2016/17 was Celtic’s “Invincible” season under new Manager Brendan Rodgers who combined tactical awareness with total (apparently) commitment to the club. We would eventually be disillusioned in the latter, but this was not yet obvious in 2017.
The first game after the hated winter shutdown saw Celtic in the Scottish Cup against Albion Rovers in a game that was shifted from Cliftonhill to Airdrie. Celtic won comfortably 3-0, and then on February 11, a few old scores were paid back when Inverness Caledonian Thistle were given a good old-fashioned 6-0 drubbing before St Mirren were similarly disposed of 4-1 a month later.
Then with the SPL well won, and the Scottish League Cup also on the sideboard, Celtic met Rangers again in the Scottish Cup semi-final on April 23. There was no penalty shoot-out this year and although the score was only 2-0 with a goal from Callum McGregor and a penalty from Scott Sinclair, the victory was easy and at least two Rangers players might have, with justice, been red carded by referee Willie Collum. Not that it really mattered, for Celtic were comfortably in the final to meet Aberdeen.
The Scottish Cup Final on May 27 2017 was one of the best. It was played on a stifling hot day with thunderstorms going on all round the stadium – but no-one really noticed. Aberdeen were not a bad team in 2017, but Celtic were better. Jonny Hayes, then playing for Aberdeen, scored first but Stuart Armstrong equalised soon after. Kieran Tierney, who had had an outstanding season, was then taken off with a broken jaw after a collision which might have been accidental, but then again, maybe wasn’t.
Then at the end of an exciting second half in which Celtic were always marginally, but never overwhelmingly, on top, Tom Rogic ran through and scored an epic goal. (We were told later that a ferocious thunderstorm was in progress at the time, but no-one noticed or cared!).
The Celtic half of the stadium erupted in joy, and Celtic then held out against a late, spirited Aberdeen assault. The Cup had been won for the 37th time and full marks to Gordon, Lustig, Simunovic, Boyata, Tierney (Rogic), McGregor, Brown, Armstrong, Roberts (Sviatchenko), Griffiths and Sinclair for winning Celtic’s first treble since 2001. How nice it was to see Kieran Tierney back to enjoy the celebrations after his visit to the hospital! Broken jaw or not, Kieran was, at this stage at least, a real Celt.
Andrew Milne started More than 90 Minutes in 2001. He has written for numerous publications and online about Celtic. He is a former newspaper columnist with the Daily Ireland and the man behind celticfanzine.com. He is host of the Celtic Soul Podcast & Celtic AM pre-match events at Malone’s in Glasgow on match days and follows Celtic Home & Away. He is a season ticket holder for Celtic FC and the Republic of Ireland. He is also P.R.O. of St. Margaret’s CSC, a member of the Celtic Trust and the Celtic Graves Association.
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Celtic PLC has opted for a £50 voucher offer while keeping the same price as last year for the new season, which will add a cost to the club unlike the shares proposal which would have cost the club nothing.
Celtic Soul Podcast Episode 71 The Celtic Trust SpecialThanks to ACSOM for hosting the Celtic Trust Questions & Answers session with members of the Celtic Independent Fan Media getting the chance to ask questions for their readers and listeners in a live forum and it also gave Celtic fans tuned in a chance ask questions.
On the Night Paul from Celtic Shared who many fans will know from his tireless with FAC also joined the panel to answer questions along with The Celtic Trust members. The event took place before Celtic PLC decided against opting to go with the Celtic Trust proposal for Celtic Shares to be issued to season books holders as an added value to the virtual season book and digital programs.
Celtic PLC has opted for a £50 voucher offer while keeping the same price as last year for the new season, which will add a cost to the club unlike the shares proposal which would have cost the club nothing. The discussion is worth a listen and will answer some questions on the gap that exists between the board and the Celtic support.
Andrew Milne started More than 90 Minutes in 2001. He has written for numerous publications and online about Celtic. He is a former newspaper columnist with the Daily Ireland and the man behind celticfanzine.com. He is host of the Celtic Soul Podcast & Celtic AM pre-match events at Malone’s in Glasgow on match days and follows Celtic Home & Away. He is a season ticket holder for Celtic FC and the Republic of Ireland. He is also P.R.O. of St. Margaret’s CSC, a member of the Celtic Trust and the Celtic Graves Association.
