Cadete, Jorge

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Personal

Fullname: Jorge Paulo Cadete Santos Reis
aka: The Lisbon Lion, Jorge Cadete
Height: 5.09
Weight: 10.10
Born: 27 August 1968
Birthplace: Pemba, Mozambique
Signed: 30 March 1996
Left: 31 May 1997
Position: Forward, Central Striker, Centre-Forward
Debut: Celtic 5-0 Aberdeen, League, 1 Apr 1996 (scored)
Internationals: Portugal
International Caps: 33
International Goals: 5

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Biog

“If we win the league then maybe we will go out and eat and drink bad things.” Jorge Cadete, April 1997 (Celtic didn’t win the league that season)

One of the colourful triumvirate of forwards scouted by Davie Hay and signed under the stewardship of Tommy Burns in the mid 1990s (along with Pierre Van Hooijdonk and Paolo Di Canio), Jorge Cadete’s period at Celtic was brief but steeped in controversy from the moment he arrived.

He was born in Mozambique, and became the first African born player to play for Celtic in a competitive match: “He was born in Mozambique, and he scores every week!”.

An established Portuguese international striker of some repute, Cadete had already previously sampled the atmosphere of Celtic Park, albeit in the colours of Sporting Lisbon, in a UEFA Cup match in 1993, where the Glasgow hoops triumphed 1-0 through a Gerry Creaney strike though the tie itself was lost in Lisbon. A goal in each half from classy skipper Cadete saw Bobby Robson’s Sporting progress. Cadete later fell into dispute with his club, and was loaned to Italians Brescia for season 1994-95. When Brescia were relegated after two wins all season, the permanent transfer collapsed and Cadete spent a period in limbo.

In April 1993 he scored twice as Portugal sworded Scotland’s USA ’94 hopes in a 5-0 rout. Hapless centre-backs Richard Gough and Dave McPherson never played for Scotland again. Cadete also bagged a goal in November 1995 as Portugal hit the Republic of Ireland’s Euro ’96 hopes with a 3-0 win at the Estadio da Luz.

Cadete arrived in Glasgow in the spring of 1996 for an undisclosed or nominal transfer fee, and was introduced to the Parkhead crowd with much fanfare at a home game against Partick Thistle; little were the 35,000 crammed into the still-two-sided Parkhead to suspect that ‘irregularities’ over Cadete’s registration were to delay his signature for almost six weeks, a controversy that quite rightly was to ultimately cost SFA Chief Executive Jim Farry his job, but perhaps more pertinently saw Tommy Burns’ Celtic drop crucial points in drawn matches with Motherwell, Falkirk (both 0-0) and Kilmarnock while their highly prized new striker sat in the stands, paralysed by red tape.

Upon his eventual introduction to the first team, Cadete’s impact was immediate, and memorable. In pouring rain on a rare Monday night televised match, Cadete was introduced from the bench as a hapless Aberdeen side were being put to the sword, already 4 goals adrift. Nonetheless, with virtually his first touch, Cadete displayed what was to become his trademark lightning pace and predatory awareness, sprinting on to a Peter Grant through ball and deftly lifting the ball over the advancing Dons keeper for the fifth goal in a memorable rout; such was the uproar from the half-completed stadium, that the volume blew Radio 5 Live’s microphones, and the live commentary was lost. As it was joked in ‘The Celt‘ fanzine, Jorge Cadete had achieved what the Luftwaffe hadn’t.

Cadete went on to grab a further 5 goals in the remaining weeks of the season, though it was too late to salvage the title, and many supporters still speculate with some justified bitterness over what might have been had his transfer been concluded more efficiently.

The following season was of course the ill-fated attempt to stop ‘the nine’. Cadete, who had formed a highly promising partnership with Pierre Van Hooijdonk continued his prolific form. For his awareness, skill and variety of lethal finishes, Cadete on footballing ability can be described in the same context as one of the sharpest finishers seen at Celtic Park in recent times.

Less reliable than his ability to beat goalkeepers was his mental state, and throughout the turbulent 1996-97 season, he became increasingly vocal through the media about his dissatisfaction with his contractual terms, as did fellow forwards Van Hooijdonk and Di Canio, with the Dutchman first to be offloaded to Nottingham Forest mid-season. Cadete had bought out his own contract at Sporting, and was under the impression that Celtic would reimburse him. Needless to say Fergus McCann had other ideas.

