The Brighton Tigers remembered
My city Brighton has always punched above its weight sporting-wise.
If your ask any Brightonian sports lover of a certain generation for its greatest side as likely as not they would not cite Brighton HAFC, who reached the Cup Final in 1983 (‘and Smith must score”), nor the Sussex CCC for winning everything going in the noughties, but rather our ice hockey team The Brighton Tigers.
As a nine year old, my uncle Morris (Lazar) took me to the greatest night in Brighton’s sporting history some 73 years ago (December 5th 1957) when in the no-longer SS Stadium the Tigers beat USSR (World and Olympic champions) 6-3 after going 3 down.
Uncle Morris had 2 seasons at the SS Stadium now the Conference Centre. He knew the Stadium owner Benny Lee well. Benny, the best dressed man in the South, would greet him and everybody else in the vestibule in his Mohair suit puffing a Havana
“How’s geschaft [Yiddish for business], Morris?”
Then from his vicuña overcoat with velvet trim collar he would produce a bag of sweets for me.
Uncle Morris was in the fight game but had a seaside flat in Hove. He was forever organising some event for the cricket team. He knew Ted Dexter and Alan Oakman well and was Chairman of Jim Parks’ benefit committee.
We were also greeted by another friend of Uncle Morris, Alan Weeks (PR Director of the Tigers), whose dad was Piermaster – Alan was a BBC commentator for 45 years on 30 sports for the BBC.
In those days, for the third round of the FA Cup, the BBC would broadcast three games. Alan Weeks – in his trademark sheepskin coat and round jolly face with bushy sideboards – would do the third one, usually up north at some non-league ground in the freezing cold.
The next week he would be commentating on the 4 man kayaks. What a man!
I was so fearful that the mighty Russians, who treated the game as no more than a warm up match, would blow the Tigers away.
Alan reminded us that Tigers only lost 2-1 to USSR in Paris in 1956. My worst fears seemed to take place when they ran up a 3 goal lead.
The Tigers came back!
“That’s why they are called Tigers!” screamed Uncle Morris who was that excited I feared for his ticker.
We scored 2 goals and the Reds got desperate and dirty with 2 in the sin bin.
The Tigers equalised.
With parity of numbers on the ice restored we feared a Red onslaught but incredibly the Tigers – with Flinn scoring twice – took the game to the World Champions.
Alan Weeks feared if he gave an interview at the end he would blub as there was not a dry eye in the house.
The Tigers played their last game in 1965 as Rank did not allow a rink in the new Conference Centre but no one there will ever forget the night a Brighton team beat the World Champs.
