IT'S the final whistle for the John Thomson football tournament with the organiser saying that Sunday's event was the last one.
The competition, in memory of the young Cardenden goalkeeper who died in an accident while playing for Celtic against Rangers at Ibrox Stadium in 1931, has been running since the early 1980s.
Alex Burns, the man who established the tournament with his wife Jessie, said: “We have had 41 years holding the competition and at its peak we had 18 teams entering.
"But over the years the number of teams taking part has fallen and although it has not been an easy decision to make we feel that perhaps the tournament has now run its course.”
The competition, held at Moorside Park, the home of East of Scotland Premier Division side, Dundonald Bluebell, saw Bowhill Rovers win the trophy played for by primary school aged children.
Special guest, Lloyd Fallon, representing Celtic FC, presented the trophy to the victorious team.
Mr Fallon, the grandson of Celtic FC ambassador and former goalkeeper John Fallon, also laid wreaths at John Thomson’s grave in Bowhill Cemetery, and at the Bowhill Colliery Disaster Memorial, an event which happened only a few weeks after the death of the Celtic goalkeeper in September 1931.
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