Joe Dixon’s
Football Memories
1977
Interview
For Michael Hudsons 'Northern League Day' Website
July 2011
During the 2010/11 season, through my website, I got to know a great character in
local football. His name is Keith Stoker and is probably the most well known and
knowledgeable supporter, with regard to teams and players, in local football. He
tells me his greatest claim to fame was, while secretary for Hylton CW, he exchanged
team sheets with the one and only Brian Clough in his Hartlepool United days. I would
have been proud of that as well. So, at any football game, if ever you see a guy
with a walking stick and a wooly hat covered in badges that's Keith. Be sure to stop
and have a chat with him.
Through Keith, at a Ryhope CW game, I was introduced to
two brothers, Michael and Andy Hudson. See below for photo and their 'must see' websites.
Since our first meeting I've bumped into them at other games and, out of the blue,
Michael asked if he could interview me for his website. I've got to admit I was very
flattered but I had to respond 'who is going to be interested in me'. He said there
would be plenty of interest so I agreed to do it although I still wasn't convinced.
When it was posted on his website in July I was a bit embarrassed as he referred
to me as a 'Famous Number Nine'. Don't get me wrong I was quite chuffed about this,
and it was very kind of Michael to say this, but in no way do I consider myself famous
for anything. I only told my family and a few good friends about it and it is only
now, February 2012, that I've got up the courage to let other people know about it.
Anyhow, if it is of interest, this is how it appeared (photo's added by Michael).
-
Famous Number Nines: Joe Dixon
Posted on July 7, 2011 by northernleagueday
Joe Dixon
began his playing career with Dawdon Colliery Welfare Juniors in 1962, scoring 50
goals in a single season at the age of 17, and eventually retired in 1989, scoring
twice before half-
How did you first get involved in local football?
After leaving school in 1961 the
first team I played for was Dawdon CW Juniors who played in the excellent Hetton
Junior League. At the end of that first season several of the players were still
eligible to play the following season, 1962/63, and we agreed to stick together because
we felt we would have a side capable of winning the league. Now at this time I was
on the youth club committee at Ryhope and out of the blue the youth club leader,
Bill Bond, put the idea to the committee about forming a Junior team to play in the
Hetton Junior League. This caused me a big problem as I had to explain that I had
already committed myself to playing for Dawdon CW Juniors for the coming season.
Everyone accepted my situation and a junior team was formed and they got access to
the Ryhope CW ground for its home games. Because everyone knew my situation from
the beginning there was obviously no ill feeling and I continued my role at the club
and still helped to get the team started. Actually, they did very well in their first
season and at Dawdon I had a great season but was really disappointed in finishing
second to Hylton CW Juniors in the league.
At the end of this season, as myself and
a few of the YC players were no longer eligible to play in the Hetton Junior League,
Bill Bond suggested we form a senior team. I was pleased to go along with this as
I still felt a bit guilty about the previous season. It was agreed and our application
to join the Seaham & District League for the 1963/64 season was accepted.
And so
I started my senior career playing mostly for Ryhope YC which became Ryhope CA and
finally, well after my playing days were over, Sunderland RCA (who now play in Division
1 of the Northern League).
Joe (fourth from the left in the front row) in the colours of Sunderland RCA in 1972/73.
Looking back, what was your proudest achievement as a player or coach?
Getting my FA Preliminary Coaching Badge was one of my proudest achievements in my
football career. Why? Because when I registered for the 12 session course, each of
2 hours, I was told that because I was going to be away on holiday and miss 4 of
the sessions, I couldn’t pass the course and it was suggested I leave it for another
year.
I still thought I could learn from the 8 sessions so I decided to join even
if I couldn’t be successful. Out of the 12-
I went to the the Southmoor
School in Sunderland to register for the course not really knowing what was involved.
