Happy birthday, John Clark!
Part 1: A winning debut for the youngest player in the youngest-ever Celtic team
Legendary Celtic defender and Lisbon Lion John Clark celebrates a birthday today, so it is only right and fitting that we pay tribute to him on The Celtic Star.
In the first of two articles this evening looking at different aspects of his wonderful career, we look at the events which led to a teenage John making his first-team debut for Celtic.
Happy birthday, John!
The transitional phase continued at Celtic Park in the summer of 1959. Neither Sean Fallon nor Billy McPhail had managed a single game in the season just ended, due to injury, Sean then moving into a coaching role at the club. Charlie Tully’s contract had expired in July, the Irish genius choosing to retire two months later, whilst Sammy Wilson, another hero from the 7-1 victory over Rangers in October 1957 – Celtic’s last major trophy win – was one of a number of players released from Parkhead as the old guard moved on.
The new kids were progressing well, in particular Dunky MacKay and Billy McNeill. MacKay had made the Celtic right-back slot his own and had made his first international appearance for Scotland at Wembley in April 1959. He would now be pushed further forward into a wing-half role, meaning that McNeill opened the 1959/60 campaign at right-back. The first game in an unsuccessful League Cup section for the Hoops was a 2-1 defeat by Raith Rovers at Starks Park on Saturday, 8 August 1959. Former Hearts star Alfie Conn scored what turned out to be the winning goal for the hosts on the stroke of half-time, debutant Tommy Mackle on the scoresheet later for Celts. Mackle had replaced Bertie Auld on the left-wing, the Maryhill Bhoy still in disgrace with the hierarchy at Parkhead, having been sent off at the end of the previous season, whilst playing for Scotland against the Netherlands in Amsterdam.
Back at Celtic Park, reserve coach Jock Stein and his assistant Jimmy Gribben would enjoy their afternoon much more, as their young charges destroyed Raith’s second-string 8-2. The line-up makes interesting reading.
Dick Beattie; John Donnelly & Jim Kennedy;
Pat Crerand, John Kurila & John Clark;
Bobby Carroll, Mike Jackson, Jim Conway, John Divers & Steve Chalmers.
Back with the first team, Jimmy McGrory’s young side would continue to struggle in the section. A 2-1 home defeat by Partick Thistle in midweek, which soured winger Bobby Carroll’s debut, was followed by a 4-2 loss to Airdrieonians at Broomfield, where an early 2-0 lead was surrendered, leaving Celtic bottom of the group at the halfway stage.
Airdrie striker Jim Storrie – a schoolboy friend and teammate of Willie Wallace – scored a hat-trick in that match. He would later join ex-Celt Bobby Collins at Leeds United, as Don Revie’s men won the English Second Division in 1964, before lining up with the Wee Barra at Wembley for the FA Cup Final the following season – a first for the Yorkshire club – against Bill Shankly’s Liverpool.
A late Ian St John winner in extra-time took the trophy to Anfield for the first time, after Billy Bremner had equalised Roger Hunt’s opener for Liverpool. As an aside, Jim Storrie would suffer further cup final heartbreak with Aberdeen two years later, the now Celtic captain Billy McNeill taking a measure of revenge for that Broomfield defeat of 1959 as the eleven men who would soon become the Lisbon Lions beat the Dons 2-0 to win the 1967 Scottish Cup at Hampden. Jim would later manage St Johnstone for a spell in the mid-1970s.
Celts finally tasted victory on Wednesday, 19 August 1959, as the League season opened with a 2-0 home victory over Kilmarnock, goals from Jim Conway and John Divers either side of the interval securing the points, a young Joe McBride featuring at centre-forward for the visitors. And they continued in the same vein three days later, as the League Cup resumed, Charlie Gallagher replacing the injured Divers to make his Celtic debut as a first-half own goal from future Hibernian manager Willie MacFarlane proved the only goal of the return fixture with Raith Rovers at Parkhead.
Bertie Auld finally made an appearance in midweek, appropriately enough at his local Firhill, as a Mike Jackson double saw Celts move above Partick Thistle into third place. Raith Rovers’ 3-0 victory over Airdrieonians the same evening confirmed their status as Group 1 winners.
The dismal League Cup campaign came to an end on Saturday, 29 August 1959, with a 2-2 draw with Airdrieonians at Celtic Park, a result which meant the Parkhead club would finish beneath the Diamonds in third place. John Divers gave Celts a half-time lead before Auld beat Broomfield keeper Jock Wallace from the spot. Wallace would later find fame with Berwick Rangers in a major Scottish Cup upset at Shielfield Park in January 1967, before managing the side he had helped to eliminate – Rangers – following the retiral of Willie Waddell in 1972.
Ibrox was the next venue for Celtic, on Saturday, 5 September 1959, the 28th anniversary of John Thomson’s tragic death at the same venue. A weakened Hoops side succumbed to a 3-1 defeat in a brutal game, Mike Jackson’s goal a rare bright spot in a very forgettable afternoon.
There was a remarkable game the following Saturday, as Hearts came to town. The Gorgie men – featuring their Terrible Trio of the aforementioned Alfie Conn, Willie Bauld and Jimmy Wardhaugh – had cruised to the 1957/58 Scottish title, scoring a record 132 goals in 34 League games, their positive goal difference of 103 also a tally which remains unbeaten to this day. They had then been denied a second successive League flag in circumstances which spoke volumes for the sporting integrity of Celtic, and perhaps in particular to chairman Bob Kelly.