Despite the contractual dispute, Cadete continued to be a prolific contributor to the attack, now partnering the talented but erratic Di Canio. His goal scoring ratio was exceptional, scoring around 32 goals in 39 games in that fateful 1996/97 season. He was a very much-loved player.

One of the defining moments of the controversial NIAR season came in the New Year’s Day match v Rangers at Ibrox, with Cadete again at the centre of attention, when with Celtic trailing 2-1, he superbly controlled a lofted pass on his chest and volleyed home a spectacular ‘equaliser’ only for the linesman Gordon McBride to flag for a non-existent offside. Despite a Celtic rally inspired by Di Canio’s earlier equaliser, Rangers won the match 3-1 with a breakaway third goal, and thereafter remained in pole position for the flag.

Cadete had scored in the previous two games, then the next six, so the laughable ‘offside’ call denied him a record nine goals in successive games.

In the traumatic fall out of the season with Burns sacked, Van Hooijdonk gone and Di Canio beginning his own one-man insurgency, Cadete agitated for and eventually won the transfer he craved, to Celta Vigo, though he was to later return to the UK first with Bradford City and briefly with Partick Thistle, a shadow of his former glorious self. One very brief spell was at Benfica where he paried up again with former Celtic colleague van Hooijdonk, but Cadete played little and achieved nothing.

There’s no other way of putting it, but simply after his departure from Celtic, his career went into freefall.

Jorge Cadete may have been ultimately a flawed character, but along with Henrik Larsson and Frank McAvennie he is seen as one of the best strikers Celtic have had on their books since the 1970’s to the 2000’s. He was regarded as that good a finisher. However, it was all based on one season’s worth of goals, and despite the great return, he did seem to not match up in the games v Rangers (just one goal which was chopped off out of four games). If he had stayed longer and in time scored regularly against Rangers and also in Europe we’d then be able to value him more appropriately. Others such as the later Gary Hooper may not have been as naturally talented as Cadete, but achieved more for Celtic and can be argued to be more deserving of praise than Cadete.

If Cadete had a big weakness it was financial, or as chairman Fergus McCann put it: “Cadete was a financial basket case”. Cadete chased the money, and maybe if he had his head on right and concentrated on his game, then all would have been so much better with the finances sorting themselves out, but family issues and personal egotism put paid to that. He had it all at Celtic, and with his talent he could have had similar at many other clubs, but he lost touch with reality and everything else that came with it.

Post-Playing
Something of a minor celebrity in his native Portugal, after he stopped playing professional football, he competed in and won the local equivalent of the low-brow reality TV Show ‘Celebrity Big Brother‘. Cadete was a colourful, unforgettable character whose time at Celtic was truncated by his own avarice and attitude. With a goalscoring record to rival the very best, it remains a daydream as to what might have been achieved had he been retained for a further season and paired in tandem with the young Henrik Larsson.

Had that been the case, the career of such a wonderful talent may have more to show for it than winning a reality TV contest.

Jorge Cadete returned to Celtic Park to play in the Tommy Burns Tribute game on 31st May 2009 and was very well received by the Celtic Support who had never forgotten how good he was. Jorge Cadete scored a trademark goal and in turn gave the fans his trademark celebration which left many again wondering what could and should have been.

Sadly, after a career in which he was reputed to have earned £3m, the former Portugal star became broke in 2014 and had to live with his parents on state benefits of £155 a week. Things hadn’t gone right for him, and many did sympathise in that he was only human. His fall is not something to take any joy from, as he never did anything wrong to anyone. If only he had stayed with Celtic, then maybe stability at one club would have helped him.

The supporters still loved him, shown by when he attended Celtic as a guest in the 2-1 win v St Mirren in the league in November 2023. He came on the pitch during the half-time break to do the Celtic lottery draw, and he was very well received. He even serenaded the support with his old signature tune!

We wished him the best.

