A match made in heaven

VALE REC and Tony Smith celebrate their golden anniversary this year. And it has been a marriage made in heaven.

The 69-year-old, nicknamed Rambo, was presented with an ornamental clock by president Tony Blondel at the club's end-of-season dinner in recognition of his 50 years of continuous service to the Rec. It was a total surprise for the retired self-employed grower.

'I didn't give it a thought,' said Smith.

'I mentioned it to Tony at the Muratti that I'd done 50 years and I didn't think any more about it. Then up he popped at the dinner.'

In his 50 years, Smith has done nearly everything at the Corbet Field club from serving as president to Priaulx team head coach to sponge man and now general manager.

'It's an outstanding achievement,' said Blondel.

'Having worked with him and for him, it was a great privilege to present it to him.'

Smith joined Rec as a 19-year-old in 1956 after playing some junior football at the Tics and Sylvans. In his first season in yellow and green he played only twice, once in the Railway and the other time for the Jackson.

'I wasn't good enough, or it was because the club was more cliquey then, which was the reason why I didn't get more games,' said Smith.

'But I enjoyed the club, so I just stayed. I played mainly in the Railway and Jackson.

'I think I had two games in my career for the Priaulx.'

Smith clearly remembers his first-team debut. It was in 1963 against North, who at the time were the top team in the island having won the Priaulx in 1961 and 1962 and who also went on to win it in 1963.

'It was at the Corbet Field and there were 500 people in the ground,' said Smith.

'I was going past on my motorbike and Edgar Corbet ran out and stopped me because they were short. So I zoomed home and got my boots.

'When I ran onto the pitch 10 minutes late, they were already 2-0 down. We ended up losing 6-5.

'Carlo Polli scored four out of the five goals for Rec and I was dropped for the next game.'

The left half's second and last match for Rec's first team was in the Jeremie Cup later in the season against St Paul's. He continued to play for the Jackson and Railway until 1969 when, aged 32, he was asked to coach the third team.

Smith combined coaching with playing for a couple of games before he realised he couldn't do both, so he gave up his on-pitch involvement.

A year later and he moved up to run the Jackson team. Then from 1971 to 1979 he was the assistant coach for the Priaulx.

After St Martin's dominance of the top league in the 60s, the 70s belonged to Vale Rec as they won it five years on the bounce from 1972 to 1977. Smith served under Noel Jefferies and Arthur Le Page during this purple patch.

He replaced Le Page as the boss but lasted only three months before he was given the sack, a fate that also happened to his father, Les, who was a former Muratti footballer.

'I lasted three months, then I got the bullet,' said Smith.

'Wilf Corbet was our founder in 1932 and he approached my father to be coach in 1956 and he lasted three months as well. There can't be many fathers and sons who got the bullet in three months.

'When I got the sack, I briefly thought about leaving, but not for long. When the secretary told me I was sacked, in the same breath he asked me to be assistant.

'I took a couple of hours to think about it before I said yes. I also once asked for a transfer when I was dropped from the Railway but they wouldn't give it to me and I got back in the team.

'That was a bit of blackmail.'

Getting the sack was the low point so far in Smith's life at Vale Rec, whereas his best moment came in the 1980-1 season when they won the Priaulx, Jackson, Railway and Youth One and Two leagues.

Smith was back at the helm of the Priaulx side with Tony Blondel as his assistant and Ray Blondel as his captain.

'The highlight was winning the five leagues,' said Smith.

'It had never been done before. I gave up after 81 and Tony Blondel took over and ran it for five years.

'There's loads of reasons why I stepped down, things weren't going to go exactly how I wanted. But the coaches were so good at that time, they didn't need me and they proved it by going on to the win the Priaulx again.'

As Rec went on to take control of the Priaulx during the 80s, Smith continued to help out with other teams at the club. He became president for a couple of years in the 90s when at the same time he became involved with the island team.

He undertook a number of roles from sponge man to kit man before he stepped down after the Island Games in 2003.

What makes his 50-year involvement with Vale Rec and island football so amazing is that he also found time to give 40 years to softball in the island as well.

Smith again followed in his father's footsteps when he undertook the presidency of the Guernsey Softball Association for a number of years. It is clear to him why he has dedicated so much of his life to help run sport in the island.

'Because I enjoy it,' he said.

'There have been bad times as well as good times but the sport scene is brilliant. You don't want to lose it but there will be a time when you have to let it go.

'I couldn't have done all that without the support of my wife and family.'

Matt Le Tissier is his best player to come through the Rec, but interestingly he does not make it into Rambo's greatest-ever Priaulx team as he played only a handful of times for the first team before he started his life as a professional footballer.

'I remember Matt playing in the Jackson at 14 and he scored all our goals,' he said.

'Then he left at the end of the season to go to Southampton and everyone knows the rest.'

But where did the 'Rambo' nickname come from?

'Pete Blondel called me Rambo because I've got no muscle,' he said.

'I've been called worse than that and I'm sure that I will be again.'