A gentleman from Cumbria seeks information about his grandfather, Louis Fletcher, a Football League referee much caricatured in his 27 years in the middle.

"Since he refereed in black riding breeches, sported a waxed handlebar moustache, measured 5ft 2in in height and weighed eight stones it is easy to see why he was a target," writes Richard Fletcher, his grandson.

Richard also sends a copy of an Echo photograph taken, it transpires, at the match between Sunderland and Newcastle United on November 22, 1919, before a record 46,000 Roker Park crowd.

That's the referee, centre left, though it's hardly possible to make out the riding breeches, much less the stiff upper lip. The Newcastle mascot, pictured alongside him, appears to be a juvenile escapee from Alcatraz.

Though Newcastle came as First Division leaders, Sunderland won 2-0. "Buchan, who has been resting, signalised (sic) his re-appearance by scoring both goals," wrote Red and White, adding that the great Buchan was later carried off - "on the trainer's back" - after being kicked.

Louis Fletcher loved the North-East. "He always claimed that the region had the best players - hard, determined, but 100 per cent sportsmen - and were supported by noisy, enthusiastic people who gave their local heroes 100 per cent backing," says Richard.

Newcastle, added Red and White, had a chance of revenge when they hosted the return match the following Saturday. They lost that one 3-2, and ultimately finished eighth.

Charlie Buchan apart, Sunderland's other outstanding player that autumn day in 1919 was centre half Joe Kasher - "played himself to a standstill," said the Echo, completely containing England international Billy Hibbert, Newcastle's record £1,950 buy.

Joe Kasher, lovely feller, had been a Sunderland fan since his short trousered school days in Willington, when the return train fare was 1/3d and boys' end admission a tanner.

He'd played for Crook Town, hid from Middlesbrough scouts in the hope that a Sunderland representative might find him, signed at Roker after being a prisoner of war in 1917.

Subsequently he became landlord of the Peel Park Hotel, next to Accrington Stanley's long gone ground, and - back home - of the Three Tuns at Coundon.

The column caught up with him in January 1986, not just Sunderland's oldest former player but Britain's oldest quiz league competitor - a regular at The Grenadier in Acklam, Middlesbrough, near the home he shared with his niece.

"The only problem is stopping him shouting out the answers so everyone else can hear," she said.

Joe died in January 1992, six days before his 98th birthday - the Football League's oldest ex-player.

Nov 22, 1919 was also the fourth qualifying round of the "English Cup" - a wonderful day, said the Echo, for "the great unpaid."

A record Feethams gate saw Quakers beat South Bank 4-2, another record crowd watched Cockfield see off Darlington Rise Carr by the only goal and 4,000 at Kingsway expressed "unfeigned delight" as Bishop Auckland's amateurs beat Hartlepools United.

In the second division, Middlesbrough and Chelsea drew 0-0 - "Featurelsss" concluded Tom o' Teesside and took over 1,000 tight packed words to make his point.

The biggest story, however, may have been at unknown Lintz Institute - Burnopfield way, is it not? - who'd already beaten three North Eastern League sides before tackling Castleford, of the Midland League, in the FA Cup last qualifying round.

They drew 0-0 but lost the replay. Little Lintz, so far as can be ascertained, stuck to cricket thereafter.

The ghost of dear old Tommy Spencer continues to haunt cricket's historians. We revealed two weeks ago that, seven years after Tom's death and the column's immediately affectionate obituary, Wisden, the Cricketer Magazine and the Association of Cricket Statisticians had all suddenly become aware of his passing.

Now a call arrives from Derek Carlaw, historian at Kent County Cricket Club - for whom Tom made more appearances than any other uncapped player.

"We reprint our obituaries every 15 years and the new edition is just going through the press," says Derek. "Is it right about Tommy Spencer?"

The genial Tom lived at Seaton Delaval in Northumberland, was among England's best known Test match umpires, stood in the first World Cup final, was awarded the OBE and had an unobstructed eyeful of Michael Angelow, the first Lord's streaker.

With proper acknowledgment to the column, his death is finally reported in February's Cricketer. "Died in obscurity," it says. Not around here he didn't.

Still the late, late show continues at Wisden, the cricketers' bible if not necessarily the memorial service.

John Raw in Bishop Auckland sends the obituary from the 1994 Wisden of Darlington lad Edward Brown, a right arm fast medium bowler who played 28 times for Warwickshire.

He also appeared for Durham County as a 17-year-old, but is by no means the youngest. Robin Weston was 15 on his debut in 1991.

Edward Brown was born in 1911, educated at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, played cricket for Darlington, Seaham Harbour and Morpeth and football for the Swiss club Servette.

He died in 1978, 16 years before his obituary, but embodies the quick and the dead compared to the unfortunate John Thomas Cottam, who perished from typhoid at the age of 29.

After just one first-class appearance, Cottam played for Australia at Sydney in 1886-87 because several recognised players had demanded, and been refused, payment for loss of earnings. He scored one and three and neither played international, nor Sheffield Shield, cricket again.

He died in 1897. Under the heading "Supplementary obituaries", Wisden noted the sad event 99 years later.

As John Raw kindly observes, may our own obituaries be so long delayed.

At least J T Cottam got to bat, which (as the Bearded Wonder points out) is more than Jack MacBryan ever did.

MacBryan, a Somerset opener, was picked for the fourth Test at Old Trafford in 1924. Thanks to Manchester's notoriously inclement weather, just 165 minutes play were possible.

Never chosen again, he remains the only Test player never to bat, bowl or dismiss anyone in the field but had the compensation of being the oldest surviving England player when he died, eight days short of his 91st birthday, on July 14 1983.

It was duly recorded in Wisden.

...and finally

Friday's column sought the identity of the Sunderland manager who took over the chair on the same December day in 1978 as Len Walker became boss at Darlington - and even beat the generally omniscient Paul Dobson in Bishop Auckland.

It wasn't Ken Knighton, it was Billy Elliott.

Readers may today care to consider which four English racecourses don't have a complete circuit - what goes around comes around on Friday.

Published: 04/02/2003