Glidden pays tribute to one of Tynecastle's true heroes

BARRY ANDERSON
JOHN CUMMING, winner of two league titles, a Scottish Cup and four league cups in the greatest ever Hearts team, was a man truly worthy of his iconic status at Tynecastle. His medal haul stands alone in Gorgie folklore, but he offered considerably more than just a steadfast resolve.
To Freddie Glidden, captain of Hearts' 1956 Scottish Cup winning-side, he epitomised the success of the 1950s era.

Cumming died in a Carluke nursing home on Saturday evening aged 78 following a battle with Alzheimer's Disease which spanned many ye ars. Born and bred in the Lanarkshire town, he worked as a miner and inherited much of its gutsy coal-industry heartiness which was to stand him in fine stead as a professional footballer.

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He cost Hearts just £105 from Carluke Rovers in 1950, but his value to the club would become immeasurable over the ensuing trophy-laden years. Were he around in the modern era, millions of pounds would be demanded for his services as a cultured and driven midfielder, or half-back as he was called.

Glidden remembers his former team-mate's on-field tenacity, but also his sense of community spirit and gentlemanly approach which saw him revered in Carluke as a fine gardener amongst other things.

"He would go round Carluke and dig the old pensioners' gardens, that's the sort of guy he was," Glidden told the Evening News today. "He didn't charge them for it, he just did it to keep himself fit. He was still doing that right up until he became ill. John was one of the best in every sense.

"If he made a mistake on the field and I got on his back, he just held up his hands and accepted it. If I made a mistake, he did the same with me. We had a reciprocal thing going and had great respect for each other."

Glidden was the centre of Hearts' three half-backs in the 1950s and recalls the talent operating by his side. "I had Mackay on my right at right-half and Cumming on my left at left-half, so it was a great team to play in," he continued.

"We all knew what to expect from John. When he played, he gave 101 per cent. If he didn't get near a man there was something wrong with him, he had a knock of some sort. My one great memory of him was in the 1956 cup final. John jumped for a ball with Willie Fernie, the Celtic player, and they clashed heads. When I arrived John was lying on the ground with a huge gash on his brow and was taken off. When we got into the dressing room at half-time we looked at John lying on the treatment table and thought, 'we'll have to play the second half with ten men'.

"Fifteen minutes after that, John came tearing on to the park with a big bandage on his head. That's the sort of bloke he was, just never gave in. He set an example to everybody and particularly the younger boys at Tynecastle. After I left Tynecastle John became the trainer and his commitment and passion was great for the youngsters to see."

Cumming played 612 times in total during a 17-year playing career with Hearts, scoring 58 goals. He also earned nine caps for Scotland, which is still considered a travesty to this day given the talent he possessed.

After representing the local YMCA in Carluke and then Castlehill Colliery as a teenager, he joined Carluke Rovers before attracting attention from Hearts and several other Scottish clubs. He joined the Tynecastle side provisionally in 1948 but did not sign professional forms until two years later.

Cumming was originally a left winger due to his pace and moderate height – he stood 5ft 9ins tall – but was converted to left-half by Hearts. He remained there to enjoy a glittering career during the club's most decorated era.

He was a mainstay of the team which won the Scottish League championship in 1957-58 and 1959-60 and was no less significant in League Cup wins of 1954-55, 1958-59, 1959-60 and 1962-63. The Scottish Cup was secured in 1956 with a 3-1 triumph over Celtic.

Hearts accorded Cumming a testimonial in 1980 and inducted him into their Hall of Fame in 2006 to ensure his name is forever remembered by future generations at Tynecastle.

Taken from the Scotsman