Sean Fallon was known as The Iron Man, a hard left back at a time when pretty much all footballers were hard. I met him and his wife Myra at their home a few months ago to prepare an interview in advance of his autobiography, which is due for release soon, the hard-man reputation could not have been further from the character of the person.
He was the most generous spirited man I have been in the company of for years. Myra is a force of nature, unquestionably the wind in his sails. You have never met a happier couple.
The stories he told about how Celtic were transformed from a sporting irrelevance into one of the most powerful and feared clubs in Europe were incredible. His story was one of huge and dramatic achievement. You and I are the beneficiaries.
The players he signed are legendary. Kenny Dalglish, who was in tears in Sean’s home the night he agreed to go to Liverpool, Danny McGrain, a person Sean could not speak highly enough about, and countless more. He was a committed Celtic man but took no pleasure in the death of Rangers, such was his generosity of spirit.
Sean described Jock, himself and Sir Robert Kelly as a three man team who had the vision to drive Celtic forward. He believed that when Sir Robert died in 1971 the club’s loss was significant. Nothing was the same again.
His own parting from Celtic, in 1975, was far from satisfactory, but if he told me once, he told me 10 times, “I don’t want a single word said against Celtic”. The club that you and I recognise is the creation of Jock, Sean and Sir Robert. They transformed an amateurish football club into a legendary movement. He, more than anyone I ever met, never wanted a figurative goal scored against this legend.
Today we have lost one of the architects of all we hold dear, a man who achieved the Miracle of Lisbon. His insights reach back into the depths of our character. His decision to author an autobiography is a gift to you and me. I’ll share many of his anecdotes between now and when it’s published.
My sincere condolences to Myra, son Sean and all the family. We have lost the man who was our greatest living legend but they have lost a great husband, father and grandfather. A remarkable life has come to an end.
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This is Herald article ASonofDan mentioned,tribute to Sean.
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Delve into any Celtic history and, accompanying his name, you’ll see the same adjectives: “reliable”, “honest”, “solid”, “wholehearted”. And it’s true that he was all of these things. But he was also so much more.
Over the past year, I had the privilege of working with him on an autobiography. Even before taking a single note, I considered his to be the great untold Celtic story and Fallon to be one of the club’s most influential and undervalued figures. I’ll admit now that I didn’t know the half of it.
I was aware, of course, that he had scouted and recruited several Celtic greats, and that all but one of the Lisbon Lions had been in place by the time Jock Stein arrived. I’d heard the famous story of him leaving his wife in the car – on their wedding anniversary, no less – to conclude unexpectedly lengthy signing talks with Kenny Dalglish.
But I would not have dared suggest Fallon had signed more world-class players than anyone in Celtic’s history, save for the possible exception of Willie Maley. Now I have no hesitation in doing so. In fact, the names – Simpson, Gemmell, Auld, Murdoch, Dalglish, McGrain, Macari, Connelly, Hay and McStay – speak for themselves. Essentially, Fallon recruited most of one European Cup-winning team, then assembled another – arguably more talented – only to see them sold off before their potential could be realised.
Jock Stein recognised his eye for talent, trusted in it, and was richly rewarded. Fallon had free rein to recruit young players and was a constant companion on the manager’s trips to assess signing targets and European opponents. Back at Celtic Park, he played an equally important role in soothing friction with the players, all of whom mention the Irishman’s uncanny knack of knowing when to heal Stein-inflicted wounds. “Big Jock didn’t do peacemaking,” explains Billy McNeill. “Sean, with that Irish charm, was born for it. There would have been many more fall-outs without him around.”
Even the relationship between Stein and Fallon has its surprises. It’s no secret they worked well and closely together, but the extent of their friendship and ways in which their careers were intertwined is remarkable. I had no idea their families would enjoy day trips to the coast together, or that Stein – “Uncle Jock” – would accompany Fallon on the morning school run.
Fallon was the junior partner in their working relationship, but he was a man to whom Stein had been indebted since December 13, 1952. That was the date on which Fallon was made Celtic captain, recognising his position among the club’s most established and influential players. Stein, by contrast, had joined just 12 months earlier and was still scrapping to earn a regular first-team place amid scepticism about his age and ability. Nonetheless, in selecting his deputy, the new captain opted not for established internationals such as Bobby Evans or Bertie Peacock, but for the journeyman centre-half just signed from non-league Llanelli. An injury to Fallon meant Stein took the armband just weeks later, and the rest forms the greatest chapter in the club’s history. “A lot of people weren’t happy with my choice,” Fallon would recall. “But I saw something special in Jock.”
Not for the last time, Fallon had been the first to identify extraordinary talent. Indeed, it was this same appreciation of Stein’s unique abilities that enabled Fallon to selflessly and willingly stand aside in 1965 when his old pal was given the job he had been groomed for. “I could see that Jock was what Celtic needed,” was his explanation.
