Daizen Maeda, Yang, Benjamin Nygren, James Forrest, Michel-Ange Balikwisha – a collection of souls who have filled in wide right for Celtic this season, have I missed any? Possibly, amid so much churn.
Behind them, we’ve had Alistair Johnston (before injury), Anthony Ralston (before injury) and Colby Donovan (before injury). If you watch Celtic, you’ll notice how left-sided we are. Little wonder. There has been no opportunity to build partnerships on the right.
Such are the vagaries of football. Alistair’s comments about being on-track for an early return are welcome, but it will be another month before we see anything like a product partnership on the right.
This makes us more predictable, opponents will focus increasingly on Sebastian Tounekti. Big tests lie ahead before the shape of the team looks balanced.
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https://www.irishnews.com/sport/soccer/our-whole-irish-identity-was-expressed-through-our-love-of-celtic-hoops-veteran-tony-mcshane-recalls-that-night-in-lisbon-57AG5BKTBVAUTL7HYXJN3YU7XM/
Worth a wee read.
TET
Great to see you posting!
Best wishes to you and your good lady!
TET
You take care and hope Mrs TET is fighting fit soon 🙏
Great to hear from TET from his hun free valley – always envied TET for that! Keep well, the both of you, and carry on your good works.
Wow, so many kind words, kinda blown away if the truth be known.
Glad to be back and Mrs TET thanks you all.
Aye the world sure is a changin so it is.
At least the hun free mountain valley is still a hun free mountain valley and I thank the Lord for that >:)
There is an article on CQN discussing the possibility of Celtic signing a £20m striker in the January window. Written by a gentleman called Tom Murphy that I don’t know. However my reason for the post is to ask whether there are any Celtic supporters who would believe this? Particularly based upon the notes from the meeting with the board last week. Those ladies are not for turning.
Timmy
20million what, wont be pounds under this board, like you the same punts will continue in the market although these are costing more. The article is about an unnamed player from an unnamed league with all the big teams in Europe after him, a Red or Grey article.
An Dun @9.03am
Many thanks for posting that piece from the Irishnews. It produced a quick surge down memory lane for me. I grew up in the Gorbals in the 1950’s remember the scenes when Celtic won the Scottish Cup ( my Dad didn’t take me to the game in 1954 ) and then attended a series of Cup Final losses till 1965. The one shining spot was my big brother taking me to Hampden on a bright sunny Autumn day in 1957 for the League Cup Final. Never to be forgotten experience even to this day . Celtic 7 Rangers 1. I was down at the very front of the Celtic end when Rangers scored to make the score 3-1 and can still recall the dread that we might yet throw it away. The walk back along Aitkenhead Road after the game and back down into the Gorbals still lives with me- the happiness of that community was something to behold.
Which takes me to the core of that Irishnews article. Throughout Scotland Celtic was considered an Irish club and the Irish in the West of Scotland shared that view. In my class at school a regular discussion would be who to support when the Republic played Scotland ( an early forerunner of the racist “:cricket test “). Jock Stein was a catalyst for change in that confusing environment. He wanted Celtic to be bigger than just a successful Scottish club and he wanted to widen its support base. Like the author of that story I too moved to financial services in London however retain my season ticket and attend regularly. I have lived through the turmoil of the Kelly years , the ousting of the old Board and now observing the current discontent.
Celtic as a club has changed unimaginably from those post war years. Jock Stein single-handedly dragged Celtic into a better version of itself and attracted a broader support base. It’s probably hard to imagine for some people how Celtic thought of itself having to fight for its place in society and its support base being seen as second class citizens ( “ what school did you go to son “) . The change has been profound and Celtic are unquestionably top dogs in Scotland- that is a quite remarkable achievement . For me I hold dear Celtic history and particularly the people that came mostly from Donegal and faced into a hard ( prejudiced ) life. They built something very special and we owe it to them to remember that legacy and achievement.
Garcia Lorca,
While my forebears are mostly from Parkhead (one Granny was raised in Bridgeton), Celtic has always been a big part of life. I can’t really remember a time before me going to Celtic Park, except for deid team games. I partly listened to the 7-1 game in my Uncle Eddie’s house. (That was a DAY, no mistake.) Like you, I watched lose Cup finals and semi-finals; then there was 65 final. Imo, the most important game in Celtic’s modern history. Imo, we would never have had Lisbon if we had not won that day.
Parkheadcumsalford@11.01pm
Completely agree re the 1965 Scottish Cup Final win over Dunfermline ( a very good Dunfermline team ). It changed absolutely everything. To the current generation ,if we had to make a comparison, it was like Martin’s arrival and the 6-2 win over ( the old ) Rangers – only multiplied by a magnitude.