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Playing Career

Club	From	To	Fee	League		Scottish/FA Cup		League cup		Other
Partick	20/02/2004	01/06/2004	Free	1 (4)	0	0 (1)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0
Bradford	23/02/2000	10/05/2000	Loan	2 (5)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0
Benfica	01/08/1999	01/01/2004	Signed	No appearance data available
Celta Vigo	01/08/1997	01/08/1999		0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (2)	0
Celtic	30/03/1996	31/05/1997	£ 400,000	33 (5)	32	5 (0)	2	3 (0)	5	0 (0)	0
Sporting Lisbon	01/08/1994	30/03/1996		0 (3)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0	0 (0)	0
Brescia	01/08/1993			No appearance data available
Totals			£400,000	36 (17)	32	5 (1)	2	3 (0)	5	0 (2)	0
			goals / game	0.6		0.33		1.66		0
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals

Honours with Celtic

none

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Pictures

• Player Pictures

Links

• Celtic Controversies – Cadete and Farry
• The Jorge Cadete Fan Club
• Three Amigos

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Quotes

“Jorge Cadete was an immature depressive character, totally under the influence of a domineering lady.”
Jock Brown, September 1997

“If we win the league then maybe we will go out and eat and drink bad things.”
Jorge Cadete, April 1997

“Cadete was a financial basket case and I felt sorry for him. He had two wives and wasn’t mentally strong. But he was a better player than van Hooijdonk.
“I’m not surprised by what’s happened to any of them [the three amigos]. What DOES surprise me is someone is willing to pay to take trouble off your hands.”
Fergus McCann on Cadette (Nov 1998)

“Most players think that they have plenty of friends during their career, when things are going well, but in reality they’re not there when things become difficult.”
Jorge Cadete (2014)

“I lost everything I invested. I had a lot of people around me who had no responsibility. The moment you stop playing, things change. Agents forget to call you. You always hear players say: ‘I’ve got lots of friends in football.’ It’s a lie. When you finish nobody wants to know you.”
Jorge Cadete (2014)

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Articles

Jorge Cadete’s Celtic career: Goals galore, terrace chants and the canary

Remembering the striker’s extraordinary year in Glasgow

The highly encouraging start made by Pedro Mendes to his career at Rangers has sparked memories of another Portuguese footballer who left his indelible mark on Scottish football just over a decade earlier.

When Jorge Cadete was paraded as a Celtic player before a 4-0 defeat of Partick Thistle at the end of February 1995, it was one of those signings football fans love. Exotic, flamboyant, proven on a European stage and a guaranteed player that people would pay money to go and watch.

Signed towards the tail end of the 1995/96 season, Cadete actually was only at Celtic Park for a little over a year. The period could never have been called boring.

Freed after a lengthy contract wrangle with Sporting Lisbon, Tommy Burns convinced him that career rejuvenation was possible in the East End of Glasgow.

Uefa Cup calling card
Celtic fans knew all about Cadete after his two goals for Sporting Lisbon knocked the Glasgow side out of the 2nd round of the 1993/94 UEFA Cup. They were sufficiently impressed by the memory of that performance to be confidently pleased at the new Portuguese acquisition.

However, there was one major obstacle to overcome before Cadete was to pull on a Celtic jersey. He wasn’t allowed to play for the club.

Problems with the medical? A previous suspension hanging over his head? Nope. The Chief Executive of the Scottish Football Association deliberately delayed the registration of Jorge Cadete so that he would miss the registration deadline for a Scottish Cup Semi Final defeat v Glasgow rivals Rangers. Absolutely true.

Whether it was ‘institutional bias’ against Celtic, as the then Celtic Chairman Fergus McCann claimed, or simply a personal vendetta between Farry and McCann, is open to interpretation (following a subsequent enquiry, Farry was found guilty of the misdemeanour and sacked for gross misconduct by the SFA).

Instant hit
Five weeks after being paraded, Cadete finally made his debut. And what a debut. Celtic were already 4-0 up at home to Aberdeen when Cadete came on as a late substitute to a tumultuous reception. With his first touch, he ran on to a through pass and deftly lobbed the advancing goalkeeper. The subsequent reaction of the Celtic support was so loud that it knocked the national BBC Radio 5 Live commentary reception of the match off the airwaves for a full 15 seconds. The fans had a new hero.

