Plaque unveiled in memory of the late great Billy Bremner — University of Stirling 5/9/24
Former Scotland international players Jimmy Bone and Eddie Gray, who also played with Bremner at Leeds United, supported the unveiling.
A blue plaque marking the childhood home of Scottish and
Leeds United legend Bill Bremner has been unveiled in Stirling.
The memorial was commissioned by the Scottish Football
Supporters Association (SFSA) in partnership with Leeds United Supporters
Group, Raploch Community Council and the University of Stirling.
It was officially unveiled by Eddie Gray, long time
team-mate and friend of Bremner, outside 35a Weir Street, the house in which
Bremner grew up on the Raploch estate.
Former Scotland international Jimmy Bone, another team mate
of Bremner's, was also in attendance.
Addressing the crowd of fans and community members who had
gathered to watch the occasion, Gray said: “It was real honour to be asked to
unveil the blue plaque showing the world where Billy came from. He was fiercely
proud of his roots, and it will be a fitting tribute to see a statue here in
the coming years.
“He really was an iconic player that everyone in Leeds and
Scotland loved.”
The plaque is part of a wider campaign to celebrate Bremner,
who is regarded as one of football’s greatest midfielders. He captained Leeds
United from 1965 through the most successful period in the club’s history,
winning two League Championship medals and an FA Cup-winners medal, and
represented Scotland 54 times, captaining the 1974 FIFA World Cup squad. His
significance to Leeds United is cemented by a statue outside the team’s Elland
Road stadium, while in Scotland no such tribute had previously existed.
Having unveiled the blue plague, the campaign group are pushing forward with plans to erect a statue of Billy in Raploch, commissioning artist Kenny Hunter to create the sculpture and launching a fundraising drive to support their efforts.
The campaign to honour the late footballer has been
supported by the University of Stirling’s Professor Richard Haynes and Dr Karen
Fraser. The pair previously created an online exhibition celebrating Bremner’s
life and career, called ‘Fae Raploch to Elland Road’.
Dr Fraser said: “I’m thrilled to see Billy Bremner
celebrated like this in the community in which he grew up. Billy was a truly
inspirational figure and left a lasting mark on Raploch.
"People who knew Billy as a friend before he became a
footballing legend told us of their pride and affection for him and remembered
not only his talent on the football field, but his humour and sense of fun, his
loyalty to his friends and the area he was from – something he never really
left behind, even when miles away playing and later managing.”
Dr Richard Haynes, Professor of Media Sport at the
University of Stirling, said: "The blue plaque in memory of Billy
Bremner's early life in Raploch, Stirling, is a further milestone in the
campaign to develop a permanent memorial to one of Scotland's greatest ever
football players.