BANGOR F.C. TO THE RESCUE

Having suffered the ignominy of borrowing this Red kit twice, Epworth reverted to wearing assorted White with the hope that something would conic their way. In early May, their prayers were answered when a contact delivered a bag to one of the Committee member’s house. When opened, it was discovered that the bag contained a set of used jerseys that had been donated by Bangor F.C.

The body of the shirts was Royal Blue and the round collar, sleeves & cuffs were Yellow. The shirts were manufactured by the famous sportswear firm Umbro and were from their famous Aztec range which had been introduced in the World Cup held in Mexico the previous year. Although made from “Tangeru” Cotton, the shirts had worn extremely well, being in extremely good condition.

Epworth Hall wore their authentic, not “replica”, shirts with pride for the duration of the summer league, only having to change once back to the Kilcooley Red for a match where the colours clashed with their opposition.

For the first two matches of the League, however, a loan of a set of jerseys was secured from the Kilcooley football team and thus the team played it’s first competitive match on7 April 1971, against Oneida, in red jerseys with white collars.
The team which suffered a heavy 7 v 0 defeat on that evening was Ian McRitchie, Paul Barr, Nigel Jeffers, Jimmy Kennedy, Roy French, Brian Balrner, Roger Grant, Peter Vannucci, Norman Green, Nicky Davidson, Roy Richardson and Michael McBride. It is interesting to note that no less than 9 of the members of that side were schoolmates at Bangor Grammar School and only 3 players who played in the augural match in the Kilcooley League were still in the team when it played it’s last match just over three months later.

The team than reverted to it’s all white colours until their match against Munton Brothers on 8 May when they were able to wear an old set of their jerseys donated by local Irish League Club, Bangor F.C. These were the Royal Blue shirts with Yellow sleeves which Bangor F.C. had worn the season before winning their first ever senior trophy, the County Antrim Shield, the previous year. As a result of this gesture, the Club adopted, as it’s official colours, the combination of Royal Blue & Yellow and White. Various permutations of these colours have been worn down through the years by all the Club’s sides.
Unfortunately, the Kilcooley League did not prove to be an administrative success and, after many disputes and controversies, was not completed. However this did not dampen the enthusiasm for the game and plans were laid for the coming winter season.
During the July holiday period of 1971, the fledgling Youth Guild side played the visiting 12th. Edinburgh Boy’s Brigade side which has been the only occasion to date when the opposition have been from outside these shores. In fact it would be another 22 years before any team would even play opposition from outside Northern Ireland!
That summer also saw an attempt to get a ladies team off the ground and a friendly was arranged against Plessey Limited from Ballynahinch. Representing the Youth Guild in a 5 v 3 defeat were Janet Govan, Gay Wells, Vivienne Dunne, Linda Coggins, Sandra Johnston, Linda Ray, Heather Bathgate, Susan Dunn, Karen Jeffers, Belinda Davidson and Amanda Dunne. Unfortunately, although the match was a success, a ladies side did not prove to be a viable prospect at this time.
The result of the above plans for the men’s side was that many friendlies were played during the 1971/72 season. These were against a variety of teams and played mostly on Saturday mornings as pitches were easier to obtain. This arrangement also made it easier for the majority of players to attend Clandeboye Park in the afternoon to support Bangor F.C.
The matches during this season were mainly Boy’s Brigade, Youth Club or unofficial school sides. One opposition side from this season worth noting was a group who played at the old council dump beside Clandeboye Cemetery and called themselves Belfast Road Rangers. Members of this team later helped form long term rivals Bangor Rangers.
Back the early seventies the fledgling team were unable to be so choosey and when a set of jerseys was required for the girls of the Youth Club, the most appropriate were a set of “seconds” which were being sold off cheaply in S.S. Moore’s sports shop in Belfast. These were Brazil style Yellow shirts with Green round collars & cuffs.
Although there was no Blue on the shirt, their colours could be excused as they were those of the Methodist Church who provided the funds for their purchase. Being of a medium size and made of cotton, these shirts shrank after a few washes and, although the Girls did not make much use of them, they were not practical for regular use by the Epworth Hall side. Despite the lack of regular use, these shirts became the first official change kit of the team.
As the Yellow shirts shrank, there was an increasing urgency to secure a reasonable set of jerseys for the 2nd. XI which was in the process of being formed. By the time the 2nd. Xl played their first match on 17th. April 1972, Epworth Hall had purchased another sale kit from S.S. Moore’s. This was a Red nylon shirt with White round collar and cuffs.
Although these shirts did not shrink like the cotton set, they were tight fitting to start with and they were also very thin which led to a lot of complaints from the players in cold weather. Despite these problems, Red became the first registered colour of the Swifts 2nd. XI when they entered the newly formed Down Area League in 1974.

FIRST NAME CHANGE
Around the same time, the organisers of the team were coming under increasing pressure from the Wesley Centenary Youth Leader who was objecting to the playing of non-Guild members in the side. The main target of his objection was Clive Briggs who became the Club’s Leading Goalscorer in 1973/ 74 and later went on to be the treasurer of Bryansburn Rangers. Although Clive was a member of the Wesley Centenary Church, he had refused to join the Youth Guild on a matter of principle.
As a result of this pressure, the team organisers decided to take steps to become more independent of the Youth Guild and in March 1972 moved towards the formation of a proper Football Club. Accordingly, the team changed it’s name to Epworth Hall Y.C. which in any case was the name by which it was better known.
The senior members of the team formed themselves into a Management Committee to run the Club and guide it into competitive winter football. The first Committee of the Club consisted of the following :- Peter Vannucci (General Manager & Secretary), George Wilson (Treasurer), Norman Green (Team Supervisor) and Roger Grant (Trainer).
One of the first matches under their new name was against their Epworth Hall neighbours, 2nd.Bangor O.B. and this was followed by their first participation in Bangor Summer League football. During the seventies this took may guises, with the competitions being known as the Castle Cup, McCracken Cup and the Helmsman Cup amongst other titles. Locations also varied with most competitions being played at the Valentines but some also taking place at the “Bull Ring” pitch on the Clandeboye Road.
As Summer football was not encouraged by the I.F.A. (Irish Football Association), teams were also given different names when they participated and although they were not affiliated to the I.F.A. at this stage, the Epworth Hall Y.C. was renamed “Centurions” for the 1972 Castle Cup competition. Their interest only lasted for one match as they were beaten 2 v 0 by Bangor Y.M. II, sorry, the “Colts”, in the first round.