Thank you for reading, listening and watching our FREE Content. We don’t have any Paywalls or Patreon. We are funded by Celtic Minded Business, Celtic Supporters Clubs and Indivdual Celtic Fans
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Thank you for reading, listening and watching our FREE Content. We don’t have any Paywalls or Patreon. We are funded by Celtic Minded Business, Celtic Supporters Clubs and Indivdual Celtic Fans
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Yesterday at midday Celtic announced that season book tickets for the upcoming season would be frozen at the same price as last season and that each season ticket holder would get a £50 voucher for the Celtic Superstore as an added value for last season when nobody was allowed to sit in their seat or stand in the standing section due to the ongoing restrictions caused by the Covid19 Pandemic and we became virtual fans.
Like Mainstream Media and Independent Celtic Fan Media we here at More than 90 Minutes were made aware of the launch of the season book renewals about an hour or so before it was announced but the news we were really expecting was the announcement of the new Celtic manager.
The announcement also came the morning after the Celtic Trust had announced that their proposal to the board for season book added value to be given to season ticket holders in the form of shares which would not cost the club anything in cash which would be needed to bolster the squad for next seasons challenges and it would also be seen as a good will gesture towards the fans.
The Celtic Trust was the only proposal that we are aware of that was made to Celtic and backed publicly by some supporters groups while others remained on the side lines. As a member of the Celtic Trust I thought that the proposal was a very forward thinking idea and one that would go some way to close the gap between the board of directors and the fans which grew wider with each passing week during last season but now we know that Celtic fanbase will remain customers in the eyes of the current board members.
Not everyone agreed with the Celtic Trust proposal and they may be happy with the voucher and the season book price being frozen. All opinions on season books should be respected if you agree with them or not it is now an individual choice for each supporter to make if they decide to renew their season book or not for the upcoming season.
I like every other fan hope that the vaccine will be the game changer that sees us back in Celtic Park because like so many I will be renewing my season book and those running the club know that our emotional attachment to the club is so great that we want to get back supporting the team as soon as possible. Not being able to travel to Celtic Park and to away games has left a massive void in our lives over the past year.
The millions of pounds we plough into supporting the team collectively each season through season books, merchandise, matchday sales etc. is the life blood of Celtic and the cash flow that keeps the club on a successful path, sure the corporate sponsorship is a vital income also but they come and go but the support remains but yet again the support continues to be divided over the season books.
On social media you can read the disgust felt by some fans who feel let down once again by the club after the season from hell but there are also fans who are saying buy your season book or let someone else buy it. Celtic fans come from a broad church from many backgrounds and cultures for some it’s just about the football, for others the history and social aspect of the community it represents and for others it may be about something else but we all share one common goal to see Celtic do well.
Three factors brought Celtic Park back to capacity when time was called on Ronnie Delia successful tenure as Celtic manager. The appointment of a quality manager in Brendan Rodgers, Champions League Nights and the Rangers winning promotion to the SPFL. We all expect Eddie Howe to be unveiled as Celtic manager at some stage soon, Will that be enough along with Celtic fans longing to return to Paradise but still uncertain when, who and how many will be allowed in are questions no one can answer and with no road map yet announced for a return to capacity crowds to football grounds in Scotland, fans may decide to hold out in the short term. On top of that the Champions League non champions route will be a very tough ask for the new manager. Time will tell.
Some Celtic fans have had a tough year, they may have found themselves unemployed and relying on food banks to feed their family so renewing a season book will not be high on their priority list. Others may decide enough is enough, this is not the club I fell in love with, its more for the suits and shareholders and those who drink fine wines rather than Bovril on a match day or maybe they have taken up a new hobby during lockdown, maybe the weekend will now be more about family than football.
If a positive comes out of this maybe it will be that The Celtic Trust membership continues to grow and gets bigger and with each and every member comes more shares and with more shares comes the day that Celtic fans can finally have a say on the running of OUR great club and question those in charge because at the moment we may have a new CEO but the same old board remains.
Andrew Milne started More than 90 Minutes in 2001. He has written for numerous publications and online about Celtic. He is a former newspaper columnist with the Daily Ireland and the man behind celticfanzine.com. He is host of the Celtic Soul Podcast & Celtic AM pre-match events at Malone’s in Glasgow on match days and follows Celtic Home & Away. He is a season ticket holder for Celtic FC and the Republic of Ireland. He is also P.R.O. of St. Margaret’s CSC, a member of the Celtic Trust and the Celtic Graves Association.
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So much was wrote, read and spoken about yesterday about that famous day on May 25th 1967 when Celtic became the kings of Europe. Who knew back then that they would build statues to honour these heroes. They would be remembered in story and song and that so many fans would get a picture with their heroes, some would enjoy a pint with them, while others would enjoy them talking about that night and the great careers they had at supporters functions around the World.
