Newspaper Clippings - Dick Butler - page 28
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16 Shields Gazette , Saturday , January 25 , 1975 I THINK I KNOW JACK CLARK WOULD HAVE DONE I THINK I KNOW what the late Alderman Jack Clark would have said and done about the tug - of - war over the field which now bears hs name . seasons . But the Sports Council spent an hour and a half talking about ways and means of settling the issue this week . All were agreed that everybody wanted to the Culture and help Committee Leisure espe = cially but there were difficulties . Having known the man , I suppose his first reaction would have been to tell the cricket and football factions to darn well sort it out between themselves or he would damned well do it for them . Which , I am pleased to report , is what the South Tyneside Sports Council have done about the clash between Marsden Cricket Club and South Shields Mariners AFC who occupy the Jack Clark Memorial fixture Park and have problems at the start and end of their respective - - VICE - CHAIRMAN Lewis Ogle , standing in for Alan Stokoe who happens to be chairman of Marsden Cri cket Club , kicked off with the view that there was no real problem . For years , cricket and football has been played on the ground . But , fair enough , team the town football should have a ground of their own . He threw in for dis cussion : " What about the disused Harton Colliery site ? " was Coun . Cain's reaction . Bill Bawden's " What ! " Paddy " Never ! " " When the old Mariners were offered the site they said it would cost too much to develop - hundreds of thousands . So let's be pra tical . " My advice to the new Mariners is not to cause a controversy . They were given Cleadon Recreation Ground at the start of the season for a while and went beyond their time . The Education Committee weren't at all happy about that . " But , at the same time , he thought the cricket club ought to be a bit more flie xible . ON TO Tony Pritchard , the sailing member , who " had a fair bit to do with the formation of the new Mari ners . " He said : " They are independant , not short of a bob or two and would be willing to co - operate with the council on a paying basis if a new ground could be found for them . They don't expect anything for nothing . Gossip Shop WHAT " The Sports Council should think of something constructive to help the football club . " Which brought the re joinder from Coun . Harry Marshall that the council and committees were all interested in helping both the football and the cricket clubs . " But , " he reminded , " We had enough antagonism from the old club to last us a lifetime and it was hardly surprising that people who wanted to help , withdrew into their shells . " cause IT WAS here that I got in a word about the fact that it was not the new football club's intention to any trouble whatever . Offi cials had assured me that they were prepared to give and take and hoped that things would work out . I realised that the Cul tural and Leisure director , Ray Lee , had not had a reply to his letter to the club asking for dates be cause the footballers , at this stage , would not know themselves of their March and April commitments . It was hardly fair to expect an answer now . So we tossed about ano = ther possibility . Coun . Mar shall asked : " Could not the old Simonside ground be used by the club until the house building starts ? " Chairman of the Cultural and Leisure Committee Coun . Hugh Downie didn't think much of that . The club may not get a season out of it , he said . Coun . Marshall's reply was that if they had lis tened all those years ago to plans about the A19 going through , then the very place they were sitting in , Bolingbroke Hall , would have been demolished and the sports hall never start ed . There was still no sign of the road going through 16 years later . COUN . CAIN thought there was no harm in the foot : ball club having an infor mal word with the chair man of the Housing Com mittee about Simonside Hall . And with everybody bending over backwards to help , chief parks superin tendant Jim Pearson final ly put the lid on a most animated debate by sug gesting that the secretaries of the football and cricket clubs get together to " Knock out some sort of programme . " The two clubs could go on at Jack Clark Park for " Let's Coun Cain I have no controversy . " - 21 another three seasons if they really tried . We can talk here tonight as long as we like , but in the end it is up to the clubs them selves . " Ray Lee offered to me diate at a meeting of the clubs . As I said at the start , I think that's what Jack Clark would have done . APART from all that , we had assistant secretary Brian Saxon reporting back from the Cultural and Leisure Committee after he and chairman Alan Stokoe had done their first stint after being co - opted and saying that it had brought a new dimension into the activities of the Sports Council . It had taken a long time for it to happen but it had been well worth while fighting for the re cognition . Tony Pritchard reported that in the quest to get planning permission to im prove facilities at the sail ing club site , the council " couldn't have been more helpful . " Treasurer Marshall re ported that the Sports Council has £ 66.281 cash in hand . Next meeting is on Thursday , February 27 and the annual general meet . ing on March 20 . Cup K - O for Mariners SOUTH SHIELDS Mariners failed in their bid to reach the last eight in the Durham FA Challenge Cup on Saturday when they lost their second round proper replay against Wearside League leaders Steels SC 4-1 at the Jack Clark Memorial Park . It was a game Shields could have won had they enjoyed a little more luck with their finishing , for Steels scored four times from far fewer goal attempts , Shields also hitting the post The first half action didn't start until the 24th minute when Marrs blastod home a rebound off the Shields keeper , but the equaliser four minutes later . through Robson from the penalty spot after Young had been brought down . came Shields ' hopes were short lived , for Marrs scored his second on the half hour and Spendley notched up the third goal in the 38th min ute . Shields forced a number of saves in the second half but Marrs completed his hat - trick three minutes before time . ( 14- Shields Gazette , Saturday , February 15 , 1975 DON'T YOU find rather familiar the pattern of departures and blustering from Gateshead United Football Club these days ? No prizes for remembering where you have seen and heard it before ! So it is more than pleasing to see the new South Shields Mariners quietly establishing themselves and sitting happily at the top of the Northern Alliance table . When they first began , a bout of unwise comment somewhat reminiscent of the old regime got one or two backs up , but now the club are earning the respect of local football followers , acquiring a respectable bank balance from a well run weekly scheme and a reputation for sportsmanship . Perhaps their biggest difficulty from the start was to convince people that of the old regime's way of things had followed them into the new set - up . Old habits die hard , and all that sort of thing . none were The council and officials particularly interested in how the new people shaped up . I think their minds can now be at rest . |
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