The spine of the Boys Brigade side remained together and formed the nucleus of the Stornoway Athletic side which swept away all before them in a staggering period, where they won no less than four league titles on the trot and six in seven seasons, to earn the reputation as not only the greatest Aths side in the history of the club, but perhaps even the best side in the history of the local game.
One of the rocks upon which the foundations of success in this great side was built was cultured left-back Donnie Mackenzie. An industrious ball winner who could play the ball around equally as well as he could win possession, Mackenzie was a superb all round defender blessed with great pace and famed for his ability to snuff out danger with last gasp sliding challenges.
Mackenzie's first medal arrived in that famous BB's side of 1956 but even he is surprised at how many of that side remained together.
"My very first medal came in 1956 when I was part of the Boys Brigade's Kemnay Cup winning side. I can still remember the final when we beat Tolsta 9 – 0. Six of us: Norman Graham; Murdo 'Porridge' Morrison; Kenny 'Bobbans' Macdonald; Kenny Henderson; Billy Urquhart and myself, went on to play for Aths within two or three seasons and we ended up forming the spine of the four in a row league winning side."
Although Donnie became an Aths legend and integral part of the most successful side in the history of the Stornoway club, his first game in senior football ironically came in the colours of Aths fiercest rivals, United.
Donnie explained: "I played alongside some great players like Blake Macleod, Baker, Raleigh and Geordie Macarthur. I got the chance because they were short of players one week, but I knew there wasn't much chance of me getting a regular place in that team."
When one of his childhood friends suggested going along with him to Aths, Donnie jumped at the chance and has never looked back. "I was good friends with Billy Urquhart and he asked me to go with him to Aths.
"In my opinion I would say that he was the best young player that has ever been here. He had absolutely everything a player needed and since then I don't think there has been anyone near him.
"He went on to play for Ross County and also picked up a league winners medal with the School team in 1957. This was just a year after our Kemnay Cup win with the BBs and he was only aged about 14."
Donnie's first years with Aths proved to be something of a learning curve as the younger and more inexperienced Aths boys found the going tough in the physical Lewis game.
"We had a very young team and we were all the same age of about 18 but we lacked the strength to compare to the older teams. I remember one game in 1960 when we played the RAF. They had a very good team at that point but we were superb in the first-half and raced into a 4 – 0 lead. Unfortunately we had the habit of running out of steam in the second-half and the game ended 4 – 4. That seemed to happen to us quite a bit in the early years.
"As the seasons went by and we got a little older we got stronger and began to really compete. Our first senior medal soon arrived as we defeated Back 3 – 2 in the 1962 final of the Stornoway Cup.
"I would say that was my proudest moment alongside our first league title the following year. We were a very young team and it was the start of a special time," said Donnie.
The success in the Stornoway Cup signalled the arrival of Mackenzie and the Aths team on the scene of Lewis football and over the next five years they won almost everything in sight and became the most successful and greatest side in the history of the club.
The following season their first league title arrived as the pendulum of power swung firmly in Aths direction at the expense of their Stornoway rivals United, who had been in the midst of a glory run themselves of some five league titles on the trot.
Aths title win prevented United's sixth and announced a new top dog in town.
Donnie said: "In 1964 we won a treble of the League, Stornoway Cup and Spring Cup. We were really on the top of our game at this point and between two seasons 1964 and 1965 we scored 219 league goals and only conceded 37.
"That doesn't even include cup goals so that shows how strong we were at this time, averaging something like six goals per game."
In 1965 a titanic battle was waged between the clubs' two top strikers as Kenny 'Bobbans' Macdonald and John Robertson scored almost at will in the battle to take the club top scorers award. At the end of another glorious campaign for the Stornoway club, 'Bobbans' had bulged the net an incredible 45 times, while Robertson's 44 ensured bragging rights for 'Bobbans' for another season at least.
"Bobbans was also a brilliant striker and he could finish from anywhere and regularly blasted in from 30 yards.
