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1960 - 2010 : 50th anniversary season 

 

   

 

Lower maze football club are drawing up plans to mark their 50th anniversary this season.

Now known as Lower Maze , it all began in 1960 under the name of Lisburn Mills when a group of workers at Jordans Mill in Lisburn decided to form a team.

One of those first members and current president of the club fondly recalls those early days when they first got up and running.

" it was discussed in Jordans yard " says jim who was a van driver for the company. " Tommy Whiteside and Bertie Faulkner were the ones who started talking about it and they gathered enough names to get the team going . We had not even thought of a name at that stage . It was only after they went to the Lisburn league meeting they came up with the name Lisburn Mills."

The first gamewas one to forget, they crashed 8 - 0 to Wesley on Saturday August 20th 1960. " It was an awful start really , but it did not put us off " added jim . " we really enjoyed the banter nd the games .Tommy Whiteside was goalkeeper at the time. We used to hold the meetings in the Corner House Bar and dues were 2 shillings. We all got on well. I wish I was playing those games again.

" We had a good run . We never managed to win the first division but we won all the cups in the Lisburn league and won 2  Division 2 titles. We also won cups in the Mid Ulster league. We first played in a field on the Lurganure Road belonging to Bill Jordan, but eventually ended up playing at Barbour ."

1996 seen Lisburn Mills move to Lower Maze Social and Recreational Club at Bog Road which was to become their new home and with it a name change to Lower Maze " The Mills " FC which saddened Jim. " I wasnt to happy about that . Its a shame they are still not the Mills. However, I suppose they had to do it to move forward and secure better facilities."

An ardent Man Utd fan Jim has never lost his love of football and seen three generations of beckett's play for Club with son , Gordon and grandson Kaynor following in his footsteps.

While he may not have gone on to a higher level he recalls a few Mills players who did

" Dennis Freeburn went on to play for Portadown and George Crothers ended up winning an Irish Cup with Ards." added Jim . " The first team captain of Lisburn Mills was Bob Beck and his son Robert played for the club before having a long career with Glenavon."

  

Ulster Star newspaper : aug 27th 1960 , newly formed Lisburn Mills ( later to change name to Lower Maze ) captain Bob Beck receives a ball and new team outfit from Mr J.J. Jordan of Jordan Bros ( NI ) Ltd.

 

              

 

 Early newspaper cuttings from the Ulster Star in the 1960 season