I was saddened to hear of the death of Jimmy McLoughlin, former Sw**sea Town and Northern Ireland international midfield player. His was a name I’d known for most of my life. I was at Ninian with my Dad on February 8th 1966 as a 14 year old boy watching City v Jacks in a Welsh Cup 5th round replay. The sides had drawn 2-2 at the Vetch cabbage patch on the previous Wednesday. Anyway, City were giving them a real hammering, leading 3-0 well into the second half when McLaughlin and Don Murray, our colossal centre half, who’d been having a right old go at each other all evening, got into another scrape. All of a sudden McLoughlin is on the ground, out for the count, as his nose collided with The Don’s nut. Needless to say Leo Callaghan sent Don from the field leaving us with 10 men. I shudder when I remember what happened next, slowly the Western chaps got back into the game, one goal after another until they equalised just before full time! Into extra time we went and the inevitable happened, we lost 3-5! I haven’t given that match much thought in recent times but yesterday’s news of McLoughlin’s passing brought thr memories flooding back. RIP Jimmy.
I vaguely remember that game as a 9 year old. It was my first season of watching the Swans. It wasn't the first scrape that Don Murray got into in the games between our clubs. I would like to think that Jimmy is smiling down on us remembering the result. RIP Jimmy.
Brian Purcell and Roy Evans left the Swans to join Hereford – then managed by John Charles – in the summer of 1968. However, they were tragically killed in a car crash on January 20, 1969, having set off from Swansea together to meet the Hereford team bus ahead of a game against Nuneaton Borough. A memorial match was held in their honour and a plaque placed in Hereford’s social club by the supporters’ club. Sadly, the social club was destroyed in a fire and the plaque was believed to have been lost, but it has recently been tracked down and restored. And, to mark the 50th anniversary of the accident, the plaque will be relayed in its original position when Hereford take on Nuneaton Borough on Saturday afternoon. Between them Evans and Purcell made more than 450 appearances for the Swans, and both were part of the side that reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup in 1964.
I saw Nuneaton some years back. They lost something like 8 nil at home to Luton. Luton filled the away end and we're good support.
