Tom Clarke
Member 1974 - 2023 - a magnificent 49 years
Tom was welcomed into the Club at the dinner of 22nd February 1974 at the Royal Hotel, Inverkeithing. He made the reply on behalf of the three new members, the first of many speaking roles! Douglas Lamond was Vice President, adding another connection to this pair.
Before the end of his first season Tom was co-opted to be part of the curlers court for the dinner on 28th February 1975. Among the new members was a young David McPherson.
The first reference in the records of Tom being on the ice referred to the Lochore Meadows Bonspiel on Friday 17th February, 1977. One rink from the club played against Orwell and eight ICC members had a ‘friendly match against each other. ICC beat Orwell CC 14 shots to 8. A blizzard interrupted the proceedings, but the spirits of curling and the assembled supported was not dampened.
Tom was on the prize winners podium at the 1978 dinner as runner up in the points, shared with Douglas Lamond. Tom was already showing a keen interest in all aspects of the club and took responsibility to make the vote of thanks to the Chair, President Jim Temple. He joined the committee at the AGM of the same season.
In February 1979 Tom was one of 4 members invited to the R.A.F Pitreavie CC dinner. Due to another commitment Tom missed his first club dinner in 1979 - one of very few absences during his membership. In the same season he was elected to be skip in the 1979/80 season, one of 10 skips.
Tom gave the toast to Neighbouring Clubs at the 1980 Dinner. The reply came from I. Richards from the Keith CC. Jim Aitken and Pete Campbell were 2 of the four new curlers welcomed into the club. In 1981 Tom represented the club at Broomhall CC for the first time.
At the AGM of 27th April 1981, Tom was elected as Vice President.
Outdoor curling was always a welcome opportunity to tackle the roaring game at Otterson Loch. On Boxing Day 1981 records show that Tom skipped a rink to a 10-9 victory v Primmer Pollock. Both Douglas and Alastair Lamond were at thew bonspiel along with Jim Aitken and Bob Tait.
The planning for the Club’s 150th Anniversary was led by Tom, centred around a dinner in 1984. He stepped up to be the Club President at the AG of 25th April 1983. Alastair Lamond became the assistant Match Secretary at the same AGM. Tom made a change to host some of the committee meeting at his home. Members referred to the wonderful hospitality, including the excellent supper prepared by Jean.
The 150th Anniversary Bonspiel took place at Kirkcaldy on 20th January 1984. It was quite fitting that the event was won by a rink skipped by Tom with the highest up score 15 shots to 7. The Lamond and Murray Trophy had been donated by the company to mark this anniversary. The neighbouring Clubs Bonspiel on 27th January 1984 was won by Dunfermline CC with Aberdour as runners up. As in all events during his time as President, Tom chaired the event with enthusiasm and good humour.
The 150th Anniversary Dinner took place at the Queens Hotel on Friday 24th February. Lord Elgin proposed the toast to Inverkeithing CC, and Alastair Lamond gave the toast to neighbouring clubs. The clubs represented were: Cambo CC, Kinross CC, Pitlessie CC, Aberdour CC, Broomhall CC, Keith CC, Dunfermline CC and Tulliallan CC.
It is not surprising that the minutes of the AGM in 1984 are the longest and detailed of any minutes to that date. The club was thriving and full of ideas and developments. It interesting to note that the new ice rink in Glenrothes (Crystals ) was due to open in September 1984. Alastair Lamond was elected as Match Secretary and was asked to apply for ice in the new facility.
Tom was very active during his second year as President and chaired a very successful 151st Annual Dinner, before the AGM in 1985 when he stepped down after an exciting two years for the Club,
He continued to have regular success on the ice, for example winning the challenge match v Broomhall CC to claim the Willie Black Trophy. Pairs winner in season 86/87 with Pat McHale. This was followed by winning the Points in 1987/88. In this same season Tom faced a ballot to be re-elected as skip, it was not a surprise that he was well ahead of the other 5 candidates. He faced the same situation after 1988/89 and after 10 seasons was no longer a skip. The club demonstrated their appreciation of his contribution by nominating him as one of the Grand Match skips.
