All I want for Christmas – much like last year – is Moi Elyounoussi on a long-term contract. For some of us, the way the season is progressing, we’d probably be delighted with a clean sheet or two over a fixture congested Christmas period.
Sadly, none of that is within our control. However, if any you are looking for a more realistic gift idea this festive period – and one that will make any Celtic supporter just as happy – then purchase that Celtic supporter in your family Walfrid & The Bould Bhoys this Christmas.
This is as good an addition to the Celtic collection for any Celtic fan as there has been in sometime.
The book itself is split into three. First Liam Kelly charts the Founding Fathers of Celtic. While many of course will be aware of the history and origins of the club, and all will know something of Brother Walfrid’s role in the founding of Celtic, Liam takes the reader on a meticulously researched journey through many, many more of those involved in the beginnings and the growth of Celtic. Unsung heroes who at long last have been given due recognition for their vital roles in forming Celtic FC.
It is a fascinating insight into the people, the politics and their lives alongside their time and dedication to ensuring Celtic become an established football club. The internal battles around charitable principles and professionalism are covered through the intertwining stories of these men. This is not just a green-tinted spectacles look at the stories of all involved either, if there are warts and all to be covered, and there are, they are recorded brilliantly in Liam Kelly’s section of Walfrid & The Bould Bhoys.
In the book’s second section Matt Corr picks up the baton and takes us through what must have been a painstaking exploration through each month of Celtic’s first season. The games, the characters, the places and teams, many unfamiliar and long gone are covered superbly. It is written like a season review, yet this information can’t have been easy to come by. If you want to get a feel for Celtic’s footballing journey across Scotland, England and Ireland in a packed full schedule, the ‘Invincible’ author won’t disappoint you.
It’s a mesmerising account than brings the games of the time and some of the players stories back to life, not to mention the confusing governance of Scottish football – the more things change the more they stay the same.
Just finished reading Walfrid and The Bould Bhoys, an absolutely brilliant book.
Took me longer than I thought because I kept searching for other stuff related to some of the historical figures who light up the pages.
Well done to all involved 🍀 pic.twitter.com/ydvVG8ZDb3— Highland__Paddy (@Highland__paddy) November 16, 2020
The best compliment you could pay it is the journey whizzes by and leaves you bursting with pride as to how the founders outlined in Liam’s first section had laid the groundwork for a team to hit the ground running – and my word they did!
With no official league in place at that stage you’d assume Celtic simply played a series of challenge matches, and they did of course, but there are cup competitions galore and Celtic do more than simply compete in that first season. Matt takes the reader on a wonderful journey through the close calls and the fairytales you soon find out were attached to Celtic from day one.
The third and final section of Walfrid and the Bould Bhoys covers the heroes of the generation, the men charged with putting on the boots and making Celtic history. This section covering the players is left to one of the best Celtic authors to bring to life, and he does it as only he can.
Many will be aware of David Potter, Celtic’s most famous of authors needs no introduction, and this final section is written in his own passionate and descriptive detail, in a way that keeps the deeds of the players of the time alive as if their achievements and stories were from last season rather than more than a century ago.
Starting with Dan Doyle and covering James ‘No Kelly, No Keltic’ through the grand nicknames of the time such as Sandy McMahon’s ‘The Duke’ and Alec McNair’s ‘The Icicle’ and of course there is a record of ‘The man who made Celtic’, Willie Maley, these stories of Celtic’s first players covers the tales of their exploits on the pitch but also gives you an insight into the men who filled those jerseys, their stories beyond the field of play and all told with the unmistakable style of one of Celtic’s finest historians.
This is a wonderful book and a truly remarkable record of Celtic’s infancy. It is also a gift that will keep on giving.
We all have Celtic books that have been handed down through the generations. If I could make one prediction when it comes to Walfrid and the Bould Bhoys it would be that this too will be one the recipient will enjoy and one that will be passed around and handed down for generations to come, as one of the finest records of any part of Celtic’s history. The fact it is written by three different generations of Celtic authors simply adds to the experience.
I couldn’t recommend this book highly enough. Even amongst the vast array of Celtic historical records this one will stand out as special. If you were considering another Christmas jumper or God forbid another pair of socks for a Celtic supporter this Christmas, do yourself and them a favour and plump for Walfrid and the Bould Bhoys. You won’t regret your choice and neither will they. RATING *****
Niall J
