CONCERN over violence among young people has led to letters in the national press, bemoaning the decline in numbers of boys’ clubs.

“There were fewer problems when teenagers had youth clubs to attend,” wrote F. T., of Ashford, Kent.

His claim may well be supported by older readers of the Herald, who can recall what an asset the town possessed in the now-defunct Penrith YMCA.

Housed in a building at the bottom of Sandgate, the “YM” was, quite simply, somewhere to go and be among boys of a similar age, playing table tennis or snooker, or simply enjoying the lively chatter.

The YMCA gave youngsters a sense of belonging to something worthwhile. There was a strong sporting element, with teams of footballers and cricketers drawn from different age groups.

Sunday night meetings, organised by the late Councillor George Bowman, were weekly highlights, with talks on a wide variety of subjects.

Eddie Allen and Cliff Sisson were among other worthy men who did much to sustain Penrith YMCA in its heyday, but an enforced move from the Sandgate building appeared to mark the start of a decline in interest and support.

The Earl of Lonsdale “chaired” a public meeting in a bid to save the “YM”, and fine words were spoken about its value over many years, but it was all in vain.

How on earth was such a vital organisation allowed to vanish into obscurity? “Inquests” into its demise are probably pointless, but Penrithians, who were once among members, must bear some of the responsibility for the town’s loss of a major asset.

SCOUTS’ GOOD DEED?

Signalling, tracking, cooking, firelighting, map-reading, first-aid and camping under canvas are a few of the boy scout activities mentioned by Roy McNamara in his new book, Being Prepared, a history of the scout movement in Cumbria.

The boys certainly had to be versatile in the war years of 1939-45 when this columnist was a member of the 4th Penrith (Grammar School) Troop.

And that included being a war casualty! It was a unique form of the scouts’ good deed!

To test the skills and capabilities of air-raid wardens and first-aid workers, Penrith was hit by a bomb — of the make-believe variety.

The target was the old auction mart, at the head of Castlegate. The top sale ring, normally a scene of bidding and bantering between auctioneers and customers, was transformed into mock tragedy.

The sawdust-covered floor was strewn with bodies of the scouts of the 4th Penrith, all of whom had been “injured” in the blast.

Labels, attached to clothing, told Red Cross men and women, who dashed to the scene, whether the victims had suffered internal injuries or fractured limbs. The writer felt he had been lucky, for he escaped with multiple facial injuries, according to his tag.

It was dramatically realistic. With my fellow casualties, I was whizzed to a first-aid point in St. Andrew’s parish rooms for bandaging of the wounds, supervised by the late Miss Thomson, Ash Bank, Castletown.

In such accomplished hands, all the “victims” of the raid made amazing recoveries and were able to walk home in the evening sunshine, having made a small, but unusual, contribution to the Penrith war effort.

LET’S HAVE A HUDDLE

A new feature has entered sport — the huddle, which is an extension of the cuddle in that all members of a team take part, standing in a tight circle, with arms round the shoulders of their neighbours.

“They’re getting a last word of advice,” said a commentator at the Oval recently as England’s cricketers huddled enthusiastically on entering the arena to try to bowl out India in a Test match.

This show of matiness would once have been scorned — cricketers cuddling!?! — but nowadays it is believed to promote bonding and team spirit.

No doubt that other mysterious sporting quality, body language, is also boosted by the mass huddle, although it didn’t work in the case of England’s cricketers, who could not prevent India from piling up a record-breaking total of 664.

The point of this diatribe is to suggest that if sporting psychologists feel these affectionate embraces improve performances, why restrict them to cricket and football?

Surely a bit of bonding would make meetings of local councils more harmonious and eradicate personal vendettas which sometimes affect progressive debate.

Can we look forward to pre-meeting huddles in the council chamber of Penrith Town Hall ahead of future meetings of Eden District Council?