Watching top-flight football on TV in recent weeks brought back memories.
At Rugby Park, Kilmarnock were taking on visiting Dundee United, and in the Tannadice side’s dugout was coach Darren Jackson.
Then, watching Northern Ireland take on and beat Greece in the European Championship, Michael O’Neill was belting out instructions as team boss of the Irish.
West Bromwich Albion’s creditable 2-2 draw with Manchester United was masterminded by Hawthorns manager Alan Irvine.
And the common denominator here is…
“They all played for Dundee United!” I hear you bellow.
That’s true… but the line I’m looking for is they all started their coaching careers in the Dundee Sunday Welfare League!
Bank Street Athletic had been a member of the Welfare association since 1975.
In 1985, they started a second team Bank Street Albion then a third side called Bank Street Accies.
Albion were very successful in coming through the then five-division association (changed days, eh?) with consecutive promotions.
The new sides were made up of mainly young players just out of the local Sunday Boys League and were used to training at least once a week.
A call was made to the senior sides in the city to see if they could help out in this field. And Dundee United manager Jim McLean amazingly and generously responded by sending up three of the top-team players to train the sides at the Kirkton High School gym the aforementioned Messrs Jackson, O’Neill and Irvine.
It certainly didn’t do their careers any harm.
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