The man with the inimitable, gravelly Sligo accent enjoyed a unique perspective on the most turbulent and successful period in the club’s history, and shared with Neilly Mochan the distinction of having played his part in its two greatest triumphs. But while his contribution to Lisbon and the 7-1 win over Rangers was considerable, it would be a mistake to conclude Fallon’s story begins and ends with black-and-white images and long-gone glories. He left Celtic with their best player of the 1980s and 90s in Paul McStay, and at Dumbarton maintained his knack for unearthing talent by signing the teenage Graeme Sharp and Owen Coyle. Sir Alex Ferguson, a long-standing friend, credits Fallon with having a major influence on the early stages of his managerial career.
If you’re wondering why someone so extraordinary is consistently portrayed merely as “trustworthy” and “dependable”, it is because his humility facilitated this typecasting. And perhaps that’s what impressed me most about Fallon. Ask him about Dalglish and McGrain and he would say, “Ah, they were Celtic’s signings, son. Not Sean Fallon’s.” Enquire about his playing achievements and he would stress how much better others were. Discuss the shabby way he was treated at the end and he would lament only that his departure broke Celtic’s historic links with Sligo.
Fortunately, the men who worked with him had no such reservations. It had been my great hope that Sean would be recognised for the giant he is while still alive, through their words and this book – his book. But I realise now that’s not important. Public recognition something he never craved. Sean Fallon died peacefully with his beloved family gathered round him, having enriched the lives of all those fortunate enough to have known him. Nothing I or anyone else could write can ever compete with that.
Jobo
My elder brother is up from kent for the weekend and coming to the match with me. Hes brought a hat and gloves… Hes lived darn sarth 35 years… Hes in for a wee shock methinks
The boy jinky
Southern softy
The Boy Jinky
Whit about the most important thing?Drinking money.
They softie Southerners have a bit of a rep .:O) hh
….PFayr
You win,you spelled ‘softy’ correctly,well done.hh
Pf and vp
He sure is a southern softie now .. And if hes buying a drink it needs to be on a credit card cos thats how he rolls :)
The Boy Jinky
Aye probably but I guess they meant the English Primary League for under 10’s..
The boy jinky
No doubt expecting some of your good Scottish hospitality
Looks like Lenny is not a happy chappy……
”””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””””’
Cheap shot! Celtic boss Lennon accuses Norwich of unsettling Hooper with derisory £5m bid
By Stephen Mcgowan
PUBLISHED: 00:35, 19 January 2013 | UPDATED: 00:35, 19 January 2013
Comments (4) Share
..Neil Lennon has accused Norwich City of trying to unsettle Gary Hooper after Celtic kicked out a bid of less than £5 million for their top scorer.
The Premiership strugglers submitted separate offers for Hooper and Swansea’s Danny Graham on Thursday, the news immediately leaking into the public domain.
Celtic are still trying to tie their star striker to a new contract, with Hooper’s representatives travelling to Glasgow on Friday.
In demand: Gary Hooper scores against Ross County last month
Sportsmail understands the player has been offered a salary rise from £18,000 to £25,000 a week to take him among the highest earners although there are concerns that his agents are trying to move Hooper on before their own contract with him expires at the end of the month.
Despite being told in advance that Celtic valued the player at around £8m and didn’t want to sell during this window, Norwich submitted a bid anyway.
And that brought stinging criticism from Lennon.
‘Norwich made a bid and we’ve rejected it. I’m really annoyed that it’s come out down there because we like to do our business privately,’ he said.
‘I don’t like the thought of them trying to unsettle a player. I’m not going to point any fingers, but it’s certainly not come out from up here.
‘We looked at the bid, we rejected it and it’s as you were. I spoke to his representatives today and we’ve made our position clear. We’ve made an offer to them on a new contract and we’re waiting back to hear from them. Norwich’s valuation is nowhere near ours.’
Hooper has so far resisted Celtic’s offer of a new deal, despite telling Lennon privately he wished to stay and face Juventus in the Champions League last 16 clash.
With 18 months left on his current deal, the striker is believed to be willing to stay until the summer at least.
‘Gary’s very happy here,’ added Lennon. ‘He wants to stay, he wants to play in the Champions League and he wants to have a go in all the competitions we’re still in.
Not happy: Neil Lennon has hit out at Norwich
‘We can’t stop bids coming in, we can’t stop speculation. But our position is quite strong on this at the moment. We don’t want to sell him, and certainly not for the valuation Norwich put in yesterday.’
Asked if Norwich knew in advance that £5m would not be enough, he responded: ‘Possibly, you’d need to ask Norwich that. Listen, everyone has their price. I’ ve maintained that all along.
