The Club and Young Athletes

Immediately after the War, Clydesdale Harriers organised the first annual race for Under 17 athletes. It was praised as an excellent venture meeting a real need in Scottish athletes. It was a Ballot Team race - all the entrants names were entered in a draw and the first three athletes were team A, the second three team B and so on. Teams were therefore made up of athletes from different clubs and all, regardless of the strength of their individual clubs, had a chance of a team prize. (How would that go for seniors today???) The Johnny Morgan Trophy went to the individual winner and many who won it went on to excellent careers are senior athletes (Harry Fenion, Ian McCafferty, etc). Later the club proposed to the Annual General Meeting of the SAAA that there be annual championships for the Under 15 age group. It was carried and so the National U15 championships were born. We have also organised the Clydebank Highland Games for young athletes of both sexes. Derek McGinley had an annual 1500 metres race for local schools and we gained some first class athletes from that venture and in the days of John Tonner and Billy McLaughlin we had annual Clydebank Schools races with trophies donated by the Clydebank Council for the winning schools in the P6, P7, S1 and S2 age groups.

In recent years our record vis a vis events for young athletes has not been as goos. We organised the Clydebank Schools cross country championship and when we were asked by the County Sports Development Group to incorporate a County Schools event, we agreed. But then when the County people asked if it could be a DALAP veent we agreed. The result is that they organise it, staff it, lay the course, present the prizes and generally organise the show and Clydesdale is not involved. That brings the total of events organised by the club for young athletes to NONE. From National significance to nothing in about three generations. It's a sad record. The Committee seems to be at a distance from the younger generations. If all the Committee does is agree with what the coaches suggest, then I would suggest it is not doing its job. The Committee should be making suggestions, looking at the needs of the Juniors in the club and doing what it can to devise ways to support them. It would also be good to see a Committee member - any Committee member - coming to see the young athletes in their League matches during the summer - or even in Kelvin Hall at the end of January.

For next winter, why don't we offer to host the County relays or Championships, or even the District relays or Championships? Give the club members a home run for a change. If we have held International and National Championships in Clydebank in the past, why not now? The question for the Committee is not 'Can we do it?' but rather 'HOW can we do it?' Look for the answer to the question of how we host the races not ask if we can do it.