Open Writing

Christmas was rather an austere time during the war. For a young enthusiastic Newcastle United supporter like myself there was no club shop, and no football kits for sale. Therefore in December 1944, when I got a striped black and white tie for a Christmas present, I was thrilled to bits. It was my pride and joy and I wore it every time I went to St James's Park.

Professional football was played on Christmas Day and Boxing Day during the war and the late 1940's. I was usually one of the spectators at a home game on Boxing Day. Records by Paul Joannou (1986) indicate that during the 1946 Christmas week, the Magpies played four games in eight days. Three of these were at St James's Park and 151,702 spectators watched them play Chesterfield, West Bromwich Albion and Millwall. The average home 'gate' for the 1946/7 season was only 565 short of 50,000.

To indicate to the crowd that there was only ten minutes to the final whistle, a flag used to be lowered at the Gallowgate end of the ground. This was the signal for lots of people who wanted to be away quickly to start 'fighting' their way out of the crowd. I used to wait until the end of the game and by the time I got out of the ground and made my way down to the Evening Chronicle offices, the sports edition was just about to hit the streets' at 5.30 p.m. It always amazed me how, even in war-time, such a paper with all the scores and reports could be produced in less than an hour after the games finished.

Once I had a paper, it was to Worswick Street bus station as quickly as possible to join the long queue for the Houghton-le-Spring bus. As I was usually there before sellers of the sports edition, people used to ask me for the respective scores and 'mark their coupon' by looking over my shoulder.

The following year, if money was available, I would go in the 'gods' at the early show at the Empire or Palace. This allowed me to miss the bus queues and still be back in Fence Houses for about 9 p.m.

One Saturday during the 1945/6 season, there was a major bus strike in the north-east. This threatened to affect my attendance at St James's Park and the delivery of a parcel to my sister in South Shields. Not to be put off, I used the railway. First the dirty, noisy steam train from Fence Houses to South Shields, changing at Sunderland, then the delivery of the parcel and lunch at my sister's. Then the quieter and cleaner electric train to Newcastle and the football match at St James's Park.

For the return journey I got the Sunderland train from Newcastle, changed there and got the Durham steam train from Sunderland, getting off at Fence Houses. I then walked to Finchale Terrace. By the time I got there I had been out over twelve hours. Quite a day for a ten-year-old!

Once during the 1945/46 season, I broke my rule of not leaving until most of the crowd had left the ground. I wish I hadn't! Never before have I been so scared, as my feet were lifted off the ground by the pressure of the crowds on the exit stairs as we descended. Once outside, the St James's Park individuals had to go with the crowd - it was impossible to change direction and I dread to think what would have happened if somebody had stumbled and fallen.

Back in Fence Houses, my friends and I used to spend every available minute playing football in the back lane with a small ball, or in the recwith an old football, if one could be found. Footballs were extremely scarce during the war years and a youngster who owned one was assured of many friends. Some of our games had to be abandoned due to a burst football or temporarily held up while a punctured ball was repaired.

The air-raid shelter in the back lane was an essential part of our games of football and cricket. The end of the shelter was about eight feet wide and six feet high and it acted as a natural resource for a goal during the winter, and with the aid of some markings, as a wicket during the summer. It also stimulated some sort of accuracy because it was a rule in either game, if someone missed the end of the shelter while shooting or bowling, they had a long journey down the sloping back lane, to retrieve the ball.

At the rec we used to organise seven-a-side from Sixth Pit to play a team from Fence Houses. The best of the two teams, or more likely, depending on who was available, were then merged to form an eleven-a-side team which we called Fence Houses Rangers. We then used to play a team from the station end of the village known as Fence Houses Dynamos. Records indicate that we met five times during the 1945/46 season and each team won 2 games and one was drawn. One game must have been very exciting with the Dynamos winning 7 goals to 6 - Thompson 3, Tindle 2, and Spooner 2 scored for the Dynamos, with Foster 3, and Gilhespy, Charlton and Owen replying for the Rangers.

I also recall an away game against Lumley when we travelled by Hunter's bus to the next village. The game ended with a much-disputed goal. Did the ball go over the pile of clothes that formed our make-believe goal post, or did it go into the goal? A fight between the two teams was only saved by the driver of the bus. He saw what was happening, came over and said, "The bus is leaving now, otherwise you'll be walking home!" We grabbed our clothes and ran.

All this was done without any adult involvement. There were no managers, trainers or referees -just a group of nine to twelve year olds with enthusiasm and an old football. We all just wore our normal clothes, except perhaps for a pair of sand (gym) shoes, which meant that we could run faster but not kick the ball so hard!

