(Photo above featuring Bobby Seith, Sammy Kean and Lawrie Smith)
Lawrie Smith
Everyone at Dundee Football Club were saddened to learn of the recent passing of former club physio and trainer Lawrie Smith.
Smith was a key member of Bob Shankly’s backroom staff when Dundee were crowned champions of Scotland in 1962 and on the subsequent European Champions Cup run to the semi-final the following year.
Smith joined the Dens Park club in 1959 after he left his job at Arbroath Infirmary and was present throughout the golden era of the club, working with such Dundee legends as Alan Gilzean, Ian Ure, Bobby Cox & Co.
Gilzean was one of a number of players who spoke highly of Smith’s talents and recalled how he helped Gillie recover from injury early in 1962 to be back playing for the crucial title run-in, in March.
Smith would often assist first team coach Sammy Kean with training and on occasion, he would take charge of the reserves when his first team duties permitted.
On the 50th anniversary of Dundee FC winning the Scottish League Division One title in 2012, Lawrie was presented with a Scottish League winners medal at a special celebration dinner at the Caird Hall. The Scottish Football League agreed to give medals to the championship winning season fringe players Bobby Waddell, Craig Brown, Alec Stuart and George McGeachie as well as physio Lawrie Smith who stated he was “pleased as punch to be recognized after all these years.”
On the 55th anniversary of Dundee’s title win, Lawrie and the surviving members of the team met up for a ‘Night of Champions Q&A’ at the Whitehall Theatre and Smith proved what a great raconteur he was, sharing some great stories and memories from the Dark Blues’ golden era.
One such story he told was about the ‘Battle of Cologne’ European Cup tie in September 1962 when Cologne appeared to deliberately set out to injure Dundee goalkeeper Bert Slater in retribution for what they felt was a deliberate foul on their keeper in the first leg at Dens. Lawrie told how the German doctor was determined to get to Slater into an ambulance and away to hospital but was forced by Dundee manager Bob Shankly to do the stitches there and then, rather than have his keeper whisked away into the night – a move that probably saved the tie for The Dee as Slater would return in goal in the second half, after a spell on the wing.
Another story Lawrie told was about the trip to New York for the International Soccer Tourney in the summer of 1962 and how after the first game against West German side Reutlingen he had to accompany 38-year-old Gordon Smith to the hospital after Smith had lost 16lbs during the match at Randal’s Island and had become dehydrated in the 99°F heat.
Following that trip to the States, Lawrie accompanied the Dark Blues on all their European Cup away ties in Cologne, Sporting Lisbon, Anderlecht and AC Milan, as well as the rip to Zaragoza in the Cup Winners Cup in 1964 and was very popular with all the staff at Dens Park.
In 1965, Lawrie decided to leave Dundee and football, and take a job as a Sales Rep with a firm of Medical Suppliers. However, he later accepted an offer to come back into football with Clyde, and he was very much part of the backroom staff during their successful 1966/67
season, where The Bully Wee finished third in Scotland, reached the semi-finals of the Scottish Cup, and qualified for European football.
Lawrie stayed with Clyde until early December 1967, when he took the decision to move across to Ibrox, following future Dundee manager Davie White’s identical journey a couple of months prior.
He remained with Rangers for around three years, until leaving Ibrox in the Summer of 1970, whereupon he re-joined Clyde. Lawrie stayed with Clyde until the early part of 1973, when he left Shawfield to concentrate on building his own physiotherapy practice. That business was put on hold in August 1977, when he was persuaded to return to football with Motherwell, and he remained with the Fir Park team until May 1979.
Lawrie was always a welcome visitor back to the club and the thoughts of everyone at Dundee Football Club are with Lawrie’s friends and family at this sad time.
