Deer Orchard will hold a minute’s silence on Sunday ahead of their league cup semi-final against Moresby Rangers at Wakefield Road.
It will be a tribute to one of the club’s stalwarts Fred Dandy who died on Thursday morning.
Fred had followed a line of dedicated club officials who have been prominent since Deer Orchard was first formed in 1962 by a group of Cockermouth Grammar School pupils.
Originally members of the Derwent Valley Junior League and then Workington and District Sunday League, their remarkable 64 years unbroken history owes much to men like Fred who have made it among the oldest Sunday teams in the country.
Jimmy Robinson, Stan Bewley and Fred Dandy spent years of devoted service to the club and that’s been carried on by Gary Horsley, who himself has clocked up 40 years service to the club, player and official.
Gary, now the club secretary, said: “Fred was a true gentleman and was Orchard through and through. He was in his 80s and it’s a few years since he finished in an official capacity.
“But he was always at the games and helped me out on many occasions down at the ground. I didn’t have to ask him he was always there.
“He was also a massive Newcastle United fan and really enjoyed the football craic in the old Cons Club with some of the Orchard lads on Friday and Saturday nights.”
Fred was also a member of the Cumberland FA for a number of years and held in high regard.
He leaves a wife Margaret and two sons Alan and Jeff, as well as five grandchildren.
