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Ref: Celtic’s Old Training Ground
Location: Barrowfield, close to Celtic Park
Start: […]
End: 2007
The Old Training Ground Home (up 2007)
Before the construction of Lennoxtown, Barrowfield was the home for Celtic’s training. Go through Celtic picture archives and you’ll find many pictures of Celtic players going through their training with the coaches at the ground, and also images of them relaxing and larking about there too.
Antiquated by many modern standards, it was still the place for Celtic training since even before Jock Stein’s time. In some ways the old place will be sorely missed. Barrowfield was purchased by Celtic in the summer of 1959 and the club immediately set about laying a series of red blase pitches and establishing a training ground which would be available to the players and coaches even when the turf was fully frozen at Celtic Park.
However, the ground was to be a hindrance in later years. Whilst many other clubs modernised and invested good money for the longer term, the old Biscuit Tin board was parsimonious and saw the Barrowfield grounds as sufficient. Its bare resources didn’t help training against other major clubs with their increasing scientific and modern methods and design.
Billy McNeill was said to have retold a story that in second stint as manager that a Belgian (?) coach had come to Glasgow to see the facilities and McNeill had to point out that Barrowfield was Celtic’s training facility, which shocked him on the state of the club. It wasn’t good.
Anyhow, despite some complaints, it was a more than faithful home to the first team for many years. Many greats have trained and learnt their trade here, and for that it will live long in the memory.
And then in 2023 plans were made to renovate the grounds…
The Renovation 2023 onwards
Articles
Barrowfield redevelopment gets green light
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Published
- https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/articles/c03jy9l47pwo
Celtic have been given approval to transform their Barrowfield training centre into a “state-of-the-art” complex that will house their boys’ and girls’ academies as well as the women’s team.
The club say it represents their “largest infrastructure investment” since the redevelopment of Celtic Park in the late 1990s.
The project – first announced in 2019 – is expected to begin “shortly” and take 12-15 months to complete.
New features will include a revamped indoor arena, artifcial and grass pitches, medical suites, sports science centre and classroom/learning facilities.
Lennoxtown, which opened in 2007, will continue to be the first team and B side’s base and is currently undergoing “further improvements”.
On the Barrowfield redevelopment, Celtic chairman Peter Lawwell said: “We are delighted to agree this commitment and we are certain it will be an important and positive investment in the club’s future.
“While there were opportunities to develop elsewhere, Celtic was born and has been raised in the east end of the city and it is right that we maintain this presence in the local community, in a place where so many Celtic legends have been made.”
Celtic’s fantastic new training complex gets the green light
https://www.celticfc.com/news/2023/september/15/celtic-s-fantastic-new-training-complex-gets-the-green-light/
By Celtic Football Club
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15 Sep 2023, 4:29 pm
Celtic Football Club is delighted to announce that it has today approved significant investment into a state-of-the-art re-development of Celtic’s Barrowfield Training Centre, in the heart of the East End of Glasgow, as we aim to continue to create Celtic’s stars of the future.
The development will deliver a fantastic new complex, hosting Celtic’s boys’ and girls’ Academies and will also be the new dedicated training centre for Celtic FC Women’s First Team.
Today’s announcement re-emphasises our strategy of maintaining a strong commitment to both developing our own players and investing in women’s football, with the project representing the largest infrastructure investment by the Club since the redevelopment of Celtic Park in the late 1990s.
The new training centre will feature:
New indoor arena, featuring full-sized IFA-approved artificial surface
Combination of outdoor natural grass and artificial pitches
State-of-the-art gym/fitness facilities
Celtic Academy and Celtic FC Women office areas
New changing facilities
Medical suites for player treatment/rehab
Sports science centre
Analysis centre
Classroom/learning facilities
Celtic Chairman Peter Lawwell said: “We are delighted to agree this commitment and we are certain it will be an important and positive investment in the Club’s future.
“During the Club’s illustrious history, so many young players have come through Celtic Football Club’s own development system to grace the first-team and through the new centre, with greatly improved facilities, we aim for even more success in this area.
“While there were opportunities to develop elsewhere, Celtic was born and has been raised in the East End of the City and it is right that we maintain this presence in the local community, in a place where so many Celtic Legends have been made.”
Celtic’s Academy continues to be hugely important to the Club. Our current first-team features stars such as Captain Callum McGregor, James Forrest, Anthony Ralston, Stephen Welsh and Mikey Johnston who have all come through the Celtic Academy system.
Previously, Academy players such as Kieran Tierney, Aiden McGeady, Stephen McManus and Shaun Maloney have all made a fantastic contribution to Celtic’s first team.
Celtic Manager Brendan Rodgers said: “Today’s announcement is very significant news for the Club and will give our young players, boys and girls every opportunity to develop further.
“I know the Club always aims to be the best in everything it does and the new centre demonstrates Celtic’s real commitment to this area.
“Ultimately, the aim of our Academy is to develop first-team players who reach first-team level and I know these great new facilities can support this objective very positively.
‘I am sure the new complex will be welcomed by our coaches and young players and of course, our women’s first-team, giving them all every opportunity to grow and improve in all areas of their work.’
“Some of our greatest Celtic heroes have taken the journey from Barrowfield to Celtic Park and we hope our new centre will assist many more in doing the same.”
Celtic FC Women’s team is also going from strength to strength, with the team currently Scottish cup holders and only narrowly missing out on League success last season.
In May this year, Celtic Park hosted a record attendance for a women’s match in Scotland with 15,822 fans watching Celtic Women in League action.
Players such as Chloe Craig and Maria McAneny have already come through the Club’s Academy system to grace the current first team.
Celtic Women’s Team Manager Fran Alonso said: “I am very excited about the Barrowfield development plans, I believe this new facility can be huge for the women’s team and a real game changer.
“The facility will allow for all-weather training with the best of resources and will provide the first team and the girls’ Academy with a great new dedicated base where we can develop further.
“I know the team continues to inspire so many young girls through their play and their achievements and we now want to do all we can to reach for higher levels.
“We have enjoyed some real success in the last few years and we are all committed to taking this team even further – the new facilities which the Club are developing will be crucial in achieving this.”
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The Barrowfield site has produced so many great Celtic teams of the past with the best of them all The Lisbon Lions training here for many years.
Billy McNeill, Davie Hay, Tommy Burns, Wim Jansen, Martin O’Neill and Gordon Strachan have all created great trophy-winning sides at Barrowfield in subsequent years.
Final planning details for the new Centre will be confirmed very soon and it is hoped that work will begin on site shortly, with the project taking around 12-15 months to complete.
Celtic’s Lennoxtown Training Centre, which opened in 2007, will continue to be the dedicated headquarters for our men’s first-team football operations, including the Celtic FC B team.
Further improvements are also currently being made at our Lennoxtown Training Centre, with first-team changing areas being fully refurbished and extended, the introduction of a new medical/treatment, sports science space and staff offices, and the extension and refurbishment of B Team areas.
Celtic Chief Executive Michael Nicholson said: “We are proud to commit to this significant new development and we are sure it will be one which will deliver great benefit to the Club for many years to come.
“Supporting the development of young players and investing in women’s football are two key elements of the Club’s strategy and the new training centre will be hugely important in supporting our objectives in these areas.
“Some of the Club’s greatest ever players have been trained and developed through its Academy system and we hope that many more young players will follow in their footsteps, benefitting from this new facility, with the ultimate aim of reaching Celtic’s first teams.
“It was also very important for us to provide our Women’s first team with a high quality, dedicated training centre, to allow the team to build on the great success they have been enjoying.”