The Sir William Collins Secondary School football squad, pictured in 1987 during their remarkable seasons of success. Back row, from left: Mr Bailey, Mark Smith, Jimmy Demetriou, Tony White, Anthony Bennett, Tony Davies, Jason Phillips, Kevin Iyayi and Mr Walsh. Front row, from left: Danny Cruise, John Gardiner, Scott Cole, Darren Copson, Michael Kouloumanou, Stephen Webb, Kevin Nash and Anthony Portelli. Missing from the squad picture are David Avery and Jason Hockley

A SCRAPBOOK full of local newspaper cuttings, matchday programmes and photographs evoked memories of a sporting triumph fit for the ages.

Meeting up for the first time since they last shared a pitch together back in 1987, former schoolmates from across Camden and Islington were instantly transported back to what would prove to be the biggest achievement of their footballing careers.

“Remember that overhead kick that I scored in the quarter-final?” said one player. “Almost all of our games were away, they even had the home advantage in the final,” recalled another.

Every full-blooded tackle, every pinpoint pass, every goal crucial as a squad from a secondary school in Somers Town came together to conquer the country.

Players from Sir William Collins School, which would later be renamed South Camden Community School, and is now Regent High School, met up to mark the 40th anniversary of the start of a historic run that ended with the talented squad sharing the English Schools’ Football Association Nabisco Group Under-16s Individual Schools’ Trophy.

Their cup journey saw them win away to Maidstone, Fareham and Gillingham in the opening rounds, before beating Boreham Wood in the quarter-finals in what would be their only home match in the entire competition. They then won at Luton in the semis, setting up a national final against Leicestershire-based Guthlaxton College.

The final was held at Wigston Fields, a short trip from Guthlaxton College. But despite the odds being heavily stacked against them, it was Sir William Collins who took the lead.

A well-worked corner routine between Stephen Webb and Darren Copson resulted in the latter having a rasping shot at goal which was palmed away by the Guthlaxton goalkeeper – and Tony Davies pounced to tap home the rebound.

Guthlaxton levelled, but flying winger Copson then thought that he’d won it for the Londoners when he picked himself up after being fouled just outside the box, and curled home a stunning effort from the resulting free-kick.

Most of the Sir William Collins School squad came together recently at St Pancras Community Centre in Camden Town, along with Pat Walsh and his wife Janet who estimated that she ‘must have washed more than 29,000 kits’

But a controversial penalty for handball in the final minutes of the match gifted Guthlaxton an equaliser and the game finished 2-2 – meaning the silverware was shared, with both schools holding the trophy for six months each.

There was still a hint of disappointment that the penalty was awarded when the majority of the squad came together recently at the St Pancras Community Centre in Camden Town, but the overriding emotion was one of great pride.

There was some confusion surrounding whether the players had gone a year early with their 40th anniversary celebrations, having captured their national title in 1987. But if there was one man who could clear up such a matter, it was team manager Pat Walsh, who was a PE teacher at Sir William Collins for 30 years.

Reliving the arduous effort it took to get their hands on the prestigious accolade, “Sir Walsh”, as all his former players still called him, explained: “It took two years to win the trophy. We had to start off by winning the London County in 1986, and then, as champions of London, the following year we qualified to represent London at the Nationals against teams from the whole of England and Wales.

“They estimated that at the start there were 2,000 schools from the various counties across England and Wales who took part in the competition, and it finished off with 50 schools competing in the Nationals.”

Having grown up in Somers Town, leading a team of pupils from his patch to national glory came with unfathomable pride for Pat.

The 83-year-old ran the school teams with the help of his wife Janet, who estimated that she “must have washed more than 29,000 kits” over the years.

Pat added: “It was such an honour to manage this team. I knew the majority of the boys from Year 7, and every year I thought if we could just add one or two more players it would be a special team.

“And they were such a special team. They’d never drop their heads – if things were going badly, or we conceded, they would just go up the other end of the pitch and score another two or three. They never knew when they were beaten.

Team manager Pat Walsh was a PE teacher at Sir William Collins for 30 years

“Winning the National title was something I could never have dreamed of, I just couldn’t have envisaged it. When they turned up as 11-year-olds, I knew they were good – but to reach those heights was unbelievable. I’m so proud of all of them.”

Even all these years later, vice-captain Scott Cole is still showcasing his leadership skills. The 55-year-old, who lives in Tufnell Park, took charge of organising the reunion.

A tough-tackling centre-back who could play out with the ball, Scott said: “It has taken the best part of 15 years to get everyone together again. I wanted to make sure we could get as many of the players here as possible, so it took some time. But it had to be done. Sir Walsh and all of the boys involved deserve recognition for what we all achieved.

“To this day, there isn’t another school in Camden that has won a national title like the one that we won. I’m told Holloway School also shared the title in the 1970s, but nobody in Camden has matched our success.

“It was the biggest prize that a school team could win, and for a group of boys from Somers Town to actually go and do it – it’s like underdogs winning the FA Cup.”

While Sir William Collins was in Camden, a handful of their players came from Islington, including right-back Danny Cruise. The 55-year-old, who could also play in midfield, recalled how he would jump on the 214 bus from Angel because he wanted to go to a school that had some football pedigree.

After finally seeing his old classmates again, the taxi driver said: “It was so nostalgic, it was like travelling back in time. It was so natural to be around all the boys again, even after all this time.

“What we all achieved together 40 years ago has never really been recognised – we were the champions of England! It was by far the biggest sporting achievement of my life.

“We didn’t just have a fantastic team, we had a fantastic squad, made up of excellent players – players that I’m so proud to call my mates today.”

Danny went on to coach, too, running a grassroots youth football club called Angel Islington in the Camden & Islington Youth League and the Regent’s Park Youth League.

Expressing how he carried Pat’s coaching style with him over the years, Danny said: “Sir Walsh instilled so many important attributes in all of us, including an unbelievable work ethic, camaraderie, discipline, teamwork, and an unshakable belief that we would always win.

“I adopted the same principles as a coach because of him, along with encouraging players to always give it their all and try their best. We were all so lucky to have such a fantastic coach and manager in Sir Walsh.”