Playing football for St Thomas FC

In March 2019, the Bolton Evening News publish this article about football at Holy Harbour:

St Thomas FC 1950: Back row from left, Bob Burns with hat, Len Tollady, John Boardman, Brian Flitcroft, Brian Brackley, Brian Lonsdale, Don Wilson, Don Burns, Rowland Harris. Front row from left, Bill Rigby, Frank Scholes, Tom Pilling, Bobby Lock

St Thomas FC 1954: Back row, from left, Cliff Mortimer, Derek Manuel, Alan Mulraney, Geoff Scholes, Frank Scholes, Jim Niblet, Bob Moores, front row, Alan Mc Burnie, Ernie Kershaw, Brian Flitcroft, Noel Milner

“These photos are of St Thomas FC Halliwell teams in 1950 and 1954.

The pictures were sent in by Cliff Tollady, of Chorley Old Road, whose late brother Len is pictured second left on the back row of the picture above. Len was just 12 when the picture was taken in 1950. Cliff isn’t in the pictures but he played for St Thomas FC from 1949 until he was aged in his 40s.

Now aged 79, he said: “I was goalkeeper and my brother Len, who was four years older than me, played inside forward. We practised at Holy Harbour, a sports ground in Halliwell that has been been built on now.”

The brothers, who lived in Horace Street, Halliwell, attended Brownlow Fold Secondary School. From there they went on to follow different paths: Len became a superintendent for Prudential while Cliff set up a tiling company which continues to thrive under his sons and grandsons.”