The following post was kindly submitted to us by Gordon McCreath, who is a keen Ayrshire junior football historian.
Football fans throughout Ayrshire will recognise Eddy Gemmell from the excellent “Fitba’ Shorts” reports he and his enthusiastic team of young volunteers have been presenting on YouTube over the past few years. Eddy also does a lot of fundraising for charities and older fans might remember that in his younger days Eddy was a very good goalkeeper with a number of local amateur and Junior clubs. Eddy came along to the Wednesday Club recently and entertained the members with stories from his time in football.
GMcC: In your playing days you were a goalkeeper of some repute. How did you get started in local football?
Eddy Gemmell: Where it kicked off was Winlinton Wolves. The manager at the time stopped me in Bank Street, drew up in his motor and said, “Eddy Boy come on over here. I want you to sign for this team. We’re gonna be a great team.” And that was my first team when I left the school. And they did eventually become a good team.
GMcC: You caught the eye of scouts who were working for Senior clubs too.
Eddy Gemmell: Yes, Tommy Alexander and myself and a few others from this area went with an Ayrshire Select down to Manchester. I was only 15 years old at the time. And we were at The Cliff, Manchester United’s training ground. The guy that scouted for the likes of George Best, a wee old fella, came over and spoke to us and said, “I’m very keen to sign you.” So, I had a few games. Tommy played a couple of games as well. I was told I was too wee at fifteen. I was not going to make it in the game and was sent back up the road.
I was sitting with my mother and father and they said I wasn’t going to make it in the game. The following day Tottenham Hotspur came to the door. Then a couple of days later Willie Waddell appeared at the door. I wasn’t in the house at the time, I was walking up the road but I could see a big black car at the top of Ranken Drive. Anyway, I played a game against Cumnock Juniors and Rangers were there at the time, but again it was the same story… you’re too wee.
The impact it had on me mentally for about two years was bad. But Abie Hollas told me to come out of it, I was a good keeper and if I didn’t make it in the seniors, let’s try the Juniors or amateurs. Jim Hunter helped me as well. It worked for me and that’s how I ended up getting into the game.
GMcC: But you worked hard at improving your game.
Eddy Gemmell: Yes, there was a coach, John Vance, who took me aside and I learned a lot from him because he was a wee ‘keeper himself: how to pace my game in goals, how to use my size properly, how to use my steps. One of the things John made me do over at the playing fields was to tell me stand at the post to leap from there and touch the other post. And I would leap and leap until I almost did it. The next thing he said was that he wanted me to touch the crossbar. He wanted me to use my arms and showed me how to swing up. I kept doing it and doing it until I eventually managed. And when you start to do it, it sticks. And people began to talk about my agility.
GMcC: There was a connection with Kilmarnock, too.
Eddy Gemmell: I was at Rugby park for two trials with Kilmarnock. The manager was Wattie McCrae and I was sitting in the dressing room, a wee guy, fifteen years old, and Wattie McCrae walked in and said, “This is the team. Gemmell in goals. Where are you Gemmell?” I said “I’m here,” and stood up. McCrae said, “And where’s the rest of you?” I played a stormer, then went to Troon the following week for another trial.
I’m in conversation just now with Kilmarnock Football Club about a project they are very keen on. I was told I was too wee and I had no future in the game and I was just fifteen. The project is in very early discussions but is aimed at providing an alternative career plan if a young player doesn’t make the grade.
GMcC: You eventually got your chance with the Juniors.
Eddy Gemmell: I kept at it until eventually Craigmark Burntonians was my first Junior club. I was only eighteen years old and I was there for two years and that was the start of my Junior career. Then I had a year with Irvine Vics. And then Martin Boyd came to my door and said Knockentiber wanted to sign me. I honestly didn’t know anything about Knockentiber. I knew they were an amateur team but I don’t realise they were well known. I had to go for a trial in a Scottish Cup game down in Dumfries and I played a good game and they signed me. I think I had seven years with Knockentiber. We won the Scottish Cup. We went to the Scottish final twice -won it the first time, got beaten the second time.
