In 1987 the National League, also known as British League Division Two, was the second tier of speedway racing in the United Kingdom.
Team changes
Glasgow Tigers were without a home so they joined the 1987 season based at Workington's Derwent Park.
Mid-season withdrawals
On 31 July, Glasgow Tigers (now called Workington Tigers held their last fixture against Stoke. The following day on 1 August, Boston Barracudas withdrew after a heavy home defeat to Eastbourne. Both Glasgow-Workington and Boston had their results expunged.
Summary
The league champions that year were Eastbourne Eagles.
Final table
National League Knockout Cup
The 1987 National League Knockout Cup was the 20th edition of the Knockout Cup for tier two teams. Eastbourne Eagles were the winners of the competition for the third successive year.
First round
a=Abandoned
Second round
a=Abandoned
Quarter-finals
Semi-finals
Final
First leg
Second leg
Eastbourne were declared Knockout Cup Champions, winning on aggregate 100–91.
Riders' Championship
Andrew Silver won the Riders' Championship. The final sponsored by Jawa Moto & Barum was held on 12 September 1987 at Brandon Stadium.
f=fell, r-retired, ex=excluded, ef=engine failure t-touched tapes
Pairs
The National League Pairs was held at Wimborne Road on 26 July and was won by Mildenhall Fen Tigers.
Semi finals
Peterborough (Hawkins & Barney) bt Stoke (Crabtree & Stead) 6-3
Mildenhall (Jessup & Taylor) bt Eastbourne (Kennett & Dugard) 6-3
Final
Mildenhall bt Peterborough 6-3
Fours
Mildenhall won the fours championship final. The first semi final was held at Peterborough on 9 August but the remaining semi final and final were cancelled due to heavy rain. The re-run was not held until 16 October at Hackney.
Semi finals
SF1 = Mildenhall 18, Arena Essex 16, Berwick 8, Poole 6
SF2 = 1 Eastbourne, 2 Wimbledon, 3 Middlesbrough 4 Peterborough
Final
Leading averages
Riders & final averages
Arena Essex
Andrew Silver 10.66
Martin Goodwin 8.91
Nigel Leaver 6.76
Gary Chessell 6.18
Ian Humphreys 4.55
Steve Bishop 4.06
Mark Chessell 2.98
Lawrie Bloomfield 2.73
Simon Wolstenholme 2.00
Berwick
Charlie McKinna 8.08
Steve McDermott 8.00
Phil White 7.88
Rob Woffinden 7.68
Rob Grant Sr. 6.93
Ian Stead 6.85
Wayne Ross 6.45
Sean Courtney 6.06
Paul McHale 4.57
Boston (withdrew from league)
Andy Hines 8.17
Carl Baldwin 6.35
Phil White 5.81
Andy Fisher 4.96
Wally Hill 3.60
Jonathan Cooper 3.32
Gary Clegg 3.29
Jamie Young 3.27
Chris Mulvihill 1.75
Canterbury
Dave Mullett 8.62
Mike Spink 7.51
Rob Tilbury 7.15
Paul Whittaker 6.93
Paul Evitts 6.33
Mark Lyndon 5.63
Richard Pettman 3.95
Carl Chalcraft 3.76
Jimmy Goodsell 2.00
Eastbourne
Martin Dugard 10.40
Gordon Kennett 9.40
Andy Buck 8.66
Dean Standing 7.33
Keith Pritchard 7.02
Dean Barker 5.16
Darren Standing 4.30
Steve Chambers 4.00
Edinburgh
Les Collins 9.96
Doug Wyer 8.40
Brett Saunders 7.77
Dave Trownson 6.90
Chris Cobby 6.15
Scott Lamb 5.55
Phil Jeffrey 4.73
Jamie Young 2.87
Ray Taaffe 2.82
Colin Smith 1.00
Shaun Bickley 0.71
Exeter
Alan Rivett 7.59
Colin Cook 7.44
David Smart 7.43
Kevin Price 6.81
Michael Coles 5.09
Andy Sell 4.66
Dave Gibbs 4.46
Tony Mattingley 3.77
Glasgow (withdrew from league)