by Jock Strapp » Mon Jun 24, 2019 3:33 pm
I was at Windmill Rd school. We played football in the fields that is now known as Longford Park. There was little grass left in the area where we had to play, all bare earth and mud. The ball was leather that sucked up water like a sponge so the it became very heavy. Danger of a broken ankle if anyone kicked it with enthusiasm . No one would ever try to head the ball as that could cause serious injury.
Summer and cricket was an entirely different matter, we all enjoyed that very much.
After air raids we were sent out to search those playing fields and school grounds looking for signs of unexploded bombs. We had to look for holes in the ground, different sizes for different bombs. If any holes were found they were ignored as bombs could go down 30ft an difficult to get out.
I Was once fishing at Wyken Slough with a friend late evening when several bombs fell into the lake and failed to explode. We reported this to the police but I know that nothing was done about it so those bombs must still be there deep in the mud.