IT might be virtually 53 years to the day, but the Josh McQuoid of 1957 can still remember the game that saw him carve his name in Cherries folklore.

In scoring a second consecutive hat-trick in a 5-1 FA Cup first round win over Oswestry Town on November 16, Brian Bedford completed the remarkable feat it has taken more than half a century to match.

Given the years that have passed, one can forgive Bedford a slip of the memory – he can’t recall his treble in the 4-0 Division Three (South) victory over Millwall the previous weekend.

But the Oswestry tie remains clear in the Welshman’s mind.

Speaking to the Echo from his Cardiff home, the former centre-forward took the time to reminisce. “I remember the FA Cup one but I can’t remember the Millwall one – but it’s a long time ago so your memory tends to be a little bit hazy,” he admits.

“Oswestry were a non-league team and tried really hard, but I think we had a little bit too much know-how and it was quite an easy win in the end, if I recall. We weren’t really stretched.”

Despite not knowing he had achieved such a record feat, Bedford’s trebles made him the first Cherries player of the post-war era to score hat-tricks in back-to-back games.

Only the club’s leading marksman of all time, Ron Eyre, had previously done so, when he managed it twice in 1926 and again in 1928.

A keen golfer in his retirement, Bedford still follows football and looks out for Cherries’ results, while his eldest son lives and works in Bournemouth.

A fine player in his day, Bedford harbours happy memories of his time at Dean Court, were he plied his trade after signing from Southampton in August 1956 until being sold to QPR for £750 in July 1959. Cherries’ FA Cup run to the sixth round in 1956-57 ranks highly.

“In the fourth round we went to Wolverhampton, who were stocked with English internationals including Billy Wright,” he recalls.

“We won 1-0 there and, not only did we win 1-0, but Reg Cutler managed to break the goalposts as well!”

He continues: “In the main, my memories of Bournemouth are very happy.

“Freddie Cox was our manager before he left and he had me playing this deep-lying centre-forward role.

“We had a great cup run. We went to Wolves and won 1-0 then we beat Tottenham at home 3-1 and then we lost to Manchester United 2-1, and I scored in that game.”

On leaving Cherries, Bedford became a big favourite at Queens Park Rangers by finishing as the top-scorer in each of his six seasons with the London club.

But it was not just football where he excelled – after hanging up his boots, he established himself as a tennis professional.

“When I retired in 1969, I took up tennis coaching and became a professional at that.

“I did that for 20 years working at a sports centre in Barnes in London, then I had a bit of knee trouble and had to retire from that.

“I later became the groundsman at Queens Park Rangers.”

These days, he makes do with watching Match of the Day for his football fix.

“You always think that the era you played in was the best one,” he adds.

“In spite of the standard going up as far as fitness and tactics etc is concerned, I don’t think the game has improved all that much.”

Come 2063, one wonders what McQuoid will make of the beautiful game.