Trending
Celtic News Now
Celtic Quick News on News Now
Celtic Quick News
You are at:»»Doing things to Hearts

Doing things to Hearts

774
By on CQN BLOG & Comments

The Centenary Season was memorable for many reasons, not least the brand of skilful, attacking, football we played. The title was destined for Celtic Park after a win at Ibrox, but Hearts at Tynecastle would be our first opportunity to officially become champions.

Two tickets were secured, but for the Hearts end, so title celebrations were planned without colours. We were in the ground early – the enclosure in front of the stand. As the place filled up there was the occasional Hearts scarf, but the majority were also without football colours. By kick off it was clear there were more Celtic than Hearts fans in the section. Both sets of supporters were free to express their feelings without any trouble.

The game was forgettable. Celtic, who had run teams ragged all season, were unable to craft a goal and left pointless. It was disappointing, but a week later, 63,000 (over) packed Celtic Park in the sunshine as the league was won in a more appropriate environment.

My preference would always be to win a title before our own season ticket holders at Celtic Park, but if we can’t do that, Tynecastle comes pretty close as an ideal alternate venue. Hearts fans sang “We’re only here for the party” when we lost the title seven years ago.

Let’s remind them who the champions are tomorrow, as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Albert Kidd title in 1986. Albert Kidd, a Celtic fan, was a Dundee player at the time. On the last day of the season he was on the bench against Hearts, who needed a point to win the title. They were 32 games unbeaten. Albert hadn’t scored a single goal all season.

He was introduced with 15 minutes remaining. Five minutes later he opened the scoring at a corner kick. He then scored the goal which inspired Diego Maradona to run through the England team and score at the World Cup a few months later. Diego’s goal was brilliant, but Albert’s was far more astonishing.  It was utterly astonishing.

We did something to Hearts that season.  They never recovered and never will. That 15-minute cameo from Albert, with Celtic’s five goal mauling of St Mirren, finished them.

The Celtic Foundation’s ‘Heroes of ’86 – 30 years on’ dinner takes place on Sunday. Albert Kidd is guest of honour, as are Celts from that team (not all of them!), including our captain, Paul McStay. I hear the Kidd family will be very well represented on the night. It should be something special.

Enjoy your weekend, especially if you’re going to Tynecastle, or the Foundation dinner.  These moments are precious.

30 years later, I’m still astonished.

Charlie Gallagher, What a Player
CharlieGallagherBook

Charlie Gallagher was at Celtic Park for over 10 years. Encompassing the 1960’s, his career was an eventful one, touching the depths of despair and the ultimate triumph. Slightly-built, he seemed to lack the necessary robustness. But appearances can be very deceptive. Behind the easy-going exterior lurked a tremendous football brain, with the ability to spray passed which fast-running forwards would relish.

Charlie starred in one of Celtic’s best performances in years as MTK Budapest were beaten 3-0 in the European Cup-Winners’ Cup semi-final at Celtic Park. When Jock Stein arrived in March 1965, Gallagher was given a settled role at inside-right. His play was quiet but effective and good enough for him to retain a place for the Scottish Cup final. Eight minutes remained when Charlie trotted over to take a corner kick on the left. It was like one of those Spot the Ball competitions in the newspapers where the entrant must place the ball in the exactly the right spot. In this case, the target was the moving one of Billy McNeil’s head… And Gallagher’s accuracy was to signal the return of the glory days to Celtic Park.

The next two seasons were to see Charlie in the role of valuable pool member, covering for injuries or being used as a surprise weapon. In the first league game of 1965-66 season at Tannadice, Charlie hit the bar in the first two minutes and rumour has it that the bar is shaking yet. And, of course, it was the action replay from him and McNeill which gave Celtic their narrow victory over Vojvodina Novi Sad in the European Cup quarter-final in 1967.

One day at Muirton Park, where Celtic won 6-1, there was a brilliant Freudian slip by an old-timer standing near me in the enclosure. One particulate long pass was greeted with a clap and a cry of “Well done, Patsy”, an understandable confusion with Charlie’s namesake of more than 40 years earlier.

CHARLIE GALLAGHER? WHAT A PLAYER! by David Potter is published today by CQN. You can order your SIGNED copy HERE.

CharlietrailerSTATIC

Click Here for Comments >
Share.