It was there that I met Arthur Philliskirk, the Hon. Sec. of the Durham Coaches Association,
who was running the course. When I said I would be away on a 2 week holiday in the
middle of the course he suggested I would be wasting my money, as I wouldn’t pass
because I would miss too many aspects of the practical coaching. He suggested I leave
it until next year. I thought for a moment then told him that if it was ok with him
I would still like to join the course because I would still learn a bit from the
8 sessions I could attend.
I sat down near the entrance to the registration room to
fill in my form. As I was doing it a fella came in and asked me if he could register
for the course. He obviously thought I was one of the organisers. I explained that
I was just like him and pointed to Arthur as the man to see. He went off and came
back and sat next to me to fill in his form. We had a few friendly words and then
after glancing at his form I started to chuckle. I had to explain that I had said
earlier that I was just like him when his previous clubs were Sunderland AFC, Scotland
under 21′s, Preston NE etc and mine were Ryhope CA, Seaham Red Star etc. It was Jimmy
McNab and we both saw the funny side of it.
There was about 12-
When I came back from holiday I was asked if I wanted to attend a ‘Residential
Refresher Weekend for Coaches’ at Houghall College, Durham that weekend. This course
was run mainly for qualified coaches, by Durham Coaches Association, but they thought
it would benefit our course members. About 3 members from the course, including Jimmy
McNab had already accepted the offer so I said yes despite it being at very short
notice.
The course was really enjoyable. In addition to Jimmy McNab there were other
well known people including George Wardle the Middlesbrough FC first team coach,
Jimmy Shoulder the Australian National Coach and David Armstrong the ex Middlesbrough,
Southampton and England International.
On the Saturday afternoon Arthur Philliskirk
asked the course members whether anyone would like to volunteer to do a coaching
session on the Sunday afternoon and if so would they let him know by the Saturday
night. No one initially volunteered so I started to think of giving it a go myself.
I had ideas in my mind about the benefits of short corner kicks, if done in the right
way, so I decided that this is what I’d coach if no one else volunteered. No one
did. So I did. It certainly surprised the organisers as the majority of the course
had there preliminary/full FA coaching badges.
I didn’t sleep a wink that night but
by morning I knew exactly how I should go about the afternoon session. It was a great
help to know I would have David Armstrong to rely on for not messing up the corners.
The session went better than I dared hope for and a lot of nice things were said
to me by other course members. At tea, which immediately followed my session, I was
asked to join the organisers at their table. I received some very nice complements
and after they enquired about my football background, and realised I’d never coached
before, George Wardle told me ‘Joe set your sights high and I mean high – you’ll
do well’. I was told about a two week ‘Full Badge’ course being held later that year
but the costs and finding the spare time would have been a problem. The other problem
was I doubted my ability after also being told that on the last ’Full Badge’ course,
which consisted of a large number of professionals, only a small proportion passed.
I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had given it a go and been successful.
When I went to the next coaching session I was told by Arthur Philliskirk that it
had been decided that my voluntary coaching on the weekend refresher course would
be taken into consideration as part of my preliminary badge practical work. I was
over the moon. I completed the course (‘Practical Performance’), took the ‘Practical
Coaching’ test (coaching school children), the ‘Theory of Coaching’ exam and the
‘Laws of the Game’ exam.
On 14 August 1979 I received some great news from Ted Croker,
the FA Secretary, to say that I had passed all categories. Enclosed was also my coaching
certificate and badge. What a great feeling that was. From a playing point of view
I’m very proud of my 1975/76 season playing for Silksworth ‘Buffs’ and winning the
very strong Sunderland CIU Sunday League and League Cup. I’m also proud of the service
I gave to Ryhope CA, now Sunderland RCA, and for being selected to represent and
captain the Seaham & District League in three end of season interleague games.
From
a playing point of view I’m very proud of my 1975/76 season playing for Silksworth
‘Buffs’ and winning the very strong Sunderland CIU Sunday League and League Cup.
I’m also proud of the service I gave to Ryhope CA, now Sunderland RCA, and for being
selected to represent and captain the Seaham & District League in three end of season
interleague games.
