STARS of Dunoon’s footballing past converged on the Castle House Museum last week for a ceremony celebrating the town’s proud sporting heritage.
Fiona Cooper, relief manager, Andreya Kelly, manager, and Bud Fisher, volunteer, have compiled information and memorabilia from all the way back at the genesis of the passing game until the present day to display within the museum over the summer, with hordes of those involved in Cowal’s football scene — past and present — joining the trio on Wednesday, May 13, for the official opening of the exhibition.
Before unveiling the main information board, Jim Torrance — a prominent figure in Cowal’s men’s and women’s football scene throughout the years — said a few words to mark the occasion.
He said: “I love my relationship with Dunoon.
“I played in 1968 with Dunoon Athletic, from there on things developed.”
Bill paid homage to his women’s team who were assembled to take on a travelling German team, much to the displeasure of the Scottish FA.
Fiona and Andreya agreed, citing that Dunoon was somewhat ahead of its time in women’s football terms.
They said: “In Scotland there was a ban on women’s football, it was only lifted a year or two before.
“The specific part of the funding was to focus on the girls because they’ve been under-represented in the past and they were quite active [in the area]. It’s nice to represent them.”
Jim Torrance also noted how different the outlook on women’s football is now, with the girls’ game flourishing all over the world, before himself, Bud Fisher and Billy McNicol unveiled the noticeboard in front of a crowd of Cowal’s former footballing stars.
The exhibition explores many avenues within the town’s footballing history, including its role in the creation of the game as it’s known today, the extremely popular summer league format and its lasting legacy.
Among those in attendance was the aforementioned Billy McNicol, a Dunoon-native who played for Glasgow Rangers before traversing the Atlantic Ocean and making a living in America.
McNicol also had a prominent coaching career, becoming L.A. Galaxy’s assistant coach in 2010.
Although he still lives in the States, Billy made the long trip to be there on the day and celebrate his roots in Cowal alongside former teammates and opponents.
His commitment to the cause was a sign of the lasting impact Dunoon’s football scene had on those who played, as manager Andreya explained: “Bud Fisher was very active in football in his younger days, and when we started looking into it we realised that the history of Dunoon’s football was on a huge scale.
“We got a lot of photos, a lot of information, ourselves and it garnered more momentum.”
Fiona echoed that sentiment, adding: “I was not originally supposed to be doing it, we had somebody who left and I got some material from her.
“Once I started looking into it, the more I dug into it, the more I found.”
The importance of platforming Dunoon’s sporting past was not lost on the pair, who were thankful to all who’d donated memorabilia and given their time to aid their work.
Fiona said: “It’s been a big part of people’s lives.
“It brings families together and communities together.”
Andreya continued: “Having this group of guys coming in to reminisce and to see them all chatting about their memories, that’s a big part of what the museum is about.
“We had a budget to keep within, but what we had ourselves in the collection — what other people were happy to bring in as well — made us realise we could have done this on a much bigger scale and hopefully in the future we will.”
The exhibition is open throughout the summer at the Castle House Museum, Dunoon, with a vast array of sporting memorabilia on display, and can be viewed from Tuesdays to Saturdays.
