Nostalgia slideshow

WITH the sporting spotlight back on Edinburgh thanks to Chris Hoy's Olympic success, many will be reminded of the city's sports heroes of yesteryear.

The 1950s saw a number of significant sporting achievements made by city folk, but in those days it was balls, not bikes, bringing a smile to the faces of sports fans.

Hibs fans saw their team lift two league titles and become the first British club to play in Europe.

More than 65,000 fans, clad in smart coats and often shirts and ties, flocked to Easter Road each week to watch a team with such flair that their 1953 South American tour is said to have influenced the Brazilians' philosophy of attacking football.

The Famous Five – Bobby Johnstone, Lawrie Reilly, Willie Ormond, Gordon Smith and Eddie Turnbull – gave Hibs one of the most feared forward lines in the country and they are still idolised by Hibbies, with a stand at Easter Road named in their honour.

Across the city, Hearts were proving just as successful.

People lined the streets when the team brought home the Scottish Cup in 1956.

Hearts also lifted the League Cup three times in the space of five years, and topped the league in 1958 and 1960. The team never finished outside the top four in the league during the 50s.

Their answer to the Famous Five, the Terrible Trio, combined power, intelligence and trickery to terrify defences across the land. Alfie Conn, Jimmy Wardhaugh and Willie Bauld scored more than 500 goals for Hearts throughout the decade.

This fascinating era has been brought back to life in a new book, Edinburgh and the Lothians in the 1950s. It explores many of the photographs held in the archives of the Evening News and The Scotsman.

However, it wasn't only football that thrust the Lothians to the forefront of the world's sporting stage. In golf, Great Britain won the Curtis Cup for the first time in 1952 at Muirfield Golf Course, East Lothian, after beating USA five points to four, while Gary Player won The Open there in 1959.

And in basketball, the wonderfully named Meadowlark Lemon sported a kilt in the fourth quarter of an exhibition match between the Harlem Globetrotters and the Texas Cowboys at Murrayfield Ice Rink.

At Murrayfield Stadium, Scotland performed equally well with a ball of a different shape, winning 12-8 against Australia in February 1958. The team went on to draw 3-3 in the Calcutta Cup match versus England a month later.

A revolutionary pitch anti-freeze plan was launched in 1959, with huge marquees filled with oil heaters used so Murrayfield would be playable for the Scotland versus Wales match. It was worth the effort, as Scotland won 6-5.

Edinburgh and the Lothians in the 1950s is available at a special price of £9.99 (£12.99) by calling 0808-180 2008 or visiting www. shop.scotsman.com/1950book