Malcolm Macdonald: I'll always be eternally grateful to Luton Town for rescuing me from Fulham nightmare

Former Hatters striker Malcolm Macdonald declared he will always be ‘eternally grateful’ for his move to Luton Town from Fulham just over 50 years ago.

The forward had two prolific spells at Kenilworth Road after leaving what had been a miserable time at the Cottagers in 1969, going on to score 58 goals in 101 games for the Hatters.

That was enough to see Newcastle United, then in Division One, to part with £185,000 for his services, as he went on to have a superb career on Tyneside.

Macdonald, who started his career at Tonbridge Angels, also played for Arsenal and Djurgårdens IF in Sweden, winning 14 England caps, netting six goals too.

However, on his move to Kenilworth Road, signed by then manager Alec Stock, he said: “I’m eternally grateful to Luton Town for not only getting me out of an absolutely dreadfully dire situation, but giving me a real chance to forge a career for myself and Alec Stock I thought was absolutely brilliant.

“It was a good decision, firstly I had to get away from Fulham.

“I’d even been to see the chairman Tommy Trinder and I said, ‘I have to go, otherwise I’ll pack the game up if I have to.’

“I said ‘I’m not going to go through it anymore, I’m on a pittance, I’m better off paying for Tonbridge, financially.’

“We’d just started pre-season and within three days of that meeting, I’d signed for Luton, so thank you very much.

"It was night and day, chalk and cheese going from Fulham to Luton.

"I felt right from the word go, I felt wanted, needed, loved, where none of that had applied at Fulham and that was my club.

“I’d seen my first game there when I was four, so Luton came as an absolute blessing and my career just absolutely took off.

“It was so good to play in a team in a dressing room that had such a brilliant spirit and everyone was really pulling together, whereas I’d known the total opposite back at Fulham.

“Alec Stock instilled in me and I think it can be used in any walk of life, never be satisfied with ordinary.

“You can push yourselves to lengths that you never realised you could go and when you’re under that kind of pressure, you either fold or you work hard.

“I did the latter, so you aim for the moon and the stars.”

On why it had been so bad at Craven Cottage, whom he had signed for from non-league Tonbridge, snapped up by former England boss Bobby Robson, Macdonald continued: “The manager of Tonbridge was Harry Haslam (who went on to manage Luton).

“I was there for 18 months and he left after the end of my first season and went to Fulham as Bobby Robson’s chief scout.

“Harry said to Bobby Robson, ‘sign Malcolm Macdonald from Tonbridge, he plays right back there, but he’s left footed and he can play all over the place.’

“Harry phoned me up and said ‘get yourself up to Fulham and you can see Bobby Robson.’

“I signed for Fulham and that was me getting my pro career off to a very miserable start I have to say.

“As Bobby, bless him, this was his first job and he was managing all his old team-mates.

“I learned a lesson of my life, never, ever manage old team-mates and they were absolutely brutal with him.

“He had put me in the side and played me upfront, I played six games and scored five goals.

"I’ve scored this goal against Crystal Palace, so we weren't going to reach the dreaded 1,000 minute mark without a goal, and only one player came and congratulated me, all the rest pretty much turned their backs.

"I thought, 'oh dear, there is a problem here,' and within a few weeks, Bobby Robson was sacked and I was dropped.

Macdonald was quickly on his way to Luton and found the whole experience, both on and off the field a great deal more to his liking.

He added: “There was a great camaraderie, not just in the dressing room, but all around.

"There was no players room, there was the Hatters club that was a new building they had put on the back of the stand, and it was a big bar and dance-floor and everyone just got in there, supporters, players and we all mingled.

“After a Luton game, I would be there talking with supporters, about the game itself. There was no segregation, and I didn’t think anything of it, it was just part of it.”