I visited Barking last night for our league game (in which we went down 3-0), and for the first time probably, in around my 40 odd years of supporting the club, my mind came to the conclusion that finally, maybe, just maybe, I'm no longer alone! Attendances this season have gone up all around non league, it has to be said, mainly due to the Covid crisis. Fans cannot go and watch the pro teams at the moment and are getting their football fix elsewhere. When the "game" returns hopefully the clubs will have done enough to retain the new found support. So where was I, ah yeah Last night the attendance was given as 103. Driving home I began to have a tot up and I counted at least 31 of those were from the Abbey. At least 30% of the crowd. In my time it's never really been heard of. You know that old saying, one man and his dog? Well usually I seem to be that man without his dog! Our home gates have gone up and finally it looks like Im not alone anymore at away games!
Here's a great photo from the 70's when the club used to have both Senior and Youth Presentations at the Town Hall in Waltham Abbey. How many can you recognise, and indeed if you are in the picture, have you got any photos that we can share?
Odd, that I had never seen this video until this week! (June 24th 2020) This game took place in March 2011, and although I didnt attend my only memory is of going to the clubhouse after when the players were leaving and speaking to Tony Galvin in the car park,
Good video showing the ground in its old light and how far its changed and improved since then.
Beechfield Football Club is engrained in the history of Waltham Abbey FC as research tells me that way back in the 1940's there was an original Beechfield that amalgamated with Abbey Sports in the early 1950's. To my knowledge (and I would most welcome feedback on this), when I was a youngster in the 60's Beechfield was restarted, and don't quote me, by people such as Charlie Sharp, John Woodward, Stan Edmans and Brian Gilson who all lived in Beechfield Walk at the time. (Confirmation on the history would be great) The famous Green Hut which stood for years was the headquarters until the amalgamation with Waltham Abbey United in 1974. Beechfield was originally a Sunday section but went onto to play in the Northern Suburban Saturday League and had many famous battles with Waltham Abbey United, again before the amalgamation.
The photo below is one of the Youth teams from Beechfield pictured in 1973, only recently obtained for my history files. (Thanks to Graham Sheridan)
Back Row L > R : Barry Edmans, Nicky Skinner, Steve Hennessey, Paul Bridges, Ian Ladyman, Brian Paisley, Paul Thomson, Les Slater Manager.
Front Row L > R : Graham Sheridan , Steve McRoe, Mark Kelsey, Martin Gilson, Johhny Herbert, Jon Haldane
Sadly the Covid virus put paid the the 2019-20 but The Abbott's Chairman John Martin has moved fast in preparation for next year. Around 240 tonnes of sand were delivered to our Capershotts ground in early April, in anticipation. Once again the top layer has been taken off the pitch and the ground aeriated and sand filled. The chance to work on the pitch this early was too good an opportunity to miss after the FA declared that all football at our level was to be ruled null and void. That won't stop us including all results and appearances in our official records books though. The ground is pictured Sat 18th April 2020, a view not often seen in the past.
Travelled to Aveley FC last night to watch the new look Abbey team play Bowers and Pitsea in the Isthmian League Cup first round. Manager Mark Stimson basically put out a full reserve team to have a look at players and we were thumped 5-0. Our worst ever league cup defeat. Anyways no worry as it’s FA Cup day Saturday and the prize money from that is far more important to the club should we progress. What I can’t get my head round is the new ground at Aveley. Everyone is ranting about it but it just don’t feel like a football ground to me. I don’t understand the stands behind the goals being placed apart when there is plenty of room behind the goals and the clubhouse feels like a hospital reception to me. Just not that Football ground feeling even though the structure looks impressive in itself. The seating is shallow with spectators allowed to walk behind and it’s all so open and clinical! The tea bar has no cover over it either so if it rains not sure I wanna stand there in a queue. Anyway, you may say I’m jealous of the multi million pound ground but nah. I’ll take the old fashioned places all day long thanks. It’s all about opinions end of the day. That’s us in the Blue by the way.
