1967/8 to 1969/70

Two scenes from the Eagles' 3-1 league success against Banbury United at the Oxfordshire club's Spencer Stadium on 23 September 1967. (Top) Ron Fogg (white shirt, on ground left) places an overhead kick past goalkeeper Lines for the second goal, with Lou Adams following up. (Bottom) Laurie Churchill (left) heads past home defender Peter Svenson (6) for the third goal, watched by Danny Paton, Ron Fogg and Norman Cooley. Churchill was a talented former England amateur international winger whose career at The Eyrie ended sadly when he broke a leg playing in an unrecognised Sunday competition.

Bedford went out of the FA Cup for 1967/8 at the first hurdle against Boston United (then in the West Midlands League), losing a home replay 2-3 after a 1-1 draw at Boston's York Street ground on 28 October 1967 before a crowd of 5,137. Here are two scenes from the first match-(top) Peter Hall (centre) heads goalwards flanked by Lou Adams (left) and Norman Cooley, and (bottom), Hall heads Bedford in front from an Alan Wright cross just before half time with Adams and Danny Paton (partly hidden) in support. Bedford should have won, but Peter Burridge missed a second half penalty before Boston got a late equaliser.

Lou Adams shoots the Eagles in front in a 5-0 rout of Gravesend at The Eyrie on 11 November 1967, watched by Tony Thear to the right. Adams was leading scorer this season with 22 goals, and in three separate spells with the club he hit 82 goals in 200 appearances. Thear was on loan from Gillingham at the time, but signed permanently the following season.

George Cleary slots home the first of his two goals against Merthyr in the final league match of 1967/8 at The Eyrie on 11 May. This was the match that clinched promotion back to the Premier Division and this was the second of eight Bedford goals without reply-the seventh being their hundredth league goal of the season .

Another scene from the same match-Danny Paton, on the ground, beats Merthyr keeper Graham Vearncombe for the first goal of the eight, watched by the season's best league attendance of 3,463.

The 1968/9 season started with five points out of six in the first three games-yet another false dawn, since it ended with another relegation. This is the third match, on 17 August 1968, and Lou Adams beats Margate keeper Dave Bevis, watched by his colleague Don Campbell, for the last of Bedford's five goals in a 5-2 win before 3,102 at The Eyrie.

At the players' Christmas Party in 1969-left to right are Roger Barron, Dennis Roach, Alan Wright, David Skinn and Norman Cooley. Below, the Bedfordshire Times football correspondent, Jim Davis, is being stretchered off by Messrs Cooley, Skinn, Barron and Roach, assisted by Barry Fry on the far left.

(photos by kind permission of Roger Barron)

Mike Dixon (arms raised, second from right) celebrates his goal against Dunstable at The Eyrie on 25 April 1970 where a 2-1 win kept the Eagles on track for the Division One title. They had already clinched promotion a few days earlier with a 2-0 win at Wisbech. The Bedford Record's headline refers to the attendance of "only" 2,070, which was deemed poor for a succesful season. A few years later it would be regarded as beyond the club's wildest dreams.

The Division One title was clinched on 2 May 1970 with a 1-0 win at Trowbridge's Frome Road ground. Above, home 'keeper Dave Jones saves from George Cleary (right). Below, Roger Figg (far right) celebrates his goal, with Cleary (8) joining in.

Player-manager Alan Wright toasts the title with Supporter's Club official Eddie Hutton (left) and Jimmy Bowie, the former Eagles winger of the mid-50s who was by then a publican in Trowbridge

TO RETURN TO THE MAIN SITE HOME PAGE CLICK https://sites.google.com/site/bedfordoldeagles/home

TO RETURN TO THE PAGE YOU JUST LEFT ON THE MAIN SITE CLICK THE BACK BUTTON ON YOUR BROWSER