John Bowman (1893/94)

John Bowman was signed just before the start of Newcastle’s first season in the Football League and was considered to be one of the best forwards in Dundee.

He was a likely enough lad, but in the practice games his shooting at goal was not characterised by any degree of accuracy or strength.

After playing at outside-right in the first game of the season at Plumstead he returned to Dundee as a result of the club deciding to curtail expenses by lowering wages and reducing the number of professionals on their books.

“Citizen” in an Evening Telegraph article on former players memorably described “Jocky” as a “meteoric player of short stature and equally abbreviated temper”. And a reminiscence by another correspondent talked of him as a “hero of a hundred fights”