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SFHG-John Harley Bust Appeal

SFHG-John Harley Bust Appeal is crowdfunding

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raised of £35,000 target by 3 supporters

Iʼm raising £35,000 to the erection of a bust or memorial in Cathcart, Glasgow, the birth-place of the Scottish-Uruguayan football pioneer, John "El Yoni" Harley.

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Hace exactamente cien años, en 1924, Uruguay, al ganar la medalla de Oro en los Juegos Olímpicos de París, le mostró al mundo la calidad, el estilo y la organización de su fútbol. Y lo volvería a hacer repitiendo la victoria de 1928 en Amsterdam, en el primer Mundial de 1930 y en el siguiente en el que pudo participar, en Río de Janeiro en 1950.

Las victorias se consiguieron con jugadores autóctonos, cuya calidad era digna de admirar. Pero el estilo y la organización de su juego les fueron aportados por un hombre que se convertiría en uruguayo, formando una familia cuyos descendientes aún viven en Montevideo. Pero que nació y creció escocés.

Su nombre era John Harley. En Cathcart, en Renfrewshire de Glasgow, en los suburbios del sur, donde creció y fue a la escuela, era conocido como Jock. Cuando era joven, se formó como trabajador en el ferrocarril, se convirtió en Johnny y en Uruguay es un ícono deportivo, “El Yoni”, uno de quizás los doce mejores futbolistas que el mundo ha visto.

Sabíamos por dedicados historiadores del fútbol del país al que adoptó y que lo adoptó, que a su llegada en 1909 había iniciado, como centre-half “escocés”, el proceso de adaptar el estilo escocés de juego de pases a las condiciones locales y, a su vez, transmitir sus conocimientos y esas adaptaciones a los jugadores locales. Sabemos que fue el responsable desde el terreno de juego en gran parte por el poderoso papel que su club, el Central Uruguay Railway Cricket Club que se convirtió en Club Atlético Peñarol, jugó y aún juega en el fútbol uruguayo y sudamericano. Sabemos que varios de los jugadores internacionales de 1924 llegaron al equipo de Peñarol gracias a su identificación y estímulo, incluyendo a Isabelino Gradin, sin importar su origen. Creemos que esto se debe en parte al ejemplo que puso Escocia al tener en 1881 a Andrew Watson, el primer jugador negro en jugar un partido internacional, incluso para capitanear a su país.

Pero sabíamos muy poco sobre los primeros años de vida de John Harley. Sin embargo, a través del trabajo de los historiadores del fútbol escocés, en particular del Scots Football Historians Group y Andy Mitchell, ahora conocemos exactamente dónde nació, de hecho, la pobreza de ese nacimiento, dónde vivió, las dificultades de ello, y dónde y con quién fue a la escuela. Incluso hemos podido encontrar fotografías del joven Jock en su época escolar, con las fotografías enviadas a la familia Harley en Montevideo como recuerdos del Viejo País.

Pero ahora viene el siguiente paso. El hombre que llevó el fútbol a Río de Janeiro en Brasil fue un escocés también. Su nombre era Tommy Donohoe y afuera de la fábrica donde trabajaba en ese tiempo y, de hecho, para el resto de su vida, porque él también se convirtió en sudamericano, hay una estatua dorada de un metro de altura. Además, en Busby, su ciudad natal en Escocia, un busto ha sido colocado para honrar su memoria.

Busby está a sólo seis kilómetros de Cathcart, donde nació y vivió El Yoni y allí se han identificado sitios similares para un monumento similar por y para él. Se recaudó dinero para Tommy Donohoe, una buena cantidad de dinero por un buen busto. Dinero puede recaudarse para John Harley, cuanto más mejor y más permanente será el reconocimiento y para eso es que este se ha creado este fondo de cooperación conjunta entre Uruguay y Escocia.

Está abierto a todos para contribuir, ya seas hincha de Peñarol, hincha del fútbol uruguayo, aficionado a la historia uruguaya o escocesa, al fútbol o simplemente seas un amante del deporte.

¡Aporta lo que puedas!

Muchas gracias

______________________________________________________________________________

Exactly one hundred years ago this year, in 1924, Uruguay, in winning the Gold medal at the first time of trying at the Paris Olympics, showed the World the quality, the style and the organisation of its football. And it would do it again by repeating the win in 1928 in Amsterdam, at the first ever World Cup in 1930 and the next one, in which it was able to take part, in Rio de Janeiro in 1950.

The wins were achieved with native-born players, whose quality was there to be admired. But the style and organisation of their game was brought to them by a man, who would become Uruguayan himself, raising a family the descendents of which still live in Montevideo. But he was born and raised a Scot.

His name was John Harley. In Cathcart in Glasgow’s Renfrewshire, southern suburbs where he grew up and went to school he was known as Jock. As a young man, as he trained to be a railway fitter, he became Johnny and in Uruguay he is the sporting icon, “El Yoni”, one of perhaps the top dozen football-men the World has seen.

We knew from dedicated football historians in the country he adopted and which adopted him that on his arrival in 1909 he had begun, as a “Scottish” centre-half, the process of adapting the Scots style of passing game to local conditions and in turn passing on his knowledge and those adaptions to local players. We know that he was responsible from the field-of-play in large part for the powerful role his club, the Central Uruguayan Railway Cricket Club that became Club Atletico Penarol, began to assume and still plays in Uruguayan and South American football. We know that several of the international players from 1924 came into the Penarol team through his identification and encouragement, including Isabelino Gradin, so no matter their origin. We think that is in part due to the example Scotland set in having in 1881 the first Black player, Andrew Watson, ever to play the international game, indeed to captain his country.

But we knew very little about John Harley’s early life. However, through the work of Scottish football historians, notably the Scots Football Historians Group and Andy Mitchell, we now know precisely where he was born, indeed the poverty of that birth, where he lived, the difficulties of that, and where and with whom he went to school. We have even been able to find pictures of the young Jock in his school-days, with the photographs sent to the Harley family in Montevideo as memories of the Old Country.

But now comes the next step. The man who took football to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil was a Scot too. His name was Tommy Donohoe and outside the factory where he worked at that time and, indeed, for the rest of his life, for he too became a South American, is a ten metre high, golden statue. Moreover, in Busby, where he was born in Scotland, a bust has been placed to honour his memory.

Busby is just six kilometres from Cathcart where El Yoni was born and lived and there similar sites have now been identified for a similar memorial for and to him. Money was raised for Tommy Donohoe, a good deal of money for a fine bust. Money can be raised for John Harley, the more the better and more permanent the recognition and that is what this fund, as a joint Uruguayan and Scottish cooperation, has been set up to do.

It is open to all to contribute, whether you are a Penarol fan, a Uruguayan football fan, an aficionado of Uruguayan or Scottish history, football or otherwise, or simply love the game.

Give what you can!

Many thanks

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SFHG-John Harley Bust Appeal

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    6 months ago

    SFHG-John Harley Bust Appeal started crowdfunding

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    Page last updated on: 6/4/2024 07.14

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    3

    • Anonymous

      Anonymous

      Jun 4, 2024

    • Anonymous

      Anonymous

      Apr 29, 2024

      £20.00

    • Andy Mitchell

      Andy Mitchell

      Apr 28, 2024

      Let's do this!

      £25.00

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    SFHG-John Harley Bust Appeal

    SFHG-John Harley Bust Appeal

    Scotland

    This appeal is launched by the Scots Football Historians' Group, of which I am a founder member and whose role is to promote, mark and preserve Scotland's pivotal place in our global game. It is a joint-venture with our Uruguayan and worldwide football colleagues and friends.

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