Cadete played a bit part role in the matches between then and the end of the season, but was still able to score 5 goals in 6 matches.

The 1996/97 season was of absolute importance to Celtic and their fans. During the European Cup winning days of the 1960s and 70s, the club had recorded an unparalleled achievement of 9 league championships in a row. However, at the start of the 1996/97 campaign, Rangers were looking to level that feat. Nine in a row had to be stopped.

Cadete went a great way to helping that cause. A glut of early season goals stamped his place in Celtic hearts, along with a little tune that is possibly one of the best football chants ever.

“There’s only one Jorge Cadete,
he puts the ball in the netty,
He’s Portuguese and he scores with ease,
walking in Cadete wonderland.”

Genius, huh? To be fair though, the Rangers riposte was equally as good.
“There’s only one Jorge Cadete,
he’s got hair like spaghetti,
He’s Portuguese and one of these (here the fans would make the universal signal of putting the thumb and forefinger together and making an up and down motion),
walking in a Gers wonderland.”

While the goals kept flowing for Cadete, the next controversial incident was to come in the traditional New Year Old Firm derby fixture. With 5 minutes left and Rangers leading 2-1, Cadete took a ball down on his chest in the box and swivelled to crash a shot high into the Rangers net.

Delirium at the Celtic end was cut short by the linesman’s flag. But for what reason? TV showed Cadete was clearly onside and the ball had not touched his arm.

No official reason for the decision was ever given, just that the goal was disallowed and moments later Rangers ran up the field to add a third. There is a very substantial argument that this call cost Celtic the league that season. Certainly, the linesman in question was the subsequent subject of a very severe public scrutiny in the press and amongst Celtic supporters.

In reality, the reason Celtic succumbed to Rangers’ 9 in a row bid was the over reliance on the ‘Three Amigos’ – Cadete, Pierre Van Hooijdonk and Paolo Di Canio. Dubbed that name by Chairman McCann because all would leave the club in acrimonious circumstances, when those three didn’t play well the script would 99% of the time read Celtic didn’t play well.

For Cadete himself, the 1996/97 season was a personal triumph. He augmented his status as a top quality penalty box finisher and was the Scottish Premier League’s top goalscorer with 33 goals.

At the end of the season, Van Hooijdonk had already left, everyone knew Di Canio would be on his way but it was expected that Cadete would remain at the club despite the departure of Tommy Burns. However, at the start of pre-season for the 1997/98 campaign there was no sign of Cadete.

McCann given the bird
Citing psychological problems and stress, Cadete claimed he could not face the prospect of going back to Glasgow. He blamed Fergus McCann for causing him ‘hell’ and after a protracted to-and-fro of whether Cadete would return to Parkhead, Celtic sold him to Celta Vigo for £3 million.

As a bizarre footnote, Cadete proceeded to call his new pet canary ‘McCann’.

So that was that. A brief and bizarre cameo back in Glasgow with Partick Thistle in season 2003/04 meant it was not the last time the Celtic supporters saw Cadete, but the main images will probably be of him wheeling away in his matador-like celebration at the Celtic End.

Despite the disappointing conclusion, most would remember him fondly. It was never dull with Jorge Paulo Cadete Santos Reis around anyway.
(source: Portugoal.net)

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Jorge Cadete

Source: When Saturday Comes fanzine

After playing in front of thousands, having a first date watched by millions didn’t seem too strange to Celtic’s former Portugal star, as Dan Brennan reports

Jorge Cadete is remembered at Celtic as one of the Three Amigos, the forward line that bedazzled and delighted the Parkhead public during 1996-97. He and his two compadres – Paolo Di Canio and Pierre van Hooijdonk – also had manager Tommy Burns and chairman Fergus McCann reaching for the valium. It was McCann who first coined the epithet – more a sour reference to their fanciful wage demands and antics off the pitch than their buccaneering exploits on it. Celtic fans had good reason to be excited at the sign­ing of Cadete. Two seasons earlier, as captain of Bobby Robson’s Sporting Lisbon – then a hugely talented team containing among others Paulo Sousa and a young Luis Figo – he had scored the goals that had dumped the Glaswegians out of the UEFA Cup. A year before that he’d scored a couple for Portugal in a 5-0 thrashing of Scotland. At £400,000 he was a snip. The story has it that the roar that greeted his debut goal was so loud the BBC had to stop recording. His signing was even immortalised on film (in The Aficionados – a Fever Pitch meets Gregory’s Girl that went straight to video). Cadete scored 25 more but the goals could not quite disguise a season bereft of trophies in which Celtic failed to win any of four Old Firm encounters.

