Celtic On This Day – 26th November – David Potter’s Celtic Diary

SATURDAY 26 NOVEMBER 1904 – Trips to Airdrie can often be unpleasant ones, both in terms of crowd behaviour and in terms of results, but today was a fine exception to the rule with Jimmy McMenemy scoring twice and Alec Bennett once as Celtic win 3-1.

SATURDAY 26 NOVEMBER 1932 – This season did not get off to the best of starts, but recently there has been some sort of improvement, and today Celtic travelled the short distance to Cathkin Park to defeat Third Lanark 4-0, Charlie Napier and Jimmy McGrory both scoring two goals each. The game was played in a howling gale but Celtic were able to master the elements far better than Thirds were, and there were clear signs of the support becoming animated again.

SATURDAY 26 NOVEMBER 1960 – St Johnstone had often been looked upon as some kind of a bogey team for Celtic, and today proves this point as they go down 1-2 at Muirton Park, Perth. Steve Chalmers scores Celtic’s goal early on, but they let things slip. The general opinion is that the young Celtic team may be talented but seem to lack conviction and confidence. That is clearly why Willie Fernie is now back at Parkhead, but things do not look good at the moment.

WEDNESDAY 26 NOVEMBER 1969 – Even Celtic’s greatest supporters would have to concede that they are lucky tonight as they go through to the European Cup quarter-final on the toss of a coin. This happens in Portugal when Benfica cancel out the three goals that Celtic scored at Parkhead two weeks ago. Their third goal is very late but it takes the game to extra-time. No further scoring takes place, and as penalty shoot-outs have not yet been devised, the tie is decided on the crude device of the toss of a coin. Because of a late kick-off, news does not reach Scotland until after midnight.

SATURDAY 26 NOVEMBER 2005 – Celtic come unstuck surprisingly before 56,575 fans at Parkhead when Dunfermline score first through Ross, and manage to keep it that way in spite of frantic efforts from Celtic to equalize. It was just “a bad day at the office” as some fans put it.

David Potter