All walks of life in Sunday league

GRASSROOTS football in South Devon was best symbolised by the Torbay Combination Sunday League.

Local firms, hotels, pubs and clubs could band together to field a side and there were regular fixtures from 1967 to about 2012 when the league folded.

Teams were drawn from all walks of life. The Herald Express, Rockheys, British Rail (Newton Abbot), Sifam, Bookers, Gerston, Mexbro, Clarence Hotel, Newton Saracens, Ren- wick Wilton & Dobson, Gartrells, and Torquay United Supporters Club were among the early teams taking part.

Pictures today show some of the pub sides in the league during the 1980s, the days when the local inn was as much a social and sports club as a drinking establishment.

Some of these pubs have come and gone like The Parrot in South Street, Torquay, The Post Horn on Madrepore Road and the Palk Arms both also in Torquay.

Some pubs have changed names , like the Outrigger on Torquay harbourside.

These pictures will bring memories flooding back for the players and supporters who struggled out of bed on a Sunday to join their pub mates for a bit of healthy exercise.

By 2012 the Torbay Sunday League had shrunk to just six teams, but among them still was the Old Brewery in Ellacombe.

If you’ve got memories to share of the Sunday league, and perhaps your own pictures, do send them in.