About Author

774 Comments
  1. Pages:
  3. 1
  4. ...
  5. 10
  6. 11
  7. 12
  8. 13
  9. 14
  10. 15
  11. 16
  12. ...
  13. 21

  3. THE EXILED TIM on

    So Karma is gonna get them, me thinks not.

     

    What have they done ?

     

    Cheated for as long as the SFA have been in existence, Yip

     

    Break the rules to suit, Yip

     

    Have the referees in their pocket, Yip

     

    Place their men at the head of the association, Yip

     

    Control the media, Yip

     

    Have the governing bodies in their pockets, Yip

     

    Have the courts and the police in their pockets, Yip

     

    Have the government in their pockets, Yip

     

    And you expect us to think they have Karma coming after them.

     

    With respect WC, get a grip FFS

     

    HH

  5. clunks on

    Rudi

     

     

    Cut and paste is a legitimate skill that might be classed as an art is some far eastern countries.

     

     

    However, what you do is known in some far eastern parts of Scotland as talk pish!

  7. Big Georges Fan Club - Hail, Hail, Wee Oscar on

    JAMES1955 on 29TH APRIL 2016 11:28 PM

     

     

    Hes been tawkin aboot some guy called Karma……

     

    —————

     

     

    Karma’s a bitch :-)

     

     

    Nothing of note to date then?

     

     

    Ach well, just need to keep patient I suppose. On another front, Champions tomorrow, hopefully, so YEEEE-HAAAAA

     

     

    Me and Wee BGFC have had no tickets for Tynecastle (or The Dung Heap) all season despite meeting the ‘criteria’ – bought every domstic ticket offered to us. Scunnered by that to be honest – don’t know what else to do to get alocated tickets – any suggestions welcome.

     

     

    Will have to be TV tomorrow, but that is a pale and poor immitation of being at the away games, which are brilliant.

     

     

    Good luck to all you lucky guys going through tomorrow – do it for us!!

     

     

    HAIL, HAIL

     

     

    BGFC

  24. THE EXILED TIM on

    WC

     

    I will wait like I have for all my life, and waiting some more will make no difference to me, but please don’t take the piss, we are actually better than that.

     

    They will carry on as if nothing has happened, if anything was gonna happen, it would have by now, and fine well you know it.

     

    We both for a FACT that NOTHING will happen to them.

     

    HH

  25. WeefratheTim on

    Evening all.

     

     

    Just popped in to say, anyone who wants to meet WC, should visit CQN corner on matchday, as I did last Sunday, and various home matchdays, and you will probably meet a lovely ghuy who adores Celtic and is a credit to his position. No excuses from these, supposed Celtic Supporters, who are desparate to meet and get their point across to him. HH

  33. Drambowiecelt on

    Links are class………….

     

    Was flitting in between watching The sound of fury…..And the class offerings for tnite.

     

    As Keef Ricardo once said ….The night is young.

     

     

     

     

     

    H.H.

  34. Gordon64 on

    Tomorrow at Tynecastle will be a more intense affair than it should have been after last week. Would love to see us wrap up the league with a wee bit of style in front of our amazing travelling support. Although more in hope than expectation.

  37. BGX on

    Regarding Res 12..

     

    I Really Hope it Succeeds….But now im Torn…You See..You See i dont Know Why……..Is It To Bring The Whole SFA and HUNS hand in hand Cabal to the Floor…………Or is it to Shut Up all the CQN Doubters and all the moaning ” It Will Never Happen , Told You so BITCHES Up…”…Fk It …EITHER Way…RES 12 Men…Respect..You Are Due IT..And Bitches…Bitch on.

  40. Delaneys Dunky on

    HT

     

     

    Sing loud and proud tomorrow.

     

    5 in a row. Second in my 50 years of life.

     

    HH

  41. proudbhoy on

    No harm but the carrot dangling is abit childish , we were told at the start on here that Celtic silence on the Hun cheating was all part of the plan.

     

     

    There silence was basically waiting for right opportunity to strike, turned out to be nothing.

  42. Drambowiecelt on

    @BGX ….reminded me of one of my fav Bowie numbers

     

    Queen Bitch ..lol maybe some of our esteemed linkers will… Well erm Link.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    H.H.

     

     

     

     

     

     

    H.H.

  1. Pages:
  3. 1
  4. ...
  5. 10
  6. 11
  7. 12
  8. 13
  9. 14
  10. 15
  11. 16
  12. ...
  13. 21