Guiding light

It was a reunion dinner – “sausage and mash about 600 times,” says one who was there – to mark the 50th anniversary of the Clarets’ only FA Youth Cup triumph, a two-leg win over Coventry City.

Thomas, whose grandfather was in West Auckland’s “World Cup” winning team in 1909, now lives towards the top end of Teesdale, has lost all peripheral vision, has a guide dog and is an enthusiastic fund raiser for the charity.

“I still enjoy the golf but if the ball goes off course or in the air, other players have to point out where it is,” he tells the column.

Wilf Wrigley, the triumphant youngsters’ centre half, became a geologist and now lives in Barningham, on the other side of the A66. After half a dozen first team appearances he left for university. “He became a geologist, brain as big as I don’t know what,” says Dave.

Among others reunited was Mick Docherty, Sunderland’s caretaker manager at the end of 1980-81 when a last day win at Liverpool meant that they escaped relegation.

He subsequently had a brief spell as manager of Hartlepool and opened a pub – Doc’s Orders, perhaps inevitably – in Darlington.

Also there was Alan West, better remembered at Luton Town – three 1970s promotions in seven years, second in the old second division but 15 points behind Big Jack’s Boro. He’s now a church pastor in Luton.

Youth team mate Eric Probert, whose Football League career ended with 21 games for Darlington between 1978-80, died in 2004.

Appropriately, the evening is thought to have raised around £5,000 for Guide Dogs.

The following season, 1968-69, the FA Youth Cup was lifted by Sunderland, beating West Brom 6-3 on aggregate. The team – whatever happened to them? – was Trevor Swinburne, Keith Coleman, Bob Lunn, Mick McGiven, Richie Pitt, John Tones, Colin Beesley, Paddy Lowery, John Lathan, Bobby Park and George Whitehead. Park was the only man not qualified to play for England. He was a Scot.

Darlington Travellers Rest FC, of whom the column has long been president – and which now is the only Saturday pub team in town – finally won promotion from the Crook and District League second division last Wednesday, and without kicking a ball.

“The only other team we’ve been in the top flight was when there was only one division,” says stalwart secretary Alan Smith.

Saturday’s final game against Wolsingham thus became a lap of honour, says Alan, though he makes no mention of the open-top double decker. They won 6-2.

That Newton Aycliffe Navy Club have sunk to the bottom, and will be making the reverse journey, may have something to do with the fact that they have four times had three points deducted.

Last week’s column on Cliffe cricket noted that the umpire was 71-year-old James Dykes from Barnard Castle, a good chap whom hitherto we’d not seen for ages. The day after the column appeared we bumped into him again, at the Emirates Riverside lunch to sign off the North Yorkshire and South Durham League’s 125th anniversary celebrations. He’d liked the piece but had a quibble. “Every other column you write contains the word lugubrious,” said James. It is a mournful reflection.

A memorial service for Jimmy McMillan, the only footballer with four FA Amateur Cup winner’s medals, was held last Saturday at Crook parish church.

While half the nation was joining St George’s Windsor in Guide Me O Thou Great Redeemer, at St Catherine’s we sang Abide with Me.

Many wore Crook Town’s amber and black. Club historian Michael Manuel, owner of more Crook shirts than any man alive, discovered he could fit into none of them and wore a suit instead.

Michael’s eulogy recalled that he’d bought his first Mill Field season ticket in 1953-54, the product of some schoolboy moonlighting – five bob a week from the church choir, a bit more as a bookie’s runner.

Jimmy – “an amazing man,” said Michael – spent his life at Kibblesworth, near Gateshead, was never so much as booked in more than 500 games for Crook and was a lifelong Methodist. He died last November, aged 85.

Former Crook Town secretary Alan Stewart, now filling the same role at the cricket club, reports the death of club president David Greener, a Langley Park lad who spent 43 years at Crook – many of them as second team captain. “Lovely chap,” says Alan.

To attend the memorial service he’d left former Durham County men Andrew Pratt and Steve Chapman preparing the wicket for that afternoon’s match. How many clubs have two former first class players as groundsmen, Alan wonders – and without expecting, or receiving, a bean.

….and finally, last week’s column sought the identity of the manager – strong North-East connections, we said – who in August 1965 sent on the Football League’s first sub. It was Bob Stokoe, then at Charlton, Keith Peacock coming on after just 11 minutes. Paul Dobson was first with the answer.

Olivier Giroud last Saturday became only the second man to play in successive FA Cup final winning sides for two different teams. Readers are today invited to name the first.

Same side as always, the column returns next week.