Yesterday from early morning social media has been a pleasure to flick through with so many great pictures, videos and short stories posted and even the words of some songs lyrics making it on to twitter which was a nice distraction from the constant 24/7 Eddie Howe rumours and half truths as we wait for the new manager to follow in the great Jock Stein who guided that Celtic team to victory in the heat of Lisbon as the song goes.
The new manager will also follow in the footsteps of our fantastic captain on that night Billy McNeill who would go to manage the club he loved twice. I was not born in 1967 but I have had the pleasure to interview many of the players from that famous Lisbon squad. Some were heroes on the day and some were unlucky not to play in the game because of injury or Jock just didn’t fancy them for that particular 90 minutes. To me they are all heroes and were always willing to sit down and chat with me over the years about the Lisbon experience and the careers they had at Celtic.
When I started More than 90 Minutes almost 20 years ago the plan was to tell the journey the team takes us on. The highs and lows through the eyes of the fans, not the mainstream media or even the players but you and me. I remember Alan Thompson telling me about the players road to Seville, amazing as it must have been to be one of the stars of the show that season pulling on the hoops week in week out. I still found myself searching for the fans stories.
Tommy Stevenson was a young Celtic fan of 16 or 17 years of age when he travelled by plane to Lisbon, a stadium he has revisited on occasion and always gets emotional as he thinks back and he did indeed get emotional when I interviewed him in Malones at a pre-match Celtic AM. He was tearful that day as he relived the trip and the emotions felt when the goals went in and when the final whistle sounded. Tommy is like so many who revelled in that away day for ever more.
The first time I met Billy McNeill he was manager of Manchester City, I was in Manchester to box as a teenager. At this stage of my youth I wasn’t a Celtic supporter but it was Coventry City who I supported, not sure why maybe it was because The Specials, one of my favourite bands hailed from there.
Anyway we went to Old Trafford as the boxing team head coach, Christy was a big Man United fan, they let us into the stadium for a look around and then we went into the club shop which was nothing to what superstores we see at grounds these days are . In the small shop a Celtic Flat Cap caught my eye with the crest covering the top of it in green and white and as everything else in the shop was Red as you would expect. I bought the cap as it matched our Green, White and Gold team tracksuits.
We then went to Main Road for a look around, while there they gave us the nod to go to the training ground to see the team train while there we met Billy McNeill and I think Mick McCarthy if memory serves me correct.
Roll on a few years and I am in Glasgow for the first time, again to box on a show, a little older, heavier and the punches seem to hurt a little more but this time we get to go to Celtic Park on the morning of the cup game with Dumbarton, we were invited in by an elderly doorman and shown around the stadium and even allowed into the dressing room where the players kits awaited them. On the way out we once again met Billy McNeill and Mick McCarty. Little did I know back then I would return so often to a city my mother calls your second home.
And little did I know that many years later I would be picking up Billy McNeill and Tommy Gemmell in Dublin airport and sharing a studio with them and my pal, Hilly to talk Celtic on Irish radio. Billy is everything they say about him, I remember watching him in Las Vegas back in 2000 at the Celtic convention before the dinner dance in his Lions blazer looking so sharp as he posed for photo after photo, signed autographs and chatted to each and every fan who came up to shake his hand.
Tommy Gemmell was the first of the Lions I interviewed in the back of a shop in Newry back in 2001 and since then I have been lucky enough to chat to most of them including the sometimes forgotten ones John Fallon, John Hughes, Joe McBride, Charlie Gallagher and Willie O’Neill. You can still bump into Bobby Lennox and Bertie Auld on match days at Celtic Park.
In Sligo on the night before the unveiling of the Brother Walfrid monument I also had the pleasure of meeting Bobby Lennox, Stevie Chalmers and Sean Fallon. I just happen to be staying in the same hotel as them, a stroke of luck and an honour to listen to them talk about that famous night.
Jim Craig surprised me when I interviewed him at Celtic AM in Malones when he spoke not just about his career but of the Celts for Change and the takeover of the club by Fergus and the rebels. I never got to interview John Clarke but was lucky enough to chat to him at the AISCSC dinner in Dublin. I asked him why he never wrote a book, he said it might upset people!
