John’s life in football was launched in a factory yard
Motherwell manager Graham Alexander will be hoping the club’s youth academy keeps unearthing talented players.
His immediate aim is to keep the Fir Parkers in Scotland’s top flight, then he’ll be looking to build a more-successful side.
The last few years have seen a steady stream of youngsters making their name at Motherwell and then being sold on to bigger clubs.
There was a more informal way of discovering future stars when John Moore was starting out.
He was discovered playing in a factory yard, then later recommended to an English club by the Motherwell groundsman.
“I was 16- years- old and doing a three- year engineering apprenticeship when I was first spotted,” Moore recalled.
“There would be a kick-about among the lads at the lunch break and it seems someone must have seen me playing.
“I was asked to play for North Motherwell, which was the feeder team for the town’s professional club.
“That led to me being asked to train at Fir Park two nights-a-week.
“But I lived about 18 miles away in Harthill and told them I really couldn’t afford to do it.
“After a bit of discussion, it was agreed that I’d get £1-a-month travelling expenses.
“Ian St John had just left for Liverpool when I joined the club in 1961.”
Getting into the Motherwell first team wasn’t an easy task.
John said: “They had a great team with players like Bert Mccann, John Martis, Bobby Roberts and Matt Thomson.
“I was a wing- half and found it hard to get a game. I came from a little village and I think the lads who came from towns probably had a stronger make-up.
“I saw football as a good, fair game. Then I was being crunched by opponents who would kick you up in the air without a second thought.
“I only played about five times before I was freed at the age of 21.”
It didn’t take long for John to find a new club – one where he would become a real legend.
He went on: “I was released one Friday and on Monday morning there was a scout from Luton Town at my door.
“He had gone to Motherwell to ask about me, but found that only the groundsman was there.
“Fortunately, the man taking care of the pitch was former player ‘ Baldy’ Shaw. He recommended me as clean-living lad that didn’t smoke or drink.
“Luton manager George Martin came up to see me and asked what I wanted.
“I imagine he was talking about a signing-on fee, but I said: ‘an opportunity to play’.
“That was all I was looking for.
“I went into digs close to Luton’s ground and was well looked after by an elderly landlady.
“It was make- or- break time in my football career, but I was put straight into the team.
“Luton went from the Fourth Division to the Second Division during my time as a player.
“I wouldn’t say I was that brilliant but, aside from short spells at Brighton and Northampton, I was with the club for 32 years.
“I think that longevity created the illusion of having legendary status.”
John, now 77, was given a coaching role when he hung up his boots.
He spent just one season as the Hatters manager in 1986-87 and led the club to seventh in the First Division – their highest ever finish.
They knocked Kenny Dalglish’s Liverpool out of the FA Cup, winning 3-0 in a second replay.
He said: “David Pleat had left Luton and I feared the club would change in a big way.
“I felt forced to apply for the job and got it, but I never thought it was really me.
“I was happier going back to helping apprentices carve out a career.
“I was made redundant when I was 60, worked in a supermarket for a while and then coached at a school until I was 65.”
Fraser Wishart believes our footballers have coped incredibly well with the coronavirus pandemic.
But the PFA Scotland chief executive fears for the future of youngsters who have been frozen out of the game.
He’s sure of one thing – players are desperate to be out on the pitch.
Rangers’ Nathan Patterson was able to make a spectacular return to action against Royal Antwerp in midweek, less than 14 days after breaching Covid-19 rules.
Howe v e r, football b e l ow the Championship is currently suspended and there’s no sign of a quick resumption.
The players’ union have discovered their members are exceptionally anxious to get going again.
Wishart said: “We’ve done a survey of lower league players and 89% of them in League One and Two want to return to playing.
“So there’s a real desire to return, and 70% of players have said they’d even be willing to get back without testing.
“There’s a real push from the players. Some of it is down to mental health and welfare involved in not playing.
“There are small, individual issues around travelling and work. But, ultimately, the players just want to get back to playing.
“They are competitive people. If it means going to an 18- game season, that might be the only way to get the season finished.
“It’s difficult because they’re part-time and we’re in a pandemic. It’s hard taking yourself away from your own situation as a footballer, where you just want to play.
“The government is saying, ‘Hang on, these players are out and about’.
“But there’s a balance to be struck. If lower league players want to return – and they can test – I don’t see why it should be a problem.
“This is information that we’ll feed into the Scottish Government and the Joint Response Group in the next few days.
“We’ve not had particularly great consultation with the JRG. We decided early on that we just had to look after our members, which we’ve done.
“Our role is to send that information in and let the governing body make the final decisions.”
There’s been an uneasy relationship between football and the Scottish Government over the last few months.
Incidents where players have fallen foul of Covid regulations have been strongly condemned by politicians.
Wishart went on: “I think football has done a terrific job. The word ‘privilege’ has been used many times.
“But unlike other industries, football actually pays for that privilege by testing. “That’s only right and fair.
“Bu t w h e n yo u think of the number of tests – tens of thousands – there have been very few cases of players with Covid.
“When the system picks up a player with Covid, it works. You can isolate them, protect the squad and wider society. “No one else is going to their work and going through as rigorous a process as football. “There’s always going to be isolated incidents and a few players have broken lockdown rules. “They have to abide by them because they’re no different to anyone else.
“But the vast majority have really looked after themselves.
“There are always isolated incidents which get headlines.
“But in general, the compliance has been admirable.”
Looking to the future, PFA Scotland have teamed now up with Firstpoint USA.
They provide opportunities for youngsters released by clubs to go for sports scholarships at universities in America.
Wishart said: “We actually don’t know what the impact is going to be, on players or clubs in the future.
“We’re all pretty certain that budgets will be cut. Sometimes it’s the youth team instead of the first team where the cuts happen.
“We must have support mechanisms for these younger guys.”
Andrew Kean of Firstpoint USA, a former Partick Thistle youth player, said: “The pandemic is already adding to what is a really high attrition rate for academy players.
“This link- up hopefully gives us an opportunity to help more players who are probably thinking “What happens next?”
“Scottish players are very much in demand.
“We may not always see Scots as being very technical or as gifted with the ball as South American prospects, but American universities recognise that the education Scottish players have had from clubs is up there with the best.”