MICK COULD DELIVER WHEN ASKED

MICK LIVINGSTONE IN HIS BENBURB HEYDAY

They’re a different breed aren’t they? …these former players whose Blast From The Past remembrances of bygone days have been so illuminating over the past year or thereabouts.

But even by their standards , Mick Livingstone ‘s career tale warrants an airing , though not on account of any  array of silverware triumphs therein as much as the disclosure that it’s very origins can be traced back to a Gorbals Graveyard or as  it’s more properly known The Southern Necropolis Cemetery in Caledonia Road.

Said the long since confirmed sexagenarian…well he does turn 64 this week!

“ I was born and brought up in Lawmoor Street which bordered the  graveyard on the opposite side to Caley Road so it became a regular occurrence for me and my pals ,pre-school and afterwards , to climb over the fence and play kickabout games on the only patch of decent grass in the area , while using tombstones for our goalposts.

“The lack of open space meant I simply had to pick up dribbling skills and this stood me in good stead when I then attended St Francis Primary and played in the same School and Boys Guild teams as big Mick Davenport, later a Scottish Junior Cup winner with Blantyre Vics (1982), as well as the Coyle brothers Tommy and Joe , who both went on to enjoy memorable playing stints for Shettleston and Dumbarton along with  a number of other clubs.”

The young Mick progressed to John Bosco Secondary in Oatlands where he believes Dennis McDaid (a future Dundee United signing)  and he played together in an Under 13’s team that won the Castle Cup in unforgettable circumstances.

He recalled ,” Our school drew 3-3 against St Augustines from Milton in the Final which was played at Roseberry Park ,just a stone’s throw from John Bosco,(not the best choice of words)seeing  as the Police had to be called when  crowd trouble erupted outside the ground.

“Only in Glasgow would you get fighting at an Under 13’s Final however the story had  a happy ending for the Bosco because we ran out 4-3 winners in the Final replay at Nether Pollok .”

Upon leaving school, aged 16, Mick began a Painter and Decorator apprenticeship but  derisory wages led to him taking up a much better paid job alongside his Dad in the Michelin Tyre Factory which coincided with him taking a couple of years out of football.

He stepped back onto  the footballing ladder with Glasgow United managed by Archie Lawrie, who back then doubled as a scout for  Hearts,  and his admiration of the  Gorbals Boy’s  emerging talents resulted in an invitation to play in a few trial matches back when the hitherto Scotland manager Willie Ormond was overseeing Tynecastle playing matters.

Mick’s appearances for Glasgow United proved somewhat brief before he was lured away …not by the prospect of a Senior career with Hearts but because he acceded to the persuasive and endearing tones of Benburb Match Secretary Tommy Douglas who talked him into putting pen to paper for the famous old Govan club where coaches Ian Law and Jim Goudie were in the throes of building a team around the likes of Ally Marshall, Jim Quigley, Albert Burnett and the much feted attacking trio of Grant McIntosh, Stevie Whitehead and Eddie McKim.

Mick takes up the story, “ Archie’s recommendations saw to it that  Hearts did not lose  interest and while  at the Bens I  turned out for them against Whitehill Welfare and a Jordanhill College select before getting the nod to play  in a  full Reserves match against East Fife when the only players  I knew in our line-up were  first teamers on the way back from injuries, aka  big powerful  centreback Frank Liddell , goalkeeper Thomson Allan and striker Graham Shaw.

“I felt I did well in the games and Willie Ormond must have thought the same because he then asked to come into Tynecastle for talks ahead of another Reserves game scheduled for the following midweek.

“All the Hearts guys were slapping me on the back and saying I must be getting signed up but Ormond was sacked just a couple of days later and replaced by Alex Rennie so I couldn’t very well turn up for a meeting or a game when he was no longer there and neither did I hear another dickybird  about any contract offer.

“ It was a kick in the teeth at the time and one not made any easier to bear by my so-called mates giving me pelters and insisting Ormond was only given his jotters because he let  it be known he wanted to sign me …and would you believe they’re  still giving it laldy to this day!

