Frank Brogan was a grossly undervalued player at Celtic Park. When he went to Ipswich Town, Frank got a consistent run in the team, and Ipswich saw how good he was…
He was never given enough of a chance at Celtic Park. He made only 37 appearances between 1961 and 1964 mainly as a left winger, but there was enough on show here to make one think that under better management (like Jackie Milburn at Ipswich) a great deal more might have been made of him.
He played some games in the 1961/62 season on the right wing and the crowd saw a slightly delicate boy who seemed to run on his tiptoes, but he could cross a ball and score a goal as he did twice against Aberdeen in March 1962.
It was the following season that saw inconsistent team selections and youngsters never being given a chance to settle down. Celtic reached the Scottish Cup final in May and in a creditable performance held Rangers to a 1-1 draw with both wingers Jimmy Johnstone and Frank Brogan giving a good account of themselves.
Both were dropped for the replay, and Celtic lost 0-3!
In February 1964 he scored against Aberdeen at Pittodrie and then was dropped for the next game, then he was reinstated, scored twice against Airdrie and dropped again! With madness like that in the Boardroom, Frank, Celtic through and through, was probably glad to get away to the sanity of Ipswich.
Frank Brogan was a major opportunity thrown away!
David Potter
Frank Brogan’s brother Jim Brogan had a much more successful career with Celtic in the late 1960’s & early 1970’s.
“To have two boys playing for Celtic at the one time was a dream come true. I can’t remember my father ever missing a Celtic game that I played and that speaks for itself if you’re talking about family pride.” Frank Brogan
Frank passed away in 2021.
*Article from The Celtic Star archives, featuring the Celtic writing of the late, great Celtic Historian David Potter.
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