That win against Dundee on St Patrick’s Day at Celtic Park would sadly turn out to be the great man’s last in the Hoops. Other players had left in the autumn, Alec Boden to Ayr United and Jimmy Walsh to Leicester City, however, as the year drew to a close, Peter Goldie would be lining up with Benny McCreadie and Jim Kennedy against Hibernian reserves at Celtic Park, whilst the first team shared six goals at Easter Road, then losing 3-0 to the Rangers second-string at the same venue on Hogmanay, 24 hours before the first teams clashed at Ibrox.
The mini revival would come to a halt with a dreadful run of three away defeats in January, a 2-0 loss at Ibrox on New Year’s Day followed by a similar reverse to Queen’s Park at Hampden three days later. The amateurs’ defence that afternoon featured Bob Crampsey’s younger brother, Frank, in goals, together with a centre-half called John Valentine. More on John later. Things went from bad to worse a fortnight later, as the other Queens led 4-1 at Palmerston before two late goals put a semblance of respect on the scoreline, a John Jack own goal and another blunder from goalkeeper Dick Beattie only adding to the Celtic misery in Dumfries. A difficult month ended with bittersweet injury news, long-term absentees Bobby Collins and Sean Fallon returning for the 4-0 win over Falkirk before Jock Stein finally conceded defeat in his own battle to overcome an ankle injury, sadly announcing his retirement as a Celtic player.
Forres Mechanics and Celtic line up together
The quest for a fourth successive Scottish Cup final appearance for Celts began in the unlikely surroundings of Mosset Park, Forres on Saturday, 2 February 1957. The Highland League side had eliminated Jock Stein’s old club Albion Rovers in the previous round, however, they would be no match for Celtic on the day, the green-and-white variety of the Hoops licking their chocolate-and-gold clad hosts by 5-0, Billy McPhail helping himself to a first cup hat-trick. Some fabulous images of this match are shown below courtesy of The Celtic Wiki.
The contrast for the next round a fortnight later could hardly have been greater, a full house inside Parkhead as Celtic hosted Rangers. McGrory’s Bhoys would fight back twice to equalise through Billy McPhail and John Higgins within the first 15 minutes, and would then seize the advantage as McPhail turned provider, setting up Bobby Collins and Willie Fernie to give Celts one foot in the next round at 4-2 with just seven minutes remaining.
Fate would then intervene. John Jack was in Jock Stein’s old central defensive berth between Bobby Evans and Bertie Peacock, and he would now make two costly errors of judgement. First, he clumsily challenged Ibrox winger Johnny Hubbard in the box, referee Jack Mowat awarding a penalty later described in the media as both soft and fortunate. The South African would dust himself down before adding to a conversion record which would reach 65 from 68 attempts. Within two minutes, Jack was holding his head once again in despair, his misplaced passback to Dick Beattie conceding a corner from which Max Murray converted Hubbard’s centre for 4-4. It would no doubt feel like a defeat as the Celtic support made their way home. They would get to enjoy another cup tie between the sides later that year where eight goals were shared.
Another 88,000 packed into Ibrox for the midweek replay, and this time the unchanged Hoops would build and hold the two-goal lead gained for them by first-half strikes from John Higgins and Neil Mochan. The prize was a home quarter-final tie with St Mirren on the first Saturday in March, Celts again emerging victorious by 2-0 with goals from Higgins and Bertie Peacock.
Winger John Higgins was again the main man as the shamrock-shirted Celts faced Kilmarnock in the last four at Hampden before an incredible 109,000 crowd on Saturday, 23 March 1957. He would earn the Bhoys a replay in a game they dominated after going behind late in the first half. A mere 77,000 spectators rolled up to Mount Florida for the replay four days later, the match a personal disaster for Celtic goalkeeper, Dick Beattie. He would be penalised by our old friend R H Davidson of Airdrie for a challenge on Killie striker David Curlett midway through the first half, Beattie almost redeeming himself by saving Gerry Mays first shot before being beaten by the rebound from the same player.
Bobby Collins would finish off a fine move to equalise 10 minutes later, before Beattie’s second error saw the Ayrshire side regain the lead on the stroke of half-time, the keeper completely missing a cross from that man Curlett, allowing Mays a free header for his second goal. Within six minutes of the restart, it was all over, this time Beattie losing out to Kilmarnock inside-forward Bertie Black in a challenge at the edge of his box, leaving an open goal tap-in for 3-1.
There would be no fourth successive Scottish Cup final for Jimmy McGrory’s Celts, as his old teammate Malcolm MacDonald led his blue-and-white Hoops into a Hampden clash with Falkirk. The Bairns would win that one.
The dismal away form in the League in 1957 had continued with defeats at Kirkcaldy, Methil, Tynecastle and Firhill, whilst the injury crisis showed no sign of early respite, an ankle injury sustained by top-scoring Billy McPhail in the 1-1 home draw with Dundee in early March sadly ruling him out of the rest of the campaign. That would be particularly felt in the two semi-final matches with Kilmarnock, when a barrowload of goal opportunities had been passed up. At the other end of the pitch, an injury to Dick Beattie saw John Bonnar return between the sticks after a 12-month absence then young Benny McCreadie receive his senior debut on Easter Monday at Pittodrie, celebrating with a shut-out as a John Higgins goal won the points. That clean sheet would presumably convince the Parkhead board to release him 10 days later!
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