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There was some talent in that young McMenemy and his friend Bennett as well, but there were still too many players in that team who were not of real Celtic class. But Maley, who had suffered some dreadful knocks in his private life, and who was already aware that he was a great deal fonder of the Celtic than he should be – a paid employee should not be as obsessed with his firm as he was! – decided that 1903 was going to be the year that things were to change.

Already, with the backing of the Board, he had decided to change the format of the strips – still green and white, but horizontal rather than vertical – from the start of next season and he would like to think that there would be a permanent change in the team’s fortunes as well. More players would be required.

Jimmy Young’s arrival at Celtic Park was fortuitous, to put it mildly. Maley had heard good reports of an ex-Clyde and Kilmarnock right winger called Bobby Muir, currently playing for Bristol Rovers. Muir was apparently homesick and wanted to return to Scotland, and he was good enough for Celtic to become interested. Accordingly, committee man Mick Dunbar was despatched south to have a look at him and to offer Muir at least a trial for Celtic, if he was interested.

Sometime in late April, Dunbar was successful in persuading Muir to come north, having agreed it all apparently over lunch at the Black Swan Hotel near Eastville, the home of Bristol Rovers. But there were another two players there as well at that lunch, both also from Kilmarnock, an inside right called John Graham and a centre half called James Young.

Dunbar was impressed by their sincerity – Young in particular saying that he wanted to try again in Scotland as he did not really fit in at Bristol Rovers, and he felt he would like to play for a Scottish team with a large support.

He was honest enough not to utter specious nonsense that “Celtic were the only team he ever wanted to play for” – because that would have been blatantly untrue – and said he was a professional footballer, and now suspecting that he would soon have a wife and child to support, he needed money.

All four men enjoyed their lunch that day, and Dunbar, apparently acting on his own initiative, (for in 1903, in the absence of mobile phones and texts, it would not have been easy to establish instant contact with Glasgow), decided that he would take all three of them to Glasgow, but in the case of Young and Graham, without making any promises.

He sent a telegram to Maley. Maley might well have chuckled at the thought of these two youngsters being brought along as an afterthought, for was not that the way that he himself had joined the Celtic 15 years ago? The committee men in 1888 had been interested in his brother Tom, but then one of them had said “Why don’t you come along as well?”

Both Muir and Young (Graham’s chance would come later) were given a fairly immediate opportunity on Monday 27 April 1903. Celtic had arranged a friendly with Manchester City, both managers of course being the brothers Maley – Willie of Celtic and Tom of Manchester City. It was a poor game on an end-of-season bumpy pitch before a meagre crowd of 2,000, not helped by the weather breaking an hour before kick-off, and it ended in a goalless draw.

Young played at centre half under the pseudonym of “Smith” whereas Muir was “Jackson” for the purpose of this exercise with The Evening Times predicting that “Celtic will try out a few new recruits tonight”. The team was McPherson; Watson and Battles; Loney, Smith and Weir; Jackson, McMenemy, McLeod, Somers and Thomson.

The game may have been a poor one, (it is hardly mentioned in the press which is far more bothered about the imminent visit of King Edward VII to Scotland in a few weeks time) but Maley was impressed by his centre half James Young. He made a few mistakes, but his attitude was first class and he radiated command of the situation, not being afraid to shout at men like Barney Battles when he felt he was a little slow in getting to the ball.