Picture this …

… a day in July 1978

Sunday the ninth to be exact, an afternoon when thousands rolled into Shielfield Park to celebrate the career of a Berwick and Scottish Speedway legend.

Willie Templeton was already 42 when he joined the Bandits, along with elder brother Doug, for the 1971 season. Both sons of Fife had enjoyed long and successful careers with Glasgow, Edinburgh and Coatbridge in Britain’s top league  but were persuaded to drop into the second tier at Shielfield and, along with Sheffield loanee Doug Wyer, form a three-pronged attack which saw the Bandits complete a unique season: unbeaten on home shale but unable to pick up a single point away from Tweedmouth.

After injury ended Dougie’s career in 1974 Willie kept on clocking up the points for a further four seasons, his uncompromising style upsetting many opponents and represented the Bandits in the BLRC at Wimbledon but as 1978 dawned Willie announced that his 25^th season would also be his last.

Berwick promoters Elizabeth and Kenny Taylor along with leading Scottish journalist and Berwick mike man Dick Barrie successfully lobbied the Speedway Control Board to allow Willie to stage a benefit testimonial, an international three-team tournament.

Joining Oor Willie in the in the Scottish Select team was his nephew Jim McMillan, brother Doug, Bert Harkins, Jimmy Beaton and Glasgow’s Benny Rourke. 1971 team-mate Wyer, then starring for Sheffield in the top league and a 1976 world finalist,  returned to Shielfield to lead an England Select which also included Graham Jones and Mike Hiftle along with Edinburgh’s Steve McDermott and Newcastle duo Phil Kynman and Brian Havelock.

Fittingly given Berwick’s link with the rickety isles, the third team was a New Zealand select with Roger Wright, Mike Fullerton, Dave Gifford and Wayne Brown joined by Mark Dekok and Paisley’s David Foot.

Bandits legend Maurie Robinson took to Shielfield Park for the first time since his abrupt and controversial pre-season 1971 departure while Freddie Greenwell, Bill Landells and Alf Wells turned back time and provided a link to Willie’s early days with Edinburgh, Glasgow and Cowdenbeath in the veterans races.

McMillan, who would become a Bandit six years later, got the afternoon off to a sensational start, leading home Wyer, McDermott and uncle Willie, in a new track record of 72.8 seconds.

Not surprisingly the big league duo of McMillan and Wyer were the stars of the show, the Scot finishing with a five ride maximum and Wyer unbeaten for the rest of the afternoon as England, 44, beat Scotland by six points with the Kiwis trailing on 26.

He showed glimpses of top form over the rest of the season, scoring a paid maximum against Peterborough in September – his 13^th in Black and Gold – and nudged his average over six points – not bad for a 48-year-old. And he went out on a high scoring 10+2 from five rides in a big win over Workington in his final league match, his final official race a 5-1 alongside Jones over Rob Maxfield and Arthur Price.

There just one more appearance in an Inter-League 3TT against Belle Vue and Sheffield before hanging up the famous monkey lips mask and rugby jersey for the last time. Willie was inducted into the Bandits’ Hall of Fame – alongside McMillan – in 2020, 12 years after his death, aged 77.

Pictures courtesy John Somerville Collection