Chris Candlish set for Raith Rovers' Hall of Fame

He will he inducted at the show on Monday, November 12 at the Adam Smith Theatre, Kirkcaldy, in front of a full house.

Candlish is the second inductee to be announced for this year’s event – Ian Porterfield will also be honoured – and the organisers still have several more Raith legends to unveil.

The annual Hall of Fame has become one of the biggest shows of its kind and has not only inducted a host of stalwarts, but also brought some of the biggest names in the sport to town.

The organisers are already speaking to a number of VIPs for the 2018 gala night –and hope to announce them in the coming weeks.

They are delighted to unveil Candlish as an inductee.

John Greer, one of the team behind the show, said: This is an induction that is well merited – to supporters of that era, Chris Candlish was a classy player.’’

Born in Dunfermline, he started his football life playing for Culross Boys Club.

At the age of 14 he had trials for Newcastle, Aston Villa, Rangers and West Brom.

His height seemed to put teams off, so eventually he signed for Lochore Welfare.

Johnny Urquhart, Rovers’ legend and fellow Hall of Fame inductee, saw him play in a game, and recommended him to Andy Matthew, who was manager at Stark’s Park.

He went on to make 313 appearances for the club, scoring 17 goals over a 13-year period from 1975 until 1988.

He was granted a testimonial in 1987, which was celebrated with a match against Dunfermline Athletic, and a sportsman’s dinner.

Signed as a midfield player, he became a cultured left-back and he played his part in the Rovers’ side that won promotion under Willie McLean in season 1977-78 when they missed out on the Scottish Second Division title to Clyde on goal difference.

He was then part of the Gordon Wallace side that almost went a full calendar year without losing a single league game in 1980.

Chris was also selected for the Scottish semi-professional team. An ankle injury curtailed his career when a big money move beckoned with Dundee United being one of his suitors.