Pete´s Day
Originally Posted on July 20, 2013, I want to preserve this blog Tuesday 16th July for me now will always be Pete´s Day. I don´t like whiskey, in fact just the smell of it makes me heave, but I´ll look at a bottle now on this day and think of my mate, our mate Pete Morris. 16th July, the day we said goodbye to a true gent and genius. In 2013 the UK was covered in wall to wall sunshine with temperatures soaring. It was more than a two day Summer. Traffic oddly was good and the journey from Essex to Leicestershire took just under 2 hours.
We were first to arrive in the quaint village of Narborough, Pete´s spiritual home. Having found the church, neatly tucked away off the High Street, tea and poached eggs on toast from the little village cafe settled the stomach. The service was at 11-00am and slowly people starting arriving. The church was splendid and one day I´ll revisit and have a proper look around. No doubt I´ll have another chat with Pete and tell him how it all went. The place reminded me of the church in the film Hot Fuzz, although it wasn’t quite as big. Being part of the Lineker family, there was a security guard hovering around, although I sincerely don’t know why. Yes Gary was there with the family but there was more than enough weight around to see off any unwanted onlookers, and to be honest, it just wasn’t like that. The church also reminded me of the magnificent one in Waltham Abbey on a smaller scale.
Sailing was playing as we entered and took our places. As services go it was as pleasant as can be, the vicar was great and Wayne Lineker produced a fantastic speech about Pete´s life that was both sad and funny but made everyone smile. It was a fitting tribute for sure. Myself, I worked hard to keep my emotions in check as I have done on many an occasion such as this. The odd thing was I was smiling most of the time as the sense of occasion for me wasn’t like any other. I tend to cringe when Vicars, Priests whatever start to preach about marching into heaven and going to a better place and stuff like that. I´m there to pay my respects of course but in all honesty I don’t wanna hear that stuff, I want my friends here! Anyway I´m probably not explaining that very well so I´ll move on. This guy today was good and so refreshing. Songs sung and prayers said, everyone filed out gracefully and that was my biggest moment. I was last to leave and they were playing Sailing again. As I turned round I saw a montage of photos on canvas of Pete. Cue the tissues. The Loros* place done good that day.
I had to drive like Hamilton to keep up with the cortege to find the crematorium, Gilroes, which was splendid in the sunshine. The committal was pretty brief, as they are. Myself and Mark Noble noticed the shelf around the outside and said it would have been a great touch if whiskey shots were placed around the outside for everyone. Sorry Pete, I still wouldn’t have drunk it! Abide with me always put a lump in the throat and this was no different. It was back to Narborough and the Dovecot Pub for the wake.
At the pub it was like a mini reunion as the solemn mood changed and the memories came flooding back. Stories of bar building, bar boozing and bar crawling came out as the Linekers lads all put their two pennies in. Everything and everywhere from Puerto Banus to Cyprus and back was discussed, even Pete´s dodgy knee! Each person had their own story to tell and the time flew by. I read reviews about the pub elsewhere as well and they were non too complimentary but everything was fine today, the Fosters was cool as you like and going down far too easy. Moose and I were starting to re enact the past and I remembered the car outside. There´s something about talking about the past and here was a great bunch of people talking about it. I paused for a moment and said “the one person who should be here with us talking about all this is not here” Everyone smiled and we raised our glasses once more for Pete.
Tuesday 16th July 2013, the day we said goodbye to Pete
*LOROS The fantastic hospice in Leicester that looked after Pete in his final days
Main Photo : Dean Howsam, Lee Brown, John Hughes, Paul Bowcock, Dave Hodges, Wayne Lineker, Duane Lineker, Mark Noble, John Hughes Snr, Neal Joyce
Or
Deano, Taffy, Moose, Bow, Dangerous, Links, Links, Nobby, Pappa Moose, Nelly
First Day, First Post, First Waffle
I originally posted this on March 27, 2013 on my first blog site and I thought I’d place it here for posterity! How a blog can be born I guess.