We also used to play football with a small ball in the overcrowded school playground at lunch and break times. The unrestrained way we used to play, caused my first football injury. I fell on the concrete playground and broke my collar bone. This resulted in two firsts - my first visit to the doctor, and then my first visit to a hospital at Sunderland to have the arm X-rayed and set.

It caused two weeks off school but more important, I was banned from playing football for four weeks. I couldn't exist without football so I took up refereeing instead. I recall walking around the football field in the rec with a whistle in my mouth and an arm in a sling.

Most colliery villages had excellent football teams with a first class ground. The exception was Fence Houses. There was a football ground in the village, situated behind the Palace Cinema, but it lacked any changing accommodation. I recall some games there, when the teams changed in the Miners' Welfare Hall, about a quarter of a mile away. On other occasions, the players used Lambton Baths and had to climb over the busy Sunderland to Durham railway line to get to the ground. Why they didn't use the nearby Burnside Pub/Club I will never know.

The best junior team in the district was undoubtedly Lumley Juniors. They played at Great Lumley and drew crowds of several hundred. When the Magpies were playing away, I was usually one of that crowd. The star of the team was a young inside-right by the name of Tommy Thompson. Tommy was born locally and the whole village knew it was only a matter of time before he signed for some professional club. That lucky club was Newcastle United. The Lumley lad went on to enjoy success with Aston Villa, Preston North End, Stoke City and also represented England on two occasions. He must hold the unique privilege of having played inside-right to football legends, Tom Finney (at P.N.E.) and Stanley Matthews (at Stoke) both of whom were awarded knighthoods in later years.

About the same time, another young lad about the same age signed for Sunderland. He was Jimmy Sherburn, who lived at New Lambton and was a distant relative of the Charltons. He did not experience the same success as Tommy Thompson and in later years I believe he played mostly for Bishop Auckland. The success of both these local lads acted as an incentive to every football-mad youngster in the village. Most of them wanted to be a professional footballer after leaving school.

During the long summer months at Fence Houses, the Sixth Pit Gang struggled to play cricket on the uneven surface of the 'rec' with an old bat and a cork ball. Then somebody found out that we could join nearby Burnmoor Cricket Club for 2s 6d and enjoy the luxury of practising on a real cricket field. I had a job getting the money from my mother, who couldn't understand the need to pay money to play cricket, when I could do so at the 'rec' for nothing! With Bob Charlton's backing, she eventually 'paid up' and from then on, most of us would be found at the cricket ground, most evenings.
If there was a match on, we usually got the job of scoring or at least putting up the numbers on the score box. I remember that Joe Gelson was the first team fast bowler and ginger-haired Ernie Clark was the wicket keeper.

Whilst keeping score at a number of minor games at Burnmoor - usually between local colliery teams - I used to ask one of the few spectators the name of the respective bowler or batsman. I was often told "Bevin Boy", which I conscientiously inserted in the score book. It was not until I noticed that nearly every team had someone by this name and that they were usually a better than average cricketer, that I asked more questions.

Bob Charlton told me that they were young men, who were directed by the Government to work in the mines during the war instead of joining the armed forces. They were named Bevin Boys after Ernest Bevin the Cabinet Minister responsible for the legislation. I later found out that between 1943 and 1946, ten percent of all young men called up for military service were chosen by 'blind ballot' to be Bevin Boys. These included Sir Jimmy Saville and Lord Rix CBE.

Later research confirmed that this 'national service in the mines' caused many problems with only debatable advantages. Warwick Taylor (1995) states, "During the first year of the Bevin Boy scheme, 500 young men were prosecuted for refusal to obey the Direction Order, of whom 147 were sent to prison."

By the time I was nine years of age, I had also discovered Wood Terrace, the home ground of South Shields Cricket Club. However, living in Fence Houses, it was much easier for me to see them when they played away. On one such occasion in July 1944, I went to see Shields play at nearby Philadelphia. The match used to start at 2.30 p.m. and usually finished about 8.00 p.m. So, equipped with a drink, sandwiches, pencil and score-book, I was off for the day. Little did anyone expect that the home team that day would be bowled out for only 16 runs in less than an hour! Top scorer was extras with four runs. The match was over by 4.30 p.m. and I was back at Finchale Terrace by five o'clock. The house was empty but like most people in those days, the key to the back door was on the outside window sill.

Bob Charlton used to take John and me to the wartime Durham versus Northumberland annual cricket match at Chester-le-Street. He had, however, economic rather than cricket objectives. He used to prepare a tray of 'Rose Buttonholes' from his own garden and John and I were detailed to go around the large crowd selling them. There were many buyers and we got so much pocket money for every one sold. This was in between watching Durham's big hitters, Jack Carr and Bill Proud.