Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Locals ‘amazed’ as Kirkcaldy amateur team’s football top found 5,700 miles away in Tokyo

"It's almost unbelievable to think it's travelled right round the world."

David Alexander in Tokyo with the vintage Kirkcaldy YMCA football top.
David Alexander in Tokyo with the Kirkcaldy YMCA football top. Image: James Watson

Locals have been left “amazed” after a Kirkcaldy amateur team’s football top was found in a specialist shop thousands of miles away in Tokyo.

The yellow and blue Kirkcaldy YMCA strip, thought to date from around 2008, was discovered in a shop specialising in football kits over 5,700 miles from the Fife town.

However, it is a mystery how the amateur side’s jersey ended up alongside tops from clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona and Manchester United – bearing the names of superstars such as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

David Alexander made the discovery after stopping off in Tokyo en route to Singapore.

The discovery was made whilst out browsing in shops in the Shimo-Kitazawa area of west Tokyo.

He sent photos of himself holding the top to friends who used to live in the Lang Toun.

The Kirkcaldy jersey found alongside those of Lionel Messi ans Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Kirkcaldy YMCA jersey. Image: James Watson

James Watson, whose son Cameron is friends with David, then posted the photos on social media in the hope someone would know more about how the top ended up on the other side of the world.

The post was also shared on the Fife Football X page.

James – who moved to Greenock 15 years ago, but used to watch Kirkcaldy YMCA – said he was “shocked and amazed” by the find.

‘Many people will be wondering how the Kirkcaldy strip made it to Tokyo’

He said: “I used to watch the YM play regularly when I lived in Kirkcaldy as my brother-in-law used to play for the team.

“Many people will be wondering how on earth that strip made it all the way to Tokyo.”

Martin Ligman, who founded the Kirkcaldy YMCA team 20 years ago, told The Courier he could not believe it when he heard about the Tokyo find.

He said: “It’s almost unbelievable to think it’s travelled right round the world and ended up on the rack of a specialist shop thousands of miles away.

The Kirkcaldy YMCA strip from the 2008 season.
The top has the number 17 on the back. Image: James Watson

“The shirt is from about 15 or 16 years ago so from memory, I’d say it’s almost certainly from the 2008 season.

“I already ran the YMCA under-21 side and was asked to form an amateur YM side, which I did in 2004.

“I was the manager for many years, eventually stepping down after we won the league and cup double five seasons ago.

“I’m now the chairman of Kirkcaldy YMCA team and work at the town’s YM.”

Charity theory over Kirkcaldy YMCA top in Tokyo

Martin has a theory as to how the Kirkcaldy jersey travelled so far.

He added: “A few years back, around 10 seasons’ worth of club strips were found and eventually donated to a clothing charity.

“They may have been used as part of an international clothing initiative.

“It’s still amazing to think that one of our tops has survived and ended up alongside the most famous strips in the world.”

Conversation