Mickety says hello

[firbeck 860]

Hello Firbeck and thanks for the prompt on your post.

Henry Newton lived I beleive next or very near where my late wife was born at 1 Firbeck road across from the infants skool.

I when my perents moved lived five doors away from her across the road from Merry's on the opposite corner.

Bip.

My mother was a particular friend of Henry's mum, and Henry went to Firbeck at the same time as my brother. By coincidence, when my brother went off to Mundella Grammar School, he was in the same year as David Pleat, another ex Forest player, though I gather not very well liked and supposedly better at tennis than football.

Another Forest player, David Stainwright lived on Trowell road in the corner house opposite the end of Park Crescent, I think his claim to fame was scoring a hat trick against Spurs at White Hart Lane, though I gather every one was teed up by Frank Wignall.

My mothers friendship with Henry Newton got me to his wedding, at Arnold Church, 1967, the year of Forests 2nd place and FA Cup semi final, I was pretty chuffed about that, went up there on my bike and was allowed through the security cordon to take pictures of the happy couple posing with the team, the team actually posing for me, having a chat and autographing my semi final programme. They were all really lovely blokes, the whole team were there apart from Joe Baker, for some reason, though I think one of the players said he didn't socialise with the rest of them.

I was surprised that Bobby Mackinlay, the centre half, virtually chain smoked plain Players Navy Cut fags, he gave me one and it nearly killed me, he said that it never affected his performance on the pitch, bloody hell, he must have been fit.

It's interesting to see that you lived opposite Merry's, a good pal of mine Fiona Macfarland lived next door to you, she had an Anderson Shelter in the back garden that we used as a den, I wonder if it's still there. Fiona, incidentally, now lives in West Bridgford.

I see that you used to go to the footbridge at Trowell, did you ever suffer the bullying of a git called Bison and his gang from Ilkeston. We went there once, me Mark Miller and the Withey twins and got cornered by this gang, we were very amiable, yet with Mark Miller about, frightened of nowt, but this mob were complete evil B#####s.

After being threatened with being hung from the footbridge I went home and told my older brother.

Well, you didn't mess with him and his gang. A few days later my brother informed me that it would now be perfectly safe to go back to Trowell, so we did, and never saw Bison and his gang again, my brother now pretends he can't remember what happened, it must have been memorable though, I wish I'd been there to see it.

Thats enough for now, I thought you might like this picture I took off the Trowell footbridge.

OOps it claims to not want to upload because the file is too big, strange, can't work that one out, it's only an old BW picture of an 8F.

[rob237 89]

Very interesting memories of 'our Enry' from the time of 'Carey's Babes'...the best team we ever had...bar none!

His team talks were always classic brevity - "Just go out there and fizz it about!"

Hadn't realised that Bob McKinlay was a heavy cigarette smoker...as you say, didn't impede him on the pitch...highly rated by all the opposing strikers of his era. It was only the political, and archaic, Scottish selection policy that deprived him of considerable international recognition.

Cheers

Robt P.

[firbeck 860]

Very interesting memories of 'our Enry' from the time of 'Carey's Babes'...the best team we ever had...bar none!

His team talks were always classic brevity - "Just go out there and fizz it about!"

Hadn't realised that Bob McKinlay was a heavy cigarette smoker...as you say, didn't impede him on the pitch...highly rated by all the opposing strikers of his era. It was only the political, and archaic, Scottish selection policy that deprived him of considerable international recognition.

Cheers

Robt P.

I gather that he went on to be a PE instructor at Aslockton prison, where is he now, he was 35 when he played in that 67 team, the last survivor of the FA Cup winning lot as well.

Funnily enough, after that first meeting with the team, I met them again shortly after when they opened a hardware store called 'Able Jacks', somewhere at the top end of Glaisdale Road, good old Bobby remembered me and got out his bloody fags again, I asked him again how he coped, but he dismissed it, I know Gazza liked the odd fag, but I doubt whether it was Players Navy Cut.

I remember also that day that every player was dressed in their suits, but Ian Storey Moore was clad all in leather, I challenged him on this and he told me that the others 'were'nt with it'!!

Despite being an Essex kid, my son is a Forest supporter, what a surprise, we have travelled up the infinite highway to watch some of the matches.

He's been at Nottm Uni for the past 3 years and hasn't got round to seeing them yet.

One sunday, on the way home, we called in at the Forest shop, amazingly we happened to meet Steve Stone, we had seen his first England appearance at Wembley, what a scene that was pre match, playing keep ball with Gazza and beating him every time.

What a nice bloke he was too, happy to talk to anyone and impress my kid. Stuart Pierce got in his car and bogged off without talking to anyone, we weren't impressed.

[rob237 89]

I gather that he went on to be a PE instructor at Aslockton prison, where is he now, he was 35 when he played in that 67 team, the last survivor of the FA Cup winning lot as well....

Nearly right!

He was at Lowdham Grange...retired 5 years ago...but sadly died just 2 years into retirement.

I went to his funeral at Bingham Church 2005...

Charlie Thomson, Jeff Whitefoot and Billy Gray still survive from the '59 Cup winners.

Cheers

Robt P

[firbeck 860]

Nearly right!

He was at Lowdham Grange...retired 5 years ago...but sadly died just 2 years into retirement.

I went to his funeral at Bingham Church 2005...

Charlie Thomson, Jeff Whitefoot and Billy Gray still survive from the '59 Cup winners.

