It is not all that far from the Ayrshire village of Beith to Glasgow in terms of miles and distance, but in terms of culture it would as well being on another planet.
When this bucolic looking young man with the sticking out ears and splay foot style of walking came to Parkhead in summer 1923, he had “country bumpkin” written all over him, and he once famously got himself lost in Woolworths, dazzled by all the bright lights.
But in 1924 he established himself as Celtic’s right half and very soon the fans saw some marvellous passing ability. “Peter Wilson didn’t pass the ball, he stroked it and caressed it” and he won four Scottish Cup medals in 1925, 1927, 1931 and 1933 as well as being part of that wonderful team that won the Scottish League in 1926.
A word used about him was “cool”, and he needed to be, for this was a highly charged time in Scottish football and the team needed to have someone who could take a grip of the game.
He was tasked with the job of reading the lesson at John Thomson’s memorial service in Glasgow, but could not gain admittance to the Church because of the crowds.
He played 4 times for Scotland, the most famous being against England at Hampden in 1933 on the day that McGrory scored the goal which created the “Hampden roar”.
He later played for Hibs and became Manager of Dunfermline Athletic. He died in 1983.
David Potter
David Potter passed away peacefully on Sunday morning 30 July 2023. You can read the message we received from David’s wife Rosemary HERE.
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