On Saturday, 18 April 1959, the final day of the League season, Celtic entertained defending champions Hearts, whilst Rangers hosted Aberdeen, the Ibrox club two points clear of the Gorgie men and with an identical goal average. Defeat for Rangers and a win for Hearts would see the flag remain in Edinburgh, and Aberdeen duly did their bit with a 2-1 victory in Govan, which removed the possibility of cup-finalist Dons being relegated. At Celtic Park, a Hearts side featuring Gordon Marshall senior in goals led 1-0 at the interval, the Tynecastle men just 45 minutes from the title, before second-half goals from Bertie Auld and Eric Smith won the match, and so directly handed the 1958/59 League Championship to bitter rivals Rangers!
Five months later, on Saturday, 12 September 1959, Hearts were back on League duty in Glasgow’s east end, the visitors this time finding themselves 3-0 up within 20 minutes, as the slow handclaps rang around Celtic Park. Back stormed the Hoops in the second half though, goals from Auld, Divers and Conway tying things up at 3-3 with 20 minutes remaining. Hearts’ keeper Marshall was injured at the third goal, the Edinburgh side reduced to 10 men until his return in the closing stages. But with the smart money on a Celtic winner, there was a sting in the tail, Bobby Blackwood beating Frank Haffey with two minutes to play to steal the points.
Celts returned to Kirkcaldy, scene of their opening-day League Cup defeat, seven days later. Steve Chalmers returned from injury to make just his second appearance in the Hoops, wide on the right flank, whilst left-back Neil Mochan was up against his brother Denis, at inside-left for Raith Rovers with a young Jim Baxter behind him at left-half. Mike Jackson gave the Bhoys the lead on 20 minutes with a deflected shot, however, the day would belong to former Ashfield man, Chalmers. Six minutes into the second half, Steve opened his Celtic account with a blistering finish, having been sent clear by Jackson. And with eight minutes remaining, he took advantage of a slip by home keeper Charlie Drummond to grab his second and Celtic’s third, thus sealing a 3-0 victory.
Injuries to Frank Haffey and Billy McNeill saw the introduction of 19-year-old debutants John Fallon and John Curran for the home match with Clyde, on Saturday, 26 September 1959, with Tommy Mackle replacing a third wounded Celt, Bertie Auld, on the left flank. Mackle opened the scoring direct from a free-kick seconds before the interval. However, any hopes of a clean sheet for Fallon on his big day ended when he was beaten by Shawfield centre-forward Ian Meek’s shot just before the hour, the game ending 1-1.
The following Saturday, 3 October 1959, saw an even more youthful debutant in the famous Hoops at Gayfield Park, Arbroath, as 18-year-old wing-half John Clark came into Celtic’s youngest-ever side at that time. Clark was one of six teenagers in the visiting side, Fallon, Curran, McNeill, Divers and Curran the others involved. With Bobby Evans and Bertie Peacock on international duty and on opposing sides as Ireland hosted Scotland in Belfast, this would be the first of almost 300 games where Billy McNeill and John Clark played together in a Celtic first team, Cesar making his inaugural appearance of the season in the central defensive position he would make his own for the next 16 years.
The full line-up for John’s senior debut, with age and previous first-team appearances for Celtic shown in brackets, was as follows.
John Fallon (19/1); John Curran (19/1) & Neil Mochan (32/241);
Eric Smith (25/110), Billy McNeill (19/34) & John Clark (18/0);
Steve Chalmers (23/3), Mike Jackson (20/30), Jim Conway (19/30), John Divers (19/35) & Bertie Auld (21/53).
Youth or lack of experience was clearly no disadvantage, as the Celts beat Arbroath 5-0 on the day. Steve Chalmers scored another double – taking his tally to four goals in his first four games for the club – as did Mike Jackson, with Jim Conway notching the other. The promoted Red Lichties had caused a major surprise in September by beating Raith Rovers – winners of Celtic’s League Cup section – in the quarter-final of that competition and they were due to meet Third Lanark in a last-four clash in midweek. Arbroath would lose that one 3-0 to the Hi Hi, who, in turn, would be beaten 2-1 by Hearts in the Hampden final later that month. This would prove to be the last national cup final for Third Lanark, one of Scottish football’s most historic clubs, before their eventual liquidation in the summer of 1967.
The next Saturday saw Celtic host Aberdeen, Billy McNeill making way for the returning Bobby Evans whilst John Clark retained his spot at left-half, Bertie Peacock displacing John Divers at inside-forward instead. The Hoops took the lead midway through the first half through Jim Conway, with a strong suspicion of hand ball causing the Aberdeen players to pursue referee Crossley for justice. That would be forthcoming, albeit later, when despite Celtic’s dominance on the day, centre-forward Archie Baird equalised for the Dons with 10 minutes remaining.
Two nights later, Monday, 12 October 1959, there was a landmark day in the history of the club when the new Celtic Park floodlights were inaugurated by the visit of English champions, Wolverhampton Wanderers. The 45,000 spectators cheered as Mrs Robert Kelly switched on the lights at the top of the four magnificent steel pylons, which would be an iconic sight and navigational aid for Celtic fans for the next three decades, if not the Luftwaffe! This would literally be the highlight of the night, as the young Celts were outclassed, goals from Peter Broadbent and Jimmy Murray securing a comfortable 2-0 win for Stan Cullis’ Midlands side.
Whilst the old stadium was continuing to take on a more modern look-and-feel, with the new covered Celtic End preceding the lights by two years, it was clear that much work remained to be done on the pitch before the Celts would be challenging for the major honours again.
Thanks, as always, to the folk behind The Celtic Wiki, a wonderful source of information.
To be continued later this evening on The Celtic Star…
Hail Hail,
Matt Corr
Follow Matt on Twitter @Boola_vogue
Happy Belated Birthday 🎂 John All the best Sandra, Richard Campbell & Family 🎂🎉🥂🍾💚💚💚