"Robertson was absolutely lethal in the box and a brilliant header of the ball. I think he could head it as hard as I could kick it. He had the ability to hang in the air and I remember one game in particular where he demonstrated his heading ability.
"We were playing either a cup final or a cup semi-final against Point. We beat them 7 – 0 and John scored all seven and at least five of them were with his head, although all seven could have been, I'm not too sure.
"Bobbans also had the knack of scoring important goals and imagine another game I remember was in 1966 when we were going for the treble. We were playing Lochs and the first game had finished 2 – 2. The replay was heading to the same score and result when Bobbans scored twice for us to seal a 4 – 2 win.
"Lochs were very hard to beat at that time and we had some titanic clashes with them. They had great players in Iain Macdonald, Rob Macdonald, D Matheson, Rob Macleod, John 'Chuck' Macleod and Kenny Macsween. They really were a good team and our biggest challengers, although we always seemed to pip them for the league. Point and Back were also very strong at the time.
"One of my most difficult opponents was a Lochie and I always had a difficult game against 'Dooey' Mackinnon. He was always hard to mark as I don't think he knew himself what he was going to do. We always had some good tussles," revealed Donnie.
Aths won another treble in 1966 as they took the league, Lewis Cup and Spring Cup.
"I think we won five things in total if you include the 5-a-sides and goal scorer's cup," added Donnie with a smile.
Aths missed the league in 1967 but it proved to be a temporary hiccup as they returned to the top of the football mountain in 1968 and 1969. The last cup they won with those players was the Lewis Cup in 1971.
With the Eilean an Fhraoich Cup restricted to country sides it was inevitable that a player of Donnie's calibre would be drafted in by another club and Donnie contested EAF finals in the Red of Point and the Maroon of Lochs during his time.
"It always depended on who asked me first and I played in three finals in a row in the 60s. I was with Point in 1965 and 1966 and with Lochs in 1971.
"In the 1965 final we hammered Lochs 7 – 0 and Kenny 'Bobbans' scored five of them.
"I also played a few times for the Lewis Select and I remember playing against the Royal Navy in 1963. We beat them 5 – 1 and I think there were five of the Aths team in the Select that night. Myself, Kenny 'Bobbans, John Robertson, Tom Mackenzie and Norrie 'Eggs' Mackenzie.
"Alongside some of the older players like Geordie Macarthur of United and Lochs' Alasdair 'Stobbie' Morrison we did well.
"A year late we played a Ross County and Inverness Caley Select at the old Telford Street Park in Inverness. It was the first time I had played under floodlights and it did take a bit of getting used to.
"Sometimes we would lose the ball in the glare of the lights and it took us probably until half-time to get used to it. I think by that time we were 4 – 0 down and the final score was 8 – 2 although that didn't reflect the second-half at all. John Robertson scored both our goals that night.
"In 1965 we played Caley twice inside a week and it started poorly for us when we lost 6 – 1. However it was a very different game two days later when we met them again. We lost again but this time it was only 2 – 1. They didn't score their first goal until an hour or so and we only lost by a deflected goal which sneaked in.
"We should have scored a few more ourselves as John Robertson missed a great chance and Calum Finlayson of Point clipped the crossbar as well.
"We always played well against teams of a high standard and in 1966 we played Aberdeen Sunnybank at Goathill. That team had some players who went on to great things like Dennis Bruce who captained Arbroath, Barry Mitchell of both Aberdeen and Dunfermline and Bobby Livingstone who went on to Hearts.
"We beat them 4 – 3 with Robertson grabbing a hat-trick for us."
As well as putting the shackles on wingers and forwards throughout the highlands and islands, Donnie also enjoyed testing himself against some of Rangers finest during the carnival.
"Some of my favourite memories are of playing against some Rangers players who were in the isles for the Carnival. I remember playing against Willie Henderson, Kai Johansen and George Maclean and that was great.
"I finished playing in 1973 because my wife kept hiding my boots," joked Donnie. "No seriously, I had a bad ankle which brought my career to an end."