My defining Celtic moment – the Scottish Cup final of 1988

This weekend saw the ties for the Third Round of the Scottish Cup taking place across the country, as the famous old competition marks its 150th anniversary. This is the stage when the teams from the Championship and League One – including a host of previous winners – join the fray, all hoping to progress to the Fourth Round and the possibility of a plum tie against a Premiership giant and the chance to make some history.

And in the Scottish Cup dreams can come true and they have this evening for the Highland League’s Hoops Buckie Thistle who have been draw away to holders Celtic in the Fourth Round.

Holders Celtic have had an incredible relationship with the Scottish Cup over the years, and that goes all the way back, the Bould Bhoys reaching the final in our first-ever season in 1888/89 – losing 2-1 to Third Lanark – before securing it as our first major trophy in 1892 with a comprehensive 5-1 victory over the Kings, or should I say Queens, of the Scottish Cup in that era, Queens Park.

My defining Celtic moment – the Scottish Cup final of 1988…

Reaching the Scottish Cup final during our Centenary season of 1987/88 was fantastic, and I had a feeling that something very special was about to happen, something to remember for years to come and to share with future generations.

As a 15-year-old kid, I was already learning everything I could about Celtic and the history of this great football club. I was fully immersed in the club and had a great love for all things Celtic. I wasn’t to know it at the time, but the Scottish Cup Final of Saturday, 14 May 1988 was to become my defining Celtic moment.