I spotted this recently and it's great to know Brian is still at it at 70, he was great for us and obviously still is. please log in to view this image Bricklayer Ian Jones, 54, ex-Bristol City player Brian Drysdale, 70, and retired Dave Bebbington, 72, started growing beards in October. please log in to view this image After - The trio clean shaven. IT began with a cold sore on the lip of a former Bristol City player and ended with a pub rallying round to raise more than £2,000 for Bristol Children's Hospital. When ex-Robins full back Brian Drysdale began growing a beard to conceal the blister, his friends Dave Bebbington and Ian Jones also pledged to stop shaving as an act of solidarity. As the trio began raising money for the hospital, their efforts inspired other customers and staff at the Concorde pub in Stockwood to collect funds for the same cause. The children's hospital was chosen as the recipient for their fundraising as all three men have had either close friends or relatives who have benefited from care there. The trio had their bushy beards shaved off at a charity event on December 20, when prizes including signed City and Rovers footballs and a signed Robins shirt were raffled off. Issy Priest, 17, who has spent much of her childhood in the children's hospital, sung at the event and raised £48 towards the total of more than £2,000. Mr Drysdale, 71, who lives in Stockwood, was surprised by how his decision to grow facial hair in October snowballed and became a two-month fundraising effort. The former left back said: "I was absolutely surprised at the end of the day. "But it wasn't just three men â it was the whole pub. "I was really eager to get the beard shaved off in the end but it was worth doing. "It was a nice gesture from the pub â it shows what can be done through people. The fundraising night was a good night and we had karaoke afterwards." Mr Bebbington, 72, who also lives in Stockwood, said: "Of the lads who have given money over the past couple of weeks, most have had dealings with the children's hospital. "When we all started growing beards, we didn't know it would take off like that â it was amazing really. "On the Friday when we had the shave off, we raised £200 on that evening." Read more: http://www.bristolpost.co.uk/Hair-r...tory-20389875-detail/story.html#ixzz2qBLe7nIK
Good chap old Speedy, but is he 70 or 71? I met him around 15 years ago at the Hunters Rest (Clutton?) I had a great chat with his very pretty daughter (bang tidy hairdresser) Ooh and chatted with Brian! I remember as a young kid he raised money for Africa? so his heart has always been in the right place. He was a very fit for his age then and enjoyed running. The strange part of the story was how did he get the cold sore? My sister was always getting them and we put it down to too many BJ's.
He used to pound the roads (running) around Whitchurch and Stockwood long after he retired A great player in his day and it was nice to see him play in Sir Gerry Gow's testimonial
Ah yes, the days when you knew your best 11 and they played every week, Anglo-Scottish Cup, League Cup or League game. Everyone knew the players then as it was always the same 11 or 12 who featured. Simpler days.
Great to see pics of our brilliant team back in those days, english & scottish players with a few local one's like my cousin Gary Collier! a far cry from teams like Man City's foreign lot, a club that does nothing for English football!!!!!!!!!!!
I wouldnt say they do nothing for English football BJ. Having players like Silva weaving their magic in this country raises our game towards that of other nations. I can remember before the great influx, when Wimbledon were the icons who everyone tried to emulate, and midfield players were considered to be pointless because the game was conducted between defence and attack. Skill was for nancy boys and if you had a big forward with a thick skull to head the ball in you were a better team. Yes, there should be limits to the amount of foreigners per team. British players should not become an inconvenience but more a base to build your team on, and I always found it bizarre that our players rarely get taken on by teams on the continent. But to say the foreigners here do nothing for our game is inaccurate. Fact is the more successful Premiership sides have usually got a clutch of British players anyway (Arsenal, Liverpool, Man Utd all have a group of Brits who make the team on merit)
I wouldnt say they do nothing for English football BJ. Having players like Silva weaving their magic in this country raises our game towards that of other nations. I can remember before the great influx, at the end of the eighties, when Wimbledon were the icons who everyone tried to emulate, and midfield players were considered to be pointless because the game was conducted between defence and attack. Skill was for nancy boys and if you had a big forward with a thick skull to head the ball in you were a better team. Then Gascoigne came to Italia 90 and gave us all back our self respect Yes, there should be limits to the amount of foreigners per team. British players should not become an inconvenience but more a base to build your team on, and I always found it bizarre that our players rarely get taken on by continental clubs. But to say the foreigners here do nothing for our game is inaccurate. Fact is the more successful Premiership sides have usually got a clutch of British players anyway (Arsenal, Liverpool, Man Utd all have a group of Brits who make the team on merit)
Its just another example of the ever widening gulf between the likes of Manchester City and us and it will take something very dramatic like Sky withdrawing from football (which let's face it is not going to happen as they make money worldwide) to get some parity between the leagues back again. The thought of us beating Watford and having to go to the Etihad in the next round is actually quite frightening. I remember how I laughed at Rovers getting beaten 9-0 at Spurs, but we could lose by 15 or more away at Man City if they fielded a strong team.
