Dial M for Merthyr

The following presentation was made to the Merthyr Town FC Hall of Fame evening on Saturday 20th October 2012; ALBERT LINDON (1891-1976) Albert Lindon is a figure that transcends two football clubs and is paramount to the survival of professional football at Penydarren Park. He is no local. He was born in Kings Norton near Birmingham on 27th January 1891. His first clubs were the imaginatively named Birmingham Fruiterers and Delta Metal Works. Albert was a goalkeeper. In 1910 he joined his local club Birmingham City where he made 7 appearances for the St. Andrews club in the 2nd division of the Football League. The Blues had a disappointing season ending in 22nd place so our hero was on the move across the city to Villa Park where he managed one solitary game between the sticks for Aston Villa albeit in the lofty climes of the First Division. Albert frustrated by the lack of games first of all went to Barnsley and then Coventry City to seek regular games. He ma

The pasts a different country...they do things differently there. I went to Football in the late 70's and 80's. It was different then. Much different. It had edge. No point saying it was anything else really. You learnt loads though. Was it better than now?...Different. There's a word...different. I used to just go to games. Any old games. My teams were Merthyr and Cardiff. Merthyr away was even more dangerous than Cardiff. Straight up. Non-league, no segregation, no reputation like Cardiff to scare people off...I had a clump once off a brick in Halesowen when a load of Zulu's turned up and the Copper laughed. Seriously...he fuckin laughed as I buckled. That was football then...we were animals. To be controlled. I didnt care. We were told we were nothing in school. Our Fathers lost their jobs in the pits and factories. I felt like we were under attack. Like they hated us, The Govt, the authorities. They did. I went to Newcastle on that fateful day. I drove