GB

It's A Knockout 1969

NI Qualifying Heat 1

Event Staged: Saturday 31st May 1969
Venue: Enniskillen Rugby Club, Mullaghmeen, Enniskillen,
County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

Transmission:
Not recorded or transmitted

Weather Conditions: Warm and Sunny

Teams: Armagh v. Cookstown v. Dungannon v.
Enniskillen v. Omagh v. Rathfriland

Team Members included:
Dungannon - Ralph Brown (Team Manager), Father P J McCrory (Men’s Team Coach), Vincient Lavery (Women's Team Coach), Miss A Foster, Miss B Garry, Miss A Gilpin, Miss C Johnson, Mr L Kee, Mr V Kerr, Miss H McLean, Miss K O’Neill, Mr M Peat, Miss J Pinkerton, Miss K Quinn, Mr T Uncles, Miss M Whitelaw;
Enniskillen - Billy Simpson (Team Captain), Rosalind Avery, Gabriel Brock, Barry Flanagan, Jeanette Forbes, Richard Heap, Carol Kennedy, John Latimer, Dermot Lunney, Heather Lyons, Wendy McChesney, Shirley McLeer, John Maxwell, Elizabeth Montgomery, John Nevin, Jean Paget, Mary-Rose Riddell, Maura Ryan, Gordon Thompson, Pat Timmons, Helen Woodhouse.

Games: The Revealing Doors, The Fire Hoses, Swing-Along, Water Goal, Your Life in Their Hands and Roll Out the Barrels.

Game Results and Standings

Result

 Team

Points

1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th

 E • Enniskillen ● ●
 O • Omagh
 A • Armagh
 R • Rathfriland
 C • Cookstown
 D • Dungannon

39
38
23
20
18
14

Enniskillen (County Fermanagh) qualified for It's A Knockout at Bangor:
staged on Saturday 7th June 1969

The Host Town

Enniskillen, County Fermanagh

Enniskillen is the county and largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland with a population of around 18,000 inhabitants. It is located between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne, 47 miles (75km) south of Londonderry (Derry), 71 miles (114km) west of Belfast and 11 miles (17km) east of Belcoo and the border with the Republic of Ireland.

The town's name comes from the Irish Inis Ceithleann referring to Cethlenn, a figure in Irish mythology who may have been a goddess. The town's oldest building is the Maguire's stone castle, built by Hugh the Hospitable who died in 1428.

The town centre is firmly built along the long, narrow Main Street, which actually changes name six times along its length. From east to west it begins as East Bridge Street then to Townhall Street, High Street, Church Street, Darling Street and Ann Street! This gives the town a real sense of bustle and life as well as imbuing the shops with their own unique character. There is no new development to be found on Main Street and the established High Street Stores sit comfortably beside small independent traders, creating a special atmosphere for the place. A feature of Enniskillen, which is becoming increasingly unusual, is the number of small bars and hostelries which appear on Main Street providing welcome relief from the shops! At the centre of the town is the Town Hall, which was completed as recently as 1901. The Clock Tower is six stories high and can be seen from everywhere in the town, complete with its statues marking the proud military heritage of the town. The Bandstand outside the Town Hall is used regularly through the summer and works well to add to the impression that this is a very warm and unusual retail centre.

At the west end of Main Street, the town’s two main churches can be found. St. Macartin’s Church of Ireland Cathedral dates from 1842. Inside, General Galbraith Lowry Cole (1772-1842), Member of Parliament in the Irish House of Commons from 1797-1800 and British House of Commons in 1803, is commemorated. A statue dedicated to him also overlooks the town from a 30m (98ft 5in) high column in the Town Park. The Cathedral is noted for its bells, with one in particular being cast from a cannon used during the Battle of the Boyne in 1690. St. Michael’s Roman Catholic Church is opposite St. Macartin’s, on the other side of Main Street, and dates from 1875. The building has a steep roof and is actually best viewed from the rear. Inside, a window portrays St Molaise, founder of the Devenish Monastery.

