EXACTLY 50 years after the Hereford Times pictured a young couple on their special day, Roy and Sheila Williams remain side by side celebrating their golden wedding.

As one of Hereford United's leading goalscorers, Roy's marriage to his teenage bride was big news in the 1950s, and a photographer went to the Richmond Club to capture the wedding reception on the special day.

Although the inside forward had left Edgar Street after his record £4,000 transfer fee to Southampton, former team-mates like Reggie Bowen and Charlie Thompson turned out to see their friends off on honeymoon on March 8, 1954.

But as a professional footballer, Roy was forced to cut short his special break with Sheila after one night so he could play for the Saints against Bristol City at Ashton Gate.

And although most brides would have been fuming, Sheila did not seem to mind too much.

"I loved watching Roy at football and had a season ticket at Edgar Street when he returned from Southampton," she said. "And anyway, we only went to Birmingham for our honeymoon, so it wasn't too bad to leave."

It was through the beautiful game that the pair met - Roy would call for Sheila's brother on his way to football training.

"We both lived in Queensway and I would watch him come up through our gate to get Ken," said Sheila.

"I used to see him then, when he was about 14, and think how lovely he was, and nothing has changed."

Shortly after Sheila's 16th birthday, the teenagers felt confident enough to go public and reveal their affections to the wider world.

The warmth of feelings have remained to this day and Sheila says an appreciation of sharing each other's interests and working together has made it an easy task. "Sometimes it feels like we are one person," she said at their Tupsley home.

To celebrate, Roy and Sheila enjoyed a special dinner with their two children, Mark and Lisa, and their four grandchildren, Ben, Darren, Elliot and Carly.