Newcastle
Reivers
The Official Gridball Site
The Reivers' story
Originally formed in 1948 as the Newcstle Tynesiders, they had taken the name Reivers by the time they made their senior debut in 1952, a Reiver being a type of middle ages raider who operated along the English, Scottish border. In their adopted club colours of Azure, Brown and White they made a solid impact from the word go, reaching the quarter finals in each of their first three seasons. They lost on their first two visits to the last eight but stunned the more favoured teams when winning through the quarter final, and their semi final to play in Supergrid 1954.
The Reivers were completely unfancied against Cheshire in the '54 Final but goals in the second and third quarters from Joan Lenore and Joyce Robertson caused an upset and delivered the title to the North East of England.
Instead of this being the start of a golden age for the Geordies, it marked a slump, being knocked out in the first round in their title defence in 1955 and failing to qualify at all in 1956. A key cause of the downturn in form was the loss of their talismanic goal scorer, Robertson when she was diagnosed with Polio in 1955 and was forced to retire. Many of their other star players such as Constance Kidd, Joan Lenore and Mila Read also departed for pastures new as the team broke up.
Newcastle were placed into the newly created Second Division in 1959, winning promotion back to the elite at the first attempt.
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Newcastle Reivers
Record Appearances:
Aileen Hatch 75 + 16 {1953-1961}
Record Scorer:
Joyce Robertson 64 {1952-1955}
Record Victory
Elite 5-0 vs Leeds Owls 1952 & Plymouth Pilgrims 1954
All levels 11-0 vs Guadalajara Division Two 1959
Record Defeat
0-12 vs Amsterdam Goddesses 17th March 1956
Most Goals in a Game
Joyce Robertson, 3 on three occasions
{Division Two} Nancy Strausler {6} 9-2 vs Seattle 1959
Most Goals in a Season
Joyce Robertson 25 {1954}
Formed 1948
Colours: Azure, Brown and White
Feeder Teams: Morpeth Spartans, Carlisle Vixens, Kristiansand Start, Brann Shieldmaidens, Tønsberg Whalers
WORLD CHAMPIONS 1954
Season History
1951 Junior Championship
1952 Quarter Finalists
1953 Quarter Finalists
1954 WORLD CHAMPIONS
1955 First Round
1956 Failed To Qualify
1957 First Round
1958 Failed To Qualify
1959 Second Tier - Promoted
1960 Elite Repechage - Cup Preliminary Round
1961 Elite
Players of the Year
None
Young Players of the Year
None
Team of the Season
Joyce Robertson - 1954
Golden Bat
Joyce Robertson - {29} - 1954
Silver Bat
None
Bronze Bat
None
Nations Cup Champions
None
Internationals
Lola Vasconcelos {Mexico} 1957
Carry Frijda {Netherlands} 1961
Newcastle Team
0-0 vs Wandsworth
29th July 1961
Greta Dixon
Coach
Age 33
Born Edinburgh, Scotland {21/11/1927}
Rated 1 {Experienced}
Took over during 1959 season
Carry Frijda
Netminder
Age 25
Born Amsterdam, Netherlands {12/07/1936
Rated 3 {Good}
Joined from Amsterdam this season
Jean Ireland
Left Guard
Age 19
Born Lower Clapton {22/11/1941
Rated 5 {Excellent}
Joined from Manchester this season
Lola Vasconcelos
Right Guard
Age 35
Born Veracruz, Mexico {15/01/1926}
Rated 4 {Very Good}
Joined in 1957 from Veracruz
Veda Evans
Sweeper
Age 28
Born Blackley, Lancashire {29/03/1933}
Rated 6 {World Class}
Won a Bronze with Glasgow in 1958
Mila Read
Centre
Age 27
Born Forest Gate, London {05/04/1934}
Rated 4 {Very Good}
Part of the 1954 Title winning team
Team Rating: Very Good
1961 WORLD RANKING: 17
Highest {12} 1956
Janie Anderson
Attacker
Age 24
Born Sunderland {19/10/1936}
Rated 5 {Excellent}
Joined in 1957 from arch rivals, Sunderland
Eleanor Greenwich
Shooter
Age 21
Born Brooklyn, New York, USA {14/12/1939}
Rated 4 {Very Good}
Helped Newark to Elite in 1958
Constance Kidd
World Champion 1954
Date and place of Birth: 13th June 1935: Newcastle, England
Age: 26
Position: Left Guard
Debut: 7th March 1953 at Lindsay Poachers {lost 0-3}
Appearances: 51 {1953-1958}
Honours: 1954 World Champion
1954 Young Gridballer of the Year
1957 Nations Champion {England}
1958 & 1960 Supergrid Runner Up {with Liverpool}
Career {Liverpool 1958-1961: 62 Appearances, 1 Goal}
{England 1957: 5 appearances}
Although born in Newcastle, Constance Kidd grew up in Australia, having
been evacuated there in 1940 from Hong Kong where her father had been
stationed as a police officer since 1937. She excelled at sport growing up,
playing Hockey, Tennis and Netball at school before being her family
returned to England in 1951. Kidd struggled with the change of climate
and attitude towards women's sport, which she felt much more limited
than back in Australia. However, she attended the first trials for the Reivers
and was instantly snapped up as a tough blocking antipodean defender.
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Kidd made her debut in Newcastle's first Elite game in 1953 and went on to be named Young Player of the Year when the Reivers became surprise Champions in 1954. However, when the team failed to qualify for the Elite Championship in 1956, the big guns came calling and Kidd travelled from the east coast to west coast, signing for Liverpool. Her first season there ended in the Quarter Finals but she faired better in the new Nations cup. Although most in Gridball thought Kidd to be Australian, her English birth qualified her to wear the white shirt that made history as the winners of the First tournament in 1957.
Alas for Kidd, the presence of Sabrina Kaye of Cheshire would hinder any further National team representation and in 1958 her attentions focussed back towards Supergrid. With Liverpool she reached her second showpiece that season, even scoring her only career goal along the way. However, this time the game was to end in disappointment as the Liverbirds lost to a late Cheshire goal. Kidd missed most of the 1960 season through injury but recovered in time to feature in the closing stages of that season, again Helping Liverpool to The Supergrid. The game would again end in defeat but sadly, Kidd was already in hospital by the time the final hooter sounded, a completely accidental but horrible clash with Willesden's Elizabeth Meriwether resulted in a badly broken arm.
{2024 postscript: {excludes post 1961 Gridball spoilers} In 1971 Kidd was offered a small uncredited role in the James Bond film, Emeralds are Eternal. She emigrated back to Australia in the 1980s, becoming a local councillor in a Melbourne suburb before working as a pundit on Gridball on Australian TV in the 2000s.
Ann Lord
World Champion 1954
Date and place of Birth: 28th July 1935: Newcastle, England
Age: 24
Position: Netminder
Debut: 7th March 1953 at Lindsay Poachers {lost 0-3}
Appearances: 61 {1953-1958}
Lord joined Newcastle straight from school in 1950, making her debut in goal for the Reivers on the opening day of the 1953 season where she was beaten three times in a 0-3 defeat. Despite a shaky start for the teenager, her performances helped the Reivers reach the quarter finals.
The following year she played in all but three of the Reivers title winning campaign, keeping a clean sheet in the Supergrid victory over Cheshire.
Lord matured into a World Class goalie in the years that followed but watched as many of her title winning team mates moved on to other teams. Behind a weaker team she was unable to prevent the Reivers failing to qualify in two of the next four years before being lured away to Plymouth for the 1959 season.