Club’s visit to town a happy one

Mr Bludau said: “I live in Lünen, in Germany. With my football club VfB 08 Lünen we visited Watford in the years 1963/64/65 and were guests of the North Watford Youth Football Club.

“After more than 40 years I remember a lot about this wonderful, great time. It begins in 1963. Our football club VfB 08 Lünen near Dortmund got in contact with the North Watford Youth Football Club. The manager of this club was Mr Charlie Pinnington.

“The Watford team was guest in Lünen in the summer of 1963. Before, in the springtime, we had a big tournament with teams all over Europe, also with the boys from FC Bennetts End.

“The Watford boys stayed two weeks in Lünen and lived with families. In August 1963, we visited Watford. For all of us it was the first visit to another country. Our parents told us before our trip that the English Army helped the Germans at the time after the war in Westfalen, where we live.

“So we come to England and Watford – and we are very happy. What wonderful people. The town was very busy, nice shops, beautiful pubs and the Top Rank. We had never seen anything like it before.

“One morning we visited the Green Man pub. The barkeeper gave us all a meal – we paid nothing.

“I remember the sports shop from Peter Spivey. I bought some soccer things I never saw in Germany.

“Also near this shop was a men’s clothes shop with wonderful shoes. These shoes (soft leather, high, brown) I saw, I never found since and I am looking still to this time.

“I stayed in the Harebreaks – and my good old friend Kevin Stratford from the Balmoral Road now lives in St Albans.”