An incredible night in Celtic Park under the lights on February 2nd 2022 had every Celtic fan filled with excitement and expectation for what most believed was the beginning of something special. After a blistering first half which saw Celtic take a 3–0 lead into the break, Celtic Park was absolutely rocking and by the end of the night most Celtic fans believed they had just experienced an old-school classic — a game that will be recalled to the grandchildren.
Something that really stood out that night for me was former Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou’s post-match comments. While every Celtic fan was jumping for joy, the manager said this:
“We had 60,000 in here. I’m sure a lot walked in with some problems in their lives and for 95 minutes we made them forget that and feel good — and that’s something special.”
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Why this stood out to me was so simple and yet so complicated at the same time, because the conversation around mental health is a tough one. I mean, it’s OK to use the tagline “it’s OK not to be OK”, but I speak from experience when I say that “not being OK” is a brutal battle to try to navigate every day.
In recent times we have seen that conversation more front and centre. Tom Rogic’s incredible retirement statement, where we were all reminded that these players are human beings too, is a powerful example of how the mental health conversation is so deep and invisible to most. Without exactly telling the fan base the in-depth details of his private life, Tom said in his Instagram post:
“Throughout the past seven years my wife and I have been on an immensely challenging journey with fertility issues.”
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To put that into perspective, when Tom Rogic was scoring the last-minute goal to secure an Invincible Treble, he was likely dealing with some extremely stressful and emotionally draining personal circumstances that we, the fans, never knew about.
On the 10th of February 2024 my youngest daughter Penny, who was born with a rare genetic disorder, passed away aged 10. I’ve dealt with grief in the past with the sudden deaths of both my parents, and a divorce which crippled me emotionally and financially. However, nothing even comes close to the day I held Penny’s hand as she took her last breaths.
It is an image that is engraved on my mind in a way that never rests. It’s there when I try to fall asleep at night, when I get up and go to work, or when I’m standing in a stadium full of Celtic fans. The grief can hit like a bullet train and there is absolutely zero respite from it. It is relentless.
Outside my immediate family and friends, who have given myself and my daughter Lucy unwavering support, what has helped me on a level that is hard to put into words is the Naomh Pádraig Chariot — or as I call it, “the men’s shed on wheels”. A group of Celtic fans getting together and travelling extreme hours for sometimes poor performances makes absolutely no sense. It’s something I’m doing coming up to 30 years now, and yet I still love it.
The members of the club collectively put their arm around me in a way that only the Celtic family can do. Nobody will ever know what it was like to head for the Chariot for my first trip back after losing Penny, but the lads on the bus that day were so good to me. I owe them more than they know and I’m extremely grateful to them all.
The utter madness that is the Chariot can be best explained by a trip we took in January 2025 to watch Celtic v Dundee. We left Dublin at midnight, got to Celtic Park at 8am, and the game was called off after poor weather had damaged the stadium roof. We waited around in the freezing cold until 5pm before setting off for home — no football seen at all, and yet it was an absolutely fantastic trip. We sat in the Forge Shopping Centre drinking coffee and reminiscing about days gone by, and it was brilliant.
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What stood out to me was that I never sit and drink coffees with my mates. It’s something I’ve always thought women are fantastic at doing — they get together, talk their stuff out, and go about the rest of their day. Men tend not to do that. We bottle things up, and that comes from a generation where we were told that “this is what men do”.
In October 2024, after severely struggling with my daughter’s passing, I began counselling with LauraLynn Children’s Hospice. LauraLynn had provided respite care to Penny during her far too short life, and I always loved going there. The friendly staff providing such love and care to extremely sick children is so powerful to witness. The dignity they show these children is something that should be commended. These are real-life heroes.
The support since her passing has been nothing short of incredible. They presented me with some handmade gifts Penny had made before her passing — gifts I didn’t know they had made with her. Even as I write this I find myself emotional just remembering the day they called to my home with them. Now they are my greatest possessions, and I cannot thank the staff of LauraLynn enough for the impact all this has had on me.
On March 8th just gone, Penny should have turned 13 — a day which should have been a celebration but is now a day of crippling sadness.
After forcing myself to the game that day, I stood in Ibrox for the quarter-finals of the cup — 120 minutes of football with almost nothing to discuss at the end of it. Several moments during the game I found myself fighting the emotions of her birthday while trying to keep it together, looking to the sky and questioning whether I was mad altogether being there when I felt like this.
Then came the euphoria of winning the penalty shootout. The songs, the chants and the atmosphere were incredible. I found myself completely lost in the moment, jumping around like young kids while trying to avoid the bottles and seats that were being thrown towards us.
On the way back on the Dennistoun bus all I could think about was Ange’s statement. Celtic had allowed me to forget — even just for a few minutes — the woes of the day.
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I wanted to give something back to LauraLynn as a thank you for their incredible support. To try to use all the pain and sadness to create something positive.
So for all the reasons above, and with the help of my own club, the Naomh Pádraig CSC committee have supported me as I have arranged that on the 30th of May we will be climbing Djouce Mountain in Wicklow in an attempt to raise as much funds as possible for a charity that has been an incredible support to my family and to countless families around Ireland.
All Celtic fans are welcome to join. Afterwards we will be heading back to the Ardlea Inn in Artane where there will be prizes raffled off, followed by live music and some finger food.
In other words — a great Celtic day out in aid of a children’s hospice.
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