Cadete went AWOL halfway through his second season and, citing mental health problems, refused to return from Portugal. However his contribution is recorded in Celtic’s annals, he did, unwittingly, leave Scottish football a lasting gift for which every true fan should thank him. In 1999, a post-mortem into the delay of his registration as a Celtic player three years earlier led to the dismissal of the much reviled SFA chief, Jim Farry. Celtic had claimed this cost them the chance to play him against Rangers, and hence potentially affected the outcome of the title race.

Cadete went on to enjoy a reasonably suc­cessful and controversy-free season with Celta Vigo, before heading home for Ben­fica where he barely played a game, un­able to dislodge an ageing Dean Saun- ders. In March 2000, having failed to get a single start in over a year, he went on loan to Brad­ford City. Cadete promised to eng­ineer a rescue from the brink of relegation from the Premiership – all for a bargain £17,000 a week.

The signing smacked of blind desperation and man­ager Paul Jewell confessed he’d “not actually seen Cad­ete play, but knew his reputation”. Bradford did stay up, but Cadete could claim little of the credit. In three months at Valley Parade he made two starts and five substitute appearances, scoring a total of zero goals.

Unable to find him a new club in Portugal, Cadete’s agents returned to Britain in search of a final payday. But there were no takers. Derby County were almost tempted; there was even talk of a return to the SPL with St Mirren, until wages were discussed.

At this point, he should probably have retired to the Algarve to work on his golf handicap. However, a graceful retreat from the limelight was never really Cadete’s style. Last autumn, aged 34, he launched another come­back – on Portugal’s version of Celebrity Big Brother. But as a bid to win public appeal, it was ill-judged and he was among the first to be voted off. This may well have some­thing to do with the fact that he often appeared wearing the green and white of Sporting Lisbon, promp­ting a deluge of phone calls from Benfica fans.

Though it wasn’t all bad. To the initial delight and eventual indifference of the Portuguese media, he be­gan a relationship with Nicole, former singer with Ten­tações, who were briefly hailed as Portugal’s answer to the Spice Girls. Nicole was initially unimpressed, but so smitten was Jorge with his new love that he asked the producers to organise an intimate Thai dinner (for two plus five million viewers), which seemed to do the trick.

The lovebirds’ first kiss was caught on camera, with Cadete standing on a crane, holding a huge white ted­dy with the letters “J” and “C” sewn on to the paws. A wedding has been announced for later this year. Cad­ete, meanwhile, has signed up with music agency An­gra, though where exactly he plans to take his showbiz career is not quite clear, as he can’t sing.

Cadete still occasionally takes time out from the showbiz circuit to comment on the state of Portuguese football, and was openly critical of the national team’s World Cup performance last year. By contrast, with the help of his new mentors, he can at least look forward to the possibility that he may well soon be big in Japan.

From WSC 196 June 2003.

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From World Soccer Magazine (1997)

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The Full Story Behind The Long Wait To See Jorge Cadete Make His Celtic Debut, 25 Years On

By Liam Kelly 1 April, 2021 No Comments

https://thecelticstar.com/the-full-story-behind-the-long-wait-to-see-jorge-cadete-make-his-celtic-debut-25-years-on/#.YGXfZa9XGqc.twitter

On this day in 1996, Jorge Cadete finally made his Celtic debut, scoring in a 5-0 victory over Aberdeen at Paradise. However, his signing is synonymous with corruption and Jim Farry being outed as a cheat.

The mere mention of ‘the three amigos’ is enough to etch a nostalgic smile across the face of Celtic supporters of a certain age. Pierre Van Hooijdonk, Jorge Cadete and Paulo Di Canio terrorised Scottish defences in the 1996/97 season and many speculate that Scottish football history could have taken a very different course had illegal intervention not prevented Cadete from playing for the club sooner.

