Thorniewood United's present day management team of Andy Frame and John Paul McBride spent a large proportion of their footballing careers in the Senior ranks so it was inevitable they found themselves drawn to players from that level when asked to give consideration to picking their all-time Junior X1.

Thorniewood United's present day management team of Andy Frame and John Paul McBride spent a large proportion of their footballing careers in the Senior ranks so it was inevitable they found themselves drawn to players from that level when asked to give consideration to picking their all-time Junior X1.

Nevertheless the long-time friends who started out as schoolboys with the outstanding Mill United nursery playing alongside Derek Ferguson and Paul Hartley still managed to cobble together a 4-4-2 team of Junior worthies (albeit tenuously at times) thanks in no small part to one time Hibs and Partick Thistle midfielder Frame who was reinstated at Pollok by Ronnie Lowrie and went on to enjoy playing stints at Petershill , Thorniewood and most notably Johnstone Burgh where he played in the George Walker steered side that emerged as the last ever winners of the Central First Division.

Goalkeeper:- One time Pollok No 1 Danny Hanley's shotstopping abilities left a huge impression on Andy as did the sheer application of Robert Burns however both he and JP could not see past a goalkeeping type who owed more to his physical presence and handling skills than to showy dives through the air -Kevin Budinauckas who played for Wishaw, Linlithgow Rose , Pollok and Cumnock among others..

Andy admitted,"Bud liked a pint or three and hated training with a vengeance but he could be relied upon to make unbelievable saves as soon as he donned the gloves on a Saturday."

Defenders:- Mark McWilliams at Pollok was recalled as a huge talent by Andy while Stevie Swift was a most formidable opponent however the No 2 jersey goes to former Johnstone Burgh team mate Zander Ryan still playing nowadays with Beith.

Names that came to mind for sealing the left side of his defence included another Keanie Park favourite Mark Andrews as well as Jim Beattie (Petershill) but nobody rated higher than a player the Robertson Park duo could not believe was let go by Hibs - Graham Love - who went on to establish himself as a top Junior at Bathgate Thistle , skippering them to Scottish Junior Cup success in 2008.

Andy recalled , "Lovey was hard as nails and right out of the `Thou Shalt Not Pass` defensive school though his desire to be a winner tended to overshadow the fact he could also play a bit"

For the central roles Andy deliberated long and hard over the competitive attributes of Burgh pair Robert Hutchison and Stuart Hendron before persuading JP to settle on a combination of another stalwart Derek Heaton playing in front of Pollok legend Kevin O'Neil.

He reasoned , "Big Derek was a fearless type who launched into tackles that would make you wince and he was a massive part of Burgh's title win but if anything he became an even better centre half at Pollok

"Kevin was simply Mr Newlandsfield in my time at Pollok , an outstanding club servant and a defender who was as fully committed in training sessions as he was in competitive games."

Midfielders:- Old stagers like Brian Welsh( Petershill)Sammy Johnston (Pollok) and Newlandsfield's dead ball expert Robert Prytz (Pollok) were to the fore in the duo's engine room thoughts before agreement was reached on a partnership of Eddie McGuinness alongside the relatively unknown James McBride who played with Wishaw and Stonehouse Violet as well as the John Brogan steered East Kilbride Thistle side that took the 2002 Sectional League Cup honours with a 2-0 defeat of Bellshill Athletic.

Andy said , "Big Eddie was the epitome of your box-to-box midfielder and was good for 20 plus goals per season while James oozed confidence and was so comfortable on the ball that he rarely wasted a pass."

For the flank beats , Andy rejected the notion of John Hendry (Pollok) and Martin McGarvey (Arthurlie) to instead plump for former Stonehouse Violet ace Kevin McCallion (better known as a Stirling Albion mainstay ) while JP got his way with his choice of Paul McGrillen for down the left side

Andy revealed ,"Kevin is probably a surprise name unless of course you played alongside ir against him in games.

"Ronnie Lowrie was so impressed with his qualities that he tried to get him to Pollok but Kevin moved to Stonehouse for a lucrative transfer fee and denied himself the chance to play at the very top Junior level.

"Mowgli is better known as an out and out striker but could play anywhere and he was a shoe-in for our team because few if any big name Seniors went on to make the impact he did with Bellshill , Bathgate , and Junior Scotland ."

Forwards:- Andy was a team mate of Stevie Dallas at Hibs , Robert Downs at Pollok and Davie Brolly with Johnstone Burgh and loudly sang their praises however his tales of the trio's scoring feats did not dissuade JP from sticking to his guns and a front line pairing of Alex Williams (Luncarty) and George O'Boyle (Bo'ness Utd).

JP admitted , "I know it's stretching things a bit given that Andy and I never came up against either striker in the Juniors but the Luncarty people think the world of Alex and he is now their player/manager while George did well at Bo'ness and Kelty Hearts before going on to manager Carnoustie Panmure .

"Alex had phenomenal pace but was also blessed with sublime finishing skills while George was one of the bravest and hard-working strikers I've ever come across.

"They would have made a tremendous pairing."

The dream team therefore comes out as Budinackaus , Ryan , Love, O'Neil , Heaton , McBride, McGuinness, McCallion, McGrillen , Williams , O'Boyle. Substitutes:-Hutchison, Prytz, Downs, Dallas, Hanley(GK).