MAYBOLE FOOTBALL CLUB

HISTORY

Maybole Football Team - someone has placed a small "x" My Watson grandfather, John Robb (1885-1961) and this would have been taken somewhere around 1905-1907. image contributed from My Watson this is one of the first Maybole teams in Maybole this is before the Juniors who were formed in 1946 - However its believed this would be Maybole FC rather than having Jnr added.

Jotted history of Maybole Football

Football is another favourite game which has been played by the young men in the town for generations. In the 18th century the schoolmaster in the small school at the foot of the Ballgreen complained bitterly about the damage caused to the building by the boys kicking balls against it when playing "Futball". (It would seem every game was played at the Ballgreen, even "gowfe", before proper pitches and courses were formed, and there must have been great difficulty in separating the footballers from the bowlers and the archers from the golfers).

At the end of the last century a football pitch was formed at Ballony near the "Bog" Shoe Factory and Maybole could field quite a strong team against neighbouring towns. Just before the first World War they were bold enough to enter for the Scottish Cup and drew Glasgow Rangers as opponents.

The match took place at Ballony when nearly the whole of the townspeople turned up to cheer on their team and the score was 12-0, (in favour of the visiting team). [note: match appears to have been played at Ibrox Park] For many years "Ballony" was the favourite venue on a Saturday afternoon for the menfolk who gathered to watch their team do battle and it was customary at half time for the spectators to adjourn to "Sootie" Boyds in the Masons Row, for a dram to celebrate if the locals were winning or to dull their sorrow if they were being beaten.

As time was short and the spectators had to hurry back for the second half "Sootie" would fill out about a hundred pints of beer and have them ready for the rush of customers and naturally the beer was flat before it could be drunk. One Saturday the spectators decided to teach him a lesson and when the half time whistle blew, they rushed from the park and raced past "Sootie's" up the Kildoup to "Bobby Gerrand's" for their half time refreshment, leaving poor "Sootie" with about a hundred pints of flat beer on his counter. This taught him a lesson and he never again drew the pints before the customers arrived.

The pitch at Ballony became disused about the time of the 1914-18 war and for some years there was no proper football ground in the town. Some amateur teams played in the Sheep Park where there was a bowl shaped pitch for the "big yins" and a small pitch at the "Bowsie Brig" for the smaller fry. Many were the fierce encounters against Girvan teams at the Sheep Park when "Jinty", "China", "Killarney" and other football deities showed the "Syboes" that Maybole was the Capital in football as well as other things. Once a team from Dailly came to play at Maybole and when the game was reported in the local paper there were only two surnames (Scobie and Mcginn) among the eleven Dailly players.

Between the two World Wars the old sports ground at Gardenrose was formed into a football pitch and the amateurs played there for many years. After the 1939-45 War a Junior team came into being and still exists. The old playing pitch at Ballony was more or less reformed entirely by voluntary labour in 1945, a clubhouse and covered stand built, and the "Tacketies" are back to where their grandfathers played against Glasgow Rangers.

In recent years football pitches have been formed in the Glebe field and young teams play there and do exceedingly well winning many trophies in competition with other boys' clubs. Before traffic became the problem it now is, the youngsters played football in Kirkland Street, and at the bottom of the Kirkwynd, etc.

All that was needed then was a penny ball and jackets for goal posts and many Maybole men who later played for Clyde, Patrick Thistle, Southampton, and other clubs started their football by playing "heid the ba" against the wall of Ramsay's factory. Nowadays football, like "peevers" and "marbles" can find no place on the busy streets but fortunately the local parks still allow the youngsters to perfect their talents and probably football will continue as a favourite game for the townsfolk.

Ladywell Stadium

In 1944, I was appointed Burgh Surveyor of Maybole. Shortly after I started, a number of town councillors and local people were examining various projects to be ready for Maybole Servicemen returning from the Second World War.

A public meeting was arranged, and the popular outcome was that a football field and a football team was the final decision. Under the chairmanship of the late Ex Provost Tom Murray, a committee was nominated, of which I was a member, and it was decided that an area of ground between the local tannery, (now demolished), and the then Italian POW Camp would be suitable. I agreed to design and supervise the work to be carried out by a great group of enthusiastic volunteers.

The area was cleared and roughly levelled, and an old retaining wall on the road up to the town being in a dangerous condition was demolished and the stones and earth were spread over the area and graded to give a gradual fall away from the tannery building, and drainage taken to the adjoining burn.

This was duly completed by the volunteers, (with the occasional help of the Italian POWs). I then managed to get the loan of a "turf cutting machine" from Prestwick Airport, and with the approval of the Town Council, cut turf from part of the then closed golf course (part known locally as "the Slap"), and completely turfed the area.

On completion, local tradesmen generously gave all the materials to completely build and equip the clubhouse and a fencer erected the spectators rail and surrounding fence to entirely enclose the completed football field, which was then named "THE LADYWELL STADIUM".

Meanwhile other committee men, under Mr. Studie Qua, were scouting around and eventually got a team together, which was called "MAYBOLE JUNIORS" and who were accepted by the Ayrshire Junior Football Association, and the job was completed.

After I left Maybole, I designed a covered stand with ex-Army Nissan Huts and a refreshment room, which were erected and added to the field.

I am now 92 years of age, and one of my sons, Arthur, took me down to Maybole on Wednesday to see my old haunts in the town which I enjoyed working for three years and of course went along to the Ladywell Stadium, where I assure you, I had the most pleasant surprise of my visit to the town.

Your club members obviously appreciate the stadium, and have maintained the whole ground and buildings in excellent condition, which gave me a proud feeling that my efforts and those of the original volunteers had been so worthwhile, and I would ask you to convey my sincere thanks to them for their hard work throughout the years. I may mention when I left Maybole, the Club made me an Honorary Life Member.

Finally, I wish your President, your club members and followers, and yourself, together with the Maybole Juniors Football Team every success in the future.

Sincerely Yours,

(Andrew H. McCorquodale)

Maybole Juniors Football Club