Enniskillen achieved notoriety on the morning of Sunday 8th November 1987, when the IRA (Irish Republican Army) detonated a bomb amongst the crowd gathered at the war memorial for the Remembrance Day service, killing eleven and injuring more than sixty.

The Visiting Towns

Armagh is a town with a population of around 16,000 inhabitants in the county of the same name and is located 39 miles (63km) east of Enniskillen.

Cookstown is a town with a population of around 12,000 inhabitants in County Tyrone and is located 41 miles (66km) north-east of Enniskillen.

Dungannon is a town with a population of around 17,000 inhabitants in County Tyrone and is located 37 miles (60km) north-east of Enniskillen.

Omagh is a town with a population of around 23,000 inhabitants in County Tyrone and is located 22 miles (35km) north-east of Enniskillen.

Rathfriland is a town with a population of around 4,000 inhabitants in County Down and is located 60 miles (96km) east of Enniskillen.

The Venue

Enniskillen Rugby Club

The games were played at the ground of Enniskillen Rugby Club at Mullaghmeen, located about 3 miles (4.8km) north of the town’s centre. It was established on 28th August 1925, when 37 people attended a meeting in Enniskillen Town Hall, at which the name, Enniskillen Rugby Club, was agreed. The first match at the club was played on 30th September 1925 against Ballyshannon from County Donegal in Southern Ireland. The club leased the original ground at Raceview, Enniskillen, from a Mr Thomas Rutherford for a mere £20 with the proviso that no animals would be allowed to trespass or graze on the field between 1st September 1925 and 1st April 2006.

Although the club was not officially formed until 1925, the game of rugby had been played at Portora Royal School from the 1870s, and there are records of Enniskillen entering the Junior Cup in 1882 and the Provincial Towns' Cup in 1907, so it is likely that the game was played on an ad hoc basis prior to formation. During the 1927/28 season, the club saw its first competitive success when they defeated City of Derry by 21-5, winning the McMillan Cup on 28th March 1928. When the team arrived home, they were met by two pipe bands and club skipper George Warren was carried aloft through the town!

In 1930, the name was changed to Enniskillen Rugby Football Club, but the next two seasons were disappointing mainly due to the pitch, as Raceview resisted attempts to drain it and, due to water logging, several matches had to be played on a ground at Ballinamallard, borrowed from the RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary). However in 1932, land belonging to a Mr J J West was obtained at Rossahilly, and whilst it was felt at the time that this was too far out of town, it was well drained and level and the standard of play improved.

During World War II (1939-1945), the pitch at Rossahilly disappeared under a concrete runway, strategically important to the war effort, so the club obtained the use of a field at St Angelo, which was again level and well-drained. Interest in rugby increased to the extent that during 1955/56 the club was able to field two teams for the first time. The club remained at St Angelo, where they had the use of two fields, but many felt that these were too far out of town, and other drawbacks were difficulty in parking, the lack of any shelter and the fact that they had to share the pitches with grazing cattle!

The club secured the use of a playing field from Enniskillen Borough Council at Celtic Park in 1963, and many felt that this was the end of many difficulties, but Celtic Park proved to be a disaster as it was inadequately drained, and many sharp stones appeared and knee protectors were required by competitors! However, the disappointment with Celtic Park proved to be a blessing in disguise, when at an Extraordinary General Meeting in November 1965, it was decided unanimously to acquire new playing fields. A special committee was appointed to review potential sites within a reasonable distance to Enniskillen and, in February 1966, it reported back to an AGM, with a choice between purchasing a farm owned by a Mr Moore at Mullaghmeen and leasing fields at St Angelo. The purchase was forcefully backed and it was decided to make enquiries as to the extent of financial support that could be secured, and within a week, promises of £1,600 had been received and it was decided to purchase the 15 acre (6 hectare) farm.

The Games in Detail

Game 1 - The Revealing Doors

The first game - ‘The Revealing Doors’ - ended with Enniskillen and Omagh in 1st place, Armagh in 3rd place, Rathfriland in 4th place, Dungannon in 5th place and Cookstown in 6th place.

