| Matches: 1955 – 1956 | 1955-1956 Pictures | League Table | Statistics |
Transition Season?
- League Position – 5th
- League Cup – failed to qualify from the group section
- Scottish Cup – Finalists
- Glasgow Cup – Winners
- Glasgow Charities Cup – Semi-finalists
In season 1955-56 Celtic finished a rather distant fifth in the League, were losing finalists in the Scottish Cup and in the bogie competition for the club, the League Cup, failed to get out of the knockout phase. The only trophy won was the Glasgow Cup, and emphatically so in December after the first final had been drawn against Rangers in late September. Compared to the previous season where Celtic had come close to producing a Double Double as runners up in the League and losing finalists in the Cup there might be said to be similarities, but the drop from second in the League to fifth this season contains a tale. The season could hardly be considered a success. But could it be classed as a failure? Could it be better described as some kind of transition?
As usual the season began with the League Cup. Celtic’s group of Rangers, Falkirk and Queen of the South, was qualifiable from IF Celtic could overcome Rangers. All started well with good wins home and away against Queen of the South, and a 5-1 win at home against Falkirk when their goalkeeper was injured and had to retire after six minutes. The first game at Ibrox produced a memorable 4-1 win and things looked rosy. Celtic topped the group with two games to play. The return at Celtic Park though was another matter. Rangers extracted revenge with a thumping 4-0 win and went top on 1/8th of a goal. It all came down to the last game. The game against Falkirk turned into a real rammy with Falkirk finishing with 9 men after Rae was sent off and Morrison could not continue in the second half. There was fighting on the terraces and in the end Celtic could only draw 1-1. Rangers won at Palmerston 5-0 to qualify. Yet again the League Cup had slipped through Celtic’s grasp.
And so onto the League. Following on from the 1-1 League Cup game Celtic faced Falkirk away – and duly lost the first League game of the season 3-1.September became a mixed month with a win against Stirling Albion (who would be relegated at the end of the season) and a creditable and entertaining 0-0 at Ibrox. October too was a mixed bag of results but November saw an improvement in fortunes and saw Celtic top the league. December was a good month apart from an embarrassing defeat at home to Kilmarnock and at the turn of the year Celtic topped the League with commentators saying that they foresaw a League Championship not being lost by Celtic. January changed that view. Losses to Rangers and Aberdeen followed by draws to Raith Rovers and Hearts dropped the team down the League to fourth. Successive months saw mixed returns and by March, with other teams playing games in hand, it was clear that Celtic were out of contention. April was a disaster with 2 draws, three losses and a win against Falkirk, to finish a distant fifth on 41 points having scored 55 goals and conceded 39, winning 16 games, drawing 9 and losing 9. From a strong position in December Celtic had contrived to throw away the League in the New Year.
There is no doubt that Celtic this season had a large injured and ill tally. Captain and centre half rock Jock Stein had missed a great part of the season with his ankle injury. Higgins, who had shown so much promise missed nearly all the season. At various times Fallon, Haughney, Tully, Walsh and Collins were missing though injury. Add to this the general tinkering from Board room level that occurred throughout this period and it can be seen why the same team played successive games on only THREE occasions throughout the season. The complete downturn in form in the League coincided with Collins damaging his knee. However there was the unexpected tinkering. Walsh found himself out of the side when fit more times than should have happened and Mochan even as top scorer saw himself inexplicably dropped and scapegoated when the whole team’s ability to score appeared to have vanished.
There were bright points however. The team generally throughout the season was noted for its superior fitness and its will to fight to the end. Evans, even though he played the best part of the season at centre half, was still a class unruffled player who, with Collins, made up the Celtic representatives for the Scotland national side. Collins truly came into his own this season. Bertie Peacock at left half was also rock solid and was ever present in the Celtic side. And there were still players coming though. This season saw debuts in the first team for Matt McVittie, Dick Beattie went from debut to first team regular, Jim Sharkey who proved to be excellent at centre forward and a real ball player in the Fernie mould and Jim Kennedy looked as though he would take over the left back role from Sean Fallon. In the reserves the signings from Junior ranks continued and players like Bertie Auld were beginning to make a name for themselves.
In the Scottish Cup Celtic did well in the early rounds and defeated Clyde in the semi final with a degree of luck that every club needs. This set up a Scottish Cup final for the third year in succession, this time against Hearts. A bizarre team selection in the face of more injuries saw the team lose 3-1 to a dominant Hearts side but in true Celtic spirit the team failed to give up and fought to the end.
1955-56 season should not be considered a failure or even a serious loss of form. Perhaps the Board and the manager considered that little could be done given the injuries throughout the season and the transitions that needed to be made for the future of the team. Those views would receive an awakening with the loss of Jock Stein and John McPhail who both retired before the start of the next season, one through chronic injury and the other through the march of time (and onto sports journalism). Immediately on the close of the season the club signed Billy McPhail on a free from Clyde to try to allay the problems the team had experienced scoring goals. At almost the same time long-term trainer and physio Alec Dowdells decided to take up a superior offer to move south of the border to Leicester City. The Board would no doubt have not been unaware that Alec moved for vastly superior financial terms, a house and four staff under his management. Celtic needed to get in step with the times and the signs were that the times were changing. Football needed to change out of its old, essentially pre-war mould. During the season the playing of games under floodlights was generally accepted. Celtic thought this was a little too early to call and did not install floodlights and so were hampered in lucrative exhibition games that many Scottish teams played, as well as being hampered by the need to start games early in winter. The game was changing. The Board and Celtic needed to get in step with the times, and this meant better efficiency and a new professionalism that was so far absent from Celtic Park despite Robert Kelly being elected vice President of the Scottish Football Association.
The times were changing. If Celtic did not embrace that change they would be left behind.