Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser
PRIDE OF A LION
Local legend Clark reflects on 50 years since he made history with Celtic’s European Cup win
He is one of Airdrie’s own, raised on Flowerhill Street in the centre of the town.
The seeds for John Clark’s upbringing were planted here, but never in his wildest dreams did he believe he would blossom into a European champion.
“The Brush” played alongside captain Billy McNeil at the heart of the Celtic defence under Jock Stein and was a vital cog in the all-conquering Lisbon Lions team.
Now, 50 years on and at the age of 76, Clark remembers the most famous of his 316 games in green and white, the 2-1 victory over Internazionale in the European Cup final.
He told the Advertiser: “The memory of the final will stick with me forever.
“It was a very warm day and when we walked out of the tunnel onto the pitch there was green and white all around the stadium.
“The game itself started fairly evenly and they scored an early penalty.
“That should have been bad news for us as the Italians knew how to defend and hold onto a lead.
“But in the second half we gave them a going-over and should have won by two or three more goals but their keeper played brilliantly.
“We were the better team by a mile but even when we went 2-1 up we had to stay focused as Inter had some very classy players.
“When the final whistle went it was just total joy for all of us.
“I’m very proud to have been a part of it and to know that we, as a team, made lots of people extremely happy.”
A special pull-out commemorating the Lisbon Lions’ achievement is included in today’s Advertiser, something which Clark was keen to praise.
He added: “Life is all about cherishing good times.
“It’s important to be able to tell our stories to people because when you finish playing football it lives on in memories.
“Younger people often say to me their uncle or father was at the game and that they are privileged to be able to shake hands with you.
“That tells you how much it means to supporters and for those who aren’t old enough to recall that day, it’s important they are able to read about it.
“Sadly, we’ve lost a few members of the squad now and a few aren’t doing too well either.
“It’s good to get these stories out there while we still can, so the pullout in the Advertiser is a positive thing.
“It was a great achievement for us and Scottish football and it will never be forgotten.”
We were the better team by a mile