Game 2 - The Fire Hoses

The second game - ‘The Fire Hoses’ - witnessed Cookstown, Omagh and Rathfriland presenting their Jokers for play. The game ended with Omagh in 1st place, Enniskillen in 2nd place, Cookstown in 3rd place, Dungannon in 4th place, Rathfriland in 5th place and Armagh in 6th place.

Game 3 - Swing-Along

The third game - ‘Swing-Along’ - witnessed Armagh presenting their Joker for play. The game ended with Omagh in 1st place, Enniskillen in 2nd place, Rathfriland in 3rd place, Armagh in 4th place, Cookstown in 5th place and Dungannon in 6th place.

Game 4 - Water Goal

The fourth game - ‘Water Goal’ - ended with Armagh in 1st place, Enniskillen and Omagh in 2nd place, Rathfriland in 4th place, Cookstown in 5th place and Dungannon in 6th place.

Game 5 - Your Life in Their Hands

The fifth and penultimate game - ‘Your Life in Their Hands’ - witnessed Dungannon and Enniskillen presenting their Jokers for play. The game ended with Enniskillen in 1st place, Omagh in 2nd place, Rathfriland in 3rd place, Dungannon in 4th place, Cookstown in 5th place and Armagh in 6th place.

Game 6 - Roll Out the Barrels

The sixth and final game - ‘Roll Out the Barrels’ - ended with Enniskillen in 1st place, Armagh in 2nd place, Omagh in 3rd place, Cookstown in 4th place, Rathfriland in 5th place and Dungannon in 6th place.

Additional Information

This was one of two Northern Ireland qualifying heats, which were held simultaneously, but not recorded or transmitted. They were referred to in the local press as '6-County Semi-Finals’.

This heat featured six of the eleven competing teams for the coveted two places in the actual BBC recording of It’s A Knockout. Three teams came from County Tyrone (Dungannon, Cookstown and Omagh), one from County Down (Rathfriland), one from County Fermanagh (Enniskillen) and the other from the county town of Armagh.

This heat was played over six games with all teams participating in every game. Jokers were permitted to be played on any of the six games, doubling the points scored. From the outset, this competition was basically a two-horse race between Enniskillen and Omagh, with both teams finishing in the top two places in the first five games. Before the final game, Omagh were leading Enniskillen by just one point (34pts to 33pts), with their nearest rivals sitting with just 18pts. Enniskillen stormed the final game to finish in first place, and, with a late burst by Armagh in the closing stages of the game, overtaking Omagh to clinch 2nd place on the game, it resulted in Omagh finishing in 3rd place and losing the contest by a solitary point!

The two semi-finals were part of a six-county competition and although the team of Enniskillen won this heat, they were the only team from the county of Fermanagh. It was therefore decided that the team would represent the whole county in the BBC TV show and as a consequence, were renamed for that event.

GB

It's A Knockout 1969

NI Qualifying Heat 2

Event Staged: Saturday 31st May 1969
Venue: The Showgrounds, Coleraine, County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Transmission:
Not recorded or transmitted

Weather Conditions: Warm and Sunny

Teams: Ballynahinch v. Bangor v. Carrickfergus v. Coleraine v. Newtownabbey

Team Members included:
Coleraine - Ray Rankin (Team Manager), Betty McWhirter (Women's Team Captain), Ronnie Cameron, Rosemary Lagan, Richard Lyons, Philip McGarvey.

Games included: Ball Bearing Baskets and Barrel Balance.

Game Results and Standings

Result

 Team

Points

1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th

 CO • Coleraine ● ●
 CA • Carrickfergus
 BL • Ballynahinch
 BG • Bangor
 N • Newtownabbey

36
30
25
20
18

Coleraine qualified for It's A Knockout at Bangor:
staged on Saturday 7th June 1969

The Host Town

Coleraine, County Antrim

Coleraine is a town with a population of around 27,000 inhabitants in County Londonderry. It is located 17 miles (27km) west of Ballycastle, 27 miles (44km) north-east of Londonderry, 43 miles (69km) north of Dungannon and 47 miles (75km) north-west of Belfast at the lowest bridgeable point of the River Bann, where the river is 295ft (90m) wide.

