SCOTT WAS FROM THE SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS

SCOTT AND HIS BOYS LEWIS AND SAM

Sometimes people surprise you. And never more so it seems than when put under the Blast from the Past microscope.

For instance, who would have thought Tommy Bryce bagged a hat trick in 106 seconds or that Frank Lovering was wicket-keeper for his school cricket team or that goalkeeper Jim Marner scored 19 goals (all from the spot) during his illustrious playing career?

Well at the risk of being accused of prevarication, I would think Scott Smith has a USP making him worthy of inclusion in  this revered company…how about him once being considered a potential 100 metres sprint champion???

I thought not…but Scott , born in Bellshill and brought up in Carmyle, attended Bannerman High in Bailleston where the football mad youngster never did get an  opportunity to play up front for his school  team.  

I was looked upon as more of a runner back then and our gym teacher wanted me to concentrate on Athletics but I wouldn’t do it so he then made sure I was kept out of the various football teams.” said the nowadays 54 year old.

With that particular avenue closed for him, Scott took to turning out for St Columbas Boys Club (Viewpark) and recalls having Chris Wilson (later of Lesmahagow) and Paul Anderson (Cumnock) among his team mates before moving on to crack Under 21 Juvenile outfit Milngavie Wanderers where he was a highly sought after striker in a side containing Steff Reilly, later to play for Motherwell and Queens Park, as well as soon to be Junior stoppers Ged Gardiner (ex-Arthurlie) and Danny O’Halloran (ex-Pollok and Petershill).

Scott mused  “It’s funny how Danny , Ged and I came to be centrebacks around the same time in Junior Football because back in our Milngavie days, only Danny played as an out and out defender  as  Ged played in our midfield and I was up top.

“If I remember right, ours was a better than decent team that won several trophy prizes and I also have an abiding memory of going over to Belgium to take part in a highly prestigious tournament against Boys teams from all over Europe and we got as far as the semi-finals before being knocked out.”

His scoring exploits at Under 21 level caught the eye of then Yoker Athletic team boss John Bagdonas who convinced him into signing on at Holm Park but the young Scott failed to settle in a season long stint therefore it didn’t take much of Davie McDermott’s persuasive powers to entice him into joining Rutherglen Glencairn ahead of the 1989/90 season getting underway..

Stevie Easton, JoJo Gardiner. Robert Anderson and George Redmond were just some of the Southcroft Park worthies in those days and Scott struggled to command a regular starting jersey so much so that his mounting unhappiness with a lack of game time brought him to agree on an end of season transfer to Bellshill Athletic

SCOTT (3rd FROM LEFT BACK ROW) IN HIS EARLY GLENCAIRN DAYS

He recounted, “ The team manager (I think his name was Tony McIntyre) had put together a good side with top quality guys such as Paul Green and Craig Tomlinson on the books  and I remember more good days than bad ones including a hat trick scored against Arthurlie.

“I would have said another highlight was getting to the Central League Cup Final against Lesmahagow but for the fact I found myself serving a suspension when th game took place (my old  Achilles heel of verbally letting rip at Referees) and we lost 1-0.”

Scott might have remained more than a couple of seasons at Brandon Park but for an out of the blue signing approach made by Maryhill in !994  whose newly appointed management team of Ronnie McDonald, Alan Maitland and Dennis McDaid saw him as an ideal fit for their   revamp of Lochburn Park’s  dressing room already kickstarted by  the captures of Richie McCusker, John Thomson, Andy McLay, Stevie Campbell Alan Grant and others.

Scott recalled, “Maryhill was an eye–opener not least of all because Ronnie was not short of a bob or two and would spare no expense in trying to put the club on the Junior map .

“I recall one particular occasion when he shelled out for the entire team and backroom staff to travel up on a Friday night and have an overnight stay before an away Scottish Junior Cup tie against Maud who were not exactly the toughest opposition.

“He trusted the guys to be professional in terms of having no more than a couple of  Friday night beers  but the fact we only won the tie by the skin of our teeth the next day (I believe 2-0 was the scoreline ) was maybe a sign of one or two of us overdoing it.”

Scott’s parting of the ways with the famous old Glasgow outfit was atypical in the extreme.

“Ronnie took me to the side one training night to say Shotts Bon Accord had approached him with a view to signing me but I told him a move out there didn’t interest me in the slightest.

“But over the next few days, I then had second thoughts, particularly the attractive prospect of playing under their management team of ex-Celtic pair John Clark and Frank McGarvey, so I made the fatal mistake of going back to Ronnie and asking if he wouldn’t mind me going up to speak with them?.

