Whilst doing a search on e-Bay for Steers-related items and after scrolling past the many, many pictures of cattle I came across a collectable card for ‘Speedway Star - Ern Steers’ and just had to have it. The reason; Ern Steers is my husband’s grand uncle, and namesake of his father.
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| Card found on e-Bay. Purchased June 2013 |
Ernest William Steers was born on the 6th of
November 1920 in Hackney, East London, and grew up in South Tottenham. He died at the age of 52 in
Hertfordshire. He was the eldest child
of Robert Steers and Edith Ellen Curtis.
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| Ern Steers c. 1941 |
Ern and his brother Robert (Bob) both had a lifelong
interest in Speedway, but it wasn’t until after the War ended that Ern found
his way to the High Beech Training School in Epping
Forest.
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| Ernie mid-race for the Chads |
In 1949 he signed for the Liverpool Chads and I’m reliably informed he rode in thirty-two league and cup matches.
When he left the Chads he signed for Oxford, and in 1950 rode for the newly formed Long Eaton Archers who were based in Derbyshire.
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| Ernie (back row, second from left) with his Oxford Team Mates 1950 |
1951 he had signed with Wolverhampton and rode for them six times.
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| Ernie in his Wolverhampton vest, 1951 |
His biggest achievement appears to have come in 1950 when he
was called up by the New Cross Rangers to replace the injured Cyril Roger.
New
Cross were one of the best teams in the country and Ern was called upon to ride
for them in the Spring Cup Final match against their local rivals West Ham. New
Cross won the cup final and this would have been watched by more than 20,000
people.
After 1951 there is no record of him continuing to ride, but
his love of the sport continued.
The information regarding Ern’s Speedway career was provided
by Matt Jackson of http://www.speedwayresearcher.org.uk/
An excellent resource if you too have Speedway ancestors.
