ALAN WHALLEY'S WORLD

THE hilarious account by reader Ron Honey of his St Helens YMCA soccer team's 36-nil thrashing by the junior kingpins of Garswood, raised a chuckle and a distant memory for former top pro Eric Littler.

Eric, former St Helens councillor and ex-Leicester City striker, was just carving out a name for himself in the local junior ranks at that time.

Rubbing shoulders with Eric, during his Sacred Heart FC seasons of the 1940s, were the likes of Bobby Cunliffe (later Manchester City); Ron Birkett (New Brighton); Jackie Simm (Bury); former St Helens and Lancashire table tennis ace Ken Tyrebuck; one-time prominent town councillor Frank Mernagh, and others.

And Eric, from Billinge, looking back with amusement on the topsy-turvy nature of junior soccer in those wartime days, says: "I remember that 36-nil thrashing well."

And he has good reason to do so. For the following week, Eric scored four times as Sacred Heart took the wind out of high-flying Garswood's sails, beating them 7-4.

But next came a most inexplicable happening. "The YM then beat us 3-1," says Eric, "and that same season Garswood gained revenge in full by beating us 3-2 in the final of the L.P. Jones Cup."

Mind you, Sacred Heart committed 'soccer suicide' in that final. Eric still blanches when he recalls that he missed a penalty and the normally-clinical Bobby Cunliffe missed twice from the spot.

SOMETHING, it would seem, that Eric and Bobby had in common with today's vastly-overpaid (and over- hyped) English international players when it comes to making a hash of spot kicks when cup pressure is on!

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.