Brian Burgoyne – a cracking footballer and a great friend sorely missed!!

 
When I heard the sad news that Brian Burgoyne had passed away, I was as upset at the loss of a good sporting friend as I can ever remember.
 
Because the footballer who had served Milford United for half a century as player, manager, official and anything else The Robins needed was a great example to others about how the game should be played.
 
 Known to all as ‘Burgs’ he was very much a family man but his other main interest was what went on at Marble Hall and his loss left a huge hole, which his son Andrew has manfully tried to fill as best he can - and I simply couldn’t write about the great characters I have been lucky to meet around the touchlines at clubs across Pembrokeshire without including ‘Burgs’ as one of the footballers who have passed away that I include.
 
Brian was still playing regularly until he was 37 and had his last game at 44 before he had a short break from Milford United to manage The Quarterdeck team when they were struggling - but for the rest of his footballing days he was a pivotal figure when The Robins played Welsh League football, and he even played at youth level for Wales.
 

Youth cap against Scotland – but he sustained a nasty injury

 
His invite to the trials was a great thrill and after the final trial, where he was the only Pembrokeshire player in the South Wales’ team to take on their counterparts from North Wales, he was overjoyed to be chosen at half back to play against Scotland Youth at Tynecastle.
 
On the night before, they stopped at a ‘posh’ hotel in Edinburgh, were introduced at a function to the Lord Provost of the city, and watched a top comedienne of the time named Gladys Morgan at a theatre - and when she asked the Welsh boys to stand up and be applauded Brian had to admit he felt ten feet tall!
 
Sadly, the game didn’t go well for Wales because they lost 3-1 and Brian broke his leg as he was caught late in a tackle and knew it was broken straight away. He was taken to Edinburgh Infirmary by Tony Walker, the Hearts’ manager, before he was allowed home with his mother and father, who had made the long journey north to watch him.
 

Other trials – for Wales and then Manchester United!

 
He attended other trials after that but that was his only cap in a long and distinguished career. These included four trials in 1955 for the full Welsh Amateur team and he played in a South Wales XI that beat their counterparts from North Wales by 5-4, with the likes of North Walians, Phil Woosnam (Aston Villa) and David Williams (Manchester City) on the pitch. Then the team was announced and there were only two South Walians - talk about North Wales’ bias at that time, as noted in the ‘Guardian’ newspaper!
 
Brian was playing senior football from the time he was 15 and was invited to go for a trial by Manchester United after a recommendation from Ernie Norman, who had a connection at the club.
His family received a telex, signed by assistant manager Jimmy Murphy, telling them that on arrival at Manchester Station he (Brian) should stand outside the barrier with a newspaper in his hand. I enclose a copy of that message, surely one that will never be seen today!





 

Invited back by Jimmy Murphy but decided against going

 
It read like something out of ‘Boys Own’ but it worked because Mr Murphy whisked him off to Old Trafford to train alongside first team stars, like skipper Johnny Carew, goalkeeper Reg Allen and centre forward Jack Rowley, all household names at the time.
 
Brian was accompanied by another Milfordian in Raymond Horst, and after an overnight stay in a hotel he joined loads of other boys from across the UK for a trial - and Brian must have impressed because he was invited back by Mr Murphy for another trial and the chance of a possibility to sign on, but Brian asked for time to consider.
 
And when he returned to his home town, Manchester seemed a million miles away and he decided it was too big a step to take and didn’t go. Ask him about regrets now and he would say that it was the right decision for him because it was simply too big a step - and recalls that a number of players at that trial were eventually lost in the Munich Air Disaster!







 

Local legends and his teacher became his team-mates

 
Strangely enough, his footballing heroes of that time weren’t the famous English players but the Milford United stars like Hughie Kerr, ‘Bull’ Best, George Baker, Kenny Seago and Johnny King, who was one of his teachers, and all locals alongside ‘Firpo’ Hoggins and Jackie Bracher.
 
And at 16 he was playing for the club’s youth team which won the Wiltshire Youth Cup in 1951 against Pennar Robins and won it again the next season against Narberth - and he also found himself playing alongside those heroes and one minute it was Mr King, his teacher, who suddenly became his team mate!
 
He was astounded by the swearing that went in in the changing room (Mr King excluded, of course) - but he had to get used to it over the long period from 1951 to 1973 and always said that in the Welsh League he was allowed more time on the ball.
 
But experienced old hands were cynical in their approach - like the time he scored a goal with a well-placed header at Abergavenny but at the next corner a well-placed elbow earned him a broken nose!





 

Amazing interest in selection – and huge crowds at local derbies

 
So, it was at senior level that he became one of those ‘local heroes’ himself and such was the interest in Milford United that supporters queued up outside a barber’s in Charles Street on a Monday evening to see whose names were in the window as the team sheet was placed there!

On a personal note, Brian counted himself lucky to play for ‘The Robins’ at a time when they played at the highest levels of Welsh League football and had wonderful memories, not least was the playing in four Welsh Challenge Cup Finals, against Treharris (1954), Ebbw Vale (1957), Newport County (1958) and Merthyr Tydfil (1962) - and  though had runners-up medals in all four it was great to play in front of the amazing travelling supporters from Milford Haven.






 

Huge crowds and a special award

 
Marble Hall was one of the focal points in the town and he recalled to me that with admission of only six pence (that’s 2.5p. today!) a gate of almost £100 meant that there were almost 4,000 supporters there. The score and scorers appeared on Saturday evening in the old ‘Evening Post’ and people would be waiting outside the local cinema for news of away games!
 
They also came second in the top Welsh League and had a Senior Cup runners-up trophy in 1951 - but the one he treasured most came in 1977, when Milford United AFC presented him with the first award for ‘Long and Devoted Service’ which I know he was very honoured to receive.
 
When he eventually stepped down he was ‘persuaded’ to become manager of the club’s Pembrokeshire League team (which played in the first division) and he carried out that role from 1969 to 1980 before taking a three-year break - but then agreeing to help coach at Camrose and then The ‘Quarterdeck’ because his son Andrew was playing there, after playing Welsh League with Milford United, a role he kept for another four seasons.




 

And finally . . .

 

Brian often said he was also glad that he played at a time when every team had a goalkeeper, two full backs, three half backs and five forwards so there was a lot more attacking play and not the constant back passing or use of the ‘square ball’ that had come in when he had retired from being a player.
 
Brian still played the odd game when he was 44 and during his time at Marble Hall he played in every position for the club, even goalkeeper when he had to, and played with total commitment as he scored more than his fair share of goals but would also tackle back when needed and wasn’t afraid to throw himself into a tackle.
 
He rightly came to be dubbed as ‘Mr Milford United’ because he made immense contributions on the field, but also in every aspect of the club, be it working on the ground or in the clubhouse.
 
I was honoured to be asked to speak at his funeral, something I regarded as a huge honour, but sadly was out of the county and was unable to attend. But my thoughts were with him and his family on the day and, even today, if I drive past The Robins’ ground at Marble Hall I think with great admiration and fondness of Brian Burgoyne, a real star of local football in his time!