I did misspell or mistype his name. My apologies.

I met my love by the gasworks croft
Dreamed a dream by the old canal
Kissed my girl by the factory wall
Dirty old town, dirty old town.

That is the accepted first verse as written by Ewan and sung by everyone I know. The remainder of the song is notable for not having any rhyming lines. Having gasworks wall and factory wall ending lines in the same verse is both against that principle and pretty poor writing. Something MacColl is not guilty of.

Feel free to carry on with your pedantry and insisting that you are right. I shall not be taking any notice.