How Dirty Hoggy helped to bring the World Cup to West

Whilst essaying a near-perfect impression of L/Cpl Jones, we are therefore particularly grateful to Mr Don Wilson in Durham for acting, single handedly, as the Sixth Cavalry.

Don, West Auckland lad originally, sends photographs of two of his world cup winning compatriots - Tom Wilson, his uncle, who answered (for reasons to be explained) to Tucker Gill and Charlie Hogg, known even posthumously as Dirty Hoggy.

It's possible that Charlie simply got a bit coal-black down the pit. More likely, however, he was the Chopper Harris of Darlington Road.

Both were in the West Auckland party which in 1909 and 1911 twice brought back the "World Cup" from Italy. Tom also won Amateur Cup medals with Bishop Auckland in 1921 and 1922 and in 1921 became world handball champion, seeing off sundry Mordues - Brandon lads, were they not? - in the process.

No matter that the handball world, like quoits today, was chiefly encompassed between Tyne and Tees. West's "World Cup" wasn't exactly pan-international, either.

Don's grandfather was William Gill Wilson, standing on the right of the splendid photograph of the West Auckland women's side, whom he managed to many a lady killing.

Kneeling in front of him is Dirty Hoggy, who (it is fair to say) doesn't look the sort of full back you'd like to encounter on a dark night whilst proceeding apace down the flanks.

It may even be the origin of the phrase about going the whole Hogg, and no matter what Brewer's Dictionary might contrarily imagine.

The ladies include Annie Hogg, Maggie Hogg and Madge Hogg. Olive Emmerson, Lizzle Marshall, Nellie Simpson, Ethel Brownless and Sally Stout are on there somewhere, too.

One or other of the fellers to Hoggy's right is David "Ticer" Thomas, who also shared West's Italian glory and whose English international grandson is now 51 and long since enticed to Bognor Regis.

Then there's Tom Wilson, played until he was 40 and forever Tucker Gill. William Gill Wilson, it transpires, was always known around West Auckland as Billy Gill. His sons were therefore believed to have the same surname.

Don's childhood memories include being sent as a child to the village workmen's club to tell his dad that his dinner was ready ("and if he didn't get home it would be cold") and asking the doorman for Albert Wilson.

"Never heard of him," said the doorman, and repeated the litany until Albert Gill was at last summoned towards the table.

Both Don's father and Uncle Gordon played professionally, Gordon Wilson for Norwich, Hull, Luton and for West Bromwich Albion in 1931, when they won the FA Cup and promotion in the same season.

Don appears not to have been much of a footballer at all, but for helping save the Backtrack column, the lad still deserves a medal.

THOUGH all around was frozen off, we at least made a match on Wednesday night - Hebburn v Shildon in the Albany Northern League second division and a chance to see what the well-dressed manager is wrapped up in.

The photograph, hopefully, is of Mr Peter Feenan, familiar for 30 years around the Northern League, manager of Newcastle Blue Star's 1978 FA Vase winning side and now part of the successful management team at Shildon.

Hebburn sent, he wore woolly hat, gloves, about three vests, shirt, tracksuit top and a pair of white shorts most kindly described as transparent.

In the summer he's retiring to Spain. "This," said Peter, "is acclimatization."

GARRY Gibson, high profile former chairman of Hartlepool United, anticipates double delight next Monday - or, just possibly, the opposite.

It's the day that he gets the results of his MSc degree at Stirling University and that his daughter Lisa, a student at Essex University, pops up on The Weakest Link.

Always a football fan, Lisa helped in the club shop when her father was at Victoria Park, had her photograph taken with Paul Gascoigne and with the Man United team and was particularly delighted to meet Ryan Giggs, her hero.

"Now that she's 21, if Ryan likes what he sees on The Weakest Link I'll introduce them," says Dad. "Gazza needn't bother."

Garry, whose parents still live in Sedgefield, hopes to graduate in the summer. "Me mam always wanted one of those posh cap and gown pictures on the mantlepiece," he says.

The ex-chairman's degree subject? Entrepreneurial studies.

