New exhibition at Kirkcaldy Galleries celebrates legendary Fife Flyers team

It forms part of the endeavours to mark the 40th anniversary of the team’s British championship victory at Wembley - one of the greatest moments in their near 90-year history, and one which sparked a fanbase that spanned a generation.

The exhibition upstairs at the gallery runs until June 8 and is free to view. It is packed with memorabilia donated by players and fans that will spark recollections of great days from the past.

On display are old team jerseys and jackets, as well as the watches the players received instead of medals at that 1985 triumph at Wembley Arena in London. There are also archive videos which show clips from landmark games that season.

The exhibition has an informal opening on Saturday morning with Provost Jim Leishman attending, but fans are welcome to view it at any time - the team behind it also hope to set up some specific days to capture more fans’ memories.

The exhibition was curated by Alan Westwater, Flyers’ former programme editor, and lifelong fan. He is part of the team at the helm of the celebrations which also includes John Ross, Iain Anderson and Joe Rowbotham, former assistant team manager of the Wembley team, and Allan Crow, editor of the Fife Free Press.

Alan worked with Kirkcaldy Galleries staff to curate the items and also created information boards telling the story of a triumph that didn’t just re-ignite ice hockey in Fife, but became a focal point during the miners’ strike. The exhibition forms part of a weekend of events which include a reunion of the 1985 team at a special show at Rothes Halls, Glenrothes, on Friday, May 2 for a night of memories and stories from the dressing-room.

It is the single biggest hockey event staged in Fife for many years, and the last remaining tickets are available from the box office or here.

The players who triumphed at Wembley will be reunite don stage with Canadian stars Ron Plumb, Danny Brown and Dave Stoyanovich already in town ahead of the big show which promises to be packed with laughter and emotion.

All proceed from the events are going to CHAS - Flyers’ official charity partner - and Maggie’s Cancer Care Centre in Kirkcaldy.