It felt like the world had changed . My Dad who was bus convenor for the Sarsfield Celtic Supporters Club in the Gorbals saw such a demand to attend our friendly match in August pre season after that win that the club ended up having 14 coaches packed out. We won 5-1 at Sunderland and everyone knew that Celtic had entered a special era. Jock essentially took a bunch of talented but inconsistent youngsters,added Willie Wallace and Ronny Simpson and went on to win the European Cup. Billy McNeil claimed there is something magical about Celtic. He wasn’t wrong.
Good afternoon CQN …
Just another week to go …
——-
lionroars67 on 11th October 2025 7:12 am
Ignoring the substance of the meeting looking to sow division then baiting posing as a “genuine question” is disingenuous
Contact Celtics supporter liaison officer he knows all of the meetings participants if you want to know minor details such as “who”
——-
Wow.
Respectfully, LR67 … on first reading that feels like a lot of baggage and projection.
Grateful for the response nonetheless.
On the substance bit – yip. As i had mentioned in a previous post, it might take me the weekend to go through 10 pages.
‘sow division’.
Your perception to own.
Not my motivation.
When it comes to representing that broad church that is the Celtic Fans? … You may indeed believe “who” is a minor detail.
We’ll just need to disagree on that one.
Transparency … and all that.
Garcia Lorca,
I was at that 5-1 Sunderland game. Big Yogi ha one of those games where he was unstoppable. We went down by train, as did the Celtic team. On the way back, I got Jock’s autograph on the platform.
My first final, taken to by my Donegal-born parents, was the St Mungo’s Cup in 1951 v Aberdeen. I was there two years later in 1953 when we won the Coronation Cup, and the following year a Scottish Cup and League double
Random memories of the 7-1 game.
My first sight of a Tricolour at any game – it had St Matthews Belfast on it
Celtic kicked into the Celtic end in the first half.
After the 7-1 game in the procession back to the Gorbals, Paddy Crerand (pre-Celtic ) then aged 18 waving a Tricolour as he was being carried on the shoulders of other supporters.
I remember too on that triumphant march, meeting and sharing my jubilation my with wee Ernie Hannigan from St Roch’s I think, ( who was to have good career down south) a team-mate of mine previously in a Glasgow Schools representative match -I was pupil of Holyrood at the time. (I recognise similarities here Garcia Lorca) We drew 2-2 with Lanarkshire at Celtic Park -John Hughes (Yogi) scored the two goals for them. He was about twice the size then of nearly every other player.
In that same period though, our success was relative as in the same decade Rangers still managed more trophies – including three league titles in a row. They were the establishment team and we seemed destined to be second best. That’s the way it stayed until Big Jock’s arrival in 1965…
garcia lorca on 11th October 2025 10:32 am
What a lovely read. Your post was the first thing that I read this Ottawa morning. I’m sure that I won’t read anything better today.
Thankyou.
Weeron
Garcia Lorca…I’m a Gorbals bhoy too. I was taken by my dad to Hampden for the 1956 League Cup Final replay against Partick Thistle 3-0…the following year we had moved up to Rutherglen, and although I wasn’t at Hampden, my dad took me down to the main street to see the buses and fans coming back from the game. It was an absolutely fantastic feeling of joy. It really cemented my love affair with football and Celtic. We watched from the front of the Odeon cinema…the fans and buses poured out of Prospecthill Road like champagne pouring out of a bottle…the Glen Bar was bursting at the seams. You could sense it was something more than special, it was extra-special…even the priest next day gave a sermon with a smile…
Btw BIg John McPhail scored two goals in the 1956 final and brother Billy nabbed a hat-trick in ’57.
Parkheadcumsalford on 11th October 2025 12:42 pm
Garcia Lorca,
I remember the Sunderland trip so well. We all seemed to know that something had changed with Jock Stein’s arrival. I remembered that Jim Baxter played, but had forgotten that Harry Hood turned out for Sunderland that day as well.
Weebobbycollins on 11th October 2025 1:22 pm
Didn’t make the 1956 replay as it was an afternoon kick off, but our teacher put the last 20 minutes or so on the radio. I was at the semi though when we beat Clyde 2-0. Finally got our hands on the League Cup!
Some class blogging on page 3
Cqn at its best.👏👏👏
HH
timmy7_noted – I saw that article and wondered how it got on CQN.
