At the Station I quickly located my travelling companions beside platform 1 and we were soon boarding the train. It was not a big party. Just about a dozen of us. All male and mostly in the 20-30 age group with a few older heads. One of those was the organiser. I cannot remember any names but I knew instantly he was the man in charge. He was like so many of the older guys I had encountered on the supporters’ buses. Not big or well-built but commanded respect.
I settled down in my seat at a table with 3 other lads. The other 3 knew each other but were welcoming enough without being gushing about it. Not long into the journey one of them produced a pack of cards and I was invited to join the game.
I cannot remember what game it actually was (it was not poker) but I had heard these stories of innocents abroad getting parted from their cash by card sharks on train journeys. I said I was not really a card player – which was basically true. My father although not a gambler enjoyed poker. I think his great love of mathematics made the game attractive to him. He had taught his sons the basics of the game but I didn’t have his concentration skills and never really played often.
The other 3 assured me the stakes were only going to be pennies so I took the gamble and joined in. My fears were unfounded. We all took turns at winning a few hands and at the worst i would have ended up losing at most a shilling over the next hour or so. That broke the ice and after the cards stopped we had a blether the rest of the way to London.
In the early evening we arrived at Euston. On the journey down the “boss man” told us we were staying in a small hotel that would require a couple of trips on the Tube to reach. He was not sure exactly of the route but expected we would find it easy enough when we got there.
As it happened, I had arranged to meet a former Glasgow office colleague of mine at Euston. Jimmy Higgins had got a promotion move to head office in London some months previously and I had phoned him the previous week to let him know I was coming down for the game .
Jimmy was not a fanatic but he was certainly a Celtic sympathiser and he liked a few beers so was keen to meet up. His local knowledge came in handy. I introduced him to my new found friends and gave him the address of the hotel. He quickly navigated us to our destination and after a quick registration and bag drop off, we were soon settling down in the pub almost across the road from the hotel.
Jimmy was glad to meet some fellow Glaswegians and Celts and the night flew by amidst chat and lager. In those days pubs in Scotland were closed on a Sunday so the feeling we were “beating the system” in some way made the night even more enjoyable. Soon though it was closing time – 10pm. We wanted the night to carry on a bit longer so managed to get a few bottles of beer to take back to our rooms in the hotel.
Some of the lads felt we would need some drinking vessels so some tumblers were smuggled out inside coats. As we were leaving the landlord bade us good night and said that it would be good if we could at least rinse the glasses out if we were going to borrow them!
We parked ourselves in one of the bedrooms and had a sing song. It did not last that long as I recall. Jimmy gave us a song but had to head for the last tube service and after the long day tiredness overtook most of us and we were glad to get to bed for the night.
We were up quite early the next morning for breakfast and then checking out by 10am. With the game not until the evening we decided to spend the day seeing the sights of London. It was bitterly cold when we left the hotel and headed for the Tube Station.
First task though was to the pub across the road. It was closed and outside the door there was a small crate of milk. Beside it the lads left the glasses they had taken the previous night – and yes, they had rinsed them out.
We did the usual tourist type stuff. Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace. This was a time when the “Troubles” in the north of Ireland were still on the go so perhaps not unsurprisingly in view of the loyalties of most of the party there were some uncomplimentary comments at the latter 2 places.
By late afternoon it was time for some food and a few pints. We met Jimmy Higgins in a pub in the centre of the city where he had come straight from work. With him as our pilot we made the tube journey to Upton Park.