The Tripartite Life of Saint Patrick records how the town, dating from approximately 5935 BC, got its name. When Patrick arrived in the neighbourhood, he was received with great honour and hospitality by the local chieftain Nadslua, who offered him a piece of ground on which to build a church. The spot was next to the river Bann and was overgrown with ferns, which were being burned by some boys to amuse themselves. This incident led to the area being called Cúil Raithin (nook of ferns), which was later anglicised as Colrain, Colerain and Coleraine.

The town was one of the two urban communities developed at the start of the 17th century by the London Companies in County Londonderry during the Plantation of Ulster - an organised colonisation (plantation) of Ulster by people from Britain during the reign of King James I (1566-1625). The slightly skewed street pattern of Coleraine's town centre is legacy of that early exercise in town planning, along with traces of the lines of the ramparts that provided the Plantation town with its defences. With some industrialisation, the expansion of the river port, and the development of the railway, the town expanded significantly throughout the 19th century and into the early part of the 20th century. Coleraine steadily expanded after the Second World War (1939-1945). The population doubled due to major industrial development on extensive suburban sites, the expansion of commerce and the development of sporting and recreational facilities. Since 1980, growth has continued but at a slightly more modest pace. In the twenty years to 2001, the town's population increased by 22% to approximately 25,000 but the rate of increase fell from 12% in the 1980s to 8% in the 1990s.

Coleraine has an attractive town centre (the town square is called The Diamond), a marina and the prestigious Riverside theatre, where the quality of production often belies the small size of the town. During the day it is a busy town but at night it is relatively quiet, with much of the night life in the area located in the nearby seaside towns of Portrush and Port Stewart. Coleraine is the main town of the world famous Causeway Coast, which attracts over three million visitors per year, spending in excess of £37 million. The world famous Giant's Causeway is a 25-minute bus ride away and the distillery village of Bushmills, famous for its Original and Black Bush blends, as well as the 10, 12, 16, and 21-year old Bushmills Single Malts, is well-served by buses from the town. There is also a narrow-gauge steam train running in the summer from Bushmills to the Giant's Causeway.

Coleraine Cheddar is one of several cheeses made in Northern Ireland. The product range was originally manufactured at a factory built in the town in 1948, for the manufacture of roller and spray dried powders, sterilised cream, butter and other products. In 1951, the plant was expanded to begin production of about 5 tonnes (5,000kg) of cheddar cheese per day from about 13,000 gallons (136,362 litres) of full cream milk.

The Visiting Towns

Ballynahinch is a town with a population of around 6,000 inhabitants in County Down and is located 59 miles (95km) south-east of Coleraine.

Bangor is a town with a population of around 60,000 inhabitants in County Down and is located 51 miles (82km) south-east of Coleraine.

Carrickfergus is a town with a population of around 30,000 inhabitants in County Antrim and is located 44 miles (71km) south-east of Coleraine.

Newtownabbey is a town with a population of around 65,000 inhabitants in County Antrim and is located 42 miles (68km) south-east of Coleraine.

The Venue

The Showgrounds

The games were played at The Showgrounds, the home ground of Coleraine Football Club since its construction in June 1927. It is said that a more centrally located town centre ground would be harder to find, with The Showgrounds sitting next to Coleraine's Railway and Bus Interchange.

The tall grey brick and blue clad main stand runs alongside Ballycastle Road and dominates the ground. Inside the ground, the Main Stand is positioned slightly oddly, towards the away supporters end. The stand has a high cantilever roof with exposed steelwork above a shallow concrete seating deck with 1,400 dark blue plastic seats and a row of executive boxes at the rear. The lowest few rows of seats in the main stand have the disadvantage of being exposed to the elements and, since the touchline is positioned a couple of metres away, the playing action is more distant than at most other grounds. Behind the goal at both ends is a 'U' shaped terrace with a covered central section along the length of the penalty area.

