Day to remember for Partick Thistle fans

IN this chronological history of Glasgow we are still in 1971 and fans of Partick Thistle will need no reminding about what a momentous year that was for their club.

It was on October 23, 1971, that Thistle recorded their astonishing victory in the Scottish League Cup final by beating the mighty Celtic 4- 1. Celtic were Scottish champions and Scottish Cup holders, and were reckoned to be the best team in Britain following their double defeat of English champions Leeds United in the 1970 European Cup semi- final – more about that in a fortnight when this column will be devoted to Glasgow’s historic football stadiums, to be followed next month by two columns on Rangers celebrating their annus mirabilis of 1972, having already told the history of Celtic earlier in this series.

Thistle’s wonderful and wholly unexpected triumph over Celtic was the last time any Glasgow club other than the Old Firm won a major domestic trophy, so that gives me the excuse to tell the history today of Glasgow’s third best- supported club, while next week I will also look at the history of other senior, junior and amateur football in the city, including Queen’s Park, Clyde and Third Lanark.

Make no mistake, Glasgow is one of the pre- eminent football cities in Europe, and its place in football history is assured and not just because of Celtic and Rangers.

It is simply impossible to tell the history of Glasgow without a liberal mention of football, and today one of the smaller clubs gets its rightful place in this historical series.

Let’s deal with the footballing event of 1971 first. Glasgow was still reeling in shock from the Clarkston gas explosion disaster which had killed 22 people two days earlier, and the newspapers were full of that tragic story.

Not a single pundit predicted anything other than a Celtic win, even though Thistle had already beaten Rangers that season.

BBC Grandstand presenter Sam

Leitch famously said: “In Scotland, it’s League Cup final day at Hampden Park, where Celtic meet Partick Thistle, who have no chance.”

Newly- promoted Thistle had former player Davie McParland in only his second season as manager while Celtic were in the middle of their nine- titles- in- a- row run under European Cup- winning manager Jock Stein.

McParland was a wily coach, however, and sent out his youthful team to attack Celtic from the start. With goals from Alex Rae, Bobby Lawrie, Denis McQuade – then studying Classics at Glasgow University – and Jimmy Bone, Thistle went four up inside 37 minutes. Celtic were missing injured captain Billy McNeill, but that was no excuse for a defence that was posted missing.

The inspirational Jimmy ‘ Jinky’ Johnstone also went off injured early, but most pundits thought that with the likes of international stars Kenny Dalglish, David Hay, Bobby Murdoch, George Connelly and Lou Macari in their ranks, Celtic would come roaring back in the second half.

Instead, Thistle contained them and only a single Dalglish goal went on the scoreboard.

Celtic knew they were beaten long before the final whistle and Jock Stein led the fans’ applause for their valiant opponents. That Thistle side had future internationalists such as Alan Rough, John Hansen – his more famous brother Alan was just 16 and on Thistle’s books – and Jimmy Bone, while Ronnie Glavin also played for Scotland and was a distinguished player for Celtic. It was Thistle’s greatest day since their only other major domestic honour, the Scottish Cup won in 1921 with a 1- 0 victory over Rangers in the final.

The club was founded in 1876 in Partick which at that time, as regular readers will know, was an independent burgh and only became part of Glasgow in 1912.

Thistle won their first- ever match against local junior club Valencia, long since defunct.

In 1880 they joined the Scottish Football Association with their private home ground listed as Jordanvale Park at Whiteinch.

At first, there was a sufficient following of football in the burgh for there to be two teams, with Partick FC actually formed a year before Partick Thistle. Both clubs played at Whiteinch, until Partick FC folded in 1885.

Some reports indicated that there was either a merger or takeover, but in any event Partick Thistle became the burgh’s club, a founder member of the Scottish Football Alliance which was a rival to the main Scottish Football League in the 1890s.

Thistle had even played in the English FA Cup before then, and given a good account of themselves against the mightier Glasgow teams of Queen’s Park, Clyde, Rangers and latterly Celtic while they also did quite well against the leading clubs from West Dunbartonshire, as it is now, namely Dumbarton, Vale of Leven and Renton.

It was that trio and the Glasgow clubs which pioneered the passing game in football, now the standard for football globally, so Thistle – whose players were regularly ‘ poached’ – can be said to have been in at the beginning of modern football.

Their colours for the first 50 years of their existence were mainly blue and white, but in the 1930s a club director is said to have taken a fancy to the strip worn by West of Scotland rugby club and the switch was made to the present colours of red and yellow.

They had numerous home grounds including land adjacent to Kelving

In Scotland, it is League Cup final day at Hampden Park, where Celtic meet Partick Thistle, who have no chance

rove Park before moving to Firhill Park in the neighbouring area of Maryhill in 1909.

Now they really were a Glasgow club, and as Thistle they had acquired the nickname the Jags, though it would be the 1950s with the rise of Hungarian football before they were called the Maryhill Magyars.

Thistle’s history since the move to Firhill saw them spend long spells in the old First Division and they finished third in the league on three occasions in seasons 47- 48, 53- 54 and 62- 63.

They also took part in European competition three times without success. Thistle’s chequered history in recent years is well known and can be found on the club’s website.

The club’s early variation in form which saw them regularly promoted and relegated also saw them gain the reputation of the Great Unpredictables but on one glorious day in 1971, they were the Great Untouchables.