INTRODUCTION
Kirkliston Heritage Society member Jack Davidson has accumulated a wealth of information over a number of years about various sporting individuals with a Kirkliston connection, some of whom are household names. Much of the information gathered was through personal acquaintance thereby providing a unique and intimate insight which Jack and Kirkliston Heritage Society are eager to share with the wider community.
The first of our Sporting Heroes to be featured is
Bobby Moncur who had the honour of captaining Newcastle United FC and Scotland.
This initial instalment is a very personal account mapping Bobby’s early years
in Kirkliston and describing his wide-ranging sporting interests and
achievements. The next instalment will map his stellar career as a top
professional footballer and beyond.
Bobby Moncur, former captain of Newcastle United and Scotland.
BOBBY MONCUR – CHAT WITH JACK
One of the greatest to come out of the village is Bobby Moncur, well known to many as captain of Newcastle United and Scotland. During a conversation he recalled some of his time growing up in Cheesetown [Kirkliston’s nickname].
“I came to Kirkliston from Perth when I was 9 as my
father had been appointed Chief Inspector for Scottish Salmon Fishing, a job
that entailed travelling about the country and Kirkliston was a good base. We
moved into a house in Queensferry Road near the old school, a building where my
sister Dorothy lived until her recent passing.
In Perth I had had a few football games for the Lifeboys team and was disappointed to find that the Kirkliston school did not have a regular team though it did have a set of strips which I remember were dark blue and had laced up collars like the old Hungarian team used to wear.
A 1950’s era Hungarian national team shirt. At the time, the ‘Mighty Magyars’ were probably the best team in the world.
I guess I must have shown some ability in the odd game we did have against Winchburgh and Newbridge because I was ‘transferred’ to a Winchburgh ‘select’ team. There, I came to the attention of Peter Reid, PE teacher at Broxburn High School who also ran the County Schools team and was selector for the Scottish Schools team.
The headmaster was Mr Stark who didn’t seem an overly friendly sort, but I made the adjustment fairly easily and soon was pally with guys like Stewart Meikle, Adam Frater (who I recall was a piper) and others. We did all the usual things like going down the Almond banks and exploring round about. We used to make a dam in the burn near the Manse at Newliston Road (Tam Scott’s burn) which is where I first learned to swim, after a fashion.
I was also in the Boys’ Brigade and remember singing solo once on the stage in the old Church Hall, now the Chalmers Centre. The song was ‘The Yellow Rose of Texas!’ I’m not at all sure how that came about!
After primary school I attended Broxburn High School with perhaps the influence of Peter Reid helping in that regard. I was soon playing regularly for school teams and Peter rated my ability. On Saturdays I would cycle to Broxburn to play for a school team in the morning, cycle home to grab some lunch, then cycle to Newbridge to be collected by the Uphall Boys’ Club bus for whom I’d play in the afternoon - often in Edinburgh - before cycling back home after the game. I was also about this time training two nights a week with the County Boys’ team in Armadale which meant going there from Broxburn laden down with the training equipment and after training getting a bus first to Linlithgow and then another bus back to Kirkliston. I was exhausted by the time I got home and a couple of times fell asleep on the bus and had to be woken by the conductor who by then knew me!
Another thing I remember is Peter telling me I had to improve my pace as I wasn’t the fastest. He got me a pair of spikes, coached me on sprinting technique and I used to do repeated sprint training on my own in The Glebe, up near the Manse Road side.
Also, about this time I was keen to have a new bike, but I was going to have to pay for it. To save up the money I worked at Almondhill Farm during the holidays, up in one of the lofts lumping heavy sacks up and down; hard work until I’d saved enough money to buy a ‘Dawes Clansman’ bike in Edinburgh.
A coveted 1957 vintage Dawe’s Clansman bicycle like the one Bobby worked and saved for. Dawes Ltd of Birmingham (badge shown here) can trace its roots back as far as 1906. It no longer manufactures bicycles in the UK, but the research, design and development still comes from the head office staff based in Birmingham.
Round about this time I remember we used to have ‘bounce’ football games with jackets for posts on ground some distance from Manse Road to the right as you go down it before the houses now there were built on it. These games included among others Freddie Jardine from Almondside, later to play for Luton Town and from Winchburgh Davie Gibson, later of Hibs, Leicester and Scotland who used to play in his pit boots. Funnily enough my debut for Newcastle was against Luton Town as it happened and though Freddie didn’t play because of injury I did meet him before the game when he gave me a tip on my direct opponent!
The Gala Day in the village was a massive event and
the Village Race was a big part of it. In my year it was won by Eddie Stewart
with myself second although I did win the Champion’s Cup for the highest
aggregate points total over all the events.
The line up from left to right:
Stewart Meikle, runner-up in Boys’ Obstacle Race and 3rd in Boys’ Village Race. Stewart became well-known in local bowling circles and used to write on bowling for the Edinburgh Evening News;
Fraser Proven. He went on to become 120 yards hurdles champion at the Scottish Championships in 1965 and represented Scotland several times. The trophy he holds is for the winner of the Senior Boys’ Village Race. The Proven Family were owners of the Newliston Arms Hotel for over 100 years;
Veronica Gaffney. Veronica (now Veronica Halliday) is the sister of well-known local resident John Gaffney and the trophy she holds is for the Girls’ Sports Champion*;
Bobby Moncur; Kirkliston Boys’ Sports Champion Cup;
Norman Wight, (sadly, now deceased), runner-up Boys’ Village Race. Norman’s younger brother Graeme still lives in Kirkliston.
The eagle-eyed among you may recognise that the above photograph was taken diagonally opposite what is now Kirkliston Library at the southern junction of Almondside and Station Road.
* Our very own Kirkliston Heritage Society Chairperson, Agnes Rothney née Donald went on to win this trophy a few years later!
As a youngster I also used to spend time at the Bowling Club with Stewart Meikle. We would go on a Saturday morning and help the greenkeeper who would then let us on to have a shot. I became keen on the bowling and was not a bad player. My dad was actually secretary of the Bowling Club for quite a long time. One of my best performances (when I was maybe about 17) was reaching the semi-final of one of the Edinburgh tournaments at Leith. I also became keen on golf and first played with my dad at Ingliston and after it closed, at Turnhouse.
I left to sign for Newcastle aged 15, but would return to the village during the summer over the next few years. When I was back I’d keep up the training and would go out on runs with guys like Gordon Logan who by then I think was at Port Vale and Stewart Meikle. We’d meet at the Bowling Club and often go running along the road past Almondhill Farm down towards Dalmeny before turning back. On the way back we’d do sprints between telegraph poles and jog between the next ones and so on. After that we’d do exercises in the wooden hut at the Bowling Club which may then have been the Committee Room.
I also remember one of these summers working at the Royal Highland Show at Ingliston before it opened to the public as part of the ‘gardening squad’ operating a grass cutting machine, saving my wages and buying my first car, an Austin Marina from Forrest’s Garage on the Main Street in the village, registration number USF 879 which I’ve never forgotten!
Back to Kirkliston, on my last visit there I passed the burn where I first swam, passed the blacksmith’s yard, the site of the old distillery, (now all houses) and the doctor’s surgery at The Square, all triggering memories. I can honestly say growing up in the village was a great time, truly happy days.”
Thanks to Bob for sharing his time and memories.
Jack Davidson
Kirkliston Heritage Society
As mentioned earlier, the second instalment will encompass Bobby’s achievements in adulthood and his proud moment on being the second Scottish captain to lift a European football trophy, an achievement the current Newcastle United team would dearly love to emulate now they have returned to European competition after a 20 year hiatus.