A TREASURE trove of memorabilia, illustrating the rich and fascinating history of junior football in North Ayrshire is now on show.

The North Ayrshire Heritage Centre in Saltcoats plays host to a celebration of the game across the community in an exhibition which was launched by legendary Lisbon Lion Bobby Lennox last Wednesday.

And not everyone knows but the Celtic legend and Saltcoats native began his stellar career in the juniors with the now defunct Ardeer Recreation, before signing for Celtic at the age of 18 in 1961, where he enjoyed a glorious career which saw him become the club’s second-highest goalscorer of all time and a European Cup winner in 1967.

Lennox said: “I had a really good grounding in the junior game with Ardeer Rec for a year-andhalf and they played on the best park in Scotland.

"I was just 16 and we had a young team. We always did well at home, it was a nice big pitch.

"It was a great learning experience I was playing against men. People still support their local clubs but nowadays players go straight from youth football to seniors without playing in the juniors.

"This exhibition is a great idea as it brings the clubs together.”

The former Celt’s son Gary, who played for Dalry Thistle, was among the other guests at the exhibition.

The exhibition features a display cabinet with Lennox’s Lisbon Lions jersey and the shirt he wore for Scotland in their 1967 triumph against reigning world champions England, as well as the shirt he was given by opponent Jimmy Greaves.

It has everything you need to know about the game’s grass roots in the community. The exhibition also features a wealth of souvenirs and keepsakes linked to junior football in North Ayrshire covering our local clubs – Ardeer Thistle, Ardrossan Winton Rovers, Beith Juniors, Dalry Thistle, Kilbirnie Ladeside, Largs Thistle, Saltcoats Victoria Irvine Meadow, Irvine Victoria and Kilwinning Rangers.

There are a number of hidden treasures in the exhibition including letters from Aberdeen to Dalry Thistle relating to future Scotland goalkeeper Jim Leighton’s move to senior football in 1977.

There is also an Ardrossan Winton Rovers shirt and tie a picture of their District League winning team along with memorabilia from Beith’s Scottish Junior Cup success almost two years ago, a picture of the Irvine Vics celebrating their District League success and a host of items from the Irvine Meadow exhibition, which recently featured in the Townhouse.

Also on display is a picture of former Kilmarnock Scottish Cup-winning and now Saltcoats Victoria chairman Ray Montgomerie, when he shook hands on a move to Newcastle United.

There’s even a commemorative spittoon marking Saltcoats Victoria’s 1925 Scottish Junior Cup success and a membership card for the club from 1892/93 as well as minutes from Ardeer Thistle dating back to 1908. Another standout is the West of Scotland Cup won by Kilbirnie Ladeside for the first time in their history back in 2008.

The exhibition marks the re-opening of the heritage centre following extensive repair work to the building’s roof.

Junior football historian and broadcaster Drew Cochrane spoke of his great memories of reporting on the juniors for the Ardrossan & Saltcoats Herald, Radio Clyde and WestSound and also writing The Story of Ayrshire Junior Football back in 1989, as well as the history behind some club nicknames.