The co-founder of the first Sunday Football League in St Albans has been left “blown away” by the reponse to his 80th birthday.
Brian (Bubs) Hubball celebrated the milestone last week and received over 100 cards from players and officials, both past and present.
Thousands of players, referees and club managers see Bubs every Sunday morning sitting on his stool taking pictures which appear in the sports pages of the Herts Advertiser and in the Herts Ad Sunday Football League annual handbook.
The idea to start a Sunday League in St Albans came in 1958 when Bubs left the army and became an apprentice compositor at the Herts Advertiser in their Dagnall Street offices.
There he met Roy Scott, a fellow apprentice compositor and keen football player, and together they formed the first league.
The pair continued to play football for the league and have worked together for over 55 years.
To ensure Bubs was deluged with birthday cards, Roy spread the word about the impending celebration.
Among the hundreds that arrived were 12 from players who were household names on the St Albans soccer scene the mid-Sixties.
“I was completely blown away with the cards which came from all over the country, from people I have played with or played against,” said Brian.
“The messages on the cards were lovely and I’ve spent hours reading them over and over again”.
Roy said: “The response was amazing, but then Bubs is amazing, a complete one-off, who can never be replaced”.
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