What a colossal signing he was…kept us in Division One for several seasons…first season…43 goals, 37 in the top division. A thoroughly nice man who deserved more than the game was able to provide at the time…
3 Likes
Too ‘young’ to remember him but my Dad is always remeniscing about him, mostly through comparing whatever big striker we have at the time, and none have come close apparently. I expect I’ll be the same about MLT in 30-40 years time.
As Sir Matt Busby said, and an old chant went “he’s the greatest centre forward that the world has ever seen”
His goal scoring record in what was a struggling team most of the time was phenomenal. Aided and abetted by some brilliant wing play by Paine and Sydenham. Not the biggest of blokes, but wasn’t afraid to mix it with some pretty fearsome centre halfs when the game was way more physical and played on cabbage patch standard of pitches.
A crying shame when you see how his life after football panned out, when you look at mediocre players minted for life in the game nowadays.
Thanks for the great memories Big Ron.
2 Likes
3 Likes
2 Likes
Loved watching Ron. Like you say Eric great crosses and he seemed to hang in the air forever
Yeah it does stick in the craw a bit when you compare the talent/rewards quotient between Ron and James Milner.
I’d dearly love to find more Saints game footage from “Match of the Day” and ITV’s “The Big Match” but apart from the ManUntd 4 - 1 game there’s cruelly very little of the great man in action. If he had been a Man U player or another big club someone would have poured through the archives to post whatever they could find on the web.
1 Like
I first started going to games during the Ron Davies era … my dad was a ST holder at the Dell and knew the guy on the turnstile who’d let him carry me through, on the one ticket.
We weren’t the most skillful team in those days (tho’ we had our moments) but we had a reputation for being hard as nails, with the likes of John McGrath and Dennis Hollywood, taking no prisoners.
Rons job was simple … score goals. If he got his head to a cross into the box, it was unstoppable. If the goalkeeper got there first and caught it, no problem, he’d just shoulder barge ‘keeper with ball’ into the back of the net to score … all legit, it was a mans game back then !!
… god, I feel ancient
1 Like
I work with a bloke that claims to have played with him at the LA Aztecs.
Could never find the bloke I work with in their team rosters though 
I never saw Ron play but I did have the bubble gum card - and he was in the sticker album.
( my first ever copy of Shoot! had Ballie as the poster in his Everton kit)
My all time hero and total legend. It may be an urban myth but apparently he used to jump wearing diving boots in training to get that bit of extra height. Not sure about that but he certainly had a spring and his timing was perfect. Best header of the ball I have ever seen and not too shabby on the ground. Quite possibly the best old fashioned centre forward ever whilst he was with us.