Simon Turner - Walsall Match of My Life: Saddlers Legends Relive Their Greatest Games

First published by Pitch Publishing, 2020

Pitch Publishing

A2 Yeoman Gate

Yeoman Way

Durrington

BN13 3QZ

www.pitchpublishing.co.uk

Simon Turner, 2020

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A CIP catalogue record is available for this book from the British Library

Print ISBN 978 1 78531 645 6

eBook ISBN 978 1 78531 737 8

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This book is dedicated to

Roger Turner

father, friend and fellow fan

The great pleasure in life

is doing what people say

you cannot do

Walter Bagehot

Many endeavours rely on the kindness of strangers, and in putting this book together I have certainly been the recipient of much goodwill. Thanks, firstly, must go to Dan Briggs, whose assistance was vital to getting this project off the ground. I am also grateful to Steve Davies and Dave Evans for the help they provided. The Express and Star kindly offered me access to their photograph archive, and the time given to me by Alison Smith while I was there was greatly appreciated. Jane at Pitch Publishing has been as supportive as ever, and I shall remain forever thankful to her for agreeing to add a book on Walsall to their Match of My Life series. Duncan Olner, meanwhile, has produced yet another vibrant cover design. I also mustnt forget to mention my wife, who has shown incredible patience through the long days and nights I have devoted to writing this book. Val, you are truly the match of my life. There is, of course, one group of people to whom I owe more thanks than any other: the players. They were, without exception, generous with their time and their memories. Without them, there would have been no book, and more importantly, no great matches for Saddlers fans to remember.

Fellows Park, the Hillary Street end. Thats where it all started for me. I was only five years old when my father took me to my first Walsall match, back in 1962. I have some wonderful memories of games played at that famous old stadium, such as the FA Cup victory over Manchester United. Now, that was a night!

Ive been privileged to see some thrilling Saddlers matches over the last 50 years or so, several of which are featured in the pages that follow. I had forgotten much about these games, but this book reminds me of every detail and brings them back to life so vividly, even more so because we see them through the eyes of those that played in them. Learning more about the footballers and why these matches mattered so much to them is particularly enlightening.

We can, of course, still find highlights of some of these games on YouTube, but there is something special about reading the accounts of them given here. They stimulate the mind and trigger your own recollections of the matches as you saw them. To me, that means so much more.

This is an affectionate book, written by a Walsall supporter with a real eye for detail. It is a great read for any Saddlers fan, especially if, like me, you have been around a few years and can remember some, if not all, of the matches brought to life here. So, sit back and read and let your memories of those great games come flooding back.

Leigh Pomlett, 2020

Whenever I tell people that I support Walsall, invariably their first question is: why? Given the clubs rather conspicuous lack of success over recent years, I must admit that it is a fair challenge. The answer I usually give is that Walsall is where I am from. That is part of the reason, but not the whole truth. My reply explains why I started following the club in the first place, but not why I have kept faith with them over the years. So why have I stuck with the Saddlers? Like many other Walsall supporters, the club has somehow become part of me. I could no more switch my team now than I could change my DNA. For better or worse, being a Saddlers fan is simply part of who I am. And, for what its worth, I wouldnt change that for the world.

Its fair to say that putting this book together has been a bit of an adventure. Tracking down the players, inviting them to be interviewed and then spending time with them has been a great thrill. When I was much younger, on the rare occasions that I managed to persuade a girl to go out with me, I would arrange to meet her by the Hippo on The Bridge. I would get there early and wait nervously, wondering if she would turn up or not, fearing all the time that she would have come to her senses and stayed at home. Meeting players for this book was a very similar experience. To their credit, not one of them let me down.

Some say that you should never meet your heroes, but I thoroughly enjoyed spending time with mine. Interviewing Alan Buckley, the man who scored the first goal I ever saw, was a special moment, whilst being in the company of other childhood idols such as David Kelly and Craig Shakespeare was not an experience I shall easily forget. As for wandering around a garden centre with Dean Keates as we tried to find a coffee shop that we could see but just couldnt reach, well, thats a story for another day

In creating this book, I have tried to cover as wide a span of Walsall history as possible. The matches that are recalled are spread across half a century and the players interviewed range from septuagenarians to those who have only recently hung up their boots. I hope, therefore, that my efforts will appeal to several generations of Saddlers fans. Within the pages that follow you will read of giant-killings, magnificent cup runs, heroic promotions and even a 12-goal thriller. If you enjoy reading this book only half as much as I have enjoyed writing it, then youre in for a treat. As the saying goes, its been emotional.

Simon Turner, 2020

Ashington may have produced the Charlton brothers and Bury may have given us the Nevilles, but those towns have got nothing on Short Heath. The Clarke family produced no less than five footballing brothers, four of whom played for the mighty Saddlers. Allan, the second eldest of the five, had easily the most successful career in the game. Nicknamed Sniffer due to his ability to scent even the slimmest of chances, he was a born goalscorer.

Clarke joined Walsall at the tender age of 15 and soon made his way into the first team. Within a couple of years, his goals almost single-handedly saved the club from relegation. That may have proved a heavy burden for some, but Clarkes young shoulders were more than capable of bearing the strain. The goals continued to flow and even the most optimistic of Saddlers fans knew it was too good to last. Early in 1966, Clarke left for the bright lights of Fulham, aged still only 19.