I only got to meet Bobby Murdoch briefly back in Las Vegas in 2000 and sadly I never got to meet wee Jinky but I had the pleasure of interviewing his lovely wife Agnes and I don’t ever recall chatting to Ronnie Simpson which leaves I think only Willie Wallace who I finally got to meet in Las Vegas at the last convention thanks to Jim Reilly from Sydney City CSC for inviting me into their cabana to meet another Lisbon Legend legend.
Some people say you should never meet your heroes but they must have never met the Lisbon Lions.
Andrew Milne started More than 90 Minutes in 2001. He has written for numerous publications and online about Celtic. He is a former newspaper columnist with the Daily Ireland and the man behind celticfanzine.com. He is host of the Celtic Soul Podcast & Celtic AM pre-match events at Malone’s in Glasgow on match days and follows Celtic Home & Away. He is a season ticket holder for Celtic FC and the Republic of Ireland. He is also P.R.O. of St. Margaret’s CSC, a member of the Celtic Trust and the Celtic Graves Association.
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It now appears that Eddie Howe will be the next manager of Celtic. After much speculation it seems that the Englishman who looks like he should be a member of a boy band will be in the hot seat this season.
If that’s true it is an excellent appointment. Howe was hugely successful with Bournemouth. It has to be said at this point that there is no magic formula in the appointment of a new manager. Take the example of Stephen Kenny, the manager of the Irish team, for example. Kenny was very successful as manager of Dundalk and of the under 21 Irish team and most followers of the Irish team are expecting this success to continue with the senior team. However, this has yet to happen and while things may change for the better, the signs are not particularly encouraging at present.
The point I’m making here is that the appointment of a new manager does not come with a warranty as if you were buying a new car. Having said that, Eddie Howe did brilliant work with Bournemouth, taking the team from the fourth tier [or League 2 as it’s called] to the premiership. This is a fantastic achievement, almost incredible, and is proof of his effectiveness as a manager. This would be outside the capabilities of most managers in England, and not only that but he kept Bournemouth in the premiership for five seasons. This would be a first rate appointment.
I must confess that I was a little bit worried when Roy Keane’s name came up in the context of this position when you consider that he last managed ten years ago. He didn’t do very well as manager. He was also the assistant manager to the Irish team and did little except fight with some of the players. He does not have the necessary skill set to be a successful manager and should stick to TV punditry.
Thankfully, it now seems that Keane will not be coming to Celtic Park and that it will be Howe instead. Of course other names were associated with the appointment., such as Chris Wilder, Enzo Maresco and Frank Lampard. However, I feel that the appointment of Howe trumps any of these. Howe has a level of experience and success that the others lack.
Of course there will be a number of changes taking place at Celtic Park in the near future, with a new Chief Executive in the form of Dominic McKay, coming in as successor to Peter Lawwell and a new appointment as Director of Football. A new name has been mentioned in this context in the light of Howe’s impending appointment, that is Richard Hughes.
Hughes worked with Howe when he was with Bournemouth and it seems that they worked well together at that time. It appears at this point that this is slowing down the confirmation of Howe as manager and although Howe has made a verbal agreement with Celtic to take the reigns, no written contract has yet been signed. It is important that the manger relates well to the Director of Football so that agreement can be reached as regards the signing of new players and so forth.
It also appears that Hughes has a comprehensive knowledge of Scottish football in that he himself is a Scot and played for Scotland. He also has playing experience in Italy and England. I hope that Hughes will be more successful as regards the signing of new players than Nick Hammond, who is also left the club, and who was responsible for the signing of players who were nowhere near the mark, and for wasteful expenditure of millions of pounds.
The role of Director of Football will be crucial from the perspective of recruitment of players when you consider the amount of players predicted to leave Celtic Park in the near future, those such as Ajer, Christie and Edouard, not to mention those players on loan such as Kenny, Elyounoussi, Laxalt and Duffy all returned to their parent clubs.
The priority, however, has to be a new goalkeeper. It seems that neither Barkas, Bain nor Hazard are of the standard required to be the first choice keeper with Celtic and a new keeper has to be signed as a matter of urgency. Similarly a new centre-half must be found and in this regard I hear that Celtic are interested in re-signing Filip Benkovic on loan.
I believe that midfield is strong with Soro, McGregor and Turnbull and it was great to see James Forrest back in action and ready for the new season. However, up front, I believe that Klimala’s move to the USA was a good move for all parties and Ajeti should be moved on as his not of the required standard.
