The Youth

[Sexual Ealing]

Sounds about right (although I've never known or heard his name).

[Pat McMahon]

It’s a shit business.

Yup - I imagine having to release 18,19,20 year olds and shatter their dreams is just about the worst job in football. 

Some mates of mine played with a bloke about 25 years ago called Peter Curran. He was playing for a west London team called the Polytechnic whilst working down here but had come through the ranks at Aberdeen under Ferguson. Ferguson deLivered the news he was being released and he resented him thereafter.

I thought it was decent of Ferguson to take it on himself to deliver the news to those being released rather than leaving it to the academy staff.  He did at least have the pleasure of scoring a great goal from outside the box that was on a 100 best ever goals  video in the SPL though - more than most of us will ever achieve.

Polytechnic rings a bell. Are they based in Acton/Ealing?

In Chiswick, Paddy, not far from the train station. It was a good club with 9 teams plus veterans, as well as hockey and rugby teams. I played there for a couple of seasons when I wasn’t at Villa games.

I played against them many times Pat.

Ha! Me too! I played for a team based at the Civil Service Sports ground just across the road for about five years (I think it's owned by a school now?)

The Civil Service just along from Dukes Meadows was a decent ground and often used for finals. I’ve watched a couple there but sadly never played myself