Once back in Benburb’s fold ,he was to set about making a telling contribution pn the Junior scene because in only his second season ,the Govan side made it all the way to a 2-2 drawn Hampden Park staged Junior Cup Final showdown against Bailleston which saw Mick bestowed with the Man of the Match award afterwards .

He recounted, “ A nice honour and one I’m immensely proud of however I’d much rather have given a nightmare performance if it meant we could  have got our hands on the Cup  but it wasn’t to be unfortunately as Bailleston went on to come good in the replay and run out 2-0 extra time winners.

He added , “Players always say Cup Final occasions flash past in an instant and that maybe explains why I don’t have too many memories of the Cup Final itself .

“What I’ve never forgotten is Benburb’s actual preparations ahead of the game  which entailed our entire playing squad taking part in a light training session at Tinto prior to joining club officials for  lunch at the Orchard Park Hotel in Giffnock where we were served what I can only refer to as ` Desperate Dan` steaks

”I’ve no doubt Sports Scientists today can come up with more nutritional  pre-match meals but let me tell you there wasn’t so much as a morsel left on any of the plates. “

Mick remained a further three years on the Govan books before a first ever taste of major trophy success was realized by him and his Benburb team mates overcoming the handicap of Ally Edmiston ‘s tenth minute dismissal to secure  a West of Scotland Cup triumph thanks to a penalty kick shoot-out defeat of Port Glasgow in a tense Somervell Park finale.

MICK (left) ALONGSIDE OTHER BENBURB PRIZEWINNERS JOHN DOUGALL and EDDIE McKIM

He thought back ,”Our West Cup  victory was the pinnacle moment of my time with the Bens and I found it difficult to accept just how mediocre we went on to become  over the next couple of seasons so I was only too willing to agree on a transfer when the Pollok manager Dick Brock came in for me in 1985.

“ His side comprising of quality guys such as my former Benburb team mate Ally Marshall, John McGall , Stuart Gordon ,Jimmy Hughes,  Gordon Wilson , Howard Sameroff and others of that ilk had just beaten Petershill to win the Scottish Junior Cup but a lot of changes were in the offing.

“Jeff Curran , Stuart Auld, Hughsie and Derek Lea were just some of the established players about to move on to pastures new  and Dicky put up a very convincing argument saying he had identified me as someone capable of helping to fill the void but little did I know I would then spend the next three seasons vying for a regular place in his plans (mainly down  the right flank) with the talented trio of Sandy Stewart, Davie Jamieson and Jim Mullaney.

Mick scoffed  “ Messi apart ,I can’t think of many players who wouldn’t have had problems in winning that particular battle so before long I found myself on the periphery of the team  and needless to say I wasn’t then included among the 13 players named in 1986 when Pollok made it through  to a second successive Junior Cup Final where Auchinleck Talbot were our opponents.”

By way of a subplot, Mick was understandably thinking the door had been opened to  a shock recall for him when it became clear  Jamieson (a shoo in to play when fit) would not be taking part after picking up an injury and he found himself selected as the gifted midfielder’s replacement in Pollok’s last three games leading up to the Final.

But come match-day itself it wouldn’t be much of an exaggeration to suggest that Mick was left close to disconsolate after Brock announced his preference was for introducing Mullaney on the right side of a midfield quartet composed of skipper Gordon Wilson and John McGall in the central roles and John McCarthy down the left .

He recounted “Before anyone accuses me of sour grapes , I will say for the record that our Pollok side really should have won that Final .

“We  were 2-0 to the good after only a quarter of an hour and nobody in their right mind could or would have quibbled with Dicky’s team selection at that point however a lot of questions were raised after Talbot came storming back to win the game 3-2 and lift the Cup .

“One that I’ve often been asked down the years is whether playing me would have made any difference to the result and truth is I can’t say for certain but what I do know is that Jim Mullaney, wonderfully skilled forward going type that he was , hadn’t played for a month or more before the Final so his inclusion from the start was both a surprise and a bit unfair on him if truth be told.

“Hampden Park`s wide open spaces were more suited to graft rather than craft and Jim was not the only Pollok player swept aside when the Talbot midfield got up a full head of steam however I didn’t get any sense of satisfaction watching on from the sidelines and it definitely didn’t make me feel any better when Dicky took me aside following our defeat to admit he’d picked the wrong team and should have played me!

