Season 1970/71 began inauspiciously enough with one win, two draws and two defeats from Taverners’ first five games in Division 3 of the Gippeswyk League.

However, more strengthening of the side - mainly with the introduction of a few more experienced players - combined with the maturing of several younger members, gave the team a more solid look.

A draw against the all-conquering Holbrook YC gave us confidence, while we pulled off a magnificent 6-1 win away to Debenham YC midway through the season. Other wins were not so spectacular, but were based on a strong defence and a counter-punching attack led so ably by the young Russell Langham, who began the season as a raw 16 year old and ended it with the confidence and ability to move into senior football.

Russell led our scoring list with 11 goals as we gained promotion in third place. Another record which was to last exactly 20 years was the ‘goals against’ tally of only 28 goals in 22 games.

A typical side, in a 4-3-3 formation was: Melvyn Williams; Rick Cooper, John Steward, Paul Matthews, Bob Bullamore; Martin Buck, Tony Bowden, Dave Button; Adrian Dickerson, Russell Langham, Ross Turtill.

Others to make several appearances were Mick Johnson and Keith Hubbard, a founder member of the Club who moved away from Ipswich at the end of the season and sadly died a few years ago. The Holbrook game marked the end of stalwart Ralph Murray’s career through ill-health.

1971/72 was to be traumatic. It began with the loss of Woolverstone as our home ground and a move to King George V (which memory suggests was waterlogged for most of the season - or at least every Sunday afternoon when we were at home!)

For one reason or another we lost several senior players and what had begun as a season of mixed results turned into a disastrous run of heavy defeats and, more worryingly, a week-by-week struggle to raise a side.

Things came to a head following a 10-1 defeat at Sutton United but Dave Vincent was instrumental in producing several new young players - Pat Elvin (soon to be appointed skipper), Don Muhs and Mike Cook - and Mike’s father, John, and this enabled us to survive as a club.

No, not just survive; these players and the others who soon joined us - Paul Miller, Glen Parker, John Davey, Jim Butcher, Brian Hunnisett and Kevin Stevens - brought a whole new vitality and enthusiasm to the Club which we have sought to build on ever since.

1972/73 saw us join the growing Ipswich Sunday Morning League (Division 9) and weekly training sessions began at Nacton Heath School.

Our problem was now “who to leave out?” as no-one ever seemed to get injured or to be unavailable - everyone wanted to play!

Using Gippeswyk Park and then Bourne Park as our home pitches, we made steady progress during the mid-seventies until in 1977 we were in Division 5.

At that time it was decided to enter a reserve team in the League and this was another important move in the Club’s progress - our whole shape and structure being strengthened as a result. The decade ended with the first team in Division 4 and the reserves having progressed from Division 11 to Division 9.

Memorable games and incidents abound: the goalscoring exploits of Paul Miller, so often worth both points to us on his own…..great battles against Thurleston YC (including, on one occasion, Pat Elvin’s persuasiveness in convincing well-remembered referee Ted Gooch that a shot which had gone into our top corner and then slid through a hole in the net hadn‘t gone in at all!)……….three 15 year olds playing regularly for the first team at one time in Colin Dawson, Graham Pateman and Micky Parker…..two spectacular fight backs against MQS Shotley…..Steve Baker’s goals, then more goals for the reserves…..Bill Ormsby’s season of 7 hat-tricks for the reserves…….marking out the pitch at Nacton Stadium!

A highlight was our success in the Trimley 5-a-side competition and, just a week later, the Somersham Sixes. Both finals were won in style after we had battled our way through several earlier rounds.

The six who normally saw action during this exciting Summer of 1974 were Kevin Stevens, Don Muhs, Pat Elvin, Glen Parker, Mick Flude and Paul Miller (with John Davey and Bob Bullamore also seeing action in the Somersham final).

During the 1970s, our colours varied and included sky blue and maroon, the same combination in reverse, royal blue and white, amber and black and, finally, the green and yellow which many consider the smartest-ever Taverners strip.