OLD FOES TO OLD FRIENDS
Greig had so much respect for rival
THE fiercest of rivals on the park, the greatest of respect off it.
John Greig knows it’s hard to believe captains on opposite sides of the Old Firm divide can be friends.
But his on-field battles with Billy McNeill came in a different era and there was a real mutual appreciation between the two legendary captains.
Former Rangers skipper Greig paid tribute to his friend and former rival, whose careers ran on parallel lines, after the Celtic’s legendary Lions captain died aged 79.
Greig and McNeill were one-club men and seen as Old Firm symbols during Scottish football’s halcyon days as they lifted European trophies.
Greig first crossed swords with McNeill on his derby debut 57 years ago, Davie Wilson cancelling out an opener from Celtic’s John Hughes in a 1-1 draw at Parkhead in April 1962.
That would be the start of a rivalry stretching almost two decades between the pair that went from the pitch to the dugout.
Greig, 76, said: “Billy and I always had a great friendship with us being the respective Old Firm captains, which meant we were invited to so many public engagements.
“So we became good friends off the park and had a lot of respect for each other. But obviously on the park we were big rivals.
“It’s easier to understand now with so many foreign players involved but in the 1960s and 1970s people probably found it hard to believe Old Firm rivals could be close.
“It’s easy to forget in those days the Scotland team was made up of Rangers and Celtic players to a large extent.
“There was a rivalry there but there were also friendships between players. It started with Jim Baxter and Paddy Crerand and others such as Willie Henderson and Tommy Gemmell, Jim Baxter, wee Jimmy Johnstone and Billy and myself.
“We had a great mutual respect for each other which I appreciated and I will really miss bumping into him.
“Only last week when I met Tommy Callaghan we were talking about old players and I was asking about Billy. You forget we’re all getting older and it makes it harder when you lose such a giant of a man.
“You almost think guys like Billy are indestructible. But while I know he hasn’t been well for a while the only image I can have of him is on the field, playing in big games, because I can’t think of him in any other way.
“Billy wasn’t a joker or anything like that. He was quite serious but he was just an ordinary, lovely guy who was a great footballer player and became a household name.
“It’s just so sad to hear the news and to be honest at this time my thoughts are with his wife Liz, knowing her as well as I do, and the rest of the family.”
Greig’s playing days coincided with Celtic becoming the first Scottish club to win nine in a row. Rangers stopped them making it 10, albeit Greig was on the bench for the titlewinning game at Easter Road in 1975. He added: “Billy was a leader on the field and it so happened it was a leader of a great team with a great manager at the back of him, which they proved by winning the European Cup in 1967.
“He wasn’t only a commanding centre-half, he scored so many goals from set-pieces as well. He was outstanding for Celtic and someone the fans will never forget.
“We never mixed as much socially as some other players because I lived in Edinburgh while I was playing for Rangers. But we were often asked to open shops, attend charity functions and hospital visits and things like that so we did all that together.
“Our wives got to know each other and we understood we were at the top of our profession and had pride in ourselves.
“I did so many things with Billy. We even got our honorary doctorates at Glasgow University together. We were still doing that until as recently as a few years ago before he was unable to do that type of thing due to ill health.”
BILLY McNEILL transcended football. The Lisbon Lions skipper was revered and instantly recognised wherever he went. McNeill’s long-time defensive partner and friend John Clark can vouch for that. In the 1980s the duo somehow got lost during a scouting trip to Vicarage Road to see Watford. However their momentary panic turned to sheer joy when they were escorted to the car park and given the best seats in the house by Hornets chairman Elton John – all because he recognised big Billy. One of the Rocket Man’s earliest albums was Captain Fantastic and Clark will never forget the day McNeill was singled out for VIP treatment by British pop star royalty. Clark was McNeill’s assistant manager at Aberdeen and his righthand man during his first stint as boss at Parkhead. He said: “Everybody seemed to know Billy. He was loved by fans no matter what team you supported and was recognised by all sorts of people. He was a big-time star. “Billy could go anywhere in the football world and be recognised because he was so well respected. “I remember going down to England on a scouting mission one time to see a player. “We were down at Watford and didn’t have a clue where we were going. “We had driven down and it was a really long drive but we couldn’t figure how to get into the Watford ground. “We were going around a corner and who comes out of his car but Elton John and he instantly recognised Billy. “So there was Elton John showing the two of us where to park and then rolling out the red carpet treatment because the two of us hadn’t a clue where we were going and he knew who Billy was! I couldn’t believe it.” Clark arrived at Celtic Park a year after McNeill. Together they formed an inseparable bond inside the Hoops dressing room and alongside Jimmy Johnstone they would ride on the ‘green’ bus to Parkhead because none of the working-class boys could afford a car. Although when McNeill was able to afford a motor, Clark endured many a white-knuckle ride as his passenger.
The Lisbon Lions legend said: “It is a sad day for the club. Billy had a good presence about him and always had a story for the Press.
“He came to Celtic in 1957 and I arrived at the club a year later. We had no cars then and Billy, myself and Jinky would ride the ‘green bus’ to Celtic Park everyday for training.
“There’s a treble if ever there was one for you!
“Billy though loved a fast car and he would have given that boy Lewis Hamilton a run for his money.
“I used to sit in the passenger seat of the Mercedes with the sweat dripping off me as Billy raced here, there and everywhere.
“We roomed together a lot in hotels and it was like a chocolate factory in the room. Billy loved sweeties, chocolate in particular. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. I enjoyed them myself, right enough.
“I remember being in Majorca with Billy one day and he just took his golf club out started hitting the ball off the wall.
“You can imagine – the ball bouncing off every wall while I am lying on the floor trying to stay out of the way!”
The 78 year-old knows McNeill’s legacy will live on forever and he believes the iconic statue at the front of the Celtic Way says it all.
Clark said: “Billy was down to earth and he was a winner. If he had to give people a telling off he could do it. He wasn’t slow laying down the law but he was fair enough in his ways.
“Most of all though he was like the rest of us – he was down to earth. He was just Billy McNeill. We will miss him now as a friend and his company.
“In a football sense at Celtic we had a right good time with one another. He was a good friend.
“He scored a lot of goals for Celtic at important times. If you went into our dressing room, there were quite a lot of captains, if you understand – but big Billy was the one. If he had something to say then he’d say it.
“Off the park, he was right good company. All the boys back then had great stories to tell.
“He was a humble person and very down to earth. He came from Bellshill and I came from Chapelhall, we were both brought up working-class boys.
“I had been up to see him in the hospice a few times recently with wee Bertie. It was sad to see him like that but you remember the good times when he was at his best.
“I will think back and enjoy the good times and the fun times. We had a lot of fun. The photograph of Billy holding the Cup in Lisbon is one of the best pictures ever taken of any captain.
“Now Billy’s been immortalised with the bronze statue. When others have won trophies they are standing among people. Big Billy is standing there on that raised platform all on his own.
“As a footballer no-one will ever better what he has done.”