Celtic On This Day – 6th December – David Potter’s Celtic Diary

Celtic Historian David Potter each morning on The Celtic Star looks back at key Celtic events and matches on this day starting on 6th December 1890. David’s latest bestseller The Celtic Rising ~ 1965 The Year Jock Stein Changed Everything has SOLD OUT on Celtic Star Books but you can still pick up a copy via CELTIC FC official online store.while their remaining stocks last.

CLICK ON THE COVER TO ORDER DIRECT FROM CELTIC’S OFFICIAL ONLINE STORE
Tom Maley

SATURDAY 6 DECEMBER 1890 – Serious crowd trouble at Larkhall sees the abandonment of a game after 78 minutes with Celtic winning 4-0. Trouble seems to centre on Tom Maley, who was Celtic’s umpire than day, who is seen to lift his hands to a Royal Albert player, then another Royal Albert player is felled by Jerry Reynolds, and general mayhem ensues with an invasion of the park. Celtic feel that with only 12 minutes to go, the tie should be conceded, but the SFA order a replay at neutral Ibrox next week.

Joe Dodds (right) and Alec ‘Icicle’ McNair against Aston Villa at Celtio Park in April 1912 with the old Jungle in the background

SATURDAY 6 DECEMBER 1913 – Celtic’s impressive form continues with a 3-0 win over Third Lanark at Celtic Park today. It is all the more satisfying for Celtic have a few injuries, but Alec McNair, Sunny Jim and Patsy Gallacher are all on form today. Patsy scores one of the goals, and Ebenezer Owers and Billy “Towser” Crone the other two.

TUESDAY 6 DECEMBER 1966 – Jock Stein signs Willie Wallace from Hearts for £30,000. He has been particularly Machiavellian in this respect for a couple of days earlier he put out a misleading story that he was interested in Ian Gibson of Coventry, then pounces for Wallace, knowing that Rangers are out of the country in Germany playing a European tie and will not be able to come in with a better offer.

SATURDAY 6 DECEMBER 1969 – Celtic have to dig deep today to beat Dundee 1-0 at a cold Parkhead. Tommy Gemmell scores the only goal of the game with a soft penalty kick, but in spite of the narrowness of the result, some good football is played against a Dundee team who are themselves by no means bereft of star players and who defend grimly all game.

WEDNESDAY 6 DECEMBER 2006 – Celtic having qualified for the knock-out stages of the Champions League, it doesn’t really matter but it as an appalling show nevertheless to go down 1-3 to Copenhagen in Denmark. Jiri Jarosik scores Celtic’s only goal, and it makes the supporters worry about away form.

David Potter

Click on image to order your copy of Willie Fernie – Putting on the Style for only £10 plus P&P

About Author

I am Celtic author and historian and write for The Celtic Star. I live in Kirkcaldy and have followed Celtic all my life, having seen them first at Dundee in March 1958. I am a retired teacher and my other interests are cricket, drama and the poetry of Robert Burns.

1 Comment

  1. Earlier this year, McTears had up for sale ‘A St. Patricks Day Baton’. Almost certainly made from ‘Bog Oak’, carved with shamrocks with seven lozenge – shaped plaques inscribed “1932 T White – T E Maley esq. – 1933,
    R Maguire Esq – 1934 – Wm Maley – 1935 T White Esq – 1936 T Colgan Esq – 1937 T White Esq 1938 T L Devlin – Silver Capped. Plus a menu cover for the “Bank Restaurant Ltd.” Queen Street Glasgow.
    William Maley J.P. M.D.

    In 1973 The Evening Herald carried a story, inquiring about its Irish origins. All six men are now dead and all but one was prominent in football, Celtic FC.
    Robert Maguire a Glasgow lawyer was very well thought of in the Irish Community, for his work in the Kirkintilloch Bothy fire in 1937. Maguire had organized the eleven young Irishmen who sadly died in the fire in making the arrangements for them to be buried back home in Ireland. He also played a prominent role in setting up a relief fund of which Benny Lynch was among the subscribers.

    Apparently, the chairman of the group carried the baton and his duties included a toast to Saint Patrick, while leading a rendition of “Hail Glorious Saint Patrick”. Raucous nights no doubt and there must have been much releasing of steam.
    The ‘Toasts’ ended in 1938 just prior to WW2.

    History, so near and yet so far.