It will be necessary to sign replacements for the above-named players. Maybe there is a possibility that Marian Shved could return to Celtic Park. He is still a Celtic player and playing well in Belgium. He had difficulties in Scotland and there was a language barrier [and in my opinion proficiency in English should not be a requirement in order to be a Celtic player] and it might be possible for Eddie Howe to get the best out of him and to facilitate him becoming the player we know he can be. Similarly, Jack Hendry is also playing well in Belgium.
As regards Howe himself, some commentators have suggested that he will face fresh challenges as manager of Celtic. Clearly, there will be problems that he did not encounter with Bournemouth, i.e. the expectation that exists at Celtic Park that every game must be won, something that is not of course present at Bournemouth, and it will be interesting to see the way in which Howe deals wit this pressure. I believe that Howe will be well able to deal with this. When you think of it, he was once mentioned as a possible manager of England. He is therefore a first class manager.
I’m looking forward to the managerial competition between him and Steven Gerrard. Clearly, Gerrard is a hugely effective manager, with the probability that he will be the next manager of Liverpool, but maybe now he will meet his match and we will find out just how good he is. This depends, of course, on how successful Celtic are in bringing in new players of the appropriate standard shortly.
I’m hopeful that Eddie Howe [and Richard Hughes and Dominic McKay] will be successful and that Celtic will take their place once more at the top of the table in the new season. I expect normal service to be resumed.
Tim Molloy lives in Drogheda with his wife of 35 years and with (on occasions) his three grown up children. He is a life-long Celtic supporter and an Irish language enthusiast. He also speaks some Spanish and French and a few words of Polish and Czech. He also follows the fortunes of the Munster rugby team.He is a law graduate of London University and is a High Court Registrar. Other than an interest in all things Celtic, he is long time observer of the League of Ireland. His other hobbies include walking, cycling and he is a member of St. Peter’s Male Voice Choir in Drogheda.
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Celtic Football Club Historian and Author David Potter joins Andrew Milne to chat about Celtic’s Cult Heroes. David wrote the book by the same name and the bhoys discuss the players who make it into the book including Dan Doyle, Charlie Tully, John Hughes, Charlie Nicholas, Henrik Larsson and many more.
Born in 1948, David Potter first saw Celtic at Dens Park, Dundee in March 29. It was a 3-5 defeat, which equipped him admirably for the horrors of the early 1960’s. He had “followed” Celtic for a few years before that and recalls having been called upon to impersonate Jock Stein and receive the family silver teapot which had to do for the Scottish Cup as it was presented on April 24 1954, after he and his father had spent a nerve wracking afternoon listening to the radio! Since then, he has “followed” every Celtic game with bated breath, and has written extensively about the club in magazines and books. His favorite team was that of 1969 (which he rates marginally better than 1967) and his favorite player was Henrik Larsson.
His ambition for Celtic is for them to keep on winning silver in Scotland and to be something in Europe once again. His other interests are cricket and drama. He is 70, a retired teacher of Classical Languages, married with three children and five grandchildren. He now travels on the Joseph Rafferty bus from Kirkcaldy. He also loves Forfar Athletic.
Andrew Milne started More than 90 Minutes in 2001. He has written for numerous publications and online about Celtic. He is a former newspaper columnist with the Daily Ireland and the man behind celticfanzine.com. He is host of the Celtic Soul Podcast & Celtic AM pre-match events at Malone’s in Glasgow on match days and follows Celtic Home & Away. He is a season ticket holder for Celtic FC and the Republic of Ireland. He is also P.R.O. of St. Margaret’s CSC, a member of the Celtic Trust and the Celtic Graves Association.
Thank you for reading, listening and watching our FREE Content. We don’t have any Paywalls or Patreon. We are funded by Celtic Minded Business, Celtic Supporters Clubs and Indivdual Celtic Fans
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RONNIE SIMPSON – (1930 – 2004) – a truly remarkable career! Ronnie was the son of Jimmy Simpson of Rangers, and played for Queen’s Park, Third Lanark, Newcastle United (winning two Cup medals) before returning to Hibs to play out as he thought the last few years of his career. Suddenly in 1964 Celtic needed a reserve goalkeeper and Ronnie was transferred to Celtic, with the Manager of Hibs, Jock Stein, by no means unhappy to see him go. But then John Fallon had a poor run of form and Ronnie suddenly found himself in the first team – and the rest is history. He even earned a few Scotland caps including the famous 1967 3-2 win at Wembley.