Finally, I’m very proud of the number of friends I made during
my football career.
You once scored after ten seconds without any of your teammates touching the ball.
How did that happen?
I was playing for Ryhope Poplars Club in the Saturday morning
Hetton CIU League against Pallion WMC, who were by far the best team in the league
at that time. They kicked off and the ball was played back to a midfielder who immediately
played a square pass which I intercepted. As I took the ball in my stride it left
me in the clear to score. The goalkeeper blocked my first shot and I scored from
the rebound. I only had to sprint about 35 yards or so from the kick off before shooting
so even scoring from the rebound it was still probably under 10 seconds.
Most of their
team, instead of finger pointing and blaming each other, just laughed. They obviously
saw the funny side of it and that they were sure they would still win the match.
And guess what they did…
What was the best team you played in?
There are two teams that immediately come to
mind. The Ryhope CA team of the 1972/73 season was an exceptional side. We won the
Houghton and District League, the Durham Hospitals Cup and were runners up in the
League Cup and Easington Aged Miners Cup. In the league we W26 D1 L1, scoring 110
and conceding 29. I basically played as a lone striker up front but I was supported
by some really outstanding players capable of playing at much higher levels. One
in particular was Billy Mitchell, whose brother Kenny was a regular in Newcastle
Utd’s first team. Kenny admitted to me one day that Billy was a better player. Fortunately
for us Billy was 1 of 7 of us who had played in the team’s previous seasons and enjoyed
being part of the ‘family’. As a goal scorer I never felt any great pressure to score
because of our great defence and the service I received. I always felt that just
one goal would probably win us the game. Being injury free – and at 27 I was probably
at my peak as a centre forward – it proved to be my best ever goal scoring season
with 85 goals. During this season in 3 consecutive games we won 5-
The other was the 1975/76 Silksworth R.A.O.B (Buffs) team that played in the very
strong Sunderland CIU Sunday League. I’d played for the ‘Buffs’ for a few seasons
and, after the 1974/1975 season, I decided, at 30, I would just concentrate on the
Saturday football. However before the 1975/1976 season started I had a visit from
Ernie Muckles who had joined the club and was a proven goal scorer in the Northern
League. He was so enthusiastic about the Buffs team for the coming season. He told
me of the quality players who had already signed for the club and the ones he was
sure would sign. He was certain our partnership up front would work great and we
would win the league, something that the ‘Buffs’ had never come close to winning
before. His enthusiasm and commitment changed my mind and I agreed to sign. It turned
out to be a very good decision. We not only won the League but also the League Cup.
Our partnership up front did work really well, just as he said it would, and we scored
plenty of goals between us. I’ve got to admit that Ernie finished as the leading
goal scorer which he deserved for all of his pre-
Joe (third from the left in the front row) playing for Seaham Red Star in 1976/77.
How about the best teams and individual players you came up against?
When I first
started to watch senior football in the early 1960’s I was in awe of the Ryhope CW
side. They never seemed to have a weakness and it was simple – if you were in the
side you had to be a really good player. In 6 seasons they won the Weaside League
Championship 4 times, Shipowners Cup, League Challenge Cup and the Monkwearmouth
Charity Cup twice. In winning the League title in 1961/1962 they had 28 wins, 2 draws
and 0 defeats. However, the achievement they are most famous for was reaching the
1st Round proper of the FA Cup on 9th December 1967 only to be beaten 1-
Blue Star were the best Wearside League team in the late
1970’s and 80’s. They were the first ever team to win all 4 competions in the 1982/83
season and yet this was not even their most outstanding achievement. To me this would
be when they won the FA Challenge Vase trophy in the 1977/78 season beating Barton
Rovers 2-
Another great side was Whickham, again from the Wearside
League, who although not quite as successful as Blue Star did also win the FA Challenge
Vase trophy in the 1980/81 season beating Willenhall 3-
Seaham Red Star,
when managed by Larry Phillips, were outstanding from 1979-
Two teams
that I had great success with were Ryhope CA and Silksworth Buffs, see above. They
were full of good players and five of them, Brian Page, Harry Clark, Billy Mitchell,
Bobby Pickering and Keith Hemborough, played alongside me over several seasons.
