Pure Genius

[Whyoy]

I don't know whether this is the right forum but I've finally unearthed some scrap- books from the attic and copied out some reports of my hero in days of old when knights were bold. This man was THE reason why I became a Rovers supporter.

At times in the seventies and eighties he had alot to answer for.

Read and enjoy..........

Such a genius, this man Bryan Douglas

By Leslie Duxbury: Blackburn 3 (0) Liverpool 2 (2)

What a man is little Bryan Douglas! Show me another inside forward in England who can breach a concrete defence with a feint of hip or shoulder and open a gap in which you could put a cannon-ball

Twice as though warming up, Douglas swayed towards a watchful wall of red shirts. Twice he “willed” the holes for first Byrom and then McEvoy to go very near scoring. Then in the 46th minute he repeated his hypnotic act – the approach, the pause , the destruction with a shimmy – and there was young Byrom slashing his first League goal as centre forward and as we were soon to see tearing the heart out of the Merseysiders.

Liverpool could not match the star quality of Douglas. Thompson tried, but somehow his legs seemed leaden alongside the the older legs of Blackburn’s hero……..

I would have wagered my braces on the champions making a leisurely recovery from Wednesday’s mauling at Leeds

Rovers had neither the inspiration of a previous win nor even the confidence of team togetherness after manager Jack Marshall’s brusque shake-up.

And my forebodings proved solidly true during a first half of Blackburn mediocrity and Liverpool flashes of genuine power.

But I reckoned without the giant talent of Douglas, that mesmeric genius.

____________________________________________________________________

It’s sheer delight, the pure skill of this man Douglas

By Leslie Duxbury: Blackburn 3 (2) Leicester 1 (1)

The science of Bryan Douglas, Professor of Soccer, never ceases to absorb me. One incident in yet another Douglas-dominated saga demonstrates perfectly the almost contemptuous skill of this man.

In the tenth minute he dollied towards the Leicester defence stretched as determined as any military red line across the breadth of the field.

Mixed with the City foot soldiers were at least five blue-shirted Rovers irregulars. There was only one perfect pass to be made only one man with a chance to break the Leicester blockade.

Douglas leaned casually to his right, punched the ball between two players and there was Ferguson striding free as any bird for the corner flag.

It would have been like a beggar refusing the largesse of a king had Ferguson spurned the chance.

He did not … his lovely centre curled gently across the goal for McEvoy to plummet between two agonised defenders and head Blackburn’s first.

Please Mr Ramsay, tell me of another footballer in England, Scotland or Wales who can reduce the game to such improbable precision.

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Douglas genius wrecks Wolves

By Ronald Kennedy: Blackburn 4 (1) Wolves 1 (0)

My watch showed exactly 44 minutes when that little stoney-faced fellow, Bryan Douglas, decided that siesta time was over. Before that I had visions of a set of stumps and a bat and ball being produced, so lazy was the soccer.

But then Douglas went on to the taming of the Wolves. From the lofty heights of the press seats it was bewildering enough to watch. What it was like at eye-level reception point like the Wolves, I shudder to think.

Wolves were utterly, shatteringly, overawed by him. Fangs bared, they sprang snarling at him. They retreated like he had the plague and then massed at the gates to stop him.

But Douglas just laughed, and laughed.

The first three goals-the four were shared by bubbling Johnny Byrom and sure-footed Andy McEvoy- tumbled off the Douglas assembly line. For marksmen it was just a case of sitting back while the head waiter served it up on a plate.

[Ozz]

A very welcome contribution. Excellent. Thank you.

[joey_big_nose]

Why don't journalists write like that anymore?

A little more difficult to get a clear picture of the events perhaps, but so much more fun to read!

[Jolly Giraffe]

What a brilliant collection of articles - thanks!

The journalists of yesta-year must have been the inspiration for the way Stuart Hall commentates.

Today's rabble spend the majority of match reports discussing the latest scandal rather than concentrating on the game itself.

I read those articles and found myself lamenting a time when football was accessible by either walking through a turnstile or reading a match report.

