It's off down Memory Lane again with reporter Bill Marshall, as we recall the T&A's sporting headlines from this week over the years...

50 YEARS AGO

IN A week when Harold Wilson's Labour Party defeated Ted Heath's Conservative Party 317-304 to win the 1966 General Election, and a Leeds pet shop owner felt very cheated when a man, claiming to be BBC TV producer David Rose, 'borrowed' a brown West African monkey (worth £25), supposedly for a children's TV programme (he also name-dropped Judith Chalmers), Bradford City named a new manager.

Halifax Town boss Willie Watson – one of those rare people to have played football (four times) and cricket (23) for England – was named as the 16th Bantams chief, having mulled over his decision for a few days.

The 46-year-old former Huddersfield Town and Sunderland player, who initially joined the Shaymen as player-manager, also played cricket for Yorkshire and Leicestershire.

Watson must have been hoping that Southport referee Ken Seddon was not in charge of any of City's away matches.

Just before he announced his decision to go to Valley Parade, City had a third away match that season called off by Seddon.

The postponement at Port Vale – the pitch was already covered in mud and water before a blizzard struck an hour before kick-off – was City's second call-off there in 1965-66, with the other coming at Stockport.

If you thought that summer rugby league was a relatively new concept, think again.

Bradford Northern were instrumental in trying to set up an experimental competition for that summer involving ten clubs from Yorkshire and Lancashire, but it was shelved.

However, there was a shift in the fixture list for 1966-67, with some of the January and February games being moved to August, which meant an earlier start to the season.

Odsal director Harry Womersley said: "We believe there is a lot to be gained by playing more in the better weather, and fewer when the weather is invariably bad."

Northern, perhaps with their minds on their forthcoming Challenge Cup tie at home to Wigan, lost 20-2 to Wakefield Trinity, only managing a Terry Clawson goal in front of 11,706 at Odsal.

Many matches were lost to deep snow but Avenue won 2-1 in gruelling conditions at Tranmere Rovers, Bobby Ham putting them ahead in the third minute and Kevin Hector getting the winner in the 75th – his 34th goal of the season.

Mick McMichael, The Outlaw (who beat Bradford's Dennis Mitchell) and the tag team of Masambula and Ezzard Hart were wrestling winners at St George's Hall.

25 YEARS AGO

FARSLEY Celtic and Guiseley suffered vastly differing emotions.

Guiseley drew 1-1 at home to Trowbridge Town in the second leg of their FA Vase semi-final to book themselves a place at Wembley 3-2 on aggregate.

The Lions were set to play three times a week for the rest of the season, what with their fixtures in the Weekly Wynner League and their internal knockout competitions, the President's Cup and the League Cup.

HFS Loans League First Division Farsley, meanwhile, were found guilty of eight misdemeanours by a West Riding County FA tribunal and were fined £500, plus £100 costs.

Joe Johnson had to play in the qualifying competition for the World Snooker Championship for the first time in five years.

After defeating 25-year-old Nigel Bond 10-8 at Preston's Guild Hall, having been hauled back from 4-0 to 4-4, world No 17 Johnson admitted: "I was under tremendous pressure. It was unbelievable. The worst I have experienced for years."

He booked a first-round match against another former world champion in Dennis Taylor at The Crucible on April 20, but Thai James Wattana could not make it a Bradford one-two as he lost 10-8 to Grimsby's unfancied Craig Edwards.

Keighley Cougars lost 54-16 at Runcorn Highfield – only their second win of the season – in what was described as the worst performance in recent memory, but Bradford & Bingley defeated Wharfedale 38-3 at Wagon Lane after a brilliant try by Chris Hemsley, and others by Jonathan Priestley, Richard Petyt, Peter Rutledge and the recalled Paul Stirling.

Bradford Salem put one hand on the Yorkshire Division Three title after a 15-15 draw at Wibsey, and Glynn Melville broke Otley's try-scoring record for a season with a hat-trick as they reached the quarter-finals of the Yorkshire Cup with a 43-6 home triumph over Pocklington.

That took him to 34 tries, beating his dad Harry's record of 32 set in 1958-59, but holders Bradford Coalite Dukes were thrashed 66-24 at newcomers Berwick Bandits in speedway's Gold Cup, new signing Simon Wigg only getting one point in five rides.

TEN YEARS AGO

BULLS coach Brian Noble praised both coaches and the groundstaff after their 23-12 fourth-round Powergen Challenge Cup victory over holders Hull FC in Odsal conditions that Noble described "as heavy as I have known it for several years".

Cougars lost 44-10 at Featherstone Rovers at the same stage, while Peter Hood was announced as the new Bulls chairman, confessing that it was very difficult for them to find a sugar daddy.

Meanwhile, Bradford had three players in the 22-strong England Academy squad – stand-off Mark Flanagan, prop or back row Joe Walsh and prop Sam Burgess.

Dean Windass, who had vowed not to speak to referees after incurring a five-match ban for verbally abusing Darren Drysdale in the Valley Parade car park, made his comeback in style with a hat-trick in a 4-2 home win over Scunthorpe.

However, the half-time introduction of Craig Bentham and Ben Muirhead was also key, with man of the match Windass giving his personal vote to Bentham.