DAFC Dream Team Goalkeeper

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The hero of the 1961 Scottish Cup Final, EDDIE CONNACHAN joined Dunfermline four years earlier from Dalkeith Thistle at the age of 22. He became the number one choice between the sticks in 1959/60 although the arrival of Jim Herriot meant that there was strong competition for the jersey. The 1960/61 Cup campaign actually began with Herriot in goal before a loss of form saw Connachan come in for the quarter-final. His two performances against Celtic in the Final turned the former miner into an East End Park legend. A string of magnificent saves inspired his teammates to a shock victory and, recognising his part in the drama, they carried Eddie from the field on their shoulders as he wept unashamedly. A few months later his ability was acknowledged outside West Fife as he was chosen for the first of his two Scotland caps. After 172 appearances for the Pars, Eddie was transferred to Middlesbrough in 1963 for a fee of £5,500.

His departure ensured that JIM HERRIOT became the undoubted first choice. Signed as an 18 year old in 1958, Jim went on to play in some of Dunfermline’s most memorable European matches, such as Everton and Valencia. He was a key member of the team which made a brave attempt to land the League and Cup double in 1964/65, playing in all but one match that season including the Cup Final defeat by Celtic. The last of his 136 appearances for the Pars was in the 5-1 thrashing of Celtic a few days after the Final. He made an £18,000 move to Birmingham in May 1965 and was selected to play for Scotland eight times before returning home to join Hibs.

The Dane BENT MARTIN cost only £3,500 from Celtic and had been signed because of an injury to his namesake Eric. His team-mates found his approach to training slightly unusual - he liked to play at inside-right during practice matches as he believed that this would give him a better understanding of what strikers would be likely to do when they got near goal! Whether it worked or not, he was capable of pulling off some quite remarkable saves and, despite some inconsistency, became a real favourite of the fans. He played in 117 matches for the Pars with the most famous being the 1968 Cup Final win over Hearts but his career at East End was dogged by some spectacular rows with manager George Farm, himself a former ’keeper, who could never decide between Bent or Willie Duff and probably harmed the confidence of both.

Hugh joined from Hibs in 1976, preferring to go part-time to allow him to continue his medical studies at Edinburgh University. His dedication to the game meant that he missed only four league matches during his first five seasons at East End, an incredible record considering his daily workload. Reliable and consistent, Hugh made a goalkeeping record of 362 appearances for the Pars and kept a clean sheet on 116 occasions.

Westie signed from Hearts in March 1985. He helped the club regain its place in the top flight but missed a large chunk of the first season in the Premier Division due to injury. After losing his place in 1990 Ian decided to move on but Bert Paton brought him back to Dunfermline four years later and, if anything, he looked to be a better goalkeeper than ever. He stayed until 2000 and represented the Pars 361 times (one of those being as an outfield substitute!) and recorded 115 shutouts.

Andy Rhodes was an established goalkeeper within the English League set up with Oldham Athletic when he joined The Pars. Following in the footsteps of Andy Goram, Rhodes soon found himself the centre of attention between the sticks.

At the time of Jim Leishman`s controversial departure from the club, Rhodes joined Dunfermline for £80,000 from Oldham in July 1990, to provide competition for the number one jersey with Ian Westwater.

Rhodes went onto play only 89 games for Dunfermline, but most of them were for a side at the wrong end of the league. Many a "drubbing" would have ensued had it not been for Rhodes` incredible shot stopping abiltities. His penalty saving technique was also legendary!

Rhodes moved onto St Johnstone for a fee of £300,000 in 1992 and was replaced by Lindsay Hamilton as Pars number one. He famously played in goals for Airdrie when Dunfermline beat them 2-1 to win the first division title in 1996 and returned once again to take the comedy plaudits during the Stewart Petrie testimonial match in 2003.