Cheers

Robt P

How sad, what a good old boy he was, don't tell me it was lung cancer.

Jeff Whitefoot was the alternative sub during the season 66-67, the other one was Alan Hinton. What a great team that was, trouble is, that having brought together a truly world class team, the powers that be weren't prepared to spend any money in developing it, it was madness on the directors part.

There was no first team squad at all, when John Barnwell got seriously injured they spent £100,000 on Jim Baxter, what a joke, he was overweight and drunk half the time, I remember watching him play against Leeds, it was pathetic, Barry Lyons spent most of the match covering for him.

Then let us not forget Joe Bakers replacement, the great Alex Ingram, signed from Ayr United and a complete joke, we used to go and watch the matches in disbelief, we felt sorry for the poor bloke in the end, he was completely out of his depth at that level, but the good old powers that be knew better and picked him for every match, all the time Duncan Mackenzie was lurking in the background, what a state of affairs, are these people still in charge today

[Beefsteak 305]

, amazingly we happened to meet Steve Stone, we had seen his first England appearance at Wembley, what a scene that was pre match, playing keep ball with Gazza and beating him every time.

What a nice bloke he was too, happy to talk to anyone and impress my kid. Stuart Pierce got in his car and bogged off without talking to anyone, we weren't impressed.

Couldn't agree more about Steve Stone, really nice bloke (And thats a County fan saying that!!)

As for Phsyco , he must have had things on his mind . I used to meet him regularly when he lived at Cropwell Bishop ( I worked nearby) in the local petrol station , and he always had time for everyone, including my regular pi55 taking

[rob237 89]

In his Forest days, Steve Stone set up a sandwich shop - run by his girlfriend - on Bingham's Long Acre.

The popular shop still thrives today, under different ownership.

He lived in part of Wyverton Hall, a Jacobean mansion set back off the Bingham to Langar road.

Recall that upon his international debut he became an 'overnight sensation' but, like so many others, quickly faded from the scene. Presumably he is now at the playing retirement stage...can't recall his clubs following his Villa stint....

Cheers

Robt P.

[Beefsteak 305]

Here he is in Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Stone_(footballer)

[Frank 13]

How sad, what a good old boy he was, don't tell me it was lung cancer.

Jeff Whitefoot was the alternative sub during the season 66-67, the other one was Alan Hinton. What a great team that was, trouble is, that having brought together a truly world class team, the powers that be weren't prepared to spend any money in developing it, it was madness on the directors part.

There was no first team squad at all, when John Barnwell got seriously injured they spent £100,000 on Jim Baxter, what a joke, he was overweight and drunk half the time, I remember watching him play against Leeds, it was pathetic, Barry Lyons spent most of the match covering for him.

Then let us not forget Joe Bakers replacement, the great Alex Ingram, signed from Ayr United and a complete joke, we used to go and watch the matches in disbelief, we felt sorry for the poor bloke in the end, he was completely out of his depth at that level, but the good old powers that be knew better and picked him for every match, all the time Duncan Mackenzie was lurking in the background, what a state of affairs, are these people still in charge today

Very interesting.

Now, football is not one of my favourite games - in fact I detest it, but, that aside, am I right in thinking that a famous 'local' footballer had a betting shop in Bingham???

Or am I totally off my trolley???

[denshaw 2,874]

It was on the left just as you were going out of Bingham towards Grantham. Could it have been Ian Moore?

I bet Rob would know. I think Frank Wignall (ex Forest) went into car sales. Most of them seemed to run Pubs.

Den.

[rob237 89]

Yes it was Ian who had the Bingham bookies for many years, his premises later moved in to the shopping precinct.

He also owned a 'branch' on Musters Road, West Bridgford...

Upon their sale he became 'mine host' of the Wheatsheaf inn - I used to run the Thursday night quiz for him - which he kept for a considerable time, until he became Forest chief scout.

Last I heard he was doing the same role at Villa for his ex regular bookie client, Martin O'Neill.

He still lives in Bingham, in the same house he's occupied for almost 40 years!

IIRC, Frank Wignall's car business was/is located at Burton Joyce...

Cheers

Robt P.

[firbeck 860]

This seems to have degenerated into a football thread.

I was always a bit reticent about football as a kid, even having Henry Newton as junior school captain didn't do it for me either.

When Forest got to the FA Cup final in 59? I wasn't that bothered and went out to play with my mates, unfortunately Firbeck wreck was completely empty, so was every street in the area, no-one was about at all, I had to go home and suffer watching it on the telly.

The first match I was persuaded to see live, was a friendly, Forest v Dukla Prague, 1966, I seem to recall that one of the Dukla players had been a member of the German World Cup team.

What struck me immediately, the match being played under floodlights, were the bright colours, TV only being black and white then. It certainly made a great impression on me, everything seemed to have a purpose for once. I was hooked after that, and I was a wierd one, I would go and watch Forest and County, always have done ever since, well, not for a few years, I fell out with football when too many foreign players were taken on and the wage bills and admission fees put the game out of the reach of the people it was intended for.

Perhaps we should start a thread on the greatest games involving local teams that we ever saw, I can think of a few, League Cup, Leeds v Notts County must be at the top of the tree, or League, Forest v Man U 1967, what a match, involving the greatest players of the era, I'll never forget that one.

[radfordred 6,284]

I am Nottingham born bred and fed, lived on Ronald Street next door to the General Havelock

One for Micky - General Havelock.

What a cracking name Rock Ale.