This snippet is beyond parody. There is no mention of who the player is, what team he plays for or even which league he is in. The Etims rumour mill of old couldn’t have made it up:
“Celtic are once again preparing for a busy transfer window. The January market often brings uncertainty, but for the club, it could also deliver the missing piece to strengthen their attacking line. Reports suggest that Celtic are monitoring a striker valued at around £20million, and with interest from several sides across Europe, the coming months may prove decisive.
The winter window is rarely straightforward, with inflated prices and limited options, but Celtic have been linked with high-level forwards before. This time, though, the situation feels more serious.”
Timmy7_noted @ 10:07.
Read the article yesterday.
Thought it was bizarre.
Celt55
Just caught up with your comment.
I was at the 1956 League Cup Final on the Saturday , 0-0. Obviously couldn’t attend the early afternoon kick off replay but , like you, our teacher put on the big class readily to listen to parts of the game. That was Celtic’s first ever victory of the League Cup.
My school was St Luke’s – it would be a right old coincidence if we had been in the same class!
Celt55…yes, the 1956 final was a 2.15 kick-off. It was the days before floodlights. My dad told me in the morning he was taking me to the game and gave me a note for my teacher explaining my afternoon absence.(I still don’t know what it was.) I was floating on air from the moment I walked out the school gates, all the way home, put on my dad’s Celtic scarf, down through Rutherglen and along Prospecthill Road and over the turnstile into the North Stand. We had to wait till the second half for the goals and I was more than delighted my first ever hero Wee Bobby Collins scored the third goal. I clearly remember the photographers’ flashes when Bobby Evans hoisted the cup aloft. It was already getting dull. I was up on my dad’s shoulders and he said, ” Look at this, it’s a moment you’ll never forget.” How right he was!
Garcia Lorca…I was baptised in St Luke’s. I lived in Hospital Street.
Weebobbycollins @3.04pm
I lived on Crown Street for 17 years. My milk run for the Co-op included Hospital Street.
To this day City Planners should hang their heads in shame for destroying that community. Of course many of the buildings on Hospital Street and Thistle Street , for example, were Jerry built and had become slums. The eventual clearance swept away many a fine sandstone building which, with a bit of imagination , could ha been repurposed.
Memories play tricks but it seemed that there was a Celtic supporters club in just about every pub in the Gorbals- and all their roots were Irish.
WeeBobbyCollins,
Bobby Collins is the first Celtic player I looked for. Everybody in the Hayshed (as my Dad always called it) was shouting for the wee barra (and I spent the match looking in vain for a wee barrow).
Parkheadcumsalford.
I went the game in Sunderland on The Kent Star supporters bus from Kent St in the Calton next to St Alphonsus Church.
My pal, a year older, introduced me for the first and only time to 3 bottles of Newcastle Brown Ale after the game.
On the bus home my much older cousin, home from the US tried to have a conversation with me but I was in no fit state to communicate with a budgie.
Jim Baxter played for Sunderland and later moved to Notts Forest.
20 years Im in a disco in Harbour Lights in Barbados chatting to Garry Sobers who played cricket for Notts County. He and Baxter were gambling and boozing buddys. I was asked if I knew Baxter.
I said nor personally but his life story was in the Sunday Mail and I reassured Sobers that if his name came up (I got a copy sent every week from home) any secrets were safe with me.
garcia lorca on 11th October 2025 3:30 pm
Weebobbycollins @3.04pm
Thanks for your replies lads. No, garcia lorca, I was at school in the Milton at the time. I can still hear the cheer we gave when we heard Celtic were winning! Something we had never done in the League cup. I got the semi score wrong, it was actually 2-1 against Clyde, who were a very good team at that time. Billy McPhail scored for them. That game could have gone either way. It was the first trophy I remember us winning, as I was a bit too young to really take in the 1954 season.
Hospital Street.
garcia lorca on 11th October 2025 3:30 pm
//=/==
The tenements were replaced by High Rise which were demolished a few years ago.
I was on a bus passing the Citizens Theatre a couple of months ago for the first time in more than a year.
The area has been transformed with modern low rise flats, but what caught my eye was how a new build and a red sandstone tenements adjacent, sort of flowed into each other to become one.
Very impressive.
An Dún on 11th October 2025 9:03 am
https://www.irishnews.com/sport/soccer/our-whole-irish-identity-was-expressed-through-our-love-of-celtic-hoops-veteran-tony-mcshane-recalls-that-night-in-lisbon-57AG5BKTBVAUTL7HYXJN3YU7XM/
Worth a wee read.
====
It sure was.
I recently finished reading “Irish” by John Burrowes.
All about the immigrants fleeing the famine and settling in Glasgow mainly.
It filled in a lot of gaps in my knowledge.
Auldheid,
I can’t really remember but even reading CQN this afternoon, there must have been a huge Celtic support in Sunderland that day.
