EARLIER today we asked you if you were at the game on this day in 1988? Celtic beat Dundee 3-0 that day to secure the title in our Centenary season and the pay at the gate crowd – incredibly it was not an all ticket match – was huge. You can catch up and read today’s feature HERE.
We asked you if you could share your memories of that day in Paradise and we promised to share some of the replies this evening, so here goes…
‘YOU ARE NOT GETTING ON THIS PITCH!’ – ‘AYE AM URR’
l was there. Never seen Parkhead so full. Assumed a position, almost on the track. One policeman took it upon himself to stop me, kept saying, ‘you are not getting on this pitch!’,
I kept smiling and repeating, ‘Aye am urr’. I hadn’t played Scottish lion since my primary school days but l fancied my chances. The last ten minutes took an eternity, the crowd heaving to bursting. An unstoppable wave shook the place to the core and flooded the pristine, hallowed turf.
I gave the copper a wee jink and a wink as l flew passed him, l was on it, l was on the pitch! I danced with joy, embarrassingly, nothing cool and controlled, like most of my Jungle brothers, it was a fantastic frenzy of emotion and joy showering us all, we were almost hysterical.
I instinctively headed to the centre circle, drawn magnetically, to the eye of the storm as it were, where I met one of my neighbours from Blantyre. We greeted each other ecstatically, barely able to manage speaking and made noises more akin to cavemen, grunts and howls, it’s was undoubtedly one of the greatest experiences l ever had and rejoice recounting it now too.
I shake my head but I know it was true. I was there and it was the game.
Tom Cather
ON THE TRACKSIDE
I can’t really recall the actual game but I remember a lot of us in the Celtic end including myself being moved on to the trackside during the game and moved into the Rangers end.
It was quite surreal.
James Carrigan
WHAT AN ATMOSPHERE!
I was there with my young bhoy who was 10 at the time. I remember standing at the old pie stall near the London Road end. The place was so packed I put my son onto the track for his own safety. Kids surrounded the whole area. What an atmosphere that day. They said the crowd was 60,000 .I think that might have in the Celtic end alone.
Charles Donaghy
A FANTASTIC DAY!
The 23 April 1988 was a fantastic day!
My normal place to stand was in the middle of the Jungle, but there was no way we could in that day, it was completely packed. I ended up in the Rangers end, not for the first time during the title run in that year.
For much of the first half we watched fascinated as the crowd were moved around the pitchside, getting re-located to the Dundee fans’ area and the empty terracing in front of the police hut which was never used at that time. The official attendance figure was a total joke as everyone who was there will know.
PLEASE DON”T GO
The early strike meant we could all relax and enjoy the game, then when Andy Walker scored the whole place went mental. My brother fell to the ground and got back up again just too late to see Walker score again –for the next 10 minutes or so he thought it was still two-nil – he thought we were still celebrating Walker’s first!
I think the two goals were about 40 seconds apart. A great day, and one I wasn’t sure I’d see when I went to Greenock for the first game of the season against Morton. That really was an inspired Celtic team though with McStay prompting everything from the middle of the park and the two full backs, Morris and Rogan, giving him those overlapping runs all day long.
FROM MERSEYSIDE TO PARADISE
I was a student at Liverpool University at the time and travelled up for most home games on the train with the Michael Davitt CSC. I would usually meet up with my pals, Jamie, Mick and Brendan from the Celtic Cross CSC in Dennistoun for a few drinks before the game but, on this occasion, the train was late and I headed straight to Paradise from Central Station.
Nobody had a season book back then and, even during Celtic’s highly successful Centenary Season, all-ticket matches were a rarity, especially at Celtic Park.
It certainly never occurred to me that the ground would be anywhere near capacity for the visit of Dundee. That all changed at about a quarter past two as I walked past the old Grange Bar on the Gallowgate and saw the queues sneaking round the corner of Janefield Street from the turnstiles at the Celtic End and the Jungle.
I always stood towards the front of the Jungle on the halfway line. A group of us would congregate there. Peter Grant’s sister often used to stand with us. I recall getting into the ground just as Glen Daly’s Celtic Song announced the arrival of the team and, remarkably, I was able to fight my way to my usual spot. As I appeared, I recall Mick shouting out to me: “Hey, Scouse, brand new wee man.”
He always called me Scouse even though I wasn’t actually from Liverpool and certainly didn’t have the accent!
With hindsight, it was a health and safety disaster waiting to happen but we all lived to tell the tale on that occasion and, thanks to Chris Morris and “Handy” Andy Walker, a great time was had by all.
Almost exactly a year later, I was at Hillsborough but that’s another story…
David Sleight
IF you would like to write for The Celtic Star on any Celtic related subject you like, please email your contribution editor@thecelticstar.co.uk and we’ll do the rest. HH
