Seen in the photograph is Norton Resident, Len Nicholson – Linesman at the Middlesbrough v Carlisle Utd. Football Match on Boxing Day, 1986.
Photograph and details courtesy of Len Nicholson.
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
This Boxing Day fixture drew the biggest crowd at Ayersome Park that season.
Interesting to note that if the same situation had arisen now, Len would not have appeared in the picture, since linesmen (or assistant referees as they are now known) always operate on the right wings at League level whilst Len is clearly on the left wing.
Martin, In my day it depended on which diagonal the referee preferred to run, which determined where the linesmen operated, some even had the linesmen right wing first half and left wing second half or vice versa, which was easier on the pitch which had the approval of the groundsman, when the linesmen run the same half every time it wears the turf bare.
This is Gary Gill scoring the Boro’s winner against Harry Gregg’s Carlisle Utd.