Brooklyn's

Willie Mcgrotty

Willie Mcgrotty

Well-known member
The Layton post got me thinking about playing kids football in the 70's (RAOB & Highcross) but I would think a high percentage of kids across Blackpool would have been involved with Brooklyn (Corinthians) at sometime. Anyone could just turn up & get a game. Collingwood Ave pitches & Lawsons Rd. Lee 'Brooklyn' (I think that was his stage name as a stand up comic) was the man. Remember a Motson like sheepskin & bling. I turned up one sat morning in a red tee shirt. He rooted in a bag & handed me 2 white sleeves that had fallen of a kit. Pushed them on my arms & told me I was playing for a team in Arsenal colours 😂
 
Remember whilst still at school playing for a team (can’t remember who) but managed by a character called Racker ? , does anyone remember him ?
 
Saturday and Sunday mornings Collingwood ave , play for your team then ‘float’ for another team who were short of players, maybe play three games in a row. Then there’d be the oval tournament at Stanley park In the summer. Then the summer league we played on lawsons rd .Happy days ,was the old man called lee?
 
Played regularly at Queenie Park, then moved to Lawsons fields (Not sure what year). All my mates who lived near Devi Road School / Queenie flats or went to Blackpool Boys Club played most Saturday mornings for one of the many teams. Old Lee Brooklyn must have been a fan of cowboys & indians in his youth as all the teams were named after native american indian tribes as I remember I played most for Commanches but there were also Cherokees, Apaches and Shoshones. Shame i've no pictures from that time but ive uploaded this one from 1986 of the pitches on Lawsons Road where Brooklyn Corinthians matches took place with the indoor tennis court hangars pre De Vere in view.
Football-pitches-Lawson Rd-1986.jpg
 
Kingscoatkiwi said:
Saturday and Sunday mornings Collingwood ave , play for your team then ‘float’ for another team who were short of players, maybe play three games in a row. Then there’d be the oval tournament at Stanley park In the summer. Then the summer league we played on lawsons rd .Happy days ,was the old man called lee?
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He was called Lee. As I put in the OP I think my dad told me it was his stage name because his son used to play & I think his surname was Lawrence?
 
Budgies-Budgie said:
Played regularly at Queenie Park, then moved to Lawsons fields (Not sure what year). All my mates who lived near Devi Road School / Queenie flats or went to Blackpool Boys Club played most Saturday mornings for one of the many teams. Old Lee Brooklyn must have been a fan of cowboys & indians in his youth as all the teams were named after native american indian tribes as I remember I played most for Commanches but there were also Cherokees, Apaches and Shoshones. Shame i've no pictures from that time but ive uploaded this one from 1986 of the pitches on Lawsons Road where Brooklyn Corinthians matches took place with the indoor tennis court hangars pre De Vere in view.
View attachment 4872
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Good picture , I remember playing there & getting changed in the old hanger, think it also contained a tennis court . In the days of foot & mouth decease we had to step into a tin bath to prevent decease to the sheep that roamed on there. Thought we called those pitches, “ the old airport” & Lawson Road is where the current allotments are , I could be wrong !
 
I played for a few years at Collingwood.
You got a fixtures list when you turned up.
I played for Chamahawks (?) for a couple of seasons, weren’t all the teams named after American Indian tribes? I can remember another team was Chinkanooks (?).
 
Johnno said:
I played for a few years at Collingwood.
You got a fixtures list when you turned up.
I played for Chamahawks (?) for a couple of seasons, weren’t all the teams named after American Indian tribes? I can remember another team was Chinkanooks (?).
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They were johnno although I remember Brooklyn Bambinos (a guess would be the youngest kids).
 
Anyone remember Queenstown Cobras? Mr and Mrs Perrot ran the team as I remember, we used to play in the old West Ham away kit, all bought from Georgie Blackburn's on Talbot road.
 
Victorsponge said:
Anyone remember Queenstown Cobras? Mr and Mrs Perrot ran the team as I remember, we used to play in the old West Ham away kit, all bought from Georgie Blackburn's on Talbot road.
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Tommy Troope played for them.
My old dears were friendly with Doris Perrot.
Couple of sons played I think?
 
Budgies-Budgie said:
Played regularly at Queenie Park, then moved to Lawsons fields (Not sure what year). All my mates who lived near Devi Road School / Queenie flats or went to Blackpool Boys Club played most Saturday mornings for one of the many teams. Old Lee Brooklyn must have been a fan of cowboys & indians in his youth as all the teams were named after native american indian tribes as I remember I played most for Commanches but there were also Cherokees, Apaches and Shoshones. Shame i've no pictures from that time but ive uploaded this one from 1986 of the pitches on Lawsons Road where Brooklyn Corinthians matches took place with the indoor tennis court hangars pre De Vere in view.
View attachment 4872
Click to expand...
That picture brings back some memories.
Played my first open age game there (1985) when I was 16.
I now live across the road from there and that pitch on the left is roughly where the DeVere Hotel driveway is now.
The allotments are to the far right in the distance, before where another set of 3 pitches used to be.
 
Willie Mcgrotty said:
The Layton post got me thinking about playing kids football in the 70's (RAOB & Highcross) but I would think a high percentage of kids across Blackpool would have been involved with Brooklyn (Corinthians) at sometime. Anyone could just turn up & get a game. Collingwood Ave pitches & Lawsons Rd. Lee 'Brooklyn' (I think that was his stage name as a stand up comic) was the man. Remember a Motson like sheepskin & bling. I turned up one sat morning in a red tee shirt. He rooted in a bag & handed me 2 white sleeves that had fallen of a kit. Pushed them on my arms & told me I was playing for a team in Arsenal colours 😂
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I recall the last time we (FC Rangers) played against a team called Brooklyn at junior level would have been for under 12's around 81 / 82 and can't recall seeing the name again after then, so maybe they folded around that time?
 
Thought it was Baz Perrett not Perrot he used to work in Clobber before it was Easywear down from the Winter Gardens and a good footballer if my memory serves me right. RIP.
 
Willie Mcgrotty said:
He was called Lee. As I put in the OP I think my dad told me it was his stage name because his son used to play & I think his surname was Lawrence?
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I recall him being the dad of a lad I was at school with "Grant Lawrence" I always wanted to play, but I was swimming training 7days a week, so my mum stopped me going, think it was 10p per game...
 
Limechase said:
I recall him being the dad of a lad I was at school with "Grant Lawrence" I always wanted to play, but I was swimming training 7days a week, so my mum stopped me going, think it was 10p per game...
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Spot on limey. That was his son. Always in the best team 🤔
 
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