Trevor B wrote: ↑Sat Oct 28, 2023 1:56 pm
Sorry slightly off the subject of Tom Bonner but I blame Jonty when he mentioned
Hi Skip, hope you have settled into deepest Suffolk. Just had a look at my Princes Among Men almanac and it says Colin scored 39 goals for the Darts in just over 300 appearances. Just as I was closing the book I noticed a page about a certain Gary Hills having a disagreement with then manager Graham Carr in 1980, which did make me chuckle.
Jonty
I had a look in Princes Among Men and also the earlier A History Of Dartford Football Club and just to put Skip in a better frame of light he gets the same mention in both books praising his efforts along with Mike Smith for selling the inflatable penguins.
Quote from the program for the Southern League Cup Semi Final home game against Atherstone (3-0)
It was home debut night for scores of inflatable penguins, the new Watling Street craze.
Highlight of the mass appearance was the formation flying to the Dambusters theme. Very impressive.
More penguins will be on sale this afternoon - see Mike Smith or Gary Hills who is selling the little fellas.
It is good to see that the Penguin Sales Organisation Customer Services Department really looks after the buyer any faulty goods are replaced without question (or at least they were on Tuesday !!!
Skip I remember that night well and I was flying my penguin along with every one else that hadn't punctured them, those were the days, just how many did you have to replace ? and I am still waiting on you and Spike resurrecting that well known fanzine which ran long side the selling of penguins
Hi Trev, Absolutely brilliant memories of those days; flogging the inflatable penguins and various other paraphernalia whilst working with Spike on the ‘Light’. Fantastic time to be a Darts supporter with Peter Taylor’s teams scoring goals for fun, winning cups, a couple of trophy semis and oh, so close league titles.
If memory serves me correct less than half a dozen ‘faulty’ penguins were ever returned. We was always little suspicious at how some of those penguins received their puncture!
Spike’s been toying with the idea of resurrecting the ‘Light’ for a few years. Whilst there is plenty of material for a relaunch I’m not sure the enthusiasm is currently there!
PeteSamson wrote: ↑Sat Oct 28, 2023 2:12 pm
Ha ha. Like this!!
Sadly, back in the 80s i was missing out on the Darts, what with living in South Wales at that time and 2 young lboys at that time. So I missed out on seeibg the penguins, although I do now have a small collection of ceramic ones!
Hope you settle down well in Suffolk Gary.
Hi Pete, The 80s…what a time to be supporting the Darts! League titles, cup wins, relegations, and some terrific players we worshiped on a weekly basis at Watling Street and all over the country, in fact.
It’s a shame that things aren’t working out for the Darts at the moment but Dowse really does need to look at the type of football his team is currently offering. It wasn’t great last season from the new year onwards and it appears to be following the same trajectory.
Me and the missus have been following Felixstowe and Walton United all season as we moved into our new property (literally 5 mins walk from the ground) the first week of August. The manager has assembled a team that plays attractive football with goals flowing from all over the pitch. A 3-0 win away to Grays today put them top of the Isthmian North. The Seasiders have a similar structure to the Darts with no money man but stacks of various kids and academy teams. And they also have plans for a full-size 4g and 3 x mini pitches next to the current stadium pitch. It’s a cracking community club with great people pushing it in the right direction. I had a chat with one of the Felixstowe players today who was very complimentary about Princes Park as he appeared there for the Bury Town team that Dartford faced when we won the Isthmian North in 2007-08. Needless to say he is one of the senior players…
those were the days, just how many did you have to replace ?