People ask me what Hughie Carswell was like as a manager at Knockentiber. He was one of these guys that you can’t describe. He was a hard, hard man – a farmer, but he was fair. He would pull you to the side and tell you honestly how you were performing or how you were underperforming. And he wasn’t long in saying, “I’m putting another ‘keeper in next week. Your mind’s not on this just now.” People think Hughie walked into a dressing room and gave you one of these speeches.’ He didn’t. He just went right through the team, He would maybe pull you aside as you were going out to say to watch the centre-forward, watch this, do that.
GMcC: Did you ever sign for the Meadow, Eddy?
Eddy Gemmell: Yes, I signed for Meadow when Milton Thompson was manager here. “Bomber” Brown was injured. I played with the Meadow against the Buffs and the following year I signed with the Buffs and when I came here with the Buffs to play the Meadow, I saved a penalty and I got terrible abuse. I was proud to play with Meadow for that year because my father was raised in Meadow Avenue. I was raised with the Meadow and Kilmarnock; they were our two teams. In fact, I was at the Scottish final when Johnny McIntyre picked up the cup at Hampden. I was just a wee boy. I remember coming back with my father on the bus coming through the town.
GMcC: How long did you play with the Meadow?
Eddy Gemmell: It was off and on. Milton Thompson phoned me out the blue and said “I want you here.” There was an argument because Milton wanted to sign me and keep me. And quite a few wanted Bomber Brown. I said, “Bomber’s your man.” Milton wanted competition. Bomber was a cracking ‘keeper.
GMcC: How did your Fitba’ Shorts project get started?
Eddy Gemmell: What happened was that Beverly McLaughlin came to see me. You might remember she used to do the commentary with me. She was unemployed and was going through a rough time. She asked me if I did anything with football. She played for Killie Ladies at one time. I asked what she meant and she said, “Can we go and film it.” The first time we filmed was here at Meadow Park. It was a friendly against Kelty. And we said, “Let’s keep this up.” And a young fella from Saltcoats, Dean McMillan, wanted to film, too. We got him along and it grew from there. We started covering different games over that season. Other clubs got in touch saying, “Can you do that with us?” I think the unique thing we did was that we were providing a TV style highlights package.
GMcC: Do you have memories of any awkward situations when filming?
Eddy Gemmell: I remember when we did the Beith Juniors versus the Buffs semi-final in the Scottish cup. Sky TV and the BBC were there. I said to Rebecca, who worked with us, to get up the scaffolding or they would take it. The guy from Sky came and started swearing at us. I said, “Are you here with only one camera? We’ve got four. And I’ll guarantee what you’ll do. Tonight, you’ll be lucky if you get ten seconds of this game, same with the guys at the BBC. We’ll do twenty minutes of full highlights. The BBC producer was listening. And the BBC guy asked if there was anyone in my crew who would be worth applying to work with them. And that’s where it really took off for us. There was a guy called Ian Sands, who ran up and down the side line with his camera. We called him Side-line Sanny. Ian sent his CV to them. One day he contacted me and said “I’m at Hampden Park at the Rangers Celtic cup final. I’m on the Slo-Mo camera for the BBC.”
GMcC: That must make it worthwhile.
Eddy Gemmell: That’s the reason why we’re doing this. It’s because we can take young people on, train them and try and steer them out to do what Ian did. We had a boy there, Ben McMahon, who phoned me about three years ago from Ireland. He said I’m filming for The Game of Thrones, the very last episode, and he said, thank you very much for what you’ve done, you gave me encouragement.
GMcC: To finish off, I’d like to congratulate you on the BBC Scotland’s People Award you recently received in recognition of the media work you do with young people.
Eddy Gemmell: Thank you. You just don’t expect things like that to happen. You do these things because you want to do them for people, and the last thing you’re looking for is an award.