Celtic fans had every right to feel optimistic when the signing of Jorge Cadete was announced in February 1996. It was less than three years prior that the Portuguese striker had bagged a brace to take Sporting Lisbon to the third round of the UEFA Cup at the Bhoys’ expense. At £400,000 Cadete was a snip, his tally of 33 goals in his first full season paying testimony to that claim.

In late February 1996, Celtic submitted legitimate registration documents to the SFA and awaited international clearance for the player to officially be permitted to join the club. That clearance duly arrived on 7 March when, in keeping with FIFA rules, the Portuguese FA faxed an International Transfer Certificate to their Scottish counterparts at Hampden Park. Days later, the Portuguese FA also sent a hard copy of the original certificate in the post, as instructed by FIFA officials. All appeared in order until the SFA failed to process Cadete’s registration and in Sunday league style, the striker was not yet allowed to play.

Over the course of the next two weeks it became clear that Jim Farry of the SFA had deemed the International Transfer Certificate invalid. Although, this was only something that the Celtic board could deduce, as the SFA failed to notify the club of any problems. Concurrent to the processing of this administration, Celtic were negotiating a compensation fee with Sporting Lisbon over the transfer, which seemed to be the crux of the issue that the SFA silently held when it came to certain clauses within the transfer certification. Nevertheless, Celtic had reached an agreement with Sporting Lisbon and Jorge Cadete had also made a private settlement that he was happy with, on 23 March. Having been left in the dark by the national football authority, Fergus McCann ensured that further player registration documents were submitted to the SFA, this time incorporating a full professional application form and a new player agreement.

The unease felt by the Celtic board was soon realised when a fax was received from the SFA, explaining that the registration forms concerning Jorge Cadete had been rejected on the grounds of a disagreeable clause within the new player agreement file. This clause was present in the initial documentation, submitted on 26 February, which was of no concern to the governing body at that time. Therefore, Fergus McCann and his board members tended to feel that something underhand was going on within the offices at Hampden Park.

FIFA waded into the debate at the end of March 1996. The global organisation had their say by faxing the SFA with notification that any clauses relating to contractual agreements between Sporting Lisbon and Celtic, are not sufficient grounds upon which to deny the validity of the International Transfer Certificate. With their hand forced by FIFA, the SFA almost immediately deemed international clearance to have been granted, but further delayed the transfer by demanding that player agreement forms again be submitted, with the objectionable clause and two further clauses removed. Having been given no opportunity to contest the case, Celtic submitted a third and final set of documentation on 30 March 1996.

Jim Farry ran the rule over the paperwork once more. Importantly, it is thought that during a phone call, Farry had come to a verbal agreement with members of the Celtic secretarial team, that the registration would be listed as taking effect from 22 March. This date was crucial, as in order for Cadete to play against Rangers in the upcoming Scottish Cup Semi-Final, the Portuguese man had to have been registered by no later than 23 March.

The files hit Farry’s desk and this time there was nothing he could claim to be disagreeable. However, that didn’t mean that Cadete would simply don a Celtic shirt with immediate effect. Instead, Farry claimed no knowledge of ever reaching a verbal agreement with Celtic and saw to it that the registration would not be noted as coming into effect from 22 March. Rather iniquitously, Farry ensured that Cadete was registered with effect from 30 March 1996. Celtic had little choice but to accept the outcome because the Scottish Football League registration deadline expired on 31 March and therefore any further delays would have ruled Cadete out of all remaining league matches that season.

Upon examining Jim Farry’s historical behaviour it becomes clear that he operated in a partial manner against Celtic. He started his involvement in football as an administrative assistant at the offices of the Scottish Football Association in 1972. As an excellent administrator, Farry was quickly promoted through the ranks of the organisation, and when Willie Allan left the Scottish Football League in the late 1970s, Farry was chosen to replace him as the SFL’s youngest ever secretary. This was a position that he held for ten years.

