Great memories: Silver Bay Caravan Park FC of the Anglesey League

Last weekend’s feature on Grassroots North Wales about Anglesey football teams past and present awoke many a keen memory.

My good friend Jeff Scott of Holyhead (via Hull) contacted me about the Silver Bay Caravan Park team which competed in the Anglesey League from the late 1970s.

Silver Bay joined the island league in 1977-78, playing in Division Two, as well as the Auxiliary Groups which operated then to swell the threadbare fixture list.

They carried on into 1978-79, then taking part in the new Division Three, but were gone by 1980-81.

Nonetheless, this team produced some good results in league and cups and were by no means also-rans at any stage.

So what about the team?

Well a young Mr Jeff Scott himself played for them, as well as Martin Van Weert. Martin was in Holyhead County School with my sister, in the same class, about 1973 or 1974, aged 15 or 16. So he’d still have been a young lad when at Silver Bay.

Great to see Steve Griffith in the photo.

I got to know Steve from about 1988 onward, when I worked for the Vale Advertiser newspaper in Denbigh, and Steve was centre-half and secretary for Caerwys FC from the Clwyd League.

Police officer Steve used to write excellent match reports week in, week out.

I would guess when at Silver Bay he was a serving officer on the island. The photo you can see here was taken by Steve’s lovely wife Gaynor.

The picture, taken before a cup tie at Llangefni Town’s old ground, features (left to right – back row): John Morgan Jones, Martin Van Weert, Jeff Scott, Andy Hursey, Joe Jones, Steve Griffiths, Gwilym Evans. Front Row: Martin Jeffs, George Kisza, Arwyn Jones, Gareth Roberts, Maldwyn Hughes.

Maldwyn was a very good friend of the late Bob Brodie, Holyhead-based Scotsman, former player and manager supreme on the island.

George and Maldwyn are no longer with us. Andy Hursey the goalkeeper was Jeff’s Cpl at Raf Valley.

He actually at the time was keeper for the whole of the Royal Air Force.

Jeff said: “Myself and Andy had to get special permission form the Stn Cdr at Valley to play for a civilian side.

“I remember we changed in some toilet shower block they had there at Silver Bay caravan/camping park.”