Recollections of an Old (but young at heart) Oswestrian, circa 1952 - EPISODE 25, A MYRIAD OF MEMORABLE MOMENTS

I am sure everyone harbours memories of their time at school, and it is unlikely they will all be good ones. I am no exception to that, but fortunately for me the positive ones far exceed the others, and I look back with fondness on my years at Oswestry School during the 1950's.

One very early memory that is as clear as a bell, is of walking for the first time into the old green wooden building, which was home to the Prep Department. All five of us 'newbugs' were introduced to Ma Walton, the Headmistress, who took us down to our classroom where we met the other boys, some of whom would become lifelong friends. Surveying this Dickensian scene, I half expected Wackford Squeers to appear suddenly at the door, cane in hand, ready to serve out six of the best.

Classroom in the Prep

Amongst my mind's memorabilia are two standout football matches, one of which I would dearly like to forget, as I was inextricably involved, and it holds painful flashbacks. The most important match of the season was against the local Boys' High School, or the 'cabbages' as we dubbed them, and we revelled in beating them in this highly charged atmosphere.

The Boys' High School

Sadly, and it pains me to tell you, we suffered a crushing defeat the like of which had not been experienced on the Maes-y-Llan since King Oswald fell in battle to the sword of King Penda in 641. I felt profoundly sorry for our friends in Holbache House, and the day boys walking to school through a daily gauntlet of jeers, catcalls, and unseemly taunts, and it is the only time I felt grateful that we at School House were living in a self-contained bubble.

I am not one for making excuses, but the facts do not say it all. On paper the scoreline does not tell you that we were a rather young and inexperienced team playing against much older boys, three of whom on leaving school that year went on to play professional football!

Nor does it say that we all had double helpings of the school cook's special 'window frames' suet pudding, which sank like a stone causing lethargy for several hours. Trying to put a brave face on it at the end of the match, I said to Bernard, "It looks like the Winalot effect is wearing off a bit now!" - I received a withering glance.

However, after the game I did go and have a quiet word with our goalkeeper, who will remain nameless to spare his blushes, and demanded to know what he had been up to the previous night.

The score was 0-23, and their secret weapon was the young man in the photo below, star of England's World Cup Winning Team of 1966

Young Alan Ball aged only seventeen

Alan Ball in his Everton strip

It was very small consolation for us, but we went on to beat The Boys' High School the following year on their home turf after their star players had moved on.

The 1953 match played at Bedstone College was a different kettle of fish altogether, and I remember it well. Half of our team was composed of older Holbache House boys that my brother and I knew (only because we travelled to and from school with some of them by train from Manchester), and we were delighted with their success.

Bedstone College

In my time we usually did well against Bedstone, and to us there was always a certain casualness attached to their lifestyle, and I don't think we ever lost to them either at football or cricket.

This game ended in rather spectacular fashion as you can see from the report below in The Oswestrian of December 1953, with 'hot shot Smith' bagging 6 out of the 10 goals (a mis-nomer as the goals did not have a net!). Could this be a school record I wonder? Nevertheless, the question must certainly be put as to what exactly took place during the half time break for the home team to completely lose the plot in the second half from a scoreline of 1-1? Perhaps a consumption of magic mushrooms or the infamous Holbache House beans had helped!

The Oswestrian match report. Where did the missing goal come from?

It is gratifying to note from the text above the match report that in our first Upper School year several of us were deemed worthy of mention, and my contemporaries will recognise many of the names.

The Earl of Powis presented the prizes on Speech Day 1954, and in our first year in Upper School my brother and I both received one. Following the prize giving ceremony we had our photograph taken as we chatted to the Earl, but what is not shown in this clipping is the fact that I had rolled my knee-length socks down to the ankles, whereas Bernard hadn't, and I received quite a rollicking from our parents who said it spoilt the picture.

In August of 1953, after a year's incarceration, our Aunt and Uncle took us on holiday to London as a special treat. We stayed at the Regent Palace Hotel, spending much of the time terrorising the staff, and riding up and down in the lifts, which were a novelty.

Feeding the pigeons in Trafalgar Square (note the socks)

We had successfully navigated the choppy waters of our first year without much collateral damage!