ARTICLE: Billy Dougall was the jewel in our crown

[ClaretTony]

Remembering Billy Dougall, such a key figure at Turf Moor

See link
http://www.uptheclarets.com/billy-douga ... -our-crown

[CleggHall]

A very informative and fitting tribute, just a name to me before reading this, he was certainly another Burnley great. Thanks Tony.

[ClaretTony]

A very informative and fitting tribute, just a name to me before reading this, he was certainly another Burnley great. Thanks Tony.

We were talking about past manager on the way back from Swansea initially and the younger members of our party had never heard of him. I can remember him only as physio in the 1960s when he always appeared on the team pictures in his white coat. Sadly, he had a leg amputated prior to his death.

He lived not too far from us and my mum and his daughter Ella were friends when kids, so I always knew of the Dougall family quite well. Jimmy Mac heaped praise on him when we spoke about Billy.

[Bfc]

Although I knew Ray Bennion quite well I didn't know Billy Dougall. In the 70s I moved into a house on the next block to Mrs Dougall a lovely woman, who I got to know well. She knew of my passion for Burnley and came to my house one day and handed over a number of club photographs, some of which have appeared in various books on the history of BFC and said on giving me them, she hoped I would enjoy them, then added all the old programmes from Bills playing days, I've binned. I could have cried, as any programme collector would.
After Tommy Lawton was sold we signed a Scottish player called Stein from Everton. Whether he knew Bill before he joined Burnley I don't know, but they were firm friends for many years. Stein a quiet man was later a scout in Scotland for Burnley and used to visit Mrs Dougall when he came to town. She used to tell me when he was coming and I used to meet him for a drink and we had many an hour nattering in the Park View taproom.

[ClaretTony]

Was Jimmy Stein I think and he was our main scout in Scotland.

I might be wrong but I think Jeannie Dougall might have lived long enough to celebrate her 100th birthday.

Ray Bennion, sadly, I never met.

[Bfc]

I think your right about Mrs Dougall reaching 100 years of age. Ray Bennion lived on Mayfair Rd off Brunshaw Rd Pike Hill. I seem to re call we made a double signing of Stein and without at this time going into old records, to check, another player from Everton called Miller.

[ClaretTony]

Jimmy Stein and Willie Miller both signed from Everton at the same time but it sort of paved the way for Tommy Lawton to go in the opposite direction soon afterwards. Stein was the scout responsible for Willie Morgan, among others, coming to Burnley.

As said, never new Bennion but the Dougall family lived walking distance from the Turf. I hadn't seen Jeannie in years but It was just something in the back of my mind that I read in the local paper about her 100th birthday.

Big, big names in Burnley's history were Dougall & Bennion.

[Dougall]

Thanks again, Tony, for keeping Grandad's memory alive and introducing a new generation of clarets to him.
Jimmy Stein was a regular and frequent visitor to 154 Brunshaw Rd. and we were there for Sunday tea (as we were every week) one day when Jimmy arrived with a shy, good-looking young Scottish lad who he'd brought down that day - it was Willie Morgan !
Many years later, when Jimmy and his wife were down to visit my Grandmother, my brother, sister and I took him for a pint in the Park View (after Sunday tea!) and he shed a tear as he'd had no children of his own and he said it felt as though his own grandchildren had taken him out. One of those really special moments!
My grandmother did indeed get to 100 - the Club invited her and my family to the home game closest to her birthday. She died 2 weeks short of her 101st birthday. And it's true that she threw away A LOT of memorabilia after Grandad died.
Jimmy Mac has always spoken warmly about Billy, whether in his own book (Right Inside Soccer) or when interviewed by Jeff Stelling for Time of Our Lives with Alex Elder and John Connelly.

[ClaretTony]

He was such a key figure at Burnley FC his name should be up there in lights. I do find it sad that he's not known to so many.

I thought I'd read that Jeannie had reached 100 and that the club had done something for her.

I had a long chat with Jimmy Mac about Billy and he put so much of our success down to him during the 1950s as the club progressed.

[Royboyclaret]

Billy Dougall was such a highly respected figure around Turf Moor when I started watching the Clarets, part of an invaluable team at that time alongside Harry Potts and Ray Bennion. A real unassuming man as well who served us in many different capacities over five decades.

I think it was John, when talking about his Grandad, that said it was Billy that actually invented the revolutionary short corner routine. It caused chaos amongst the opposition in the early part of the season that it was introduced with Mac and Pilky on one side and Mac and Doug Newlands on the other, resulting in lots of goals until they were eventually sussed out.

[ClaretTony]

My dad always said it was Billy Dougall who came up with the short corner routine. Jimmy Mac confirmed it for me.

[Dougall]

That's right. The short corner baffled every other team for half a season - my dad told me it was also viewed as somehow not fair (verging on cheating) to depart from what everyone expected!
He was also an advocate of defenders staying on their feet rather than sliding in unless absolutely necessary - he always felt that most forwards would run out of ideas and give the ball away eventually.
Apparently Grandad and Ray Bennion would sit in the boot room in the afternoons when the players had gone simply talking about new routines for corners and free kicks (set pieces hadn't been invented yet!) that they'd have the players try out the next day. To them it was fun, I think, trying to outwit their opposite numbers - especially at the 'bigger clubs'.

[Bfc]

Thanks Dougall for confirming my memories of your family. It reminded me of Mr Bracewell her pipe smoking next door neighbour, who used to keep an eye on her. If I felt there was any photos that I got from Mrs Dougall that were memorable to you as a family, I would not hesitate of finding a way to contact you and return them. I will look through my BFC photograph collection and see what if any connections to Bill I may have.

[Paul Waine]

Remembering Billy Dougall, such a key figure at Turf Moor

See link
http://www.uptheclarets.com/billy-douga ... -our-crown

A good article, CT. Thanks for posting.

Good to read about personalities in Clarets history. Yes, I've learnt something I didn't know before.

Good to learn a little on the creativeness behind short corners.

UTC