More than two decades after his Carlisle United miracle, Jimmy Glass got his boots back on – for a Sunday team in the city.
Glass, 49, made a guest appearance for Harraby Catholic Club FC in their clash with Lloyds.
The goalscoring goalkeeper played up front for Harraby in their 1-0 victory.
Although he couldn’t quite manage a repeat of his 1999 scoring feat for the Blues, Glass’s involvement delighted team-mates and opponents.
He was in Carlisle for the weekend having opened a bar at Brunton Park which has been renamed after him.
Word reached Harraby that the former professional was keen for a game whilst in the area – and they were only too happy to oblige.
“Colin Carter, who was at the game with him on Saturday, asked us a while ago if there was any chance we could get him signed on to make a cameo appearance,” said Harraby Catholic Club manager David Heap.
“I said I didn’t see why not. I didn’t want to put any of the lads’ noses out of joint who come every week, but they were all over the moon – they couldn’t believe we’d done it. They were chuffed to bits.”
Glass turned up on Sunday morning with his partner Natasha, and Harraby’s players had the surreal experience of getting changed alongside the man who scored one of the most famous goals in football history - the injury-time strike against Plymouth on May 8, 1999 that kept Carlisle in the Football League.
Heap added: “We’ve got a big centre-forward, Kieran Fitton, and in the changing room when I showed him the team sheet, I said, ‘You’re playing up front with Jimmy Glass’.
“He didn’t believe it. ‘The Jimmy Glass?’ He was like a little bairn on Christmas morning.
“Jimmy was great. He mucked in and he was just part of the team for the day. We always have a boogie box on before the game and he was dancing about with the rest of the lads.
“He even paid his fiver subs…”
Glass played the first half hour before coming back on for a spell in the second half in the game at the Sheepmount.
“He said, ‘Don’t put the ball any more than ten yards from me because I can’t run, but I’ve got a good touch…” added Heap.
“We all enjoyed it and he enjoyed it. He had a couple of chances, and there were a couple of times we could have put him in but the ball just didn’t go to his feet.
“We were all, ‘Give it to Jimmy’ – we were desperate for him to score, but it didn’t quite happen.
“But it was good crack, and when he wasn’t on the pitch he was encouraging us on the line.
“He had his big Bournemouth coat on and all the lads were wearing it. After the game lads were getting photos with him, asking him to sign things about the ‘Great Escape’.
“He’s such a nice fella. All the lads are friends with him on Instagram now. He couldn’t hang about afterwards unfortunately, as he had a six-hour drive back to Dorset, but we said, ‘If you’re ever passing again, you know where we are’.
“It was a really good morning, good crack.”
READ MORE: Jimmy Glass opens new bar named after him at Brunton Park
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