[Phil Whalley]

Excellent thread, the wide range of players mentioned indicates that we have Stanley fans of all vintages checking in. As for the pre-1962 era, I suppose that Stan Lynn and John Ryden have the best shouts on the basis that they played at the very highest levels of the modern English game immediately after leaving Stanley. Lynn went to Villa and won an FA Cup winners medal in 1957, and a League Cup winners medal with Birmingham in 1962. Ryden captained Spurs when they finished 2nd and 3rd in the First Division (today’s Prem for the younger audience) in 1957 and 1958. Rumour has it that Ryden fell out with Danny Blanchflower and was shipped out, missing Spurs’ golden era which included the League & Cup Double in 1961-62.
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Apparently Stan Lynn was a full-back of the old school. Ron Atkinson recalled that, as a lithe teenage winger (difficult to picture, I concede) he nutmegged Lynn in a reserve team game and was told that he’d have his leg broken if he dared do the same again, only not as politely as that.
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Two other players who I reckon deserve a mention are, somewhat strangely, part of the 1962 team that was resigned from the League – Mike Ferguson who, as Redraine points out, left Stanley for a top flight club (Blackburn), as did Alex Smith (Bolton) – absolutely scandalous that two performers of that calibre were literally given away by the Football League.
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Never met a Peel Parker old enough to remember Paddy Nelis, a centre-forward who was sold to Nottm Forest in the early 1920s and became one of the first players to win a Northern Irish international cap, but quite a few of the senior generation recall George Mee (close relation (brother?) of famous Arsenal manager Bertie) with a great deal of affection. Built like a barrel, Georgie would apparently amble bandy-legged down the touchline, defenders bouncing off him, before sending over wickedly looping crosses for a gorilla of a centre-forward called Bob Mortimer to nut in. In harness with Billy Tyson, this was the side that knocked Blackburn Rovers out of the FA Cup in 1937. Stanley also gave a contract to famous but knackered ex-England international Pongo Waring just before the war, but he was an alcoholic by this time, though this didn’t stop him scoring when he felt like it. Trouble was he was allegedly too p*ssed to know where he was most of the time, and he was sacked after an ‘incident’ involving boozy high jinks after a Christmas game.
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Of the post-war players not yet given a mention, Eddie Hunter played for the North in a representative game at Peel Park, and Les Cocker was apparently a terrific footballer whose lightweight stature was the only thing that prevented him playing at a higher level. He was also a gifted coach, taken to Leeds by Don Revie and assisting Alf Ramsey in 1966. Les is there in the famous footage of the day, sat next to Ramsey on the bench as everyone except the manager goes up at the final whistle. Quite a journey from Peel Park to the World Cup Final!
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Bert Scott was another highly-regarded player from the 1950s. Accrington Stanley were one of the last teams that Manchester United played before the Munich disaster in 1958. It was a Lancashire Senior Cup tie, and the rules of the competition stated that teams had to field a certain number of first team players. Jackie Blanchflower and Jackie Bent played for United that night, with Bent tragically losing his life a few days later in the crash. Stanley fielded a strong team and thrashed United 3-0, with Scott playing a blinder.
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If we go by Rob’s original post, which was the best Stanley players you have seen play, I would go with those plumping for Dave Hargreaves. 300+ goals at any level is seriously good, but to add to that, Haggis was an Accy lad who simply loved scoring for the Reds. It’s true that he didn’t make the most of the talent that he had in the sense that he could have played at a much higher level and made more money from the game. Mark Turner told me that he went to see Haggis play for Blackburn Reserves against Liverpool and watched Haggis run the Liverpool defenders ragged. My feeling is that he was just more comfortable and therefore happier at the Crown, and if that meant that some folk would criticise him for a lack of ambition or a poor temperament, then so be it. Personally, I’d never blame anyone for pursuing happiness, provided it didn’t cause harm to others, and it’s a matter of record that both Crewe and Rochdale (then managed by Mike Ferguson) offered Haggis a full-time deal.
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Dave is also modest to a fault. I bumped into him at the Crown whilst doing the first book, and he offered to lend me the press cuttings and photos that he had collected while playing for Stanley, and promised to drop them off at my house. Just a couple of hours later, there was a knock at the door and I opened it to find a battered suitcase on the front step. I looked down the street just in time to glimpse Haggis disappearing round the corner. In the suitcase was a treasure trove of stuff, including a press print of him playing for Rovers against Luton which was reproduced as a full-page photo.
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All that said, I don’t think any of the other suggestions we’ve had are wide of the mark either. We’ve seen some great players down the years. So here’s something else to take the thread a bit further. How about a fantasy Stanley XI from the players you’ve seen? In a 4-4-2, right to left, I’d like to have seen the following play together:
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Paul Collings; Martin Clark, Jonathan Smith, John Hubberstey, Steve Hollis; Alan Davies, Ian Craney, Charlie Cooper, Mark Shirley; Paul Mullin, Dave Hargreaves.
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Subs:
Rob Elliot, Gus Wilson, Anthony Barry, Ashley Hoskin, Paul Beck.
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Before you mail back to disagree, have a go yourself…it’s a series of tough calls! No room for Brett Ormerod, Billy O’Callaghan or Jack Brydon – three quality finishers.
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PS – sorry for blethering on at length. I do have some marking to do, but this is much more fun.