Paddy Mills (speedway rider)
Horace Burke (born 1913), better known under the alias Paddy Mills, was a motorcycle speedway rider whose career spanned World War II.
| Born | 1913 Leicester, England |
|---|---|
| Nationality |  |
| Current club information | |
| Career status | Retired |
| Career history | |
| 1937 | Leicester Hounds |
| 1938-1939 | Sheffield |
| 1946-1952 | Norwich Stars |
| 1953 | Stoke Potters |
| Team honours | |
| 1950, 1951 | National League Division Two Champion |
| 1951 | National Trophy (Div 2) |
| 1951 | Southern Shield |
Born Horace Burke in Leicester in 1913,[1] he adopted the name Paddy Mills and began his career at Leicester in 1937, riding for the Hounds in the Provincial League. In 1938 he joined Sheffield, spending a season there before joining the Royal Air Force.[2] He served in the RAF for six years, and was awarded the British Empire Medal.[2] After the war he joined the Norwich Stars, for whom he was the third highest points scorer in 1946, with 348 points in total.[2] He went on to be the team's leading points scorer in both 1947 and 1948.[2] He was picked to represent England in second test match in 1949, but suffered a fractured skull a few days before.[2]
In 1952 Mills became president of the newly formed Leicester Amateur Speedway Club, which had a training track at Syston.[3] In the late 1960s, Mills ran training sessions for the Long Eaton Archers.
References
- Dalling, Philip (2007) Nottingham and Long Eaton Speedway, Stadia, ISBN 978-0-7524-4163-4, p. 155
- Morgan, Tom (1949) Who's Who in Speedway, Sport-in-Print, p. 53
- Bamford, R & Jarvis J. (2001) Homes of British Speedway, ISBN 0-7524-2210-3, p. 150