‘Gary knows what we think of him, the club has made it clear to Norwich their valuation is not acceptable.
‘We’re probably going to get it again and it might rumble on. But we’ve made it clear we don’t want to sell him and we’re waiting on his representatives getting back to us. I saw his agent here this morning. That’s all I can tell you.
New man: Tom Rogic in action for Australia in November
‘Gary is playing well, he’s happy and we’ll see if they come back in and accept our contract offer. It might all be academic.
‘If it’s not, then if Norwich come again we’ll look at it and go from there. But we’ve made our position clear – we don’t want to sell him.’
Celtic have completed the signing of Australian international Thomas Rogic, but Lennon doesn’t expect to have the midfielder available for a fortnight.
‘We are hoping to get the application in for the work permit on Monday. Then he’ ll have to go back to Australia and get it stamped at the British Embassy. So it will probably be a week to 10 days before he is available.
‘We like him as a player. He came and impressed us last week. I liked him before that, having seen snippets of him. He’s had a meteoric rise and has also developed physically in the past year.
‘When he trained with us for a few days, the guys were really impressed with him. So it’s not a massive gamble. I think we have a good player on our hands, who we can develop and who will be an asset to the team.
‘He is a creative player. He’s strong, elegant and has a goal in him as well.
‘We have a lot of players for the majority of positions, but we need that. We have played 34 games already this season and at times the squad has been stretched. It will be no different in the second half of the season.
‘He will come into contention for the first team right away, once we get all the paperwork sorted out. He didn’t look out of place in training and it looks as though he has a good temperament as well.’
More…Beware the rich man’s playground! Adkins’ sacking is a reminder for Lennon to look before attempting the Premier League leap
Celtic reject Norwich’s £6m bid for Hooper as Lennon hopes to cling on to striker
Manager’s delight at Gordon Strachan’s appointment
By: Mark Henderson on 19 Jan, 2013 09:15
NEIL Lennon was delighted his former boss at Celtic, Gordon Strachan, had been appointed manager of the national side during the week.
The Irishman played under the new Scotland manager for several success-filled seasons in Paradise, when he also donned the captain´s armband.
On hanging up his boots, the Hoops boss also spent time as a first-team coach with Gordon Strachan, and the pair have remained close thereafter.
“He texted me on Monday and obviously I have returned the text but I haven’t had a chance to speak to him yet,” said the Celtic manager.
“I am delighted for him. He is very proud to be the Scotland manager. I think he was obvious candidate anyway and I´m sure he will take the country forward.
“He has great experience, first and foremost. He has a great knowledge of the game. He will have the respect of the dressing room, and I think he handles the media very well.
“He has that personality that will get the best out of the players. He is very passionate about his country, obviously. Technically he is excellent and knows the European scene and has had great success here with Celtic.
“The media work he has been doing means he has access to a lot of the big games, so he will have vast research of the players he will be coming up against.”
And the manager raised a smile when the question was pitched of a potential conflict between both of them over the club versus country conundrum.
“He may have trouble getting hold of me for the first time in a while,” added the Irishman, “particularly with this friendly coming up, as we have some big games immediately after it. I’m sure we will have a chat about that over the next week or so.”
Pf
Hanging around with me hes more likely to see scottish hospitals
Starry
At least ally could take the wee kids lunch money to fund his steak bake addiction …. Thats how he (sausage) rolls
Baltic in corcaigh……….dusting of the white stuff on the surrounding hills……….dry and bright tho’.
…should it stay like this the Border Campaign is back on….
Geoff Hamilton CSC.
PS
( where’s wee davy?)
Excellent obituary in The Herald for Sean Fallon – anybody know much about Stephen Sullivan?
I thought we had a decent relationship with Norwich ….
It could be Hoopers agents at it ….interesting comment that Hoopers contract with his agents expires at the end if this month
When are players going to realise that many agents are simply barrow boy market trader chancers ….ruining the game
can anyone help…………is it me or everyone?, as i read posts some words are bold green and display an advert for iphone or something. is it possible to get rid of this?
(fourstonecoppi) –
a bit early to be drinking is it not? ;-)
voguepunter
09:04 on 19 January, 2013
This is Herald article ASonofDan mentioned,tribute to Sean.
Sweet words and then the grenade:
Enquire about his playing achievements and he would stress how much better others were. Discuss the shabby way he was treated at the end and he would lament only that his departure broke Celtic’s historic links with Sligo.
What an insult to the Club which Sean loved.
The timing is as inappropriate as it is possible to be.
Shabby tactics from someone with a book to flog?
I won`t be buying it after that little sting in the tail.
Tim Alone Will Tell
Don’t know Stephen but I assume he will be the author of the biography Paul has mentioned and I think it will be a darn good read.
