Hatters pay tribute to title winner Jardine

The Edinburgh-born Jardine had been at Dundee as a teenager, before having trials with Leeds and Wolves, joining the Hatters in 1961 when boss Sam Bartram snapped him up.

He initially struggled to hold on to his place in a struggling side that was drifting down the divisions but following a conversion to full-back by Bartram’s successor Bill Harvey in 1964, Jardine made the number three position his own, quickly becoming a crowd favourite.

His surging runs on the overlap and his speciality, the perfectly timed sliding tackle, endeared him to the Luton crowd as the Hatters started the slow climb back to the top.

After winning a Division Four championship medal in 1968, Jardine also featured nine times, scoring once, as Hatters won promotion from Division Two in 1969-70 as well.

His appearances gradually dwindled though, enjoying a brief spell at Torquay under his former Luton manager, Allan Brown, before retiring.

In total, he made 243 appearances for the Hatters, netting 10 goals, over a 10 year spell at Kenilworth Road and was a member of the famous team that won the Division Four title in 1967/68 – a side that is still fondly remembered by Town supporters.

Jardine worked in John Pope’s gents outfitters in Dunstable Road for many years, and following this, his many jobs included a spell manning the gates at Kenilworth Road.