A SALE head teacher who helped inspire the famous golfing legend Sam Ryder was praised by his former pupil.

The Messenger can reveal that Mr Ryder, who gave his name to the trophy, which will be played for by Europe and the United States at the end of the month at Gleneagles, returned home to heap plaudits on his former teacher Adam Watson.

Mr Ryder, who left the North of England in 1895, to expand and sell seedlings, moved to St Albans, where he also became mayor of the town.

Ultimately, it was the wealth of his successful business, which enabled him in the 1920s to donate the new 100 guinea gold trophy, which was initially established for amateur players on both sides of the Atlantic to play for.

Despite his wealth and fame, Mr Ryder, whose family lived on Broad Road, never forgot Mr Watson and returned in the early 1900s to pay tribute to him after 38 years of teaching at Sale Townships Schools, which was later to become Springfield Council Schools.

According to Trafford archives and a scrapbook of AF Stockton, Mr Ryder made a short speech of congratulation in which he said

"If there was a man I should like to pay honour to it was my friend Adam Watson. Much of the success I had in my life I owed to the education I received from him.

"Mr Watson had as his principle ' I give you the groundwork of education; it is for you to educate yourselves and make the best of life afterwards."

Sam, who was born in Preston, was one of eight children to Samuel senior and Elizabeth.

The family is shown as living at 13 Wharf Road, in Sale in the 1871 census. However, by 1881 they were living at 'Stowey, at 143 Broad Road, which by 1891 appears to show it had been re-numbered to become 61 Broad Road, which in later life became the part of the Belfort Hotel.

The nursery where it all started, is still shown on maps of the time on land along Broad Road.

Sam who was educated at Manchester University retired in the 1920s and only took up golf because of his failing health. However, after just a couple of years he was an outstanding player. He established the Ryder Cup in 1927.

The parents of famous Sam, Sam senior and Elizabeth are buried in the graveyard of St Martin's Church, close to Ashton-on-Mersey Golf Club. Sam Jnr died in 1936 and is buried in St Albans.