Sir, – How ironic that the same issue of The Irish Times (December 14th) in which Frank McNally appropriately remembers the 50th anniversary of the death of the great Billy Morton also records the death of the great New Zealand middle-distance runner Peter Snell.
Peter was one of the many greats to visit Morton Stadium in the 1950s, when Billy would appeal to the packed open stand through his loudhailer, “Would yis kindly infiltrate up to the back please and make a bit more room?”
It sent me back to the autograph-book of my teenage years. Covered in brown paper and still bearing the pricemark of three and ninepence, it is a treasury of golden memories. There they all are. Ron Delaney, Herb Elliott, Murray Halberg, Hal Connolly, Gordon Pirie. Tennis greats Lew Hoad, Tony Trabert, Jaroslav Drobny, Rod Laver and my beloved Sandra Reynolds... (Oh, the pangs!).There too Cyril Cusack, Vic Oliver and Ruby Murray (more pangs!). And there on a page all to himself – the princely Peter Snell. Halcyon days for them – and for a lovelorn teenager . . . – Yours, etc,
JOHN QUINN,
Clarinbridge, Co Galway.