The ground has seen many changes throughout the years and has developed into one of the most prestigious Irish League venues. Although it can easily accommodate a capacity crowd of 6,500, the current capacity is just 2,200 mainly due to stringent Health and Safety regulations. In addition to this, the days of crowds of well over 10,000 flocking to watch the Bannsiders (the club's nickname) are long gone. The club’s record attendance still stands at 12,500 when Coleraine entertained Tottenham Hotspur in the 1982 European Cup Winners’ Cup.

In Coleraine town centre there is a statue of footballer John Robert ‘Bertie’ Peacock, MBE (1928-2004). A local Coleraine man, Bertie played for his local side before moving to Glentoran in 1947 and then Glasgow Celtic in 1949. He went on to make over 300 appearances for the Hoops (Glasgow Celtic) and winning 32 caps for Northern Ireland, one whilst reaching the quarter-finals of the 1958 FIFA World Cup. He returned to Northern Ireland, first managing the national team and then becoming manager of Coleraine, leading the club to their only ever Irish league title in 1974.

The Games in Detail

Game 1

The title of the first game is unknown but ended with Coleraine finishing in 1st place, Carrickfergus in 2nd place, Ballynahinch in 3rd place, Bangor in 4th place and Newtownabbey bringing up the rear in 5th place.

Game 2

The title of second game is unknown but witnessed Carrickfergus presenting their Joker for play. The game ended with Carrickfergus in 1st place, Coleraine in 2nd place, Ballynahinch in 3rd place, Bangor in 4th place and Newtownabbey in 5th place.

Game 3 - Ball-Bearing Baskets

The third game - ‘Ball-Bearing Baskets’ - witnessed Bangor presenting their Joker for play. The game ended with Bangor in 1st place, Coleraine in 2nd place, Ballynahinch in 3rd place, Newtownabbey in 4th place and Carrickfergus in 5th place.

Game 4

The title of the fourth game is unknown but witnessed Coleraine and Newtownabbey presenting their Jokers for play. The game ended with Coleraine in 1st place, Newtownabbey in 2nd place, Carrickfergus in 3rd place, Ballynahinch in 4th place and Bangor in 5th place.

Game 5 - Barrel Balance

The fifth game - ‘Barrel Balance’ - witnessed Ballynahinch presenting their Joker for play. The game ended with Ballynahinch in 1st place, Carrickfergus in 2nd place, Coleraine in 3rd place, Bangor in 4th place and Newtownabbey in 6th place.

Game 6

The title of the sixth and penultimate game is unknown but ended with Coleraine in 1st place, Carrickfergus in 2nd place, Ballynahinch in 3rd place, Newtownabbey in 4th place and Bangor in 5th place.

Game 7

The title of the seventh and final game is unknown. With a 5pts advantage over the 2nd placed team Carrickfergus, Coleraine had already booked their passage to the It's A Knockout heat the following Saturday in Bangor. Even if they finished in last place on the seventh game, they would still win the competition by 1pt. However, the Coleraine team finished the job in style, signing off with their fourth 1st place of the contest. Carrickfergus ended up in 2nd place on the game, with Newtownabbey in 3rd place, Bangor in 4th place and Ballynahinch in 5th place.

Additional Information

This heat featured the remaining five teams fighting for the second of the coveted two places in the inaugural BBC Northern Ireland It’s A Knockout. Two teams came from County Down (Ballynahinch and Bangor), two from County Antrim (Carrickfergus and Newtownabbey) and the other from County Londonderry (Coleraine).

Unlike the first qualifying heat, this competition was played over seven games (instead of six) with all teams participating in every game. Jokers were permitted to be played on any of the seven games, doubling the points scored. Coleraine had achieved victory before the last game, having acquired sufficient points to be 5pts clear of their nearest rivals.

The first of the six-county semi-finals was won by Enniskillen, the only team from the county of Fermanagh. Whilst it was accepted that they should represent the whole county in the actual BBC TV show, the winners of this second heat, Coleraine, were actually one of two teams from the county of Antrim. It was therefore decided that they would compete under their home town’s name in the following week’s recording.

Interestingly, Bangor, the host town of the actual televised heat, was one of the competing teams in this qualifying heat but failed to make it through to that event whilst both host towns of these events, Enniskillen and Coleraine, would compete against each other in the BBC recording!