WITH Wembley Cupfever very much in the air following the weekend’s successes for Darlington and Whitley Bay, Emeritus Professor John Coulthard, of Teesside University, sends in this picture of the FA Amateur Cup in the hands of Crook Town in 1954, following an epic tie with Bishop Auckland.

By seconds on Saturday, Darlington were spared the agony of penalties at the end of extra time in the FA Trophy, but back in the Fifties the Amateur Cup went to replay after replay after replay until a winner emerged.

The final in 1954 at Wembley ended in a 2-2 draw watched by 100,000 spectators, many of whom went down from County Durham on special railway excursions.

TV commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme described it as “the greatest two hours of sport in 1954”, and it was so exciting that Crook’s former president, Ernest Craggs, died of a heart attack at the stadium.

The first replay at St James’ Park, Newcastle, was another 2-2 draw watched by 56,008; the second at Ayresome Park, Middlesbrough, drew a crowd of 36,722, who saw 27-year-old schoolteacher Ken Harrison score the game’s only goal.

About 200,000 watched the final over the course of 12 days, an extraordinary attendance considering that money was tight, work hours were long and transport was difficult.

Prof Coulthard’s picture shows Crook captain, Bobby Davison, showing the cup off to his workmates at Marshall Richards Machine Company, an engineering firm in the town.

“I had just joined the company having left St Chad’s School, at Witton Park, with no qualifications, but was taken on potentially as an apprentice electrician,” he says. “I am the fresh-faced youngster in the second row second from the left.”

YOU may have seen a florid piece in Saturday’s paper concerning Jayne Mansfield’s tour of North-East nightclubs in April 1967, shortly before the Hollywood superstar was killed in a car crash.

While researching that article, an article headlined “bleak outlook” jumped out of the paper. It concerned Darlington’s 3-2 home defeat to Oldham, and featured a windswept picture of Feethams (see the Echo Memories’ blog). “These sparsely-filled terraces are a sign of the times,” said the Echo. “Only 3,345 turned up to watch relegation-haunted Darlington’s match with Oldham on Saturday – the club’s lowest League attendance of the season.”

The Quakers finished third from bottom of Division Three and were relegated.

Their average attendance that season was 6,591.

Perhaps to be emulated next season?