Roy Brehaut juggles the ball as he leads out the North side for their historic first Priaulx League game at Northfield. Behind him came Drew Pollock, John Strobl, Nigel Pinsard, Colin McKane, Nigel Falla, Alan Ellis (ball in hand) and Dave Mitchell.(0636711)

NORTH had seen better days at first-team level, but there was celebration in the air as the chocolate-and-blues side strode out for their home game against St Martin’s on Thursday 14 September 1978.

The occasion? The first competitive Rothmans Priaulx game to be played at the new Northfield pitch.

The result went against the Northerners, but a new era had begun for one of the founding members of the Amalgamated which had shared use of the Track through much of the 20th century with Rangers, Belgraves and, until they folded in the 60s, Athletics.

North had played lower-level matches prior to that evening, but as Dave Finn recalled this week, members had taken some convincing to sell their share in the Amalgamated and move lock, stock and barrel to the Grand Fort Road.

‘It was a hot topic at the time,’ recalled Finn, who was still a player at the time while his late father, Harry, challenged for the club presidency. The current North president recalled his father pushing for the switch and being elected president in the same year as the club voted to ‘go up there’.