Scottish Sport History - devoted to our sporting heritage
  • Home
  • Books for sale
    • The men who made Scotland
    • World's First Foot-Ball Club
    • First Elevens
    • Arthur Kinnaird
    • History of Dunblane Football Club
  • Sports History News and Blog
  • Scottish sports bibilography
    • Scottish sport general
    • Football books
    • Football books (non league)
    • Rugby books
    • Cricket books
    • Athletics books
    • Shinty books
    • Curling books
    • Bowling books
    • Swimming books
    • Hockey books
    • Ice hockey books
    • Tennis books
    • Boxing books
  • Digitised books and articles
  • Scotland v England: the origins
    • England v Scotland 1870
    • Scotland v England 1872
    • England v Scotland 1873
    • Scotland v England 1874
  • Arthur Kinnaird: First Lord of Football
    • Kinnaird's FA Cup
    • Kinnaird blog archive
    • Kinnaird the canoeist
    • Kinnaird family history
    • Rossie Priory
  • Contact / About Me
  • Links

A moment in time: Third Lanark on the brink, 8 October 1966

8/10/2016

4 Comments

 
Picture
Fifty years ago today, Third Lanark took on Berwick Rangers at Cathkin Park in Glasgow, in what turned out to be their last season. This rare colour image of the team in action - never published before - was taken by football historian George Campbell, who was years ahead of his time in documenting some of Scottish football's lesser known teams and stadia.
   There is just a sparse crowd watching Thirds (in scarlet) and Berwick (in black and gold stripes). Some of them are sitting in the fine-looking, but uncompleted, grandstand, the rest of them scattered around terracing which had once held over 40,000. The crowd for this game was around 1100, and as the club continued to decline it was the last time a four figure attendance was recorded at the ground.
   Although times were hard, nobody realised at the time that Third Lanark were on the brink of extinction, the victims of years of corrupt mis-management which was orchestrated by club chairman Bill Hiddelston (often mis-spelled as Hiddleston), who took control at the end of 1962. The sad story has been told many times, notably in great detail in John Litster's book 'Life and Death of the Hi Hi'.
Picture
Picture
As so often in football, the main people to suffer were the supporters. who ended up losing their club. Third Lanark had a particularly active Supporters' Association, founded in 1946 and which produced the club's match programme and annual handbook, making substantial donations from the proceeds to back the club they loved. Despite not seeing eye to eye with Hiddelston and his directors, they were still going strong up to the end. This membership card for 1965-66 was the last one issued, and inside is stapled a sheet with the details for 1966-67.
Picture
8 October 1966
Scottish League Division 2
Third Lanark 3 (Fyfe 5, Henderson 25, Stewart 87)
Berwick Rangers 0
Third Lanark: Russell, Connell, Baillie; McLaughlin, Little, McKay; Kinnaird, Stewart, Fyfe, May, Henderson. Sub: Kilgannon.
Berwick Rangers: Tait, Haig, Riddle; Craig, Coutts, Rodgers; Lumsden, Forsyth, McLaren, Boyce, Veitch. Sub: Stewart.
Referee: RD Henderson (Dundee)

On the same day, the SFA sacked Scotland manager John Prentice after just six months; Celtic maintained their 100 per cent record at the top of Division 1 with a 5-3 win at Hibs; and the league's new club Clydebank maintained their own 100 per cent record with a ninth successive defeat at home to Albion Rovers to remain rooted at the foot of Division 2.
4 Comments
Hugh Barrow
9/10/2016 07:32:48 pm

One of the prime movers in their birth was Lt Col HE Crum- Ewing who was an officer with the 1st Lanarkshire Volunteer Rifles who shared Burnbank with Glasgow Accies and Glasgow Rangers
He was the first president of Glasgow Accies in 1866

Reply
Ian hay
19/10/2021 02:44:39 pm

Iam looking for the programme of this very game or any photos.
If successful these will be placed in our showroom/museum depicting Berwick Rangers history.
Yours Ian Hay

Reply
Andy Mitchell
19/10/2021 02:50:59 pm

Unfortunately, Third Lanark did not produce programmes from the last two years of their existence. There is a facebook group for Third Lanark Memorabilia and it might be worth you asking there for any relevant souvenirs.

Reply
Ian Hay
19/10/2021 02:55:35 pm

Thanks for that Andy!!


Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed

    Archives

    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    September 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012

    Categories

    All

    Author

    All blog posts, unless stated, are written by Andy Mitchell, who is researching Scottish sport on a regular basis.