What is peculiar about Jim Farry is that prior to his involvement in the sport, he was not a football fan. Instead, Jim Farry was a prominent member of Cambuslang Rugby Club, where he made the most of his passion with his hometown team. However, other passions of the Cambuslang man included writing, administration and reciting constitutions, laws and rules. Given this background information, it seems bizarre that three days before Dundee played Hearts in the final game of the 1985/86 league season, Farry decided to switch the referee for the match to appoint a well-known Edinburgh gentleman and Heart’s supporter (WNB Crombie) as the man in the middle. Within any other governing body this decision would have set alarm bells ringing, considering that Hearts only needed a point to assure the league title, in the event of a win for second place Celtic, against St. Mirren. The move backfired as Hoops fan, Albert Kidd, struck a double to give Dundee victory over Hearts at Dens Park. Meanwhile, Celtic scored five goals without reply to snatch the title on goal difference at Love Street.

Four years later, in 1990, the same secretarial role that Mr. Farry held with the Scottish Football League, became available at the SFA as Ernie Walker vacated the role. Jim Farry applied and was awarded the job. From this position, he went on to become Chief Executive and masterminded the Jorge Cadete registration scandal.

In total, the registration saga meant that Cadete missed out on six matches. Four of those missed games were in the Scottish Premier Division, which included two wins and two draws, whilst Cadete also missed a victorious Scottish Cup Quarter-Final, as well as the aforementioned Scottish Cup Semi-Final defeat against Rangers:

24 February – Celtic 4-0 Partick Thistle

2 March – Celtic 4-0 Heart of Midlothian

10 March Celtic 2-1 Dundee United (Scottish Cup)

17 March – Rangers 1-1 Celtic

23 March – Motherwell 0-0 Celtic

7 April – Rangers 2-1 Celtic (Scottish Cup)

Fergus McCann immediately indulged in a bitter feud with Jim Farry after being incensed at losing the cup Semi-Final against Rangers. Like many Celtic stakeholders, McCann couldn’t help but wonder what might have been if his star man was on the team sheet. The fact that Cadete scored over 30 goals the following season only reinforced this frustrating curiosity.

By January 1997, in an interview with Scotland On Sunday newspaper, Farry claimed: “Fergus McCann’s arrival in Scotland was to the detriment of the well-being of Scottish Football.” He went on to scathe of McCann further when he remarked that “There are already too many foreigners ruining our game.” Meanwhile, the Canadian Celt had already been pursuing the man at the top of the SFA through legal avenues for almost a year.

Justice was finally done in March 1999, following the investigation of an independent commission, who examined the following allegations put forward by Celtic’s majority shareholder:

On the basis of the first valid application for registration, submitted on 26th February 1996, Jorge Cadete should have been registered with effect from that date, when international clearance by way of the International Transfer Certificate was received by the SFA on 7th March.

On the basis of the second valid application form and a player agreement submitted on 23rd March 1996, Jorge Cadete should have been registered with effect from 23rd March as the SFA were in receipt of a valid set of player registration documents and the International Transfer Certificate was received on 7th March.

On submission of the third application and player agreement on 30th March, Jorge Cadete should have been registered with effect from 23rd March 1996.

Jim Farry

McCann maintained a less than phlegmatic approach in dealing with the issue and the matter was finally settled after close to three years of legal struggle, as outlined in the following report by The Independent newspaper on 2 March 1999:

JIM FARRY’S football career is effectively at an end after the Scottish Football Association chief executive was yesterday suspended over the Jorge Cadete affair. Celtic have claimed for three years that Farry delayed the processing of the transfer of the Portuguese player in time for the Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers in 1996. Celtic lost the game 2-1, but yesterday they won the war against the most powerful figure in the Scottish game.

The SFA has offered Celtic a written apology as well as agreeing to pay compensation and meet Celtic’s legal fees, and Fergus McCann, the Celtic chief executive, yesterday wasted little time in condemning the part played by Farry. “It has taken Celtic and its supporters three years to receive justice on the issue of the SFA’s chief executive Jim Farry’s failure to properly register Jorge Cadete.”

