Pat (58), of Gourdie Terrace, Dundee, recalls his time playing under the duo with fondness.
“Bert and Eddie were really great lads and all the boys really liked them,” said Pat, who also played for many years in the juniors with Elmwood and East Craigie.
“The old Lochee BC clubrooms were situated in Marshall Street and were pretty run-down.
“The club was run by the Lynch brothers, who were quite strict, and they didn’t allow you to play football in the hall. However, when they weren’t there, Bert and Eddie used to let us play.
“The balls in those days were pretty heavy — called ‘tubs’ — and when they crashed against the wall of the hall, bits of plaster used to fall off.
“John Lynch would come in later on and see these walls minus lumps of plaster, but was mystified and couldn’t figure out where the falling plaster was.
“That’s because there was a trapdoor in the corner of the gym and we just swept it all down.
“I’ve some great memories of my time with LBC. We didn’t train much and there were certainly no tactics.
“There were always some great laughs from going on a bus with massive corner-flags to Camperdown Park — other passengers ducking out of the way — to running back to the clubrooms to get first in the bath.
“The baths were just big tin efforts as there were no showers in those days. They used to boil the water and pour it in.
“If you were one of the first in, then fine, but those last using the baths found it looking like oxtail soup.”
THURSDAY . . . SO THERE’S NO SOAP!
Former East of Scotland Junior FA match secretary JOCK MYLES also has a bath story.
“Attending Tug Davidson’s funeral recently, I met up with many former Carnoustie Panmure players, including John Smith, Freddie Davidson and the Tosh brothers, Doug and Jock,” said Jock, of Carnoustie.
“Later on, many anecdotes from our time with the Gowfers came out.
“The best one, though, was the time the boys were training on a very mucky midweek night at Carnoustie.
“Caked with mud and the like, the players jumped into the communal bath.
“They then shouted through to committee man Jim Bremner to bring in some soap.
“Jim, ever the prudent clubman, answered, ‘Soap? Soap? Ye cannae get soap!
“This is a Thursday and ye only get soap on a Setterday’!”
DUNDEE AMONG NINE ELITE CITIES IN EUROPE
Carnoustie resident BILLY WATSON is desperate to find the answer to a question he heard on the radio.
“I was driving home recently with the radio on, and the presenters were trying to find eight cities which have two or more clubs who have contested the semi-finals of the European Cup or Champions League as it is now known,” said Billy.
“During the time from going to my car to my house, the answer may have been given out because I switched on the radio as soon as I got in, but they never came up with the answer in that spell.
“Obviously, Dundee, Glasgow, London, Milan and Madrid spring immediately to mind, but I just can’t get the other three.
“Can you help?”
To confirm, in addition to Dundee and Dundee United, Glasgow’s Rangers and Celtic also made the last four, and Spurs, Arsenal and Chelsea have done so for London.
Inter and AC represent Milan, while Real Madrid and Athletico are the Madrid teams.
However, I reckon I’ve come up with another four cities — and I haven’t consulted record books to any great deal.
I would forward Bucharest, with Dinamo and Steaua as the teams.
Then there is Budapest, with Vasas and Ujpest Dozsa as the candidates.
What about Belgrade? I’m positive Red Star and Partizan have been semi-finalists in their time.
And my ninth choice would be Vienna, and I have to admit this is the only one I’ve checked out.
Rapide Vienna contested the semi-finals in 1961, with FK Austria/Wien having their last-four fling in 1979.
Any more input on this would be more than welcome.
WHEN DUNDEE VISITED DUNDEE
BILL MYLES (billymyles@btinternet.com) takes us back to the boxing theme and wants information on a member of his family.
“Can your readers enlighten me as to the career of WULLIE MYLES,” he asks.
“Wee Wullie was a member of Dudhope Castle Boxing Club before turning professional.
“There is an ongoing debate in my family about him beating former world champion Jackie Paterson in the late 1950s/early 60s in the Apollo, Glasgow.
He was a Scottish medallist in the flyweight and featherweight classes.
“Wullie was a modest man and did not talk much about his career.”
Staying with boxing, and seeing Angelo Dundee on TV the other week prompted my sports desk colleague JAMES MASSON to relate the fact the great boxing trainer has indeed visited Dundee.
James explained, “A few years ago, Commonwealth bantamweight champion Sugar Ray Minus successfully defended his title in Glasgow.
“I’m not sure who he defeated that night, although it was possibly Donnie Hood, but Chris Dundee, Angelo’s brother, was in Ray’s corner.
“After the bout, I asked Chris if he and Angelo had ever been to Dundee and he replied, ‘Angelo has been to Dundee, I have not been to Dundee’.”
Chris went on to say that when he and Angelo were with Muhammad Ali in London when Ali was defending his world heavyweight title, I think against Brian London, they gave Ali a day off training.
After checking the train schedules, Angelo realised he could make it up to Dundee and back to London within 24 hours — and that’s exactly what he did.
According to Chris, Angelo stepped off the train at Dundee, wandered around a bit, including going up and down Riverside, had something to eat in a local cafe and then took a bus trip out to Monifieth.
When he was young, Angelo’s favourite boxer was Johnny Dundee. Johnny’s manager was Scotty Menteith, from Dundee.
Realising Monifieth and Mentieth are spelt somewhat the same, Angelo thought there might be a link between Monifieth and Scotty. So, after visiting Monifieth, he boarded a Dundee train to London and was back in time for Ali’s next training session, telling Chris that Dundee was “a nice town.”
PLEASE GET IN TOUCH . . .
Can the reader who sent in photos of SEAGATE ACCIES and TIMEX AFC please get in touch.
