Speedway: Joe Screen, who helped Bradford Dukes to the Elite League title in 1997, has left Belle Vue to join Hull Vikings.

The 26-year-old's decision was made easier because Belle Vue are dropping into the Premier League while Hull are heading in the opposite direction, tasting the Elite League for the first time. Hull's new team manager Graham Jones said: "Joe is the perfect No 1. He is an out-and-out racer and the sort of person the supporters want to come and see.

"He has never been renowned as a trapper, although his gating has improved a lot."

Hull have also started initial talks with ex-Duke Paul Thorp and Lee Dicken.

lJoe Screen finished seventh in the 1998 Elite League averages on a mark of 9.15 - the same as team-mate Ronnie Correy, who was sixth.

Of the other title winning Dukes, Mark Loram (Wolverhampton) was 12th on 8.34, Gary Havelock (Eastbourne and Poole) was 22nd on 7.01, Garry Stead (Wolverhampton) 53rd on 3.60 and David Walsh (Coventry) 56th on 3.27.

As for Dukes of an earlier vintage, Jimmy Nilsen (Swindon) was 13th on 8.09, Andy Smith (Belle Vue and Swindon) 27th on 6.66 and Simon Wigg (King's Lynn) 39th on 5.56. Kelvin Tatum is 40th on 5.56 and Sean Wilson (Belle Vue) 47th on 4.71.

The standings were headed by world champion Tony Rickardsson (Ipswich) on 10.29 and former world champions Billy Hamill and Greg Hancock (both Coventry) on 9.96 and 9.42.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.