Good Story

[chowie]

[Sir Colby-Tit]

Good on him - perhaps a chant of "There's only one Bobby Williams" is in order? (but maybe not Drink Up Thy Zider!)

[Roadrunner]

Is this Shadow Williams? I thought he went on to work at Reading, and Shadow is well over 60. I know that because he and Jansen Derrick use to watch us playing football in Victoria Park when i was around 10 and he must have been 16 to 17. Their was another Williams that use to play for our youth team back in the 60's so is wthat the one the article is about????

[CliftonCliff]

Is this Shadow Williams? I thought he went on to work at Reading, and Shadow is well over 60. I know that because he and Jansen Derrick use to watch us playing football in Victoria Park when i was around 10 and he must have been 16 to 17. Their was another Williams that use to play for our youth team back in the 60's so is wthat the one the article is about????

No, this isn't "Shadow". He remained in the game, as you said, after a fairly long playing career. And you must be a former neighbour of mine, to judge from what you say about Victoria Park. I knew Bobby "Shadow" Williams, too. He went to school with my sister (Marksbury Road Secondary) and used to have the occasional kick-about with us kids in the park. I think he must be late sixties by now, if he's still with us (my sister turns 70 this year). He was an excellent ball player; an intelligent 'inside forward' in the days when that term still applied, and with a very good scoring record for City in the old third division.

There were quite a few Willams's besides Shadow. Of those I can recall, there was Adrian, a midfielder-cum-forward, I think, who never quite fulfilled early promise; Alan, an old fashioned centre-half; and the chap who is the subject of this story, who to be honest I can't say I remember well at all, even though I used to watch the reserve side quite regularly in those days.

Shadow, by the way, used to live in Holmesdale Road, if my memory is correct. I grew up on Windmill Hill. Are you from those parts? We may be contemporaries (I'm aged 62 now).

[NickJ]

For Roadrunner and Clifton Cliff - yes Shadow is alive and well and still does a bit of scouting for Reading. He's a big pal of my father in law Phil Coggins who played a few games for both City and Rovers in the late 50's.

As for the other Williams, Alan, my dad was a bit of a mate of his and used the White Horse in West Street quite a bit when Alan had it. His son Gary who many will remember also played for City, used to date (back in the 80's) a cracking looking girl and it always amused me that Alan used to date her sister who was even more of a stunner!

[CliftonCliff]

For Roadrunner and Clifton Cliff - yes Shadow is alive and well and still does a bit of scouting for Reading. He's a big pal of my father in law Phil Coggins who played a few games for both City and Rovers in the late 50's.

As for the other Williams, Alan, my dad was a bit of a mate of his and used the White Horse in West Street quite a bit when Alan had it. His son Gary who many will remember also played for City, used to date (back in the 80's) a cracking looking girl and it always amused me that Alan used to date her sister who was even more of a stunner!

Thanks for that, Nick. Had to smile at that last bit. Over the years, I have seen Alan from time to time in south Bristol pubs and recognised him from his playing/publican days. He was/is a handsome bloke and it doesn't surprise me to hear that he might have been a bit of ladies man in his time. I think I remember his lad, too: fair haired chap, full back, a regular for several seasons who played a fair number of first team games - would that be him?

I also recall the name Phil Coggins and am very glad to hear via him that Shadow is still going strong. I remember him as an unassuming, genuine bloke: he once gave a few of us kids a lift to the ground on a match day and tried to smuggle us into the game for free by having a quiet word with the old geezer on the gate, but we got nabbed and kicked out again and had to pay up. That would have been about 1960/61, I'd guess. The modern footballer is a rather different kind of animal from Shadow's bloke-next-door persona... (Security at the modern stadium's a slightly different matter, as well).

[NickJ]

Thanks for that, Nick. Had to smile at that last bit. Over the years, I have seen Alan from time to time in south Bristol pubs and recognised him from his playing/publican days. He was/is a handsome bloke and it doesn't surprise me to hear that he might have been a bit of ladies man in his time. I think I remember his lad, too: fair haired chap, full back, a regular for several seasons who played a fair number of first team games - would that be him?

I also recall the name Phil Coggins and am very glad to hear via him that Shadow is still going strong. I remember him as an unassuming, genuine bloke: he once gave a few of us kids a lift to the ground on a match day and tried to smuggle us into the game for free by having a quiet word with the old geezer on the gate, but we got nabbed and kicked out again and had to pay up. That would have been about 1960/61, I'd guess. The modern footballer is a rather different kind of animal from Shadow's bloke-next-door persona... (Security at the modern stadium's a slightly different matter, as well).

Yes, Gary was a left back, good player, as you say played quite a lot of games, in the 80's. Think he went to play in Hong Kong after finishing at City. He eventually ended up in the pub trade as well, Gary and Alan had a pub near College Green, forget the name.

I don't see Shadow that often, and not for a while, but as you say he's a real nice chap. A recent story with a thankfully happy ending is that he recently ran Brenda his wife over and hospitalised her for several days.

I've heard stories of the old players travelling on the bus to games with the fans, how times change!

[the frampton balti]

Lets hope that we get a win today for bobby!

The walter tull story is also a very interesting one(unfortunately involving a shamefull moment in the history of our football club), A true hero!

[the frampton balti]

The walter tull story...........

Racist chanting

Ring any bells????

We at bristol city SHOULD be more sensitive than other clubs towards this sort of behaviour.

Bristol is a vibrant multi cultural community like many other large british cities something which we can be rightly proud of as we may feel a degree of shame for our predecessors part in certain not so illustrious episodes of the past.

now pass the poppadoms!