On this day in 1997, Celtic opened their pre-season tour of Holland with a game against FC Beatrix and got ‘the keys to the door” in scoring terms hitting the unfortunate Dutch amateurs with a 21 goal-feast. Has Celtic ever scored more in a match?
Tommy Johnston didn’t get a hat-trick, he got two! Alan Stubbs got a hat-trick that day too, perhaps the only one of his playing career? And you striker John Paul McBride came off the bench to score a hat-trick too. The goals were certainly flying in -even captain Tommy Boyd scored that day!
It was 9-0 at the interval and you’d probably expect Celtic to ease up in the second half but the goals just kept on coming with the final score being 21-0 to Celtic. Poor little FC Beatrix! The Celtic bench didn’t see to enthusiast judging by this photo taken during the game! Two Celtic ships passing in the night there.
The Celtic side that defeated FC Beatrix was Marshall, Annoni, Boyd, McNamara, McKay, Stubbs, Donnelly, Hannah, Johnson, Thomson and Gray and the final score was 21-0 to Celtic.
The Celtic scorers were David Hannah (2), Tommy Johnson (6), Alan Stubbs (3), Andy Thom, Tommy Boyd, Simon Donnelly (2), Stuart Gray, John Paul McBride (sub; 3), Marc Anthony (sub) and Brian McLaughlin (sub).
After that result Celtic fans could have been forgiven for thinking we were in for a decent season!
Celtic midfielder Marc Anthony scoring against Aberdeen Reserves in 1996. Photo: The Celtic Wiki.