“To which he replied `Of course you can but leave your boots and club bag here because as of now you’re officially on the transfer list`.”

The addition of a  wholehearted striker of Scott’s height and  physicality provided a welcome boost to a Hannah Park dressing room already containing seasoned types Andy Cunningham, John Richardson, Charlie Spiers, John Mitchell and goalkeeper Rab  McCulloch  so it wasn’t long before the  Central League Cup was won by virtue of . a penalty kicks shoot out win over Shettleston .

Bonny supporters` were optimistically predicting further silverware prizes in the pipeline for that trophy winning side but Mick Oliver, who had been a coach under Clark .moved away to take up an offer to manage Rob Roy and both he and his Rabs No 2 Gary Thompson had earmarked Scott as a priority signing target and it was not long before the 24 year old hitman was putting pen to paper for his sixth Junior club.

Scott recalled,” The fact Gary and I were pals  had a huge influence on me going to the Rabs but I have to say it was one of my better moves and I ended up staying for all of three seasons and playing alongside the likes of Franny Loughlin. Stewart Robertson, Jimmy McConville, Martin Feeney and Chris McMillan to name but a few.

“I felt settled there and might have hung around a bit longer but for Gordon Wilson taking over as team boss after Mick stepped up to become Ayr United assistant manager under Gordon Dalziel.

“Wilson had his own ideas and he set about making wholesale changes in overseeing the break-up of what was a decent team and he also made it abundantly clear I was not his type and would be moving on.

“More than once he said I wouldn’t get another club but he was made to eat his words when The Monk (John Conlin) and Stevie Rankin,in charge at one my previous clubs Rutherglen Glencairn, made a signing approach.”

Rejoining a Southcroft Park dressing room, devoid of any of his former Glens team mates , but boasting a freshly assembled array of formidable Junior types such as Jimmy Gentles, Drew McWilliams Willie Paterson, ex-Rob Roy team mate McConville, Andy McPherson, Paul Quinn and Scott Cameron was clearly to Scott’s liking because he was to spend the following 13 seasons with the Ru’Glonian outfit…initially as a converted centreback by Conlin  before taking up a co-manager role in tandem with Patterson for fully 5 years.

He takes up the story, “Looking back now, the highlight purely from a playing  perspective has to be winning the Central League Cup in 1999 with a 3-1 victory over Shettleston when if memory serves me right Scott Cameron scored twice and Andy Kane  netted our other goal.

“But what makes that particular Newlandsfield staged Cup Final occasion stick in the memory is down to The Monk  having incurred a suspension in the weeks leading up to the game for one of his typical rants  at a Referee.

“He was then landed with an over-the-top punishment …barred from setting foot in the vicinity of the  dressing rooms for an hour before and an hour after the Final ??? something that would never be tolerated in the Senior game. But we got around this nonsense by deliberately claiming the away dressing room which had a small window opening out onto the street outside so The Monk was able to be lifted up onto someone’s shoulders in order to hold his pre match and half time team talks with us .

“And all the time ,Central League officials were walking up and down the pavilion corridors thinking they had got one over on him.”

“Afterwards we as a team made our feelings known by taking the Cup up onto the terracings to celebrate with him rather than pose for any photographs out on the pitch.”

Scott was to go on in his advancing years to arguably play the best football of his long career until tragedy struck in August 2006 when aged 38 , he controversially sustained a broken leg in an early season  derby match against Cambuslang Rangers .

His injury ensured he was never to kick a ball again but what undoubtedly vexed Scott most was the opponent responsible for the career ending tackle, Barry Cullen , should never have been on the Somervell Park pitch as he was still serving a suspension for a previous misdemeanor?

SCOTT NEVER RECOVERED FROM HIS LEG-BREAK

Around that time , the Glens management team of Ross Anderson and Paul Sexton,( they had taken over the reins from the Conlin/Rankin combo) decided to  call it a day and  as a  parting shot, they suggested  the Rutherglen club’s Committee could do a lot worse than give the job to long serving pair Smith and Paterson.

Their appointment was to prove fortuitous after s the duo hit the ground running and built a wonderful side comprising of Bryan Prunty, Chris Gentile, Thomas Jarvis, Paul McDougall, Stephen McGladrigan, Davie Dickson , Stephen O’ Keane, Paul McLaughlin among others that won three promotions and were twice title winners in topping the Central District First Division  pile in 2009  before being crowned 2010 Super League First Division champions.