“It is deplorable that a prominent member club should be disadvantaged in this way when on several occasions the SFA’s chief executive had the opportunity to make the correct decision. Mr Farry’s failure to properly and timeously register Jorge Cadete leaves the club in no other position than to ask for the office bearers of the SFA to recognise that Mr Farry’s position is untenable. This case demonstrates clearly that Mr Farry cannot be allowed to hold and exercise such powerful authority.”

The issue recently went to arbitration with the SFA admitting liability before proceedings could finish. Clearly angered by the whole situation, Celtic are demanding the dismissal of Farry, who has held the top job at the SFA since 1990 following 10 years as secretary of the Scottish League.

In the last nine years he has been frequently criticised for his dictatorial attitude which at times appeared out of tune with the ordinary supporter. He insisted on Scotland playing a European Championship qualifier on the day of the funeral of Princess Diana only to back down in the face of severe pressure and criticism.

Farry’s motives for delaying the Cadete transfer remain unclear and although Celtic supporters will interpret his actions as indicating a pro-Rangers stance, McCann refused to be drawn on the topic. “I’m not claiming there was malice but there was intent. There was a failure on his part despite the advice of FIFA and Celtic. This is a matter that goes beyond Celtic Football Club, it’s a question of somebody who has failed to follow the rules of football.”

McCann intends to hold discussions with the other clubs in the Scottish Premier League and his frustration with the powerbrokers at the SFA could prove the motive towards a shift of power towards the new body who would effectively run the elite body of Scottish football. In the meantime, Farry has agreed to co-operate with an SFA investigation into his actions.

Days after the above report, on 8 March 1999, the SFA announced that Jim Farry had been sacked for gross misconduct. They brought the curtain down on the controversy with this statement:

THE Scottish Football Association advises that, following the suspension on full pay of its chief executive, Mr James Farry, the decision has been taken to dismiss Mr Farry immediately for gross misconduct.

Pending the appointment of a new chief executive/secretary, the president of the association, Mr Jack McGinn, has been appointed acting chief executive.

A detailed report from the SFA’s external lawyers was received by the Association last Thursday, March 4th. The report related to matters arising from the recent arbitration with Celtic FC, relating to the registration of Jorge Cadete.

The Emergency Committee, comprising the SFA’s office-bearers, considered the report on Friday, March 5th, and decided to request the views of the executive committee, given the policy issues involved.

The executive committee, after detailed consideration of the report and having received further legal advice, unanimously recommended that Mr Farry be dismissed from the SFA immediately.

The emergency committee effected the recommendation on Friday evening. Council was appraised today of the situation, viewed the report, and detailed discussion took place.

The reasons for Mr Farry’s dismissal result from his acts and omissions during the Cadete affair, including his conduct during:

(i) the period of the investigation of the registration by an SFA sub-committee;

(ii) the preparation of the SFA’s case for the arbitration;

(iii) his testimony during the arbitration; and

(iv) the period since his suspension on February 26th.

The SFA does not intend to make further comment on the reasons for Mr Farry’s dismissal for reasons of confidentiality.

In relation to the Cadete affair itself, approximately 110 documents were produced by the SFA and Celtic, 13 witnesses in total would have given evidence, and there had already been five days of evidence, which was scheduled to last at least a further three days with legal submissions to follow.

The SFA has made the most strenuous efforts to keep matters confidential throughout, first to comply with the rules of confidentiality in the arbitration, and thereafter in fairness to Mr Farry.

The SFA wishes to make the following comments:

(i) The SFA decided to settle the arbitration prior to the conclusion of Mr Farry’s evidence, following very strong advice and recommendations from its external legal team;

(ii) Mr Farry was immediately advised of the decision to settle and, indeed, agreed with the decision. He did not, however, agree with the terms of the letter of apology to Celtic;

(iii) Attempts were made by the SFA’s legal team to have Mr Cadete himself testify on their behalf. However, Mr Cadete refused to come to Glasgow.

In light of recent events, the SFA will, of course, undertake a thorough review of its registration procedures.

For information, the SFA processes around 47,000 player registrations per year at all levels of football, and this has been an isolated case.

It has been a very difficult period for the association and the recent events should not be allowed to cloud the work which Mr Farry has undertaken on behalf of the association and, indeed, Scottish football.

There are many positive things which can be attributed to Mr Farry over these years which should not be forgotten.

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