Dennie, Norman Newton, Leo Lungo, Mutt Jones 1min 32.4 Scottish Gold Helmet Heat 1 George Pepper, Ray Duggan, Clune Johnstone, Ken Ellis 1min 25.8 Heat 2 Wally Little, Kid Curtis, Dick Dennie, Mutt Jones 1min 26 Heat 3 Charlie Spinks, Mick Murphy, Norman Newton, Stanley Gargan 1min 24.6 Heat 4 Aussie Powell, Drew McQueen, Bill Nisbet, Leo Lungo 1min 25.6 Final Charlie Spinks, Wally Little, George Pepper, Aussie Powell 1min 24.2
On 11 June Mr Henry Hall, the famous band leader, was among the crowd to watch the Edinburgh Speedway team take on Australia at the Marine Gardens. With Australia looming largely in the minds of the sporting public with the visits to Scotland of the test cricketers and a team of golfers, there was an added piquancy to the visit of the Australian team of speedway riders . They had a fairly strong side captained by Charlie Spinks and even the most sanguine Edinburgh fan could hardly have forseen the Edinburgh side’s surprising yet really merited victory by 29 points to 24. The local team rode really well, certainly with more fire and more team spirit than they had done hitherto, and with Bill Nisbet and Stanley Gargan showing improved form, the Edinburgh team showed that they would prove doughty opponents when they joined the league officially. In Saturday’s match the teams were level at 12 points each after four heats, but Edinburgh drew away in the fifth heat, when Curtis and Nisbet credited their side with 5 points and although the Australians made determined effort and reduced their deficit 1 point (24-23) McQueen and Johnstone made no mistake in the rerun fourth heat, which was kept to the last, when they finished first and second. The captain’s match between McQueen and Spinks produced probably the finest race of its kind ever seen at the Marine Gardens. Spinks, on the inside, and McQueen raced side by side for 3 and a half laps and it was only by a great effort by the Edinburgh man at the last bend that gave him a slight lead and victory by less than a wheel’s breadth. The Edinburgh riders did not shine in the race for the Scottish Gold Helmet, George Pepper being the only one to qualify for the final in which he met Wally Little, Spinks and Aussie Powell. Spinks had a runaway win in the fastest time of the day, 1min 23 and three fifth secs.