Not long after their 2010 triumph, Scott and Willie surprisingly resigned their posts and almost immediately were installed as Petershill ‘s new management team, sparking rumours they had been lured to Springburn by the rewards on offer.

“There was a school of thought that Willie and I had let it be known we wanted the Peasy job but nothing could have been further from the truth “reflected Scott.

He added, “Not seeing how the Glens team we’d put together would have fared against the Premier Division big guns is one of our biggest regrets but we were left with little choice other than to walk away after club officials kyboshed our plans to bring in a new striker that we felt would vastly improve our team.

“Their refusal to sanction any signing unless we raised the monies ourselves from selling on some guys stuck in the teeth more than a bit particularly because Willie and I had been responsible for bringing in a fair bit of sponsorship.

“Calling it quits meant we were more or less putting ourselves out of the game but then Stevie Easton and Scott McHarg left Petershill so we decided to chance our arm by applying and it paid off.”

Among the star turns in the dressing room they inherited were Ryan Jordan, Ross McCabe , Martin Lauchlan and brothers Kevin and Paul McBride but not everyone took to the new management team as Scott recalls.

“The Peasy players had been a close knit bunch therefore it was inevitable that some guys wanted to leave however Willie and I didn’t hang around trying to convince them otherwise.

“Instead we set about a recruitment drive that saw us sign up practically a new team inclusive of many of our former Glencairn players (11 at the last count) headed up by Davie Dickson , Keano, Craig Palmer, Glad  and Gentile yet all we did was ask them if they wanted to join up with us again.

”Stories circulating about huge signing on fees being offered as an inducement were just a load of guff!”

Not surprisingly, this mix of old and new players took time to click and the  revamped Petershill only avoided relegation by the skin of their teeth that first season through winning a double header play-off against Glenafton thanks to McGladrigan scoring the only goal through in Springburn following a 0-0 first game draw down in Ayrshire.

Putting down roots as well as their own stamp on the team over the ensuing couple of seasons saw Petershill emerge as the leading challengers to the crack Irvine Meadow side of that time however the curtain coming down on the 2013/14 season was also to herald the end of Scott’s 24 year association with the Junior game.

” My walking away allowed Willie to bring in Paul Kelly as his No 2 so it was probably a move for the better,” he scoffed before adding “ Truth is I left because I was in a bit of a flux from wanting to give Petershill nothing less than my total commitment while at the same time feeling I should be taking time to watch my sons Lewis and Sam playing  at Boys Football level .

“They won the day and I’ve never once regretted my decision despite the many good times and wonderful characters I’d experienced at Junior level.”

Golf and his thriving  company Smiths Joinery ties up a lot of Scott’s time nowadays however he admits to having ring-fenced the date of Friday 2^nd June when Rutherglen Glencairn , where he spent the majority of his career, are due to face Cumnock in the Scottish Junior Cup Final .

He said, “ Willie Harvey and Joe Pryce are a couple of  great  guys whom I’ve known for as long as I can remember and I’d be delighted if they go on and win the Cup .”

FIXTURES FOR SATURDAY 29^th APRIL 2023 (2PM unless stated): Indigo Comms West of Scotland League Cup Final.Auchinleck Talbot v Clydebank( Friday Meadow Park 7.45). P.D.M.Buildbase Premier Division. Beith v Kilwinning Rangers, Arthurlie v Rob Roy, Hurlford Utd v Darvel, Glenafton v Cumnock, Cambuslang Rangers v Troon. PDM Buildbase First Division. Gartcairn v St Rochs, Benburb v Neilston, , Thorniewood Utd v Whitletts Vics,  Blantyre Vics v Shotts Bon Accord, Cumbernauld Utd v St Cadocs, Rutherglen Glencairn v Drumchapel Utd. PDM Buildbase Second Division. Glasgow Utd v Ardeer Thistle, Greenock v Ashfield, Maryhill v  Kilsyth Rangers,Wishaw v Craigmark, Muirkirk  v Glasgow University, St Anthonys v Maybole. PDM Buildbase Third Division. Saltcoats Vics v Vale of Clyde,  Lanark Utd v Ardrossan Winton Rovers, Newmains Utd, v Port Glasgow, Lugar Boswell v  Carluke Rovers ,Dalry Thistle v Bellshill Athletic, Royal Albert v  Kello Rovers,,Irvine Vics v Vale of Leven, Lesmahagow v  Larkhall Thistle,  Finnart v  East Kilbride Thistle.

Regards   Jim O’Donnell

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