NINE former railway workers who between them have 450 years of golfing under their belts have this year been rewarded for their loyalty to a York club.

Richard McGlinchey is part of a group of former railway workers who joined Pike Hills Golf Club in 1967 and have been dedicated players ever since.

This year the club marked their 50 years of membership by giving the group honorary life membership, meaning that can continue playing without membership fees.

Mr McGlinchey, who lives in Osbaldwick, said they all joined when membership cost just two shillings and sixpence a week, the course had only 15 holes, the clubhouse was an old railway carriage, and the club professional doubled up as the greenkeeper.

Norman Ashcroft, Roy Jones, William Arnold, John Calpin, Colin Hall, Geoff Wood, Richard McGlinchey, Michael Heath and Dennis Martindale all worked in the railway industry in York in the 1960s.

Pike Hills was predominantly a railway club, the workers could join the British Rail Staff Association for five pence a year, and then join any of the Railway Institute’s sports groups, including the golf club.

Mr McGlinchey said: “I started on the signal and telegraph workshops and through my career ended up in the telecommunications side of the railways, but some of the others are from the technical sides, and some clerical.”

As the old British Rail golf club, manager Alistair Burns said they have several members with connections to the railway industry.

In the history of the club honorary life membership has only been given to one woman and eight men, meaning the nine who reached 50 years this will have doubled that numbers at once.

Mr Burns added: “It’s a remarkable achievement to play golf for 50 years, let alone in one place. They will have seen a lot of changes - they were here before the A64 was built down the side of the course.”