FORMER cross country runner Andy Leitch, who raced with the biggest names in his sport in the 1960s, entertained the recent Sporting Memories meetings – with his stories of cricketer Colin Milburn.
Andy was born on October 31, 1942, in St John’s Town of Dalry, Kirkcudbrightshire, now called Dumfries and Galloway, but when he was five, he moved to Dunston as his father followed his work with McAlpines.
"It was down town Dunston with the netty outside," said Andy.
He failed his 11-Plus at Dunston School and he said: “That precipitated a move to a school in Annfield Plain, the only school in County Durham, a part from a grammar school, where you could take your GCEs.
"At the school I was in Stanley house and my house captain was Colin Milburn (above) who went on to play first class cricket for Northants and England.
“We had a concrete wicket on the school field and occasionally Colin would go into bat and the teachers would bowl at him. He was only 13 or 14 but he would slog grown men all over the place.
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"I wasn't much good at cricket or football so I took up running and joined Gateshead Harriers.
“In my younger days, I kept fit by doing a milk round with my friend Frank Rankin who later played football for both Stanley United and Willington.
“Another pal was Peter Parker and he once persuaded me to travel down south for the national cross country championships which were run over the Parliament Hill course in Hemel Hempstead. We stayed with his aunt who had a really big house which was next to the 17th green on Wentworth golf course. We had a great big en suite bedroom – a big change from our house in Dunston.”
Andy can recall that in one season he was picked for both England and Scotland after coming sixth in the Scottish championships and tenth in the England equivalent. "I chose neither, but as I worked for British Rail, I went with the BR team to Leipzig for the European Railway Championships."
He says that his best display as a road runner came in the 1966 Morpeth to Newcastle road race which was then run over 13½ miles. "I finished in fifth position in a time of one hour eight minutes and 25 seconds, and there were some good people both behind and in front of me. Fergus Murray won the race, Lachie Stewart, who won the gold medal in the Commonwealth Games 10,000 metres in Edinburgh in 1970, was second, while behind me were Dick Taylor and Brian Kilby. In 1962, Brian won the gold medal in the men’s marathon at the Euro championships.”
In his later years Andy, who was speaking at the Sporting Memories meeting at Bishop Auckland’s Heritage Park, cut back on the running to gain some banking qualifications and he rose to be the senior banking manager with HSBC in Darlington.
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