Barrow AFC.net

Mention of Vic Halom and Barry Diamond on another thread led me to do a bit of digging (too much time on my hands). Came of with this interesting blog from a Rochdale fan. Not updated since 2011 but if you do a bit of scrolling there are some interesting thoughts on players who have appeared both for us and 'dale. Frank Gamble,Dave Bayliss,Grant Holt,Tony Ford and even up to date Simon Grand and Andy Haworth.
http://clarkechroniclersfootballers.blo ... chive.html

Don't forget Kelvin Lomax.

Matt Flynn, Lee McEvilly and Marcus Holness spring to mind too...

also scott scencer, matty flynn, jon shaw, holness, paul tait, leo bertos, lee mcevilly and david flitcroft

SKIPPER wrote:Mention of Vic Halom and Barry Diamond on another thread led me to do a bit of digging (too much time on my hands). Came of with this interesting blog from a Rochdale fan. Not updated since 2011 but if you do a bit of scrolling there are some interesting thoughts on players who have appeared both for us and 'dale. Frank Gamble,Dave Bayliss,Grant Holt,Tony Ford and even up to date Simon Grand and Andy Haworth.
http://clarkechroniclersfootballers.blo ... chive.html

Hmmmm....Dave Bayliss eh?....wonder if he's available at the moment?

I'M JOKING! I'M JOKING!

Moonwatcher wrote:

SKIPPER wrote:Mention of Vic Halom and Barry Diamond on another thread led me to do a bit of digging (too much time on my hands). Came of with this interesting blog from a Rochdale fan. Not updated since 2011 but if you do a bit of scrolling there are some interesting thoughts on players who have appeared both for us and 'dale. Frank Gamble,Dave Bayliss,Grant Holt,Tony Ford and even up to date Simon Grand and Andy Haworth.
http://clarkechroniclersfootballers.blo ... chive.html

Hmmmm....Dave Bayliss eh?....wonder if he's available at the moment?

I'M JOKING! I'M JOKING!

Maybe you are .... but at the moment, I think even his brand of football was more palatable ??

Dave Storf. He could play football rather well when he wanted to.

Did you know that Barrow were the first team to play the "Diamond "

I might be wrong but didn't Ray Wilkie sign Peter Farrell from Rochdale? Right good footballer was Fazz, proper footballing brain

Regarding Barry Diamond, I think he had a two or three spells for us. I seem to think his first spell was about 1978, a year before the current National League first came into being as the Alliance. I think it was Easter 1978 and Diamond was only a kid of about 17 or 18 (not mentioning young Newby of course) when he scored a sensational volley from about 25 yards against Northwich Vics in a 4-2 win at Holker Street. He played in midfield in that spell with us. The thing I remember about the goal is that he struck the ball on the volley after it bounced and when it was still rising, rather than the easier skill of hitting it after it started to drop. He was round about the corner of the area at the Holker Street end and fired it into the opposite top corner.

I could hardly believe it at the time, the way he struck the ball as it was still rising upwards. I remember thinking that’s either one almighty fluke to have caught that so perfectly when it was on the rise or this kid is some talent. I reckon when he starred for us a few years later and peppered no end of long-range goals in our 83-84 title season under Halom that it became apparent it must have been the latter! Diamond was some player.

pjdaly wrote:Regarding Barry Diamond, I think he had a two or three spells for us. I seem to think his first spell was about 1978, a year before the current National League first came into being as the Alliance. I think it was Easter 1978 and Diamond was only a kid of about 17 or 18 (not mentioning young Newby of course) when he scored a sensational volley from about 25 yards against Northwich Vics in a 4-2 win at Holker Street. He played in midfield in that spell with us. The thing I remember about the goal is that he struck the ball on the volley after it bounced and when it was still rising, rather than the easier skill of hitting it after it started to drop. He was round about the corner of the area at the Holker Street end and fired it into the opposite top corner.

I could hardly believe it at the time, the way he struck the ball as it was still rising upwards. I remember thinking that’s either one almighty fluke to have caught that so perfectly when it was on the rise or this kid is some talent. I reckon when he starred for us a few years later and peppered no end of long-range goals in our 83-84 title season under Halom that it became apparent it must have been the latter! Diamond was some player.

When Barry returned to the club during the summer of '83 I remember at the time thinking he must have spent the last five years in the gym. I don't know if he had already converted to a forward or whether Vic took the credit for that by trying him up front during the friendlies, but he was indeed some player. Absolutely blistering pace, low centre of gravity and muscular for such a little guy. I've never seen anyone at HS since who was as good at getting behind defenders and through on goal. That said, Vic Halom's team had players who could thread a pass for him, and in Frank Gamble we had a winger who could skin any full back alive and put a cross into the box on a sixpence. He was like Dan Pilkington, only with proper hamstrings.