Well it wasn’t exactly the first day I´d been on a tube but for the purpose here, and to relive the boredom, here goes. I´ll keep it short and sweet… Debden to Piccadilly at 7-10pm with the return at 11-20pm, yesterday btw. No one ever talks, well very rarely…the journey home saw a well dressed drunk city gent mumbling to himself while he dropped his rucksack, probably with his empty sandwich Tupperware box inside. The girl opposite, a white coat with furry thing round dangling and black trousers glanced over. We had both been watching the fella and she smiled. I returned the compliment and that was it. This blog was born…
I wanna write a book..
Originally Posted on June 29, 2013
They say we all have one in us…..everyday I think of countless things to write about and never get to write them down. Remember a few months ago? I started this blog thingy, well I only just remembered I had it and so we try again. Today is a real sad day for me. I´m seriously not the best at this emotion lark and the slightest hint and I reach for the tissues.. A close friend of mine succumbed last night to the scourge that is Cancer. Like many others I will never understand life, maybe one day we will all find out, I just know we have to enjoy what we have while it lasts. So why is it, they always take the good ones? Or at least seem to. My friend Pete was one of the kindest men I ever had the honour to be friends with. Pete was super talented, intelligent and great company. He would help anyone when he could and his artistic talents will never be recognised, much to the public’s loss. Pete could paint a scene with the best of them that’s for sure. We worked together in our field putting together bars around Europe and we had some great times, we got to meet some great people and we also had some great rows! If anyone visits a Linekers Bar around the world be sure to know that Pete Morris played a big part in this company and you will for sure, be looking at some of Pete´s designs or handiwork. Spare a thought as I will everyday when I go to work. I mentioned Pete was talented, well that’s an understatement really. He used to build his own cars when he was younger, yes build his own cars and he ended up building his own boat”Dreamaway” in his back garden. To give you some idea it has got 2 Rolls Royce engines to power it, I´m told it´s 52 long. It made county news when Pete finally finished and had to get it airlifted out of the back garden and onto the low loader to take to the docks. Pete sailed her to Spain where he lived happily from port to port with wife Margaret. In Tenerife we used to have these TV´s, the old ones on top of a bar we wheeled in and out everyday onto the terrace selling beers. Almost every night it toppled over and nearly crippled someone with the weight of the TV´s. (Now a days we have plasma so this wouldn’t happen) Pete proceeded to build a new bar. When he wheeled it out the TV´s were on the bar surface and everyone thought WTF has he done. In position, Pete plugged it in and pressed a button. Up went the TV´s on hydraulics and were firmly in place. At the end of the night, press the button and down they came. No one had a near death experience with the outside bar after that! It may sound simple but it was a stroke of genius at the time. Pete was a very very talented man, of that you can be sure.
Pete used to run the teams of builders we had in the bars when we built a new one or carried out a refurbishment, and despite his demeanor he could be quite ruthless when it came to his baby projects. I wasn’t there all the time but used to visit to give the boss progress reports and carry out admin tasks and the like. One time in Cala Dór I went out with four of the builders and I´ll admit it now but I did get Moose in a bit of state at the karaoke bar the night before. When I strolled down the bar at midday Pete let a volley of abuse come my way as his workers were not performing and Moose couldn’t lift a hammer to save his life. I protested weakly that it wasn’t my fault but I soon skulked off while I could. We all had dinner that night and Pete had his glass of Whisky that he loved. We were soon back to normal.. I told Moose to piss off until the work was all finished!
I had many a chat with Pete when and where I could, despite the distances we spoke a fair bit on the phone and we would always put the company to rights, of course we know best whats best for the family, it´s what you do isn’t it? Whenever I had a problem and felt like talking I could always rely on Pete to be there and would email him or call. I used to help Pete with his computer over the phone and it was frustrating explaining cut and paste to a man who built his own boat in his back garden! In fairness we loved a good moan up and always felt better when we came off the phone.
Peter Roger Morris R.I.P Dreamaway xxx
TBH this blog title doesn’t have much to do about writing a book but it was the only way I was going to write about Pete without water damaging my keyboard, apologies for that, but glad to give you a little insight into the great talent PRM x Thanks for reading.
