This article explores the rich history of Salford Lads Club, a vital community asset facing closure. It highlights its origins, influence, and how it gained global fame through its association with iconic band The Smiths.
The ceremony was conducted by Major General Baden Powell, the 'gallant defender of Mafeking' as the Daily Despatch described him in the paper's coverage of the event.
On a cold November day in 1985, The Smiths chose the entrance to the club for a photoshoot. Then a young photographer, Stephen Wright shot five reels of film with 36 pictures on each, with a £150 Nikon camera. One of those photographs is now in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery. Incredibly in 2002 Lottery chiefs had recommended that the Edwardian gem at the corner of Coronation Street and St Ignatius Walk should be bulldozed. Two years later the Manchester Evening News reported that it had been given Grade II listed status.
A line-up for the Salford Lads Club summer camp in Aberystwyth in 1951 was particularly impressive. Within a few years four of them would be playing professional football. The four were Colman, Steve Fleet who played for Manchester City, and Brian Doyle, who played for Stoke City. Other famous former club members include Graham Nash and Allan Clarke, who used to practice at the club before they formed The Hollies. Nash later found world fame with Crosby Stills Nash & Young.
The club, like others, struggled to find enough players for football teams after so many were lost in the trenches. So in 1919, a year after the end of the war, the club switched to a new sport - netball. A picture in the archive of the club taken in 1939 shows 150 scrubbed and immaculate players sat down for the annual awards event - The Netball Party.
Salford Lads Club Closure History The Smiths Morrissey
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