MEMORIES OF A NATIONAL SERVICEMAN

                                                            Gibraltar  1953/54

 

                                         Trevor Sidaway
                              ROYAL ELECTRICAL AND MECHANICAL ENGINEERS

 

                                                        Football in Gibraltar (Part two)

 

This part deals with the matches played against leading professional teams that visited Gibraltar in the

1953/54 season

It included Hajduk Split, the top team from Yugoslavia, and Jonkopings from Sweden

The RAF also flew in their UK Services team that had a number of British Internationals

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


In addition to playing for the Combined Services, I was also picked for a combined Civil/Military team

This included only one other Services player—George Twissel (Royal Navy and York City FC)

 

                            A “Rock” team, combining Civil and Military players versus Jonkopings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


              I’m on the right and I don’t recognise any other Military players but there are two keepers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


                                                                                          and

                                two matches against Hajduk FC, top of the Yugoslav first division

                                       One for the GFA and the other for the Combined Services

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


                                                                                     Hajduk FC

                          What I recall about playing against Hajduk is that all the players had military rank

                                  I think that it was something to do with the Communist set up at that time

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


When asked why I was preferred over a number of UK professional players from the Services, I was told

that they needed a natural left winger who could play on the clay surface and was quick
Ray Wood, the Man United & England keeper achieved "notoriety" by playing the second half of the

1957cup final at Wembley in the outside left spot. He had broken his collar bone in a collision with

Peter McParland, the Aston Villa outside left in the first half
                                                                    No subs in those days!

 

Prior to the visit of the Royal Party, in May 1954, a special football competition, the Queens Cup, was

organised with the final to be played during their visit.
Rather than a Combined Services team, individual Army, Navy and Airforce teams, together with the

senior Civilian sides were to compete
While playing for the Army eleven against one of the civilian sides--I think St Josephs--I was badly

injured and spent almost 2 weeks in the Naval Military hospital
Although it had no lasting ill effects, it took the edge off my pace and effectively ended my serious

 footballing days
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                  JUST OVER TWO MONTHS LATER I WAS DEMOBBED
                                                                                AND
BACK HOME, VIA ALDERSHOT, TO LINK UP WITH PATRICIA, THE LOCAL HAIRDRESSER.
WE'VE BEEN MARRIED NOW FOR 49 YEARS AND ARE STILL GOING FAIRLY STRONG!


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                  The rebuilt Victoria Stadium with an artificial grass pitch

                                                 Pictured during a visit in 2004

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


                                                                 Better than the Bahamas

 

                 Playing trains with Prince Charles & Princess Anne                  More about the models      

       

                                                     "Resting" in Tangiers--at the EL Farhar
                          

                                                           Football in Gibraltar (Part one)         
                                                                                                                                               

                                                                        Keeping the Laundry going and other Sports

 

                                                                  The REME Badge

 

                                                                           Home

 
                email me   trevor_sidaway@hotmail.com                        Link to "Black Country Stories"