Remembrance Day is always a time of great debate among Celtic fans. I think it would be fair to say that every supporter would be happy to remember those who fought in World War I and World War II, however that same respect is not often afforded to those who took part in other conflicts. Given the club’s political history and connections with Ireland, it is no surprise that the British forces who have occupied lands, oppressed peoples and murdered civilians are not foremost in some of our supporter’s thoughts.
It is a fact that such oppression, occupation and murder did happen. For example, the Chilcot report found that the Iraq war was unjustified, the British government have apologised for the army murdering civilians in the Ballymurphy and Bloody Sunday massacres, whilst the partitioning (and subsequent military upholding) of Ireland was illegal under international laws relating to territorial integrity.
World War II was a very different period in British military history. Many people were conscripted to join the War effort and there was a noble cause in fighting against fascism. It goes without saying that the Nazis were evil and had the Allies not defeated the Axis powers then the world would be a grim place today.
We recently announced on The Celtic Star that we are set to publish a book about Celtic Football Club in the Second World War.
A number of the club’s players took part in the conflict, some won awards, some were injured and some died. Drawing on my research for the book, I have outlined the following four players as being worthy of a special mention. They deserve our respect and remembrance today.
Joseph McCulloch:
A great defender who played a handful of games as a guest from Third Lanark, including the Glasgow Cup Final victory over Rangers in 1940. He was a Sergeant Major in the 6th Battalion of the Royal Scots Fusiliers and his spell at Paradise was cut short when his unit was mobilised to France. Reports of the time suggest that he played football for the Army in Belgium at one point, whilst his battalion had been re-posted to France in 1944, taking part in the Normandy Campaign, the First Battle of Odon, and Operation Jupiter. They then advanced to the Southern-Netherlands ahead of a planned invasion of Germany via the River Rhine.
On 6 November 1944, Joseph’s brigade was sent to relieve the 10th Battalion Highland Light Infantry at Heusden, where he was wounded on 19 December, yet remained on duty.
Tragically, McCulloch passed away in Marienbosch, a British Hospital based in Nijmegen (12km from the Western border of Germany), Netherlands, on 24 February 1945. He died of further wounds sustained in battle four days earlier. Joseph was aged just 26 and was laid to rest in Marienbosch Cemetery. On 15 April 1947, he was reburied in Jonkerbos War Cemetery, where he remains (Plot 9, Row E, Grave 5).
Willie Lyon:
Known as Celtic’s Bayard, Lyon was Club Captain during some of the great successes of the late 1930s. He was a fine soldier in the Scots Greys, Scots Guards, Royal Artillery and then the Gordon Highlanders, who was awarded the Military Cross in October 1943 for gallantry in North Africa, where his anti-tank unit served with distinction in Tunisia. Returning to North West Europe on D-Day, Lyon suffered a serious leg wound during the fighting in Normandy in July 1944. It was a wound which prematurely ended his football career at the age of 32. A mark of the qualities of Willie Lyon is that he joined the Army as a Private and left as a Sergeant.
Oliver Anderson:
An Arthurlie signing, Oliver Anderson joined Celtic in 1937 and made his debut just over a year later. His time at Celtic Park was quickly interrupted when he was among the first young men drafted into the Royal Artillery under the Military Training Act in August 1939. Whilst in the forces, he was posted to France and was rumoured to have died in battle, until he returned on leave and asked Jimmy McStay if he could play for his old team! Anderson returned to France with his anti-tank corps later in the conflict and was wounded on 18 August 1944. When being treated at hospital in England, he told the press: “I got a bullet through the calf of my leg but that isn’t going to stop me playing!” Although, his Celtic career was over after 16 games, he did stay true to his word by playing for multiple Scottish clubs until the 1950s. Oliver entered the Army as a Private and left as a Lieutenant.
Joseph Leo Coen:
Although not a Celtic player during WWII, Joseph was signed as Celtic’s back-up keeper in 1931/32. When John Thomson tragically died at Ibrox, Johnny Falconer got the nod to take over as number one. However, Coen played three matches after Falconer broke his finger. The arrival of Joe Kennaway signified the end of his time at the club, and he was released in 1932.
Joseph Coen joined the RAF in May 1940 and became a Leading Aircraftman. Sadly, he collided with a colleague named James Yonge during a training exercise at an RAF base in Cranwell (Lincolnshire) on 15 October 1941. Both men died instantly.
To keep up to date with our Celtic In The Second World War project, and for snippets from the book, please visit @CelticWW2 on Twitter.
One of the great things about the research for my WWII book has been realising how much it meant to people to play for Celtic. The great George Paterson sent this letter to Jimmy McStay in 1941, offering to play for the club for free! pic.twitter.com/O5Sjpu9HhH
— Liam Kelly (@cfcliamk96) September 26, 2021
As a life long Celtic fan and having also served 22 years in the army what a lot of Celtic fans need to remember is that there a vast amount of serving military personnel and veterans who are fans of our great club.It is good to see some recognition for former players who also served and paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country.