This weekend it was back-to-back coverage with several repeats thrown in. With the amount of modern coverage it's no wonder the modern journalist has become lazy and lost the ability to report descriptively.

[Al]

WONDERFUL! Takes me back years to that wonderful era when Duggie was king.

I'm drunk with nostalgia and will be in a blissful mood for the rest of the day.

Thanks Paul for this great new forum.

[jim mk2]

Lovely writing, beautiful matches.

I remember the Liverpool like t'were yesterday: they were 2-0 up, we pulled it back to 2-2 at half time and scored the winner in the second half. Duggie was brilliant.

The Scouse hordes were not happy, throwing beer bottles around the Darwen End even then.

Ron Kennedy was a Blackburn freelance for years, not sure what happened to him.

[thenodrog]

Big regret of my life was not being able to see Duggie and Shearer in their pomp and in the same Rovers team. How many would Big Al have scored for us then?

[jim mk2]

Big regret of my life was not being able to see Duggie and Shearer in their pomp and in the same Rovers team.  How many would Big Al have scored for us then?

391476[/snapback]

Yup, you really missed something there.

I saw Duggie and Shearer play more than 100 games together for Rovers and they really were magical.

[Al]

I saw Duggie and Shearer play more than 100 games together for Rovers and they really were magical.

391477[/snapback]

Yes Jim I sometimes dream too. I wish it was real!

[Claytons Left Boot]

I remember Ron Kennedy reports in the late 60s - I think he covered when Alf Thornton was away and if he was a freelance that would add up. I was at SMC and his brother was our form teacher and maths teacher. Can't recall his first name now, but we used to call him Toss Kennedy.

Great reading those extracts!

Edited November 20, 2009 by Claytons Left Boot

[JAL]

The Scouse hordes were not happy, throwing beer bottles around the Darwen End even then.

Ron Kennedy was a Blackburn freelance for years, not sure what happened to him.

Back then my uncle was a policeman he says the scousers would be on the platform at Blackburn waiting to go home with a wardrobe or piece of furniture robbed from some unfortunate sole ready to take it back to Liverpool.

Back at Blackburn nick with the arrestees as the cell door opened to put the offender or acused into his cell, my uncle would punch the guy into the cell, nice eh ! must say he was an ex boxer in his day but thats what happenend in those days.

Source my uncle or should say deceased uncle.

Edited November 21, 2009 by JAL

[thenodrog]

I remember Ron Kennedy reports in the late 60s - I think he covered when Alf Thornton was away and if he was a freelance that would add up. I was at SMC and his brother was our form teacher and maths teacher. Can't recall his first name now, but we used to call him Toss Kennedy.

Great reading those extracts!

I seem to rem that Ron Kennedy wrote most of his Rovers reports for the Blackburn Times.

[Billinge End Blue]

<I remember Ron Kennedy reports in the late 60s - I think he covered when Alf Thornton was away and if he was a freelance that would add up. I was at SMC and his brother was our form teacher and maths teacher. Can't recall his first name now, but we used to call him Toss Kennedy.>

His name was/is Tom, still see him around - as well as a maths teacher he was the Eymard 1st year Form Tutor in my day.

"Who's that smoking at the back? Pipe down!"

Forget QED.... "N'est-ce pas? Oui, Oui? Later!"

(Edit - meant to also say - great articles, when journalists could actually write and do more than cut n paste and spellcheck).

Edited April 19, 2010 by Billinge End Blue

[Claytons Left Boot]

<I remember Ron Kennedy reports in the late 60s - I think he covered when Alf Thornton was away and if he was a freelance that would add up. I was at SMC and his brother was our form teacher and maths teacher. Can't recall his first name now, but we used to call him Toss Kennedy.>

His name was/is Tom, still see him around - as well as a maths teacher he was the Eymard 1st year Form Tutor in my day.

"Who's that smoking at the back? Pipe down!"

Forget QED.... "N'est-ce pas? Oui, Oui? Later!"

(Edit - meant to also say - great articles, when journalists could actually write and do more than cut n paste and spellcheck).

Aye, Tom - he was quite a character!