LEGEND SIGNED FOR US – AT 80!
WHEN SIR STANLEY MATTHEWS LANDED AT CLEVEDON
The tale of Sir Stanley Matthews’ appearance at Eynesbury Rovers in The NLP on June 7 revived memories of another remarkable story involving the great man when he signed for then Beazer Homes League side Clevedon Town in 1995 at the age of 80.
Thanks to some contemporary material collected by Clevedon historians Steve Small and Paul Davis, we can piece together an often forgotten story of the legendary player’s affiliation with the Non-League game.
It began on Friday April 28, 1995 when Sir Stanley was the guest speaker at a Sportsman’s Dinner, organised on behalf of the club by the Hand Stadium managers, Clevedon Leisure. The original speaker was supposed to be Alan Mullery, but Sir Stan was not a bad replacement!
After the dinner and seizing the moment, Clevedon manager Steve Fey made what he later admitted was a cheeky approach to Sir Stan to ask him whether he would consider signing for the club. “It was meant as a joke,” said Fey. “I nearly fell over backwards when he said yes.”
Ever on the lookout for new blood, Fey took out one of his supply of Beazer Homes League forms he always carried with him and, whether or not fuelled by his soup, roast turkey and Cointreau sorbet, Matthews was persuaded to sign.
Negotiations over what he would be paid were swiftly concluded. Fey asked Sir Stan what he had earned in the famous 1953 Matthews Cup Final and, when Matthews said it was four shillings and six pence, Fey offered him £10 a game. “I got him for a tenner.,” Fey added. “It must be the steal of the century!”
The form was not the only thing Sir Stan signed on the night and, while the whereabouts of the form remains a mystery, an autographed Menu does remain.
Perhaps thinking nothing else of what clearly started out as football banter, suddenly the ideal opportunity arose for Matthews to make his debut for his unintended new team.
The club had arranged a friendly against Bristol City on Sunday July 30, 1995. But it was no ordinary friendly as the match had been organised to mark the retirement of club president Douglas Hand and mark the end of 100 years association of the Hand family with the club, after whom the Hand Stadium was originally named.
Occasion
Sir Stan was equally delighted when he found out about the purpose of the match he had been signed up for as, in 1941, he had shared a summer together with Douglas when they were two young football-mad RAF recruits stationed together at Blackpool.
Douglas wrote in the match programme: “It is a great honour to have Sir Stanley Matthews as our guest today. When he came to our Sportsman’s Dinner three months ago, we had a nostalgic chat about those service days. Blackpool had a great team too with all those soccer stars stationed in the RAF.”
News of the signing soon spread, even featuring in national newspapers, including the front page of The Times no less.
However, the unassuming Matthews was somewhat shocked by this wave of publicity which he was concerned would over-shadow his appearance to honour his former friend and colleague. As a result, Matthews decided his appearance would be limited to simply performing the kick-off, but in no way did this detract from a wonderful afternoon.
Before the game itself, an impressive guest list enjoyed a buffet in the clubhouse, including Mr C H Wilcox MBE, JP, Vice Chairman of the Football Association, representatives of the various leagues Clevedon competed in and, of course, visitors Bristol City.
Remembering the day well, referee Ian Madge said recently: “The buffet was magnificent and when the game started, I was absolutely full up, which made running around afterwards a bit difficult! Overall though it was a wonderful occasion and a fitting tribute to two great men.”
Not to miss the opportunity to mark sharing the Hand Stadium turf with a football legend – even if it was only for a few minutes – Ian ensured Sir Stanley autographed his matchday programme.
Admission to the game was free to ensure as many people as possible would turn out. Unfortunately, however, there was no official attendance recorded on the day, but estimates range from 1,500 to 2,500 with all four sides of the ground well populated.
After performing his official duties, Sir Stanley kicked things off before beginning his second retirement from the safety of the stand as the two teams went on to serve up a competitive match. City were managed by Joe Jordan so there was never really any doubt that they would be taking their first friendly of the season anything but seriously.
Fitting tribute
Mark Antonelli gave Clevedon a 14th minute lead before the Robins hit back with Jason Fowler equalising on 32 minutes and Paul Agostino giving them the lead early in the second half. Not to be denied, Clevedon drew level with a goal from substitute Gareth Morgan on 66 minutes, but as the substitutes continued to come and go, Clevedon lost their rhythm and they were unable to hold on as Scott Partridge scored the winner for City with a quarter of an hour left.
Coincidently, there is another Clevedon Town connection with Matthews. Regular programme seller and member of the Friends of Clevedon Town, Mike Aitken, was stationed in Kenya in 1956 on National Service in the Army and also struck up a friendship with Sir Stan who, along with fellow international Len Shackleton, came out on tour and played for the Army and a local team in exhibition matches.
On his return, Mike wrote to Blackpool FC asking if Matthews would sign the photograph taken on his departure. Typical of the man, Matthews duly obliged and returned it with a personal letter, writing: “Dear Michael, I am delighted to reply to your letter. Herewith the photograph enclosed. I have settled down and will be in full training shortly. Best wishes for the future. Yours sincerely Stan Matthews”.
While his appearance for Clevedon may have been brief, the day itself was a fitting tribute to both Douglas Hand and Sir Stanley and it is marked by a framed photograph of the two men which is prominently displayed in the club bar.
Today, the Seasiders are looking up again – both on and off the pitch. After dropping out of the Southern League in 2015, they now complete at Step 5 in the Western League Premier Division, gradually rebuilding under the guidance of chairman Brian Rose and manager Mickey Bell, placed ninth in the table when the season was halted.