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Minishant is a bonnie wee place. Portrait of a Village by Henrietta and Hugh Douglas. Line drawings by Michael Ellis. Strathprint, 146 Broadway Peterborough. First Published 1982. Copyright © Permission for display on this site granted by Hugh Douglas. You may view and download chapters of this book for personal research purposes only. No other distribution of this text is authorized. Click here for other books by Hugh Douglas. Cover: Mrs. Margaret Limond, was Minishant postmistress until she died aged 94. |
A very important part of Minishant community life was the football team. Kicking a ball always was a popular occupation among the boys in Scottish villages, but in Minishant they did it with rather more style.
Under the guidance of Davie Ferguson, Minishant Amateurs reached the final of the Scottish Amateur Cup in Season 1959-60. On the 14th of May 1960, they (and their followers) travelled to Ibrox Park in Glasgow to meet Ramblos from Saltcoats in north Ayrshire for the cup. It was an exciting match which the Ayr Advertiser summed up the following week by reporting: "While admitting that Minishant did extremely well to retain an interest in the Scottish Amateur Cup, after trailing badly by 2-0 at one stage, it must be said that on later chances the silverware should have graced secretary Davie Ferguson's sideboard on Saturday night".
The truth of the matter is that the 'Shant was overawed by Ibrox at first and gave away two quick goals. Later they equalised and although very much on top, they couldn't quite achieve the winning goal, even after extra time.
The following Saturday, 21st May, Minishant Amateurs and most other village folk trooped back to Glasgow - to the great Hampden Park no less - for the replay. This time there was no doubt: Minishant won by 2-0 in spite of the fact that their inside left, Bobby Martin, suffered a broken ankle near the end of the match. The "Advertiser" was jubilant.
"Saturday was certainly a proud day for secretary Davie Ferguson, the inspiration behind the team. And what a night it was for the village. Earlier it was a haunted place for most folks had gone to Hampden to cheer on the Amateurs.
"There was only a small band of admirers grouped round the entrance to the hall where the team has its dressing room around 11 o'clock. They had to wait until around midnight for the arrival of the jubilant team. Martin's injury had delayed their home-coming. By this time the reception had multiplied for they were witnessing history in the making. The toast 'all round' was 'Minishant Amateurs: Scottish Cup winners'.