George Mathers had just returned from a recent trip to Sweden when he read Larry Duncan’s plea in BwB (November 8).
Larry, secretary of Lochee United JFC, was looking to help Swedish club Ahlafors IF, who were celebrating their centenary anniversary, and wanted to know more about Scotsmen who taught them how to play the game back then.
George offered: “Just read this bit on BwB about Ahlafors IF.
“They are just 30 minutes north of Gothenburg at a place called Nodinge-Nol.
“I visited a museum in Gothenburg a few weeks ago while over at a match as I was curious about Keiller Park in the Swedish city.
“Alexander Keiller (not related to marmalade family) left Dundee in 1825 and, along with a William Gibson, formed a machine shop.
“He then alone in 1841 formed the Mekaniska Verkstad, which was one of the first engineering industries in Sweden.
“By 1850, it had 320 employees.
“He died in 1874 but his son James carried on the company and it was he who gifted the huge piece of land to the city of Gothenburg, which is now Keiller Park, over in the Hisingen part of the city where the shipyards were.
“Orgyrte, where former Dundee United and Rangers left-winger Orjan Persson came from, is one of the oldest if not the oldest team in Sweden and they were formed by Scottish flax workers.
“So Sweden is yet another country we took the game to and who are now better than us!”
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