Seen this Manchester yesterday.
Has Jabba got a new identity and job?
http://m.flickr.com/#/photos/92399460@N08/8392135360/in/photostream/
CQN Saturday Naps Competition – Week 24 Results & Standings
Wow – some huge priced winners – Che & Bada Bing led the way (Ely Brown @12/1).
What is the Stars (Whitby Jack @10/1), Bull67 (Oscara Dara @5/1), and tommytwiststommyturns (Polar Venture @7/2).
+£17.35 green T (9)
+£ 9.50 What is the Stars (5)
+£ 9.00 Rockon Neil Lennon (8)
+£ 6.50 Che (3)
+£ 4.50 Bada Bing (3)
+£ 3.70 BULL67 (5)
+£ 1.13 Sixteen roads to Golgotha (4)
-£ 0.13 Magnificentseven (4)
-£ 1.00 voguepunter (2)
-£ 3.00 Valentine’s Day (3)
-£ 4.50 fleagle1888 (3)
-£10.00 Cathal (2)
-£13.50 Som mes que un club (2)
-£14.80 TheBarcaMole (2)
-£15.00 tommytwisttommyturns (2)
-£15.97 hunza rugli (2)
-£16.50 MHARK67 (2)
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-£21.00 Glen (1)
-£24.00 bobbymurdoch’s winklepickers
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-£24.00 Raymac
*No selections – Raymac, Sixteen roads to Golgotha, TheBarcaMole
Non-Runners –
Cheers, fleagle1888
macjay1
Do you honestly not think that Sean and Jock were not treated shabbily by the Board at the end?
You can not re-write history. Sullivan’s point is that there was no animosity from Sean aginst his Club….a mark of the man.
Macjay
Both Mr Fallon and Big Jock were treated shabbily by CFC in the end …is that not an accepted fact
Given that it was CFCs fault IMO it only seeks to enhance Mr Fallon’s reputation by the fact that he refused to be bitter/ angry / openly annoyed about it
Darren O’Dea @odea_darren
Strachan new Scotland manager! Gary Caldwell to be captain, vice captain, take free kicks, throw ins, corners and penalties!!
Tim T
What history do you read?
Who do you believe?
The M.S.M?
there was no animosity from Sean aginst his Club….a mark of the man.
Spot on.
” Shabby ” is animosity.
Do you imagine that description of our Celtic would have been acceptable to Sean?
The timing and the description are deplorable.
No more to say on the matter.
PFayr
According to whom?
Urban myth?
Given that it was CFCs fault IMO it only seeks to enhance Mr Fallon’s reputation by the fact that he refused to be bitter/ angry / openly annoyed about it.
Precisely.
Given that,who gives the right to some latter day scribe to speak on his behalf?
Definitively,no more to say on the matter.
Don’t know if anybody caught yesterday’s media conferences, but Mikael Lustig had to deal with question after question on Mo Bangura, to the point he started laughing at them, as if to say “come to f guys”.
Clearly they, the LL, collaborate before the start of the session on a topic to find a weakness and a headline.
Mikael handled them professionally.
But pathetic from the media.
Any stattos on know the last time Celtic played Raith Rovers in Kirkcaldy?
Morning,all.
My thanks to FFM and PETEC for yesterday’s education.
In the doghouse at the moment-my Mum ain’t exactly chuffed! She’s just making me a coffee,and I suspect that I’ll be wearing it……..
Well worth it for the craic yesterday-cheers,fellas!
I posted yesterday a minute’s silence for Sean was more appropriate than a minute’s applause,i forgot who the opposition was today……
BMCUW
Lingfield off .
Macjay
Poor analysis..objectivity is required
CFC treated both Messrs Fallon and Stein shabbily that is the reality …the fact that neither held any animus is to their credit ..
If you think CFC treated both appropriately then your values are different from mine
Goldstar 10- A weekly occurance at press conferences,get a press officer,set the agenda and guidelines.As soon as a lapdog crosses the line,ban them.For too long we have fallen in to the trap,next day headlines “Lennon says dont need huns……”blah blah.Control it,they need us more than we need them.
BMCUWP
you been pushing yer luck auld pal :-))
may67,
According to soccerbase.com it was 5 April 1977 – we drew a league game there 1 – 1/
Gold star
What were they saying re Bangura?
They might have been getting some of their material from some on here who were promoting the renaissance of ole Bang Bang
VP
Is anyhin on ?
Thanks, Gordon J, but it was more recent than that. The last one I remember was Paul McStay’s last ever game (he came off with what seemed like an iinnocuous injury…..)
may67,
Sorry – that should have been 5 April 1997. The Maestro went off injured after 9 minutes.
Paulo Di Canio scored our goal.