”Now there was a case of rubbing salt in the wounds”

Mick got over his Cup Final disappointment to remain at Newlandsfield for the 1986/87 season and despite the continuance of his seemingly up and down relationship with Brock,  which reared its head yet again when Auchinleck and Pollok were pitted to repeat their locking of horns in a West of Scotland Cup Final being played at Blair Park in Hurlford.

This time around, the Lok boss covered all the bases by naming Mick among his substitutes, rather fortuitously as it transpired, after his maverick playing ace came off the bench…with 20 minutes left to play and Talbot leading 2-0 …to inspire the mother of all comebacks and a 3-2 Pollok triumph (George Rattray netted a hat trick) after extra time.

A matter of weeks further down the line , the Lok pair’s love/hate correlation surfaced once more when yet another disagreement led to them scrabbling on the corridor floor outside the Newlandsfield dressing rooms.

“Taking on someone who was 6 foot plus in his stocking soles let alone the team manager was not my smartest move and I was as good as finished at Pollok after that episode .” reflected Mick.

“ I spent the next few weeks with no involvement other than going along to training in order to keep myself fit and ticking over until out of the blue I got a phone call from a former Pollok team mate Dougie Chisholm (then an Auchinleck player) saying his manager Willie Knox had contacted Pollok and was keen on signing me .

“ I went down for talks which came to nothing as it turned out because Knoxy said Dicky Brock was looking for an extortionate transfer fee that neither he nor his club were willing to pay so I missed out on joining a Talbot side that went on to win the Scottish , West and Ayrshire League title that season.

“What did get sanctioned a matter of months later was an approach from the Cumnock boss Tucker McGinn whose signing offer was less than half the price put on my head when Talbot had enquired and I jumped at the chance of  moving to a Townhead Park  dressing room containing experienced types Peter Monan , Ian Dick Bobby McCulloch and Jimmy McIntyre.

He added , “ Cumnock’s fans appreciated what I brought to their team and other than constantly calling me a Weegie were great to play for however I did blot my copybook in their eyes by getting sent off  in the only derby match against Talbot that I played in .”

Many of his team mates stayed the course to play their parts the following 1988/89 season when Cumnock went on to lift the Scottish Junior Cup with a 1-0 victory over Ormiston Primrose but by that time Mick had brought his brief Ayrshire tenure to an end and was even further afield , playing out in Australia for Melbourne based outfit Springvale City.

He laughed in reminiscing, “I received a telephone call from Gus McLeod whom I didn’t know other than from playing against him for Benburb when he was at Pollok.

“Gus explained how he had recently been appointed Springvale manager and was of the mind that top Junior players recruited from these shores would improve playing standards over there and it sounded a wonderful opportunity so I didn’t waste any time in agreeing to come out.

“Some people might have thought emigrating at 29 years of age was something of a gamble but it was a dream move and I found myself playing at a more than decent level and in a team comprised of Italian , Croatian and Greek players as well as my former Pollok team mate Davie Fourna and not forgetting  the ex-Talbot pair of Stan Webster and Hughie Findlay.

“All told I was out there for three years and the highlight (other than my son Michael being born obviously ) was when Brazil, Japan, Saudi Arabia and Argentine among others sent out teams to take part in a tournament to mark Australia’s Bi-Centenary and they played warm-up games against Aussie provincial sides, Springvale included when I was team captain.

“I got to mingle up close with  numerous players who have since gone on to enjoy terrific careers (And yes I have forgotten their names!) but best of all was getting to shake hands with Carlos Alberto , Brazil’s World Cup winning captain in 1970 way  back when I was still at St Francis Primary.”

MICK EXCHANGING PENNANTS WITH THE SAUDI ARABIA CAPTAIN

Home-sickness was a contributory factor in Mick and his family subsequently returning to Scotland whereupon his availability as a free agent brought several signing bids  before he opted to put pen to paper at Shotts Bon Accord where John Richardson, Pat Daly,  skipper Andy Cunningham and  Hughie Hamill were among the players coming  under the tutelage of former Albion Rovers stalwart John Jamieson.

