Also see: Springfield High names baseball field for SMC Athletic Hall of Fame member Bo Birsky
http://www.vermontjournal.com/content/this-that-3
THIS + THAT Submitted by admin on Tue, 05/21/2013 - 1:21pm By Bill Muprhy The "Good OLD Days" returned to Springfield last weekend and for the larger than usual sized crowd which showed up on the campus of Riverside Middle School, it was one special day. An idea hatched by longtime Springfield Greenman Ed Wilkins and help carried by equally as green Andy Bladya and others, became a reality Saturday, as the high school baseball diamond was dedicated in the honor of Springfield coaching greats Bo Birsky and Richie Wyman. Incredibly Bo's son Greg, played for both legends. Not only did Greg play, but his performances on the field were among the greatest ever in Cosmo lore. He was a standout in football, basketball and baseball and was present to represent his dad on the important day. "This was a very special event," Birsky told The Shopper/Vermont Journal. "It was a very emotional day and when I first heard about it, I was very surprised and honored. I was moved by the athletes who came back and what the day meant to Springfield. It was a huge honor overall." Richie Wyman played for Bo and has been a part of the Springfield sporting scene for close to seven decades. He told The Shopper/Vermont Journal "what a tremendous honor. It was a great day, with the ceremony, the people and the fact we could stay around and tell and hear stories and watch the Cosmos win their first game. The whole day was really special." So special that when all was said and done, there were Birsky and Wyman shaking hands and congratulating (after the ceremony) the whole Cosmo winning team who upset Windsor. Another special note on the day surfaces in a quote from Birsky, "not only did I play for dad and Richie, but the present coach (Larry Partridge) was my best friend growing up and the centerfielder on my team. We go way back to pitching against each other in Midget League. This was one great day." MORE ITEMS FROM BIRSKY-WYMAN DAY- Birsky- "Springfield has always been such a special place. I feel bad that the school is much smaller today, but it was great for us to have this ceremony and to have it mean so much to so many." Birsky, a 1975 Springfield graduate, was lucky enough to reach the Final Four in Division I in both basketball and baseball twice during his years at Springfield High. In taking a look down memory lane, Birsky remembers being a part of freshman year bid as a back-up point guard to win the title before they bowed in the hoop semi-finals and then another Burlington trip as a senior. "We had a good ride, as we beat MSJ down at Brattleboro (on a last second Birsky hoop mind you) and then beat a great Rice team, who had given Mount Anthony their only loss. Then we played MAU tough early in the finals, but they were bigger than big and had our number by the end." Wyman was Birsky's coach on both semi-final trips. There was the changing of the guard between Birsky's junior and senior years in baseball as Bo stepped down as l coach and Richie took over. "We went to the semis both years and then fell short," Birsky said, "but they were both great years." On playing and growing up with your dad the legend, Greg said, "It's both wonderful and a pain in the (you know what)", he said, going on to say, "but my high school years were something really special." Birsky set the Springfield High School scoring record in basketball and the mark stood until recently when Cosmo standout Grant White called it his own. Birsky takes a very respectful look at the record slipping away, "Some of my friends say it still should be yours because of Division 1 and the three point line and all, but I don't look at it that way at all. In fact, in a way I'm thrilled, because I have been told by many, that the kid who broke it is a great person and that's all I needed to hear." A couple of more Wyman stories. If you don't know Richie Wyman well, he is not a limelight person and although he has opinions about everything in sports, he is not one to draw attention to himself in anyway. He will use his sharp wit in his circle of friends to show he does not always see things the same way as they do, but for the most part he keeps to himself. On the night the Springfield Select Board would introduce the proclamation to name the field, daughter Sherry had to find a way to get good old dad to attend the meeting without spilling the beans. She did a great job. He kind of even dressed up. She told him some people were recognizing her and that she needed a family member present. As Richie sat in the room waiting for the meeting to begin "I wondered why the people Sherry had talked about being there hadn't arrived and I did see Andy (Bladyka), who probably goes quite often because of recreation and Larry (head baseball coach Partridge) was there, but with them it did not register and then they started reading the proclamation and I said, "’Oh My God.’ Then I said, ‘I've been lied to again.’" The other Wyman story was about this little wide-eyed boy, who attended a faculty basketball game between Bellows Falls and Springfield in the Falls. The boy was twelve years old and was a big Terrier basketball fan, who never missed a home game and went to some road games too. During warm-ups, a stray ball bounced to the boy, who picked it up and gave it to the player who came after it. The boy asked "are you Richie Wyman?" The man replied "yes." The embarrassed little boy, who now writes sports for The Shopper said, "You are a good coach." I guess someone knew way back then. That was 53 years ago! COACHES HONOR COACHES- Birsky was particularly moved by the fact that another coaching legend, Leon Royce, longtime Windsor baseball coach, turned out for the festivities. "I always enjoyed competing against his teams and highly respected him as a coach," Birsky said. On the subject of private people, longtime Bellows Falls coach Bis Bisbee wrote Wyman a note which the honoree appreciated. "He outlined all the coaches who were coaching baseball when he arrived as a young coach right out of college. He had quite a list. I enjoyed going through it." One of Bisbee's pupils, present Terrier baseball coach Bob Lockerby attended the event. SPRINGFIELD HISTORY- One item, which stands out when researching the historical aspects of this event, is the hominess around much of Springfield athletics. For so many years, it was Springfielder after Springfielder coaching their own in varsity athletics. I am not sure there is a town that has more of a history, of a right of passage, to go from being a proud athlete, to eventually coaching the arm and hammer brigade. There has been a great deal of pride in the tradition of Springfield athletics for a long period of time. The years have left several legacies and they have been well earned. The once green player, learns, grows up and then becomes the coach. That's the Cosmos way.
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