Finally,
I’ll mention two players who could always produce that little piece of magic when
it mattered. Dougie Crosby, who I first saw play for Ryhope CW, and Barry Dunn, who
played for the great Sunday morning team Humbledon & Plains Farm FC, Blue Star and
finally Sunderland AFC. Both had incredible skill in dribbling, passing, creating
chances and scoring spectacular goals. They were special.
You played in the Houghton & District, Seaham & District, Wearside League and the
Northern Alliance. How did they compare?
With regard to the qualities of these leagues
the Wearside league was without doubt the strongest. The others in order of strength:
Northern
Alliance
I played for Seaham Red Star in the 1976/77 season and we played a friendly
at Dawdon CW’s ground against a very strong Carlisle Utd team. Playing for Bobby
Moncur’s side were the likes of Bill Rafferty, Dixie Deans, Ian McDonald and Phil
Bonneyman. It was a tremendous game and we won 3-
Houghton & District
In the 1973/74 season
we played a Durham Challenge cup tie against Shildon Utd from the Northern League
and we drew 2-
Seaham & District
Playing for Ryhope
YC, 1969/70 season, there were always very difficult matches against Blackhall Athletic,
Seaham Red Star, Seaham UDC and a few others. When you consider we defeated Eppleton
CW in a cup final and Burnmoor in a cup semi final, two top teams from the Houghton
& District League, indicates that the Seaham & District League wasn’t far behind.
All
in all local football in the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s was a very enjoyable era to play
in.
You managed Dawdon in the mid-
I’ll
be honest in those days Dawdon was never an attractive place to visit. It is located
on the south side of Seaham and was a dead end. The two roads leading to it, both
from the north direction, led to either the colliery or the Green Drive football
ground, the home of Dawdon CW and its Junior side. Unlike today no road passed through
it. I spent many happy weekends with relations there and with mates from school.
My cousin, 3 years older, played for the ‘CW Junior side and I’d watch them play
on one of the best playing surfaces in the north east. I knew I just wanted to play
there in the Juniors side, playing in the Hetton Junior League, which I did a couple
of years later. I just loved it. After leaving school, as part of my engineering
training with the NCB, I spent quite a bit in Seaham at both Vane Tempest and Dawdon
Collieries, and made even more friends there. So maybe you can understand why Dawdon
was like a second home to me.
I started off in the 1984/1985 season as coach at Eppleton
CW in the Wearside League. This was my second season there and the manager was Tony
Lynch. He had first approached me to coach under him in the 1982/1983 season when
he was manager of Seaham Red Star who were playing in the Wearside League. I was
thoroughly enjoying my time with him and learnt quite a bit from Tony. He was very
knowledgeable, enthusiastic and was determined to be successful. However, when I
was approached in early November 1984 by Norman Kelly and Ivan Arthur (from Dawdon
CW, who played in the same league) to join them in a role that gave me a lot more
responsibility I just couldn’t resist.
Although the official position was team coach,
I also did all the team talks and tactics. Team selection was a joint effort as I
always involved Ivan, who was still officially team manager, and Norman. I don’t
suppose this would work with many clubs but we were always on the same wavelength.
As another key member of the club was Norman’s dad, Ralph Pigg, you can understand
why the club had a family like feel about the place. In fact I can’t recall any real
disagreements in the 4 seasons I was there. In that time our best finish was 8th
in the league in the 1986-
Generally speaking every
ex-
As a Ryhope lad you must be pleased to see both teams doing so well nowadays?