RAY Morton, another proud dad, has also been in touch. His team's usually Billingham Wanderers Over 40s but this time he's on about two life-saving 15-year-olds - his son Darren and Chris Leighton.

The two St Michael's schoolboys, from Billingham Life Saving Club, represented the North-East at the national championships in Manchester. They won the first two disciplines, were second in the third and recorded the fastest time in the "throw and tow" but were disqualified on a technicality.

"A rule clouded in the mists of the official handbook," says Ray. After two appeals, they were placed second overall.

Both lads also play National Federation Under 15s basketball for Teesside Mohawks while Darren's at Hartlepool United's school of excellence under the eye of Keith Nobbs and Billy Horner.

"Dad's taxi" has 126,000 miles on the clock. "As a penalty," adds Ray, "I make him attend the Wanderers matches as well."

CHARLIE Mitten, Newcastle United's £3,000 a year manager from 1959-61, has died a few days before his 81st birthday.

Sacked after what the Echo termed a "stormy stay", he sued the club for breach of contract at a time when such litigation was almost unheard of.

Magpies' historian Paul Joannou chronicled a man whose ideas were ahead of his time, not least in the choice of a new and "almost effeminate" strip.

"He was never far from the headlines - some true, some false - but to his credit brought together the famous Newcastle trio of Allchurch, White and Eastham," Joannou added.

Mitten, a gambling man who had played outside left for Manchester United and England, returned to Manchester, where for a time he managed the White City dog track. We'd written about him a couple of years ago - nice chap, but still an awful shame about that strip.

PHYLLIS Hemsley, who only came across the Backtrack column whilst casting around for Garfield, has looked in with a book about Julius Caesar, her great-grand-something or other.

We'd mentioned him last February - not the Roman chap, the one who batted with distinction for Surrey and England and who went on the first ever overseas tour.

"I'd heard talk of him in the family but until reading your column had begun to wonder if they'd made him up," said Phyllis, from Sandhutton, near Thirsk.

Ceasar, known to his friends as Julie, was her grandmother's uncle. The book was a Christmas present.

Sub-titled The Ill-Fated Cricketer, written by Geoff Amey and published by Bodyline Books, it details not only his successes but also his liking for a drink, his depression and his fear of sleeping alone lest the hotel burn down.

His problems were made worse, alas, by his accidental shooting of a grouse beater - "Caesar was intensely mortified," said a contemporary account, though perhaps not as intensely as the poor beater - and by his son's suicide in front of a train.

He came, saw and conquered but died in poverty, aged 47.

WHEELS within wheels, two of the region's humbler football clubs will be travelling in style a week tomorrow.

Tow Law head for their FA Carlsberg Vase tie at Ash, near Aldershot, on Middlesbrough's team coach - others of us are letting the train take the strain - whilst Wearside League newcomers Darlington RA go west to Windscale, that well-known Wearside location, on the Quakers' luxury number.

Darlington chairman George Reynolds raised the offer at the Echo's Local Heroes awards night in November, when the RA were named Over 16 team of the year. "To my surprise he phoned me in person, said he hadn't forgotten and that there was no problem.

"Windscale's an awfully long way. George makes the journey worthwhile."

THE 14 winners of our Christmas books competition, chosen from the deluge which accompanied it. Each will receive a book - hopefully, but not always, of their choice - in the next few days.

The winners are:

Jack Stephens of Darlington; Eric Smallwood, Acklam, Middlesbrough; Steve Wilson, Darlington; Mark Chipchase, Shotley Bridge; Simon Weatherill, Northallerton; Ron Sowerby, Close House, Bishop Auckland; Liam Bannister, Darlington; Joe Bradley, Houghton-le-Spring; David Stableforth, Newton Hall, Durham;

George Thompson, Ushaw Moor; David Harris, Consett; Barry Hogg, Bishop Auckland; Mrs N Hughf, Bishop Auckland and Ian Brook, Thoralby, Leyburn.

Today, amusement only, readers may care to name the next three Newcastle United managers after Charlie Mitten.

The nightmare passed, the column dreams sweetly until Tuesday.