This wonderful photo is almost 70 years old and shows a group of cricketers gathered round a transistor radio to listen to commentary on another sport.
Watford Town CC chairperson Richard Bayliss kindly sent this picture to the Watford Observer of players, at their Woodside ground, listening to the 1956 FA Cup Final.
Richard said: “Some readers might recognise the Watford captain, John Townsend, wearing the blazer, as he was a teacher and later, headmaster, of Leggatts Way School, (which closed in 1985).
- High street corner home to a succession of burger shops
- Rare aerial snaps of Watford from above 60 years ago
“The young man to his right, next to the radio, is Vince Ferrigno, who went on to become Watford Town’s most successful captain ever, winning the Hertfordshire League twice in the early 1980s.”
Played on May 5, 1956 at Wembley Stadium, the final saw Manchester City beat Birmingham City 3-1.
However, the showpiece occasion is most famous for the heroics of legendary City goalkeeper Bert Trautmann, who carried on playing despite breaking a bone in his neck following a collision with Birmingham’s Peter Murphy, leading to it often being referred to as ‘the Trautmann final’.
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