“ I have nothing but good things to say about my time at Shotts but for whatever reason my heart wasn’t in it out on the pitch where it really  matters and after just  one season  I was only too happy to make the move back to Benburb where former team mates Billy Peacock and Eddie McKim were in charge of a side whose star turns were Andy Dailly and Phil Carvill.

“We won a promotion during the following three seasons but even after deciding to call it a day at 35 years of age , I couldn’t resist the call when a Gorbals pal asked if I would go down and help out a struggling Muirkirk for whom  I turned out in a handful of pre-season games ,the last of which against Larkhall Thistle ended abruptly when I felt as if someone had shot me in the back of my leg after suffering a  tear to my Achilles tendon.

“ I was done with football after that.”

Mick resorted to driving a taxi on Saturday afternoons and still does nigh on 30 years later (when he’s not watching Celtic that is ) but he did own up to a totally  accidental dalliance with  fields of former glory in 2017  when he was a guest at  a ceremony held in The Loks (formerly Pollok’s Social Club) at the same time as the West of Scotland Cup Final was being played at Newlandsfield between two of his former clubs Pollok and Cumnock.

Mick recounted “ I hadn’t even known the game was taking place but I was naturally inclined to pop  in and out to see how things were panning out …Pollok won on penalties I think …and  seeing the big crowd in attendance and the atmosphere created by them certainly stirred up  a lot of happy memories …though not enough to tempt me back on a regular basis.”

MICK PREFERS AN EASIER TIME OF IT NOWADAYS

FIXTURES FOR SATURDAY 2^nd SEPTEMBER (Kick Offs 2 PM unless stated ):Scottish Gas Cup Preliminary Round Two(3PM).Carluke Rovers v Dalbeattie Star, Beith v Bonnyton Thistle, Cumnock v Girvan, Easthouses Lily MWFC v Threave Rovers, Fort William v Clydebank. Glenafton v Darvel, Irvine Meadow v Dunipace, Kilwinning Rangers v Glasgow University, Penicuik Athletic v Rutherglen Glencairn, Pollok v Benburb,Wigtown & Bladnoch v Auchinleck Talbot.Scottish Junior Cup.First Round(2.30PM).

Coupar Angus v Rothie Rovers, New Elgin v Banks O’Dee, Cambuslang Rangers v Petershill, Islavale v Greenock, Banchory St Ternans v Maybole, Muirkirk v East Kilbride Thistle, Fraserburgh Utd v Shotts Bon Accord, Pumpherston v Finnart, Whitehills v Caledonian Locomotive, Cruden Bay v Stoeywood Parkvale, Cumbernauld Utd v Dundee North End,Dufftown v Lochee Harp, Blairgowrie v Troon, Largs Thistle v Lugar Boswell, Wishaw v Rossvale, Kilsyth Rangers v Arthurlie, Newmains Utd v Dyce, Vale of Clyde v Glasgow United , Glentanar v Deveronside,Dalry Thistle v Royal Albert, Maud v Dundee Violet, Hurlford Utd v Sunnybank, Irvine Vics v Forfar West End, Stoneyburn v Aberdeen East End, Longside v Colony Park,  Johnstone Burgh v Dundee East Craigie, Brechin Vics v Bellshill Athletic, Lossiemoth v Hall Russell Utd, Ellon Utd v Dundee Downfield, Saltcoats Vics v Forfar Utd, Gartcairn v Rob Roy,  Bridge of Don Thistle v Maryhill, Yoker Athletic v Broughty Athletic,  Forres Thistle v Letham FC,St Cadocs v Blantyre Vics,   Buchanhaven Hearts v Ardeer Thistle,Lanark Utd v Craigmark, Stonehaven v Kirrie Thistle,  Burghead Thistle v Lesmahagow, Arbroath Vics v Dundee St James, Hermes v Armadale Thistle, Kilbirnie Ladeside v Ashfield, Vale of Leven v Newmachar Utd, Larkhall Thistle v Thorniewood Utd, Nairn St Ninian v Ardrossan Winton Rovers, Scone Thistle v Kello Rovers, St Rochs v Bathgate Thistle. PDM HUWS GRAYFourth Division. Campbeltown Pupils v Knightswood.

Regards

Jim O’Donnell

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