Sometimes a day just goes perfectly to plan and beyond expectations. That was the case at Hanwell Town on Saturday where the sun shone on a 2-1 victory over leaders, Merthyr Town, thus ending a 32-match unbeaten League run for the visitors that stretched back to August.
It was a win that moved the Geordies into eighth place in the table and what’s more, the game also marked the 70th anniversary of Chairman, Bob Fisher’s involvement with the Pitching In Southern League Premier South club as family and friends gathered to celebrate a remarkable achievement for the man they call Mr. Hanwell Town.
“To become the first side to beat Merthyr Town in the League since August tells you everything you need to know about the group we have here,” manager, Chris Moore, told us proudly. “I was ever so proud of everyone connected to the club on Saturday, it was a special day for us… and it was the first time that I’ve ever been clapped out of the bar at the end!
“That win was for Bob Fisher; 70 years associated with the club, what a fantastic record, there can’t be many around who can boast such long service with one club.
“I have a great relationship with Bob and nothing pleases me more than seeing his big beaming smile following a win and that was certainly the case at the weekend!
“Even when we lose, Bob is never too low and always has a positive outlook. He is always praising others and the work they do to get the club where it is, but the truth is that without Bob’s dedication and hard work over all of those years, Hanwell Town would not be where it is today.
“Full credit to him and it was so special to see him surrounded by family and friends at the weekend enjoying his day at a place that means so much to him and has been such a massive part of his life.”
We asked Bob about how his association with the club first began all those years ago.
“In 1955 I had left school and had started my first job and was looking to join a football club,” he began. “At the time, I was playing cricket at Ealing Cricket Club, a club that was quite closely aligned to Ealing Association Football Club for whom some of my cricketing mates played.
“However, at the time my sister was courting a guy who played for Hanwell Town and she persuaded me to make contact with that club, which I did.
“I called their secretary, Ron Walker, a Hanwell Town legend, and asked to join and he invited me over to his house to sign the necessary forms. Noting that I had cycled over, he asked if I would deliver, on his behalf, to various houses in the vicinity where the other players lived, a card stating the arrangements for that coming Saturday’s game.
“I agreed to the request and this became a regular habit that I enjoyed. It should be noted that in those days it was not unusual for homes to be without a telephone line, so this was the only way to make contact. Ron’s total dedication to the club certainly rubbed off on me!
“I made my first-team debut on 25th February 1956 in a 4-2 away win against Harrow Weald United. It was the first of my 548 first-team appearances for the club, which included a run of 341 consecutive games from the start of the 1963/64 season to early in the 1973/74 season when I broke my ankle in a game.
“My playing career ended at the end of the 1976/77 season, when I had played a total of 734 games for the club. Most of these games had been played in the Harrow, Wembley and District League or the Middlesex League.
“In 1977/78 somewhat reluctantly I became the club’s first-team manager as I had intended playing into my forties. I continued in this management role until the end of the 1981/82 season.
“For a number of years prior to this our club Chairman, Sam Kelso, Jim Conn and Ron Walker had badgered Ealing Borough Council to find us a ground of our own. Until then we had played at Ealing Central Sports Ground situated across the A40 from our new location.
“Eventually they succumbed to all our pressure and we were offered a lease at Reynolds Field. The only building on site was the clubhouse designed for school children’s use and not for that of a senior football club, but thanks to the remarkable effort of so many volunteers we were able to play our first-ever game at the venue at the start of the 1981/82 season.
“We managed to beat local rivals, Pitshanger Dynamo, 1-0 and this day was one of the proudest moments in my long career at the club.
“Previous to the start of the season, I had commenced the role of President at the club following the untimely death of Jim Conn. I stood down from the management role at the end of the season and we appointed Joe Gadston, who had just stood down from the management role at Ruislip Manor.
“He was a great guy and a friend of mine. To my surprise, he asked for a small payment to take on the role, which was agreed and he became the first-ever paid employee of the club.
“Our next target was to bring the ground and clubhouse up to a standard where we could get senior status as a club and this we achieved for the start of the 1983/84 season.
“Now playing in the Spartan League Senior Division, we won promotion to the Premier Division. I remained in the role of President until 1987 when I took over as Chairman from Sam Kelso and this is a role that I continue to hold to this day, with Dave Iddiols, whose commitment to the club matches mine, becoming President.
“In 1987 I also took on the role of Treasurer, a role that got more and more onerous as the years went by and I stood down from this position a few years ago.
“As would be expected, I am intensely proud of all that the club has achieved over the years but am very aware of the many challenges that lie ahead. Our costs go up annually as we try to keep pace with inflation and the other escalating costs of running a football club at the level we are currently playing at.
“Surviving year on year is only possible due to all those who give up their time and effort to keep the club afloat. They are all fantastic people who contribute so much behind-the-scenes and are the lifeblood of the club.
“To see the team currently sitting eighth at Step 3 is a tremendous achievement by all involved for a club of our size. It’s been a very positive season and hopefully we can end it strongly in these final few games.”
A trip to Gosport Borough is on the agenda this weekend before an Easter double-header at home to Taunton Town and away at Chertsey Town before the season is concluded with a home encounter against Plymouth Parkway.
IMAGE: Hanwell Town FC
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