1968: Dunfermline 1 Manchester City 1

Memorable Match #60
North American Tour Friendly
The Varsity Stadium, Toronto
18th May 1968

In the summer of 68 Dunfermline as Scottish Cup holders played English Champions, Manchester City in a series of challenge matches across North America. The first of four matches was played in Toronto.

Coach loads of spectators arrived from all over Ontario, many of them immigrants from Britain boosting the attendance to over 8000. Dunfermline fielded their cup final winning side and City were also at full strength.

It was a tough tackling game to start the Pars tour. In a first half that Dunfermline dominated, the game was constantly stopped by annoying fouls and just after the half hour Bobby Kennedy brought down Bert Paton in the box. It was Ian LISTER who scored from the resulting spot kick.

Just after half-time Neil YOUNG produced City’s only real spark of class as he shimmied past the Dunfermline defence and smashed the ball home from 25 yards.

There last little noteworthy in the rest of the game with very few chances but plenty of rash and niggley challenges.

MANCHESTER CITYKen Mulhearn, Tony Book, Glyn Pardoe, James Mundy, George Heslop, Bobby Kennedy, Francis Lee, David Connor, Chris Jones, Neil Young, Tony Coleman
SUBS: Stan Bowles, Stan Horne, Harry Dowd (GK).
SCORER: Young(46)

DUNFERMLINE: Bent Martin, Willie Callaghan, John Lunn, John McCarthy, Roy Barry, Tommy Callaghan, Alex Edwards, Bert Paton, Pat Gardener, Hugh Robertson, Ian Lister
SUB: Jim Thomson
SCORER: Lister (32 pen)

ATTENDANCE: 8272

The following day the second game against City was played in New Britain, a city in Hartford County, Connecticut. Around 3000 spectators took in another 1-1 draw. Dunfermline took the lead in 37th minute when Pat GARDNER smacked home from 25 yards, after a great ball in from Lister. 1-0

Glyn PARDOE scored a spectacular equaliser twelve minutes into the second half, receiving the ball on the wing inside the Dunfermline half he sprinted down the flank, then cut in unleashing a long distance effort that deceived Martin in goal and ended in the back of the net. 1-1

Manchester City: Ken Mulhearn: Tony Book, Glyn Pardoe, George Heslop, Bobby Kennedy, Francis Lee, David Connor, Stan Bowles, Neil Young, Tony Coleman
Dunfermline: Bent Martin: Willie Callaghan, John Lunn, Jim Thomson, Roy Barry, Tommy Callaghan, Alex Edwards, Bert Paton, Pat Gardner, Hugh Robertson, Ian Lister.

The two sides would meet again in Vancouver on 1st June but not before the Fifers played a Greek American outfit in New York and then playing a tough 1-1 draw against Kansas City Spurs in the Kansas City Stadium in 85°F.

In the Empire Stadium, Vancouver, the third game in the series a 0-0 draw, turned out to be a tedious, drab game.

The Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles was the venue for final game of the series on 5th June. Sponsored by a Scottish group called the Thistle Club of Southern California, whose aim was to promote good football, this match was another turgid affair which must have had the organisers re-thinking their lofty ideas.

The stadium would be the venue for the 1984 Olympics but the 5048 crowd in such a big arena was barely noticeable. As the sponsors donated the Thistle Trophy, penalty kicks were held to decide the outcome. The story goes that during the shoot out the Pars players caught sight of the size of the trophy - absolutely massive. They still had fixtures to fulfil in Oakland, New York and Philadelphia and had decided that three was no way they were humping that trophy around the continent!

Ian Lister ‘sadly’ missed the vital spot kick and City won 6-5, much to the angst of George Farm who was desperate to come out on top against the English champions.

In the remaining tour matches Dunfermline defeated St Louis Stars 3-1 in Oakland, defeated Rochester Lancers 8-1 in the Aquinas Memorial Stadium, Rochester, New York State and they won 7-0 against Ukrainian Nationals SC in Philadelphia.

Tour goal scorers: Paton 7, Mitchell 6, Gardner 3, Lister 3, W Callaghan 1, T Callaghan 1.

The Pars returned home with their reputation enhanced despite many problems endured. There was some concern expressed about how the players would react to their exhausting trip a5 the start of the new season and although a couple turned up late for training there seemed to be little adverse effect.

Dunfermline went on to finish 1968/69 season in third place in the league and teach the semi final of the European Cup Winners Cup.

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