The magnificent LilZe_7 Twitter page reminded me that 16 years have now elapsed since I attended Celtic’s 6-0 win over Dunfermline Athletic at Paradise on 12 March 2005. I was just eight years old at the time.
Having grown up watching Celtic during the Martin O’Neill era, I was somewhat spoiled with top class football and had already seen the Bhoys reached a European final before knocking Barcelona out of the UEFA Cup the following season. Living on the south coast of England, I couldn’t attend matches regularly, but the first Celtic game that I attended was at Anfield in 2003!
I had been disappointed that Celtic were knocked out of the Champions League in 2004/05, having finished fourth in a tough group consisting of AC Milan, Barcelona and Shaktar Donetsk. However, I was extremely excited when Dad informed me that we would be going up to Celtic Park to see Celtic face Dunfermline Athletic. He had booked return flights for us and a family friend from Bournemouth to Glasgow Prestwick, costing £30 with Ryanair!
Our friend hailed from the Gorbals and his brother had tickets for one of the lounges in the North Stand. We had visited the previous March for a cracking 2-2 draw against Hearts which preserved our unbeaten home record with two last gasp strikes from Sutton and Agathe. Therefore, it was great to meet everyone again, eat slice rolls (square sausage as I would have called them back then) and look forward to seeing a victory at Paradise for the first time.
I had been waiting to get to the stadium all morning. To keep me occupied, my Dad took me to Tesco in Shettleston, where I bought a Panini stickers album and had great fun as we couldn’t get the SPL version in England. However, the book was quickly flung to the floor when it was time to visit Celtic Park.
We walked through the various lounges until we reached our spot. I was handed a matchday programme on arrival and ordered my half time pie and coca-cola, before sitting down to watch the players warming up on the big screen as Dad and his friend took the opportunity to sink a few pints.
Kick off quickly rolled around and as I walked to my seat, I noticed a man that I recognised from the Celtic history VHS that was released in 1988 and was passed down to me. I pointed him out and Dad said “That’s Danny McGrain!”
The first half was uneventful and we went into the break with a 1-0 lead. I vividly remember my father saying “I think we will steamroll them in the second half.” How right he was as the match ended 6-0. But before the second 45 began, Dad pointed to the pitch and commented that if I kept going with my football then I would play out there one day. I was involved with the youth set up of Portsmouth, who were in the Premier League, at the time. Needless to say, that prediction didn’t quite work out though!
I have little recollection of the action, apart from recalling that Craig Bellamy was outstanding, Stephane Henchoz was introduced as a sub in the second half, and in my minds eye I can still see Stan Petrov smash home his second goal from close range. During the celebrations, I spotted Danny McGrain leaving and pointed out to my Dad and his friend that McGrain was going to miss the last 15 minutes. “What is he doing?” I asked. Both chuckled and said “When you’ve done what Danny’s done in the game I don’t think you’d worry about the last few minutes.” Although, Craig Beattie added a sixth for Celtic in the final seconds, so perhaps there was some merit to what I said.
We hung around in the bar for a few hours after the game and then went for food in the city centre. I had taken several pictures of the stadium, a snapshot of McGrain and some pictures of Henrik Larsson and Bobo Balde boarding the team bus. I couldn’t wait to get them developed.
We went back to my friend’s brother’s house that night and I sat reading the matchday programme again. Little did I know that in future years I would become a season ticket holder, write books and study the history of the club. An obsession was being formed in those childhood days. What a wonderful team we had too.
