Celtic On This Day – 30th April – David Potter’s Celtic Diary

FRIDAY 30th APRIL 1909 – Celtic triumphantly bring to an end a period of twelve days in which they have played eight games to win the Scottish League. The Championship is sealed at Douglas Park, Hamilton in a 2-1 win over the home side. The goals are scored by Davie Hamilton and Jimmy McMenemy, but the celebrations have to be brief for the team is due to set off on a Highland tour the next day!

FRIDAY 30th APRIL 1965 – As if to prove that successful people get all the luck, Celtic, for whom the wheel of fortune turned last week in the Scottish Cup final, beat Rangers very luckily 2-1 in the Glasgow Cup first round. Stevie Chalmers and Bertie Auld score for Celtic, but Rangers in spite of being at one stage reduced to 9 men, have all the play. So Celtic were lucky. But how have Rangers managed to get the better of Celtic over all these years?

WEDNESDAY 30th APRIL 1968 – It is a gala night at Dunfermline as a crowd of over 30,000 (dangerously overcrowded in parts) watch the Scottish Cup winners (Dunfermline) play the Scottish League champions (Celtic). There is much fun before the start of the game when Dunfermline’s manager George Farm shows off the Scottish Cup and Jock Stein pretends to try to take it off him. The kick-off is delayed because of crowd problems, but Celtic eventually win 2-1 with two goals from Bobby Lennox.

SATURDAY 30th APRIL 1983 – Having apparently thrown it all away by three dreadful results, Celtic bring it back somewhat with a 5-0 win over Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. Murdo MacLeod scores twice and the other goals are scored by Danny McGrain, Charlie Nicholas and Tommy Burns. Unfortunately Dundee United and Aberdeen also win, so Celtic are still one point behind Dundee United.

SATURDAY 30th APRIL 2005 – The danger signal was up a few weeks ago when Celtic lost to Hearts at Celtic Park, but the tired Celtic management of Martin O’Neill failed to notice it, and today Celtic complete a bizarre Edinburgh double by losing to Hibs 1-3, the only goal coming from Craig Beattie. The tragic events of Black Sunday are about to unfold – but some of us saw them coming.

David Potter

David’s bestseller The Celtic Rising ~ 1965: The Year Jock Stein Changed Everything is completely sold out in print on but is available on Amazon kindle, with all the photographs of the hardback edition, for HALF PRICE at just £3.49…