Tom bounced back after one season as third and he was back as a skip when the main league increased to 10 rinks in 1990/91. A mixed season for Tom in 1993/94 when he won the Knockout, but was relegated from the main league. Tom left the committee at the end of the 1994/95 season - a fifteen year term of office!
The next generation of the Clarke clan joined the club at the dinner on 28th February 1997 - Tom was obviously pleased to nominate Alan. This followed Tom returning to the winners enclosure after winning the Lamond and Murray Bonspiel in February 1997. This success raised his profile and he was re-elected as skip at the AGM later the same season, as well as returning to the committee. ( this time for a shorter three year period)
He was back on the winners podium in 2000/01 winning the Knockout. Tom added the Pairs trophy to his playing record in the 2001/2002 with Alistair Low as well as another Knockout Trophy. In 2005/06 he was runner up in the Pairs with John Leitch. Records show his next trophy was the Points in 2008/2009.
The club celebrated it’s 175th Anniversary with a bonspiel at the North West Castle in March 2009, Tom played well on and off the ice!
He was playing third to Bill Galloway in the 2008/09 season and were League runners up. He returned to being a main league skip in 2010/11 after winning the St. Margaret’s League. He had to repeat the same success in 2012/13 to gain a main league place and went on to win the League in the following season with Andy Yuill, JR Wilson and Dave McPherson.
Tom was a great supporter of new curlers and aspiring skips. Ian Paxton benefitted from his input as lead to win the St. Margaret’s League in 1998/99 followed by Phil Slater in 2001/12. Gavin Hughes had the same advantage in 2014/15.
During the last few years of his life Tom was dealing with serious health issues. All members admired his attitude to keep fighting and participating in club life. In 2021/22 he was awarded the President’s Prize for his contribution to the club - there has never been anyone deserving this award more than Tom.
Everyone present at the 2023 dinner will remember with sadness and admiration the way he sang the club song for the last time. Tom died on 29th April a few days after the Club AGM.
There is more to follow ….
NB Picture taken with Douglas Lamond and Alastair Lamond with Tom as Chieftain of Inverkeithing Highland Games
Jim Temple - Member of the Club 1962 - 1993
Picture above at the 1979 Grand Match - Jim top left
Jim joined the club in 1962 at the same dinner as Alan Maclachlan. He was already recognised as a fine golfer, a member of Pitfirrane and brought a competitive, but fair and keen sporting attitude to the club.
He was a skip after three years. Records show he won his first trophy in 66/67 season - the Points. He won the League in 68/69, 70/71 and 75/76. Other trophies include the G.Reid curling stone in 75/76 and the League runners up Trophy in 79/80.
Other curling mentions of note include playing against the German tourists at Kinross in November, 1978 and one of his outdoor curling experiences at the Lochore Meadows Bonspiel in February 1977, as well as the Grand Match in 1979. He loved matches against Broomhall CC, our big rivals at that time.
He stepped down as skip in the late seventies and remained a strong curler with several league championship badges as third including 83/84 and 84/85 with John Wilson as skip and the KO with Jim Macdonald in 85/86.
He was an active committee member serving continuously from 1966 to 1990. He was Vice President to Douglas Lamond from 1975 and served as President from 1977 to 1979.
He was a member of the curlers court for several years starting in 1968. As well as being a regular entertainer at the club dinner he also instructed new curlers for many years including Bob Tait in 1981 and Bob Smith in 1982.
In 1982 he represented the club at the RAF Pitreavie CC Dinner with Tom Clarke and John Wilson. Minutes record his influential involvement in the Dance Committee.
The club celebrated it’s 150th Anniversary in the 1983/84 season. A record from the Anniversary bonspiel on 20.1.84 (now the Lamond and Murray Bonspiel) states ; Jim Temple in his usual good form acted as Master of Ceremonies.’
Club secretary Alastair Lamond recalls Jim was the life and soul of the club when he joined in 1976. He suggested that Jim instigated ‘Hail Caledonia’ as the club song. As a further aside Jim, as manager of John Wills Motors in Rosyth sold him his first car - a blue mini!
Poor health limited Jim’s active participation in the late 80s leading to sight loss. One significant memory is his attendance at the 1993 dinner. He sang the club song for the last time. Sadly he died in the close season.
