Row erupts over Jim Baxter's '67 Wembley Scotland shirt
- Published
Jim Baxter at Wembley after the historic 3-2 win against England in 1967
A row has broken out over a football shirt from one of the most famous matches in Scottish history.
Two sides claim to own the jersey Jim Baxter wore during Scotland's stunning victory over England at Wembley on 15 April 1967.
One of them was handed by Baxter to football pundit Chick Young for a charity auction in 1991.
The other, said to have come from England player Alan Ball, is due to be auctioned off on Friday.
McTear's auction house says the provenance of its shirt is "cast iron".
The item is the highlight of its Heritage: Important Sporting Medals and Shirts auction on 3 February in Glasgow.
The Baxter No6 strip up for auction on Friday
The catalogue, external lists it as "the most important Scotland shirt to have come to auction, worn by Baxter in one of our nation's most celebrated games, when he set himself apart, taking on the world champions and emerging victorious. This is a unique piece of our country's heritage and one of immense significance."
The shirt, which has been on display at Ibrox stadium for 10 years, comes with a copy of the loan agreement and a match programme and is expected to fetch up to £60,000.
But hours before the hammer is due to come down, Falkirk car dealer owners Andrew Dickson and David Wishart came forward, claiming they have the jersey Jim Baxter wore in the match.
David and Andrew said the cuffs on their jersey match those in photographs of the match
The pair said their fathers bought it at an auction in Glasgow in 1991. Baxter, who died in 2001, attended the auction where former Rangers owner David Murray even bid on the jersey.
They have pictures of them posing with the framed jersey as boys with Baxter himself and say he kept in touch with their fathers over the years. Jim Baxter would come to events and pose with the shirt.
They are convinced the jersey is authentic and have urged the auctioneer to halt the sale.
Andrew Dickson, left, and David Wishart with the jersey their fathers bought
Andrew Dickson and David Wishart with Jim Baxter and the shirt
Mr Wishart said: "Jim Baxter himself said that was the jersey from that game. In the years that followed he posed with it with us and over the years openly said that was the jersey. I don't know how much more evidence you could possibly get than from the man himself.
"The images from a match in 1967 are different to now. But there is nothing to show that Jim Baxter swapped a jersey with Alan Ball. There is no way of verifying that. McTear's believe their provenance is cast iron and we disagree with that fundamentally."
Mr Dickson added: "When you look at pictures on the day of the game, the cuff length is long. The auction shirt has shorter cuffs - it's a different style. The label inside is similar to ones from later shirts. There are a few things we can see from the untrained eye when you compare the jersey to footage from the day."
Their shirt came from football pundit Chick Young.
He told BBC Scotland: "I can tell you exactly what happened. It was back in 1991. I was chairman of Jim Baxter's testimonial committee. We decided to auction a couple of his possessions.
"He had two Scotland caps left. I said no, you're not selling them. He had two sons and those were for the boys. So I said we can sell the iconic Scotland strip which is arguably one of the most famous games that Scotland ever played.
"He guaranteed this was the strip he wore. It was an iconic piece of Scottish history."
Chick Young has no doubt the jersey sold in Glasgow in 1991 was "the real deal"
Mr Young said he had no doubt this was the jersey.
"Jim Baxter told me so, I believe him," he said.
At the 1991 dinner auction, the jersey fetched £17,500 which coincidentally was the exact transfer fee that Raith Rovers received for Jim Baxter from Rangers in 1960.
"Any suggestions about other strips - he might have changed strips, there might be two tops, that didn't happen back then," said Mr Young.
The famous No 6 jersey is being sold as the one worn at Wembley in 1967
The auction jersey is being sold by Mark Deighan on behalf of his father Jimmy McGarrity.
Mr McGarrity was given the shirt by his friend, the former Chelsea player Alan Hudson, who in turn got it from the late England star and player in the Wembley match, Alan Ball.
Mr McGarrity said: "The jersey has been in our family for over 40 years. Unfortunately, my dad has not been well for some time and we decided that the time was right to sell the jersey to help him to do some of the things and see some of the places he has talked about over the years."
McTear's is confident of the lot's provenance, saying it was aware of the other claim.
A spokesman said: "The authenticity of the jersey that we are offering at auction is steadfast. The cast iron provenance traces back to the player, who exchanged his jersey with Alan Ball at the end of the match. The shirt then came to the father of the vendor through Alan Hudson, with Ball being present.
"Hudson has been contacted to confirm this chain.
"Jim Baxter was renowned for gifting Scotland jerseys to friends, acquaintances and functions, and that appears to be the case for the jersey bought at the benefit dinner by the other parties. It is important to note, however, that Baxter did not leave Wembley in 1967 with the jersey, having swapped it with Alan Ball post match."
He said the auction would go ahead on Friday at 12:00.
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- Published17 March 2013
