This was two years after Cameroon almost beat England in the World Cup: “For a time,” Barclay wrote of that, “Cameroon treated England like a chainsaw would a balsa canoe.” Now he gave himself and his readers a masterclass on the development of African football.
The boy soon acquired, and never lost, both a Scottish accent and a love for Dundee FC (not to be confused with Dundee United) who, when he was 14, gave him the thrill of winning the Scottish League for the first and last time.
Five years later, Paddy finally won promotion and became the northern football correspondent, making him No 2 to David Lacey.
The first mention of Patrick Barclay in the digital files came in 1971 for a match report from Old Trafford, when Matt Busby had a brief reprise as manager and a forward line including Best, Charlton and Law lost 2-1 to Derby.
Lacey would be in place as a star turn for another 27 years, and the sports desk’s Monday conferences were relayed to Manchester on a primeval squawk box, making it difficult for him to make constructive interventions.