A decision to replace the opening event of the season - the ‘smoker’ with curling was approved at the 1993 AGM. Pete Campbell won the first event. The club named the bonspiel after Jim commemorating his great service to the club.
Douglas Lamond: Reflections on Inverkeithing Curling Club
Douglas joined the club 66 years ago, he is the only current member to have been awarded the honour of receiving the RCCC medal to commemorate 50 years membership. Our reporter had the privilege of meeting him and chatting about some of his memories and experiences in the club.
Douglas joined in 1955 He was introduced by his father, a keen and very proficient curler who had good success in the club. Mr. Lamond senior was the first member of the family to curl. Douglas joined at the same time as Douglas Clark, son of Donald Clark, one of the quarrymen in the club[1].
It is quite possible that Douglas is not only the only member but the only living curler who curled at the old Dunfermline rink. As a new curler Douglas was invited to play in the Presidents v Vice presidents match which took place in March 1955. The rink closed at the end of the 1954/55 season. As well as losing the curling facility the Dunfermline Vikings ice hockey team lost a home.
As you can imagine there have been major changes in the rinks that are available for curlers. Douglas played at Haymarket, Perth, Falkirk and Kirkcaldy. Of this group only Kirkcaldy remains on the same site. There are more stories about Haymarket later on. Perth was a fine rink, now replaced by Dewars Centre. Douglas recalls it being a fine building with a magnificent curling mural in the bar. Falkirk Rink was eventually closed as the demand for Bingo increased, as this was an alternative use for the building.
The club played most games at the Haymarket rink in the early days of curling for Douglas. We take the access to road transport as a given, yet until the opening of the Road bridge curlers had to take the ferry and road, or train to the curling rink. For many that was an encouragement to have a few drinks. Sessions were three hours long, with a half time break (for drinks!). It was not unusual for there to be eight rounds of drinks in total during and after a game - so everyone got a chance to buy a round! Apparently some curlers still managed to drive home!
There have been many changes in the number of local clubs. Several Inverkeithing members were also members of Keith Curling Club which was directly linked to the paper mill in Inverkeithing. More recently Jimmy Wilson was one of that group. The main rival of Inverkeithing was for many years Broomhall. Douglas noted that we did not have an annual challenge against Dunfermline for many years, as they were ‘too good’. Some would argue that is still a valid observation.
Douglas was asked about the changes he has seen in the sport. The quality and consistency of curling ice has no doubt improved, but in general the tradition and spirit of the sport remain the same. Back in the day it was a choice to play off the hack or the crampet. The amount of drink and alcohol has obviously reduced, mostly due to the restrictions and limits for driving. Not only do curlers seem to drive further for matches, the membership comes from a much wider area then ever before.
Douglas explained that prior to the Gladyer the dinners were held at the Queens Hotel. For many years the dinners alternated between the Queens and the Royal. The venues were fine venues for the dinners, with the slight edge for quality of food being in favour of the Royal. Of course it is not surprising to hear the menu has hardly changed in 66 years and more.
At that time there was more outdoor curling, no doubt because there was less indoor rinks and perhaps colder winters. A curling pond was on land by the dairy opposite Lamond and Murray.
As well as the 50 year medal, the most cherished medal in his collection acknowledges Douglas taking part in two outdoor grand matches. The first in 1963 and the second in 1979, the photograph across records this event.
Photos: Douglas
Grand Match 1979: Jimmy Temple, Dave Smith, Jim Murray. Primer Pollock, Alan Maclachlan, Douglas, Ian McLeod, Alvaro Gagliardi, Tommy Hutchinson
A young Alastair Lamond taking it all in at the same Grand Match!
In addition Douglas noted that the standard of curling was not as memorable as being part of the whole experience. The fact that the stones had not been stored in cold storage was unhelpful - ‘have you ever tried to play with warm stones?!’
Douglas had a cautionary tale for club secretaries! Douglas might have had chance to play in an earlier Grand match on Loch Leven in 1959. There was a major disappointment for the club when they were barred from entering a rink, as the RCCC subscriptions had not been paid on time that season!
