Celtic On This Day – 17th September – David Potter’s Celtic Diary

Month 2, Day 17 of Celtic Historian David Potter’s new diary on The Celtic Star which will run throughout the new season and will highlight key Celtic-related events relevant to each day, today covering 17 September…

WEDNESDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 1952

Tragic news reaches Celtic Park today with the news of the death of John Millsop, a young forward who had already played a few games for the first team and who looked promising. He died of complications after appendicitis, and was only 21 years old.

Celtic’s John Millsop

SATURDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 1966

Latecomers miss all the action at Celtic Park in the first Old Firm League game of the season! By the end of the fourth minute, Bertie Auld and Bobby Murdoch have put Celtic two up, and a demoralised Rangers team fail to trouble the Celtic defence for the remaining 86 minutes with the full back combination of Tommy Gemmell and Willie O’Neill particularly impressive. The huge Celtic support in the 65,000 crowd is in full voice throughout and the players on the field are completely in control of the situation.

SATURDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 1977

Celtic’s woes continue with the folly of selling Kenny Dalglish now becoming more and more apparent. Dalglish scores again for Liverpool today, while Celtic go down 1-2 to Billy McNeill’s Aberdeen at Pittodrie, and even the goal that Celtic get is an own goal! Jock Stein reveals signs of irritability even in dealing with the media, an area in which he previously excelled while the Celtic fans in the 25,800 crowd are plunged into despair. If Dalglish had to go, why hasn’t the £440.000 been used to buy more players? It is a valid question.

Willie Garner scores the OG at Pittodrie…

SATURDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 1988

Celtic’s problems continue with a 1-3 defeat by Aberdeen at Parkhead before 37,769 fans who all wish they had gone to the Glasgow Garden Festival instead in the fine autumnal weather. Joe Miller scores a penalty for Celtic but there is little else to cheer about. The team has yet to recover from the psychological effects of the 1-5 defeat by Rangers three weeks previously. It will never do so.

Joe Miller scores from the spot

THURSDAY 17 SEPTEMBER 2009

In a performance that is sadly typical of Celtic in Europe, the team are 1-0 up against Hapoel Tel Aviv in Israel in the Europa League with a goal from Georgios Samaras, but fail to score again to kill off the Israelis, then defensive frailties lose two goals within the last twenty minutes.

David Potter

David Potter’s new book, Willie Fernie – Putting on the Style is featured in the new edition of the Celtic View which is out now and available from the Celtic Stores. You can also pick up the Willie Fernie book there too or order direct from Celtic Star Books, link below…

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.

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