Date: Fri 14-Aug-1998

Publication: Bee

Author: TOMW

Quick Words:

Glover-Wyatt

Full Text:

Jim Glover: Sports Hall of Fame 1998

BY TOM T. WYATT

year's Newtown Sports Hall of Fame entry, in the category of Male Athlete, is

60's superstar Jim Glover.

Those who knew the three-sport MVP during his four years at Newtown High

School (1962-66) will swear that he was the best athlete they had ever seen.

Those who competed against him, are still looking for the license plate number

of the truck they think ran them over.

During the fall months, Jim Glover was simply the Babe Ruth of Newtown High

School soccer. No player before him or ever to follow -- and there were some

great ones -- would completely dominate the sport as Glover did.

Though Newtown only played ten soccer games per year, as opposed to nearly

twice that today, Glover established goal scoring records that have stood the

test of time.

Glover's school records of 26 goals in a season and 58 in a career, both held

up under the winged boots of current professional soccer player, NHS alumnus,

John Ball. His record of nine goals in a single game, which he did in limited

playing time during a 12-0 win over Ridgefield in 1966, has never been

approached.

"Soccer was a lot different in those days," said former NHS soccer coach, Bob

Sveda. "We used to kick the ball up the middle as fast as we could and Jimmy

was so quick that he would outrun most people to the goal. He was very fast,

especially in his acceleration. There wasn't a defender around who could stop

him one-on-one."

And according to former friends and teammates, those who did manage to catch

up to Jim, or dared to get in his way, often needed smelling salts and an

explanation of how the game turned out.

Glover's career record of 58 goals came in a total of only 35 games played.

Following soccer season, Glover took to the NHS hardwood where he starred for

the varsity basketball team in his junior and senior seasons. Despite standing

only 5-foot-9, and weighing in at only around 165 pounds, Glover was nearly as

dominant there as well.

When he graduated Newtown in 1966, he did as the school's third all-time

leading scorer with 575 points in two seasons. In the 32 years that followed,

only eleven players would pass him up on the school's scoring list where he

currently remains at number-15.

In his senior season, Glover scored 297 points in 15 games for an average of

19.8 ppg. He led the team in scoring in both seasons.

On the baseball field, in his favorite sport, Glover also dominated. He led

the NHS baseball team in batting in both his junior and senior seasons with

averages of .426 and .463, respectively. His senior season batting average was

also tops in the entire Western Connecticut Conference. On the pitcher's

mound, all Glover did was strike out a league-high 83 batters in only 51

innings. And on the basepaths, nobody could touch him.

"Jimmy would steal bases at will," coach Sveda said. "Nobody could throw him

out. He was way too fast."

Glover aspired to play professional baseball, and many say he would have made

it to the Majors, but he opted into the Army and then began a family in

Woodbury where he still resides today.

Ironically, Newtown High started a football team the year after Glover's

graduation. In a 1996 interview, Glover admitted that he would have played

football instead of soccer if it had been offered.

"I would have liked to have seen him play football," coach Sveda concluded.

"He would have been awfully hard to tackle. I'm sure he would have been a star

on the football field. Jim Glover would have stood out in any sport he tried,

without a doubt."