The interview serves as a reminder that there is such great scope to retell stories about former members and escapades both on and off the ice. One of his recollections was to praise the success of John Maclachlan (father of Alan) who with a group of curlers from other clubs won the British Open. He recalled with a broad smile the time when Jimmy Temple ‘rallied the troops’ during a Dunfermline match by marching down the ice, broom held aloft with loud challenges to his brother curlers to pay close attention to the tasks in hand. Jimmy was one of the fine troubadours our club can be proud of.
Douglas was a skip for many years and won the league twice. His period of office was a highlight and included the introduction of Alastair to the club. He remembers the satisfaction of playing in the Pairs with Alastair, when it you could enter the competition with your choice of partner. The family firm were pleased to provide a trophy for the inaugural club bonspiel played for the first time in the club’s 150th anniversary season.
Douglas was asked what advice he would give to a new member of ICC. He would stress the importance of making a commitment to the rink and recognizing the strength of the club where everyone in the club is an equal and valued.
[1] The runners up trophy in our main league is named in memory of Donald
Alan Maclachlan - Honorary President 2009 - Member 1962 - 2009
The article below was written by Jim Macdonald and was printed in the Your Curler magazine in January 2010. Alan was without doubt one of the most significant members in the club's history. The article highlights his contribution to the club. He retired as secretary after two spells totalling over 20 years and was made Honorary President in the club's 175th anniversary year. Sadly he died at the bonspiel and dinner to celebrate this anniversary. As Jim says in his article - 'we will miss him, but we will treasure our memories of him'. The club is stronger for Alan being a member.
David McPherson
David is one of our longest serving members having joined in 1977 alongside our former historian Jim McDonald. He was introduced to curling by Jim Murray, and admits to not knowing anything about the sport before then. There was another club in the town at the time - Keith CC linked to the Paper Mill, but he was pleased to join Inverkeithing.
He has enjoyed Many experiences of outdoor curling at Otterson Loch, but never had the chance to play in an outdoor Grand Match. in my early days at the club we curled in the old rink in Edinburgh and at Kirkcaldy. The atmosphere at Kirkcaldy was quite different 'back in the day' , the atmosphere enhanced by the lovely warm fire. The ice was just as it is now - you had to really threw the stones - so no change there!
David shared a couple of stories:
'I recall a game at the old rink in Perth in the late 70s. The rink was Douglas Lamond, Wag Allan, Ian Macleod and myself as lead. After the obligatory spell at the bar we were stopped on the outskirts of Perth by a policeman in the middle of the road. Douglas lowered his window and the policeman leaned in. He nearly keeled over with the alcoholic fumes wafting from the car. He simply asked us where we had been and were we were going. He must have been satisfied because he told us to carry on. On the outskirts of Glenfarg village (this was before the motorway was completed)we were stopped agin by the Police. He asked a lot of questions and asked Douglas to set out of the car and open the boot. Douglas asked what was going on to be told a prisoner had escaped from Perth prison and they were searching all vehicles. This was before breath tests - oh and we won the League that season!'
'Another story - at the annual ICC club dance Ian Macleod asked the leader of the band if he could turn down the amplifier, as it was very loud and nobody could hear themselves talk. The leader said he could not alter the sound. Ian went to his car and returned with a large pair of old metal and plastic ear defenders, which he wore for the rest of the evening as a protest'
ED: Ian was one of the great characters in our club and there will be a raft of episodes and escapades we might be able to record in due course.
John Wilson
ICC member, John known to all in the club, died on 18th March. Jock joined the Club on the same night back in 1976 as Alastair Lamond. Jock very quickly became a stalwart of the Club and later became a skip and then President of the Club in the early 90’s. He was a party animal and loved the dinners, bonspiels and social events. He toured Canada with the Royal Club in 1993. It was said that as well as the curling, his mission was to drink “Canada Dry”!!
Jock’s family had a dairy business in Burnside, Inverkeithing, across the road from Lamond and Murray. After the business was sold, Jock’s health began to deteriorate and, sadly, he was unable to continue curling. Many of you who joined the Club in the last 10 or even 20 years may not have got to know Jock, but he was undoubtedly one of our leading characters and enthusiasts and contributed significantly to the Club while he was still well enough to take part.
Jock Wilson. May he rest in Peace.
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