JIM CRAIG – (1943) – still the only dentist to have won a European Cup medal! Jim studied dentistry at Glasgow University while playing for Celtic and graduated in 1966. A solid right back, and a very interesting character with an interest on other sports, his son having played for Scotland at rugby. He left for South Africa in 1972, but now lives in Perthshire, married to Elizabeth Farrell, daughter of Celtic Director, the late James Farrell. Always willing to appear at supporters’ functions etc.
TOMMY GEMMELL – (1943 – 2017) – a larger than life character who was never out of the news one way or another, but his clowning and attention seeking must not distract from the fact that he was a very fine left back who of course scored the famous equalising goal in Lisbon. He also scored in the 1970 European Cup final. His relationship with Jock Stein was never great, but the two never lost respect for each other, and he was a vital part of the team. He later went to Dundee as a player and as a manager, but when his career was over, he was frequently seen at Celtic Park. He lived in Dunblane.
BOBBY MURDOCH – (1944 – 2001) – arguably the best player in the team, but he only became a world class right half when Jock Stein moved him there after he had been an ordinary inside forward in the disappointing Celtic team of the early 1960s. He struggled with weight problems for a spell, and a bad ankle injury and finished his career with Middlesbrough. One of the greatest players of them all.
BILLY McNEILL- (1940 – 2019) – centre half and captain and rightly idolised by the support with that great statue of him outside Celtic Park. His contribution to the club will possibly never be surpassed by anyone, neither as a player nor a Manager. His record speaks for itself. Like every other member of that team, he remained to the end of his life a very humble man.
JOHN CLARK – (1941) – often described as “John the Brush” for his role as sweeper. A very reliable and loyal member of the team. In later years he was the kit man at Celtic Park, a job he performed with efficiency and care. Often known as the quiet man, but his knowledge of football was second to none.
JIMMY JOHNSTONE – (1944 – 2006) – undeniably one of the best ball players and dribblers of all time, Jimmy sadly died of MND in 2006. He was not without his temperamental problems, and earned one or two suspensions from both the SFA and Celtic themselves when his enthusiasm got out of hand. A very lovable character who had a complex relationship with Manager Jock Stein. “He wisnae daft, but occasionally he did daft things” is a good summing up of wee Jimmy.
WILLIE WALLACE – (1940) – a fine goal scorer who arrived at Celtic in December 1966 from Hearts, having played for Stenhousemuir and Raith Rovers before that. A great eye for a goal, and his two goals in the 1967 Scottish Cup final against Aberdeen will live long in the memory. Now lives in Australia, but remembered with fondness by Celtic players everywhere.
STEVE CHALMERS – (1935 – 2019) – a man who overcame illness and disgraceful abuse in the early part of his career from some so called supporters to score the winning goal at Lisbon. Speedy and determined, Stevie deserves all the praise that he gets, for in addition to everything else, he was a total gentleman. A great golfer as well.
BOBBY LENNOX – (1943) – the buzz bomb, with a tremendous turn of speed, the second most prolific goal scorer in the club’s history after Jimmy McGrory. He did not get the credit for all the goals he scored, for he was frequently flagged for offside by a linesman who could not believe how quick he really was. A great, cheerful character and much loved by the Celtic support.
BERTIE AULD – (1938) – a great Glasgow character with all the patter and charm that one would expect from someone from Maryhill. Intensely popular with supporters, and possibly the “engine room” of the team with tremendous passing ability. Tough as nails and never likely to be bossed about, his contribution and commitment to the club remains as strong as ever. Frequently seen at games with the rest of the fans.
And a big shout-out to the reserves, John Fallon, Ian Young, Willie O’Neill, John Cushley, John Hughes and Charlie Gallagher. Sadly Young, O’Neill and Cushley have passed on, but the other three are still with us.
Born in 1948, David Potter first saw Celtic at Dens Park, Dundee in March 29. It was a 3-5 defeat, which equipped him admirably for the horrors of the early 1960’s. He had “followed” Celtic for a few years before that and recalls having been called upon to impersonate Jock Stein and receive the family silver teapot which had to do for the Scottish Cup as it was presented on April 24 1954, after he and his father had spent a nerve wracking afternoon listening to the radio! Since then, he has “followed” every Celtic game with bated breath, and has written extensively about the club in magazines and books. His favorite team was that of 1969 (which he rates marginally better than 1967) and his favorite player was Henrik Larsson.
His ambition for Celtic is for them to keep on winning silver in Scotland and to be something in Europe once again. His other interests are cricket and drama. He is 70, a retired teacher of Classical Languages, married with three children and five grandchildren. He now travels on the Joseph Rafferty bus from Kirkcaldy. He also loves Forfar Athletic.
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