Pre-Match

At lunchtime on the day of the game, Zurich experienced temperatures of around 85 degrees but this dropped to around 81 degrees nearer the kick-off. The game was watched in the stands by the President of FIFA, Sir Stanley Rous.

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1^st October 1966

The papers were still going on about the European tie in midweek and particularly the rough stuff dished out by the Swiss champions. One headline and comment rather summed the whole situation up for many fans ;-

Shameful Swiss

‘Now Celtic will be up against it in Zurich’

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29^th September

There was good news and bad news for Celtic in the morning papers. The not-so-good news was summed up by this headline;-

Murdoch – Report Goes to FIFA

Chopper: Shopped to FIFA!
© Daily Record

Why a simple booking should be surrounded by a considerable amount of fuss was beyond the comprehension of most fans? Presumably the two Zurich players booked would also be reported to the governing body but they were not mentioned in the newspaper reports, or at least the Scottish ones.

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Pre-Match

Swiss football was not regarded too highly by most Celtic fans, although a glance at the side which they put out showed that it would contain 2 Germans, 1 Italian and 7 Swiss internationals. And they were also managed by a very well-known name in Laszlo Kubala. Continue reading →

26th September
On Monday morning, the outline of the Dundee match was laid out on the back pages in three simple headlines and told us all we needed to know about the way the match unfolded ;- Continue reading →

Morning of the Match

I had not been involved in the Reserve team the night before against Dundee but I was intending to play in the Combined Reserve team match that afternoon. The Boss and I had discussed my position, where I was studying for my finals – coming up in the first weeks of October – and also trying to fit in training and playing at the same time. It was hard going!

He had suggested that I concentrate on the studies for the next few weeks and make football a secondary pastime during that period. He did ask if I wanted to pull out altogether but I refused, saying that I wanted to keep up my fitness. At best, it meant that, for a few weeks, I would not have to keep worrying about my position in the team….all that would return again, after my finals.

The travelling party to Dundee would have stopped somewhere for a pre-match meal then made its way to Dens Park, which, at that time, was a wonderful surface to play on. It was just an odd arrangement that this fine ground was situated only 300 yards or so from another fine stadium, where Dundee United played all their home games. Continue reading →

22^nd September

The quarter-final ties for both Old Firm clubs had left some damage, reflected in the headlines ; –

 Old Firm Blow

Five injured at Ibrox       John Clark Doubtful for Celts 

‘The five injured for Rangers in the match against Ayr were Willie Henderson (hip), Jimmy Millar (ankle), Willie Johnston (calf), Alec Smith (thigh) and George McLean (bruising). For John Clark, it was a knee that was causing him bother’. Continue reading →

Pre-match

I was not in the travelling party which made the journey over to East End Park, so I have no idea where they stopped for the pre-match meal. However, I do know the boys would have been in good humour as they were 6-3 up from the first leg and would have been looking forward to the away match. And, just to make things even more pleasurable, the Pars ground was a very atmospheric arena, one which all of us enjoyed playing in.

The Teams

Dunfermline: Martin, W Callaghan, Lunn, Paton, Delaney, T Callaghan, Edwards, Flaming, Hunter, Ferguson, Robertson.    Sub: Maxwell

Celtic: Simpson, Gemmell, O’Neill, Murdoch, McNeill, Clark, Johnstone, Chalmers, McBride, Auld, Hughes.   Sub: Lennox

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19^th September

Even two days after the Celtic v Rangers encounter, the papers were still going on about how well Celtic had played;-

 Will-O’-The-Wisps in Green

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The Morning of the Match
In the football world, it must be hard to come up with a fixture that can surpass a Celtic/Rangers encounter for tension, anticipation or excitement. Granted, the atmosphere can ‘occasionally’ be spoiled by a little sectarianism but, to be blunt, old habits die hard and even in this so-called ‘enlightened’ age, we have still have our dinosaurs who refuse to leave the past behind. Continue reading →