In the purest footballing sense, Charlie Gallagher was one of Celtic’s best ever players. A brilliant passer of a ball, and with a brilliant wiggle of the hips to avoid a charge from a coarse defender, Charlie’s delicate frame was deceptive, for he was a tough competitor with a cannonball shot on occasion.

He had the misfortune to be around in the early 1960s when things did not go so well for the club, including the awful Scottish Cup final in 1961, but he emerged through it all to take the famous corner kick from which Billy McNeill propelled Celtic to glory.

Two years later he did the same against Vojvodina. Sadly he missed out on Lisbon itself, but 1968 was rightly called Gallagher’s Championship as the team came from behind with marvellous away wins at Dundee United, Hearts, St Johnstone and Aberdeen to lift the flag.

It was a shame that he was in the same team as so many other fine players, for it meant that he could not command a regular place.

Charlie won two caps with Eire, and after he left Celtic, he also played for Dumbarton in a team which came close to beating Celtic in a League Cup semi final. In later years he was a regular attender at Celtic Park, remaining the modest and lovable man that he had always been.

Charlie Gallagher? What a Player!

David Potter

HUGE SAVINGS IN THE CELTIC STAR’S SUMMER SALE!

The Celtic Star’s Father’s Day Promotion has been so successful, with hundreds of books at great prices being posted to Celtic fans all over the world, that we’ve decided to continue with the sale until the end of July. We’ve reduced all six books currently available from their usual retail price of £20 and prices are as low as £6 (see below).

All books are high quality hardback, with some signed by the author. And it’s also worth noting that you only pay postage on one book, so it’s free for the second, third and so on. ORDER HERE or click on The Celtic Star image above…this is how it feels to be Celtic!