I’m absolutely delighted. With not playing so much golf these days and being retired I was able to spend my spare time developing my website. As I had a lot of memories from my time with Ryhope CA, now Sunderland RCA, from its formation it was of great interest to their current committee and I was contacted by Colin Wilson, secretary. The upshot was that I started to take an interest in watching some of their home games. This was during the 2009/2010 season and guess what they got promoted to the 1st division of the STL Northern League. The following season I again watched a lot of their games and to finish in mid table was, I’m sure, better than the clubs expectations.
At the Alan Thompson Memorial Trophy game, a charity match played each year between
the 2 Ryhope sides, I bumped into the Ryhope CW chairman, Ronnie Crosby, who I last
saw when he came to play for Ryhope CA in the 1974/75 season. I was taken aback a
bit because he paid me a lovely compliment by recalling how much he appreciated the
help and encouragement I’d given him when he joined the ‘CA. I couldn’t specifically
recall doing this although I would have wanted everyone to play well as I would benefit
from it. He was also very appreciative of the section, on my website, on his team.
To be honest it made me feel really good and so I then started to watch the ’CW in
the last third of this last season. At this time Easington CW were coasting to the
title and the ‘CW were, it seemed, competing for 2nd place. Every game I saw them
play they won and they finished incredibly with a clean sweep of the Wearside League
trophies.
It certainly doesn’t get much better than this. As I said I’m absolutely
delighted.
It seems remarkable that I went many years not watching any local football
and when I started, in such a short time, I’ve witnessed some amazing achievements.
Perhaps I’m a lucky mascot or was I just lucky. Obviously the latter but if Niall
Quinn or Mike Ashley reads this I may well finish up on their payroll.
Joe with all four of Ryhope CW’s trophies.
It's often said that the standard of the Wearside League has declined in recent years
Do you think this is true?
In the 1960’s I thought the standard of the Wearside League
was very high and the top teams, in particular Ryhope CW, were capable of beating
some of the top teams in the Northern League. As I used to view it they were separate
leagues playing side by side but overall the NL being the stronger of the two. Since
then with the introduction of a Division 2 of the NL and the pyramid system the WL
is effectively two leagues below the NL Division 1so in that sense yes the standard
has declined. But perhaps not as much as you might think. It’s logical to assume
that all the best players would be in the NL’s but I still think there are some that
are still attracted to the WL because of its history and in particular the magnificent
Sunderland Shipowners and Monkwearmouth Charity Cups which are two of the oldest
and prestigious trophies in the world.
You can read much more from Joe on his his
own website, a lovingly-
-
There were 2 comment posted relating to this interview which I really appreciated.
The first was from Keith Stoker and he kindly commented :-
“Smashing bloke with a great knack for keeping and relating his memories! Great idea to include his story, well done!”
The second was from Larry Phillips, Seaham Red Stars most successful manager, and
he kindly commented:-
“The Silent Assassin, Joe never even got splashes on his kit never mind muddy or
grass marks. So clinical in his finishing, a quality striker who should have left
his beloved Ryhope much earlier in his career (and come to The Star!!), he would
have scored goals at any level.
A Gentleman, both on and off the field”.
Thanks fella’s.
-
From the left Michael Hudson, Keith Stoker and Andy Hudson.
This photo was taken on 21 May 2011 when I was privileged to witness Ryhope CW’s
crowning glory, of an unbelievable season, in becoming ’Quadruple Champions’ for
the first time ever. By beating Willington Town on penalties, after the score remained
0-
If you
are interested in football check out these great websites :-
Michaels -
Andy's -
| 'Buffs' Pre 1975/1976 Sseason |
| 'Buffs' 1975/1976 Season |
| 1976/1977 Season |
| Carlisle Utd 76/77 Season |
| Achievements 1979/1982 |
| Other Photos |
| 1984/1985 Season |
| 1986/1987 Season |
| 1987/1988 Season |
| RYHOPE F.C. Over 35's |
| DURHAM FIRE BRIGADE Over 40's |
| RYHOPE CHERRY KNOWLE |