Was it the following year we played and hammered Man U at Celtic Park? 4-1, I think. Besides Paddy Crerand they had their famous trio of Law, Best and Charlton.
Garcia Lorca…
“Of course many of the buildings on Hospital Street and Thistle Street , for example, were Jerry built and had become slums…”
Slums, yes…but we were a wee bit posh, we had an indoor toilet. We still had to bathe in the old enamel basin though. And it’s funny how that damp smell in the close was kind of warm and homely. I loved the place.
Lionsroar67
Thanks for the link enjoyed the podcast, certainly chimed with my own limited experience of being in a meeting with MN the Alan partridge shrug sums it up perfectly.
====
I had a few meetings with MN over the years from 2013 to 2021.
I lost the rag with him at one meeting when he defended PL in respect of dealing with UEFA and in a telephone conversation negotiating MN he asked if I was blackmailing him! (He had a point but we reached agreement with Celtic taking on responsibility for pursuing Res12 from the shareholders reps.)
At another event in the year The Res12 lawyer had the path to UEFA cleared following a suggestion how, The SFA dropped MN in the limelight at their 2016 AGM by announcing UEFA had been approached.
As he left Hampden MN was pursued by a STV reporter and cameraman asking if Celtic had approached UEFA.
As a family man with good reason to fear in those days from Huns (as I had for a while) he did not want the limelight.
With the passage of time which in 2017 showed why MN had defended PL I came to realise what Celtic were up against.
Had I been in both their shoes I might have acted the same to protect Celtic and Scottish football (bar letting Rangers keep titles fraudulently won and referred to UEFA’s reply to that lawyer letter calling ” The Rangers” a NEW club/company as Celtic’s position on the matter)
I see both the same way I try to see everyone, human beings doing what they think was right on the business side of football but getting it wrong on the supporter side.
With regard to the supporter side.
Their represtantives at the time had the opportunity twice to remove PL and MN had they got behind Res12 and given open support or acted on the evidence that PL had misled shareholders at the 2019? AGM but they didnt.
In fact if I mentioned Res12 at all after 2020 on social media the reply was its in the past. Forget it.
I wish I could but the same distrust factors remain at play below the surface and until both sides take responsibility for their parts in perpetuating division, nothing will change.
Only the truth will set Celtic free.
BACK TO BASICS – GLASS HALF FULL on 11TH OCTOBER 2025 12:41 PM
When it comes to representing that broad church that is the Celtic Fans? … You may indeed believe “who” is a minor detail.
We’ll just need to disagree on that one.
Transparency … and all that.
You appear to have an enormous gap in your knowledge base of Celtic fan/supporter orgs clearly you don’t appear to be a member of any of these Celtic supporter orgs, nor it appears do you avail yourself within the Celtic blogosphere in which many of the individuals you seek to know are openly in full view openly and transparent, good luck in tracking them all down, I’m afraid I can’t assist you any further than I have already previously advising you contact JPT Celtics fan Liaison officer, if you would like to meet up before a game I would look forward to discussing transparency and who we should hold to account over a beer genuine offer
TET
Good to have you back…hope all is well.
Garcia Lorca
My wife was from Crown St.
Auldheid @ 4.06pm
At my mother’s funeral I read extracts from John Burrowes book. What I vividly recall was the description of the boats making there way up the Clyde to be Port Glasgow. From the hill above the town the boats appeared a singular colour until they came into clear view when it was revealed that it was the faces of the people tightly packed at every available space. From scenes like these Celtic emerged.
AULDHEID on 11TH OCTOBER 2025 5:03 PM
It’s a shame you’re not at the centre of things at the moment, your fair mindedness and nonpartisan approach is badly needed.
garcia lorca on 11th October 2025 5:52 pm
I remember that description well as Ive stood on that hill (Lyle?) and looked in wonder down and across the Clyde estuary. Magnificent does not do it justice .
From the same book Chapter 6 The Battle of Partick Cross in 1875 I had a wry smile when the equivalent of the modern day Collective met and decided to march in memory of Daniel O Connell, who spent his life fighting for religious tolerance and the needs of the Irish people. It was the centenary of his birth.
A gathering was planned at Glasgow Green with a procession to a rally in Pollockshaws.
Right from the start there was dissension between Irish Catholics and Irish Protestants but also arguments between Irish Catholics.
One side wanted a political slant and the other of a much more reverent one in the memory of O Connell.
(Shades of Mine Shafters and Happy Clappers sprung to my mind.)
The chapter goes on culminating in the Battle of Partick Cross.
At reaching the end I concluded ” same as it ever was”.