Both junior games called off
Gary Pews • Published 12 Dec 2011 11:59
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It was another frustrating weekend for the local junior teams, with Greenock's Scottish Cup tie against Bellshill Athletic postponed for a third time, while Port Glasgow's match at Vale of Leven was also called off.
So, Gary Pews took the chance to chat with Greenock's Stevie Dallas about his football experiences. Stevie Dallas admits he was ready to hang up his boots at the end of last season before Greenock came calling.
But now the 37-year-old says he is relishing his new lease of life at Greenock and is enjoying his football as much as ever.
In his early teens Stevie played for Goldenhill and Duntocher Boys' Clubs in his home town of Clydebank, and it was his performances for Duntocher which caught the eye of scouts from Hibs, who offered him an apprenticeship at Easter Road.
He was a member of the Hibs side which won the prestigious BP Youth Cup, beating Ayr United 2-0 in the final, but the breakthrough into the big time failed to materialise.
Stevie said: "I made two appearances for the Hibs first team, but I found the constant travelling very demanding. Murdo MacLeod, who was the Hibs assistant manager, then got the manager's job at Dumbarton and when he offered me a place there I jumped at the chance.''
But a serious cruciate ligament injury then set back Stevie's progress, and a recurrence eventually brought his time at Dumbarton to an end and threatened to spell the end of his career.
But new openings in the Juniors began to open up, when Gerry Collins signed Stevie for Baillieston, before taking the striker for another venture into the seniors when Collins moved to Partick Thistle to assist John Lambie - but that move only lasted six months.
Stevie said: "Although Gerry was steeped in the juniors, I don't think John Lambie had much regard for the junior game so after a year I was on the move again, this time to Petershill at the age of 24. I had 10 fantastic years there, and many great memories.''
Stevie is remembered with affection by the Petershill faithful, thanks to an incredible scoring rate of 158 goals in around 300 appearances, putting him just behind Norrie Fulton in the club's all-time top scorer stakes.
He said: "It is worth pointing out that only one of those goals was a penalty.
"I had a great time at Petershill but it was time to move on when Clydebank came in with an offer, and I was delighted to help my home town club achieve promotion into the Super League set-up. I thought I would end my career there last season, then out of the blue I got a call from Greenock manager Stevie Mooney. I know Stevie well, having taken over the captaincy of Petershill from him when he left there, and we are also work colleagues. A deal was eventually struck between Greenock and Clydebank and I am loving my involvement with Greenock.''
Stevie was recently the subject of a fans forum thread which posed the question, 'Is Stevie Dallas the most hated man in junior football?'.
He explained the background to that.
"It all stems back to an incident at Shotts when I was with Petershill, and a player got injured in an accidental collision. But some fans have never forgotten about it, although it was encouraging to see that every single response on the forum was very supportive of me. My reputation might also be because I do enjoy a bit of banter on the field and can wind people up, but once the match is over it is important to shake hands and move on.''
So what next for the father-of-four, perhaps a move into management himself?
"No chance", says Stevie. "I don't think I am cut out for that, but maybe I might make a good number two to someone, using all my experience in the game.''
This article appeared in Greenock Telegraph 12 Dec 11
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