Personal
Fullname: John Coleman
aka: Johnny Coleman
Born: 17 June 1863 *
Died: 22 March 1927, Winnipeg, Canada
Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland *
Signed: June 1888
Left: 1893 (last game for Celtic)
Debut (friendly): Celtic 1-0 Dundee Harp, 9 Jun 1888
Debut (competition): Abercorn 1-1 Celtic, Glasgow Exhibition Cup, 1 Aug 1888
Debut (Scottish Cup): Celtic 5-1 Shettleston, Scottish Cup, 1 Sep 1888
Position: Outside-left
Internationals: n/a
* Alphabet of the Celts has a birth date and place of 1870, Cardross. This has been corrected after research done by the Celtic Graves forum (link below)
Biog
Outside-left John Coleman was a friend of the Maleys, and was signed by Celtic in June 1888 from Hibernian.
The Dublin-born player had been part of the Hibs side which opened Celtic Park with a game against Cowlairs the previous month. On 9th June he played in Celtic’s second game, against Dundee Harp, and his competitive debut came in the 5-1 Scottish Cup defeat of Shettleston at Parkhead on September 1st.
He had played with Celtic in the Glasgow Exhibition Cup in 1888, helping the side to the final (the club’s first final & competition run). Supposedly Celtic were to be ‘invincible’ but lost 2-0 to Cowlairs, and it was the First Team’s first defeat. A lot of lessons learned.
Anyhow, in 1889 he played his part with a double in the Glasgow North-Eastern Cup FA Cup final, a 6-1 win v Cowlairs. It was Celtic’s first ever trophy victory and helped to pave the way for future successes. He scored again in the same trophy final a season later to help Celtic retain the trophy and help build up the club’s competition reputation.
He was virtually retired after the Scottish Cup win in 1892 (although he didn’t play in the matches on that run) and managed just one league match in the league season of 1892-93 (Celtic’s first ever league title).
His competitive appearances for the Celts over the years seem to have been sporadic from the records, although this could in part be due to poor record keeping and that matches weren’t all as formally arranged and monitored as they were to become. Many matches were also friendly or invitational in the early years, so he did actually play in many more games than it at first seems.
One of his appearances and goals was against a side called ‘Dundee Our Boys‘ in the Scottish Cup, Celtic winning 3-1 (Nov 1890). Interesting name.
He made 18 league & Scottish Cup appearances for the Bhoys before becoming the reserve team trainer in November 1895. Apparently, he was given the less than confident note about the reserves that:
“Only Cullen, Tom Dunbar and James Orr are any use. The rest are downright rubbish.”
Away from football, after hanging up his playing boots, he was a manufacturer of bicycles and even had his own shop, and later emigrated to Canada where he spent the remaining 26 years of his life.
Notably on the outbreak of World War One, he signed up for service with the ‘Winnipeg Rifles’ despite being over the age limit. Apparently, he wrangled his way in:
Recruiting Sergeant: “What age are you?”
Coleman: “How old do you think I am?”
Recruiting Sergeant: (hazards a guess)
Coleman: “Aye, that’ll do. Put me down for that!”
He passed away in 1927 in Winnipeg, Canada.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1888-1893 | 7 | 11 | 0 | – | 18 |
| Goals | 2 | 1 | 0 | – | 3 |
Honours with Celtic
Pictures
Links
Notes
- Alphabet of the Celts has a birth date and place of 1870, Cardross. This has been corrected after research done by the Celtic Graves forum (Celtic Graves Link),
