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Fullname: Gerard Thomas Creaney
aka: Gerry Creaney, Gerard Creaney
Born: 13 Apr 1970
Birthplace: Coatbridge
Signed: 15 May 1987
Left: 26 Jan 1994
Position: Forward
Debut: Dunfermline Athletic 0-0 Celtic, League, 24 Mar 1990
Internationals: Scotland (none with senior side)
Biog
Coatbridge-born Gerry Creaney was a product of Celtic Boys club and hailed as one of the brightest young striking prospects in Scotland.
Gerry Creaney – a proud “born and bred Celt” – signed full-time for the Hoops in May 1987 and would hit the target on a frequent basis at reserve and youth team level. His first team debut came on March 24th 1990 but he couldn’t help a dire Celtic side break the deadlock in a 0-0 league draw at Dunfermline. In fact Celtic were to go four league games without scoring before Gerry Creaney netted his first goal for the first team in a 1-1 draw at home to Dundee on April 21st.
He used to have a strange quirk of playing wearing a gumshield. Used to fall down quite a bit for some reason, and the fanzines in turn joked about him “skidding about on his arse” on the pitch but he was well liked by the support in general.
By the start of season 1990-91 Creaney was a first team regular but Celtic’s performances remained wretched. The striker hit 10 goals over the term – including one in a Scottish Cup victory over Rangers. The following year Gerry Creaney enjoyed his best run of form in a Celtic shirt hitting 23 goals in 27 appearances to provide at least one ray of hope in yet another dismal season for the first team.
He was a liked and popular choice but even with the good strike-rate he was never rated as highly as others have been. He lacked a killer instinct or great pace, but he knew how to score. Pace wasn’t his strong point and in many ways there were many who thought he was a bit lazy and could have worked harder rather than just wait for the service of the ball. Problem is that the whole squad was demotivated & demoralised, and due to circumstances & poor management there was little impetus for giving that extra.
For an ailing club he helped to buffer the first team during what was a low period for the club (it was the days of “Sack the Board“). However, despite the purple patches of goals in his time at Celtic, in truth he had many fallow periods as well in front of goals, and his strike rate was often not anything remarkable (one goal in around three/four games in his total Celtic career). In fairness, despite some quality in the team (such as Boyd, Collins & McStay), the team & management as a whole were very poor and few if any could really thrive in the environment. No aspiring player could develop and Gerry Creaney’s development suffered, with Celtic not winning any trophies following the Scottish Cup triumph in 1989 until 1995.
A better system & environment possibly would certainly have brought out far better in Gerry Creaney. However, there was a rotating policy of strikers as the management team didn’t know what was best and was another indication of their incompetence. Gerry Creaney with Payton was not always fruitful, but he formed a decent pairing with Coyne or Nicholas when given the chance.
Gerry Creaney’s development was then hit by injury, and the arrival of Lou Macari as boss signalled the end of his Celtic career, with the new manager choosing to play Gerry Creaney out wide rather than in his preferred striker role. Still, he was to come under a disproportionate amount of stick from the frustrated regulars on the Jungle terracing, mainly due to the circumstances. He deserved more respect and a little bit more patience. He gave his all for the jersey at a torrid time.
After 144 appearances and 53 goals for the Bhoys, Gerry Creaney reluctantly departed Celtic Park for Portsmouth in January 1994 in a £600,000 move (where he did very well). It wasn’t an easy choice:
“Lou Macari basically pushed me out. He has his own ideas and unfortunately his ideas and my talent didn’t mix… My allegiance to the club will never die, I am Celtic born and bred.”
It was a poor move by Lou Macari (one of a number by him), as Gerry Creaney was the type of player Celtic were desperately needing to keep in what was a difficult period for the club. His transfer was partly to raise funds as the desperate board was entering the denouement of the takeover and any cash reserves the old board were managing were drying up fast. Possibly outwith of these circumstances he might have been kept on. Taking in that Lou Macari was to lose Gerry Creaney and Andy Payton, and bring in the far inferior Wayne Biggins, it shows just how low that period was and maybe Gerry Creaney was best away from it for his own sake.
Post-Celtic
After Celtic, his best period in his career was with Portsmouth in Division One (then the second tier of English football), building a great record of 32 goals in 60 games which clearly proved to any doubters that he had good ability.
This earned him a £1.5m transfer move to Man City where sadly it didn’t work out despite scoring on his debut (although Man City at this time had generally been a graveyard for many good players). Just 4 goals in 21 matches. He has uncharitably been referenced by Man City fans as one of their poorest ever signings, but this is unfair as he came from a lower tier club to them and Man City were hardly a good side back then themselves. He was not the problem at that club.
Many loan moves around thereafter in England never worked out, and a move back to Scotland saw him as a journeyman around various clubs in his last seasons as a pro. A more befitting ending for a fair player was truly deserved in his case.
Regardless, although he may have lacked the natural ability of a Nicholas, McClair or McAvennie, there is little doubt that whilst at Celtic, Gerry Creaney at least deserved an opportunity to play in a better Celtic side than the one he did. He loved the club and we wish him all the best.
In later years, he moved into working with Dundee with youth development, and had a spell as manager of the long-lived & much respected Bellshill Athletic.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES (subs) |
LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1989-90 | 2 (4) | 0 | 0 | – | 2 (4) |
| Goals: | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 1 |
| 1990-91 | 22 (9) | 4 (0) | 2 (0) | – | 28 (9) |
| Goals | 7 | 2 | 1 | – | 10 |
| 1991-92 | 21 (11) | 4 (0) | 2 (1) | 0 (2) | 27 (14) |
| Goals | 14 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 23 |
| 1992-93 | 23 (3) | 1 (1) | 4 (0) | 4 (0) | 32 (4) |
| Goals | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 13 |
| 1993-94 | 18 (1) | 0 | 1 (0) | 3 (1) | 22 (2) |
| Goals | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Total |
86 (28) |
9 (1) |
9 (1) |
7 (3) |
111 (33) |
| Goals |
36 |
8 |
6 |
3 |
53 |
Honours with Celtic
Pictures
Articles
Gerry Creaney – He grabbed some glory and lived the dream at Celtic
By Editor – 28th Mar 2024, 10:29am
Gerry Creaney – He grabbed some glory and lived the dream at Celtic
Gerry Creaney – Grabbed some Glory and lived the Dream…
Signing players at Celtic becomes an obsession every summer at Celtic. It was no different in that respect at the start of the 1990s.
While we’ve looked at Dariusz Dziekanowski and John Collins this week on Celtic Shorts, both big money buys. Today we look at something else the Celtic support demand from the club. Homegrown players coming through the ranks.
Gerry Creaney was one such player.
Creaney made his debut for Celtic against Dunfermline Athletic in a drab 0-0 end of season draw on 24 March 1990 having signed on three years earlier. Prior to that he’d been building a name for himself at Celtic boys club.
By the following season Gerry had established himself as a genuine first team player. His first goal came in April in a 1-1 draw with Dundee.
He went on to score 10 goals in his first season before really getting involved at the top of the goalscoring charts and establishing himself as a first pick striker with 23 goals from only 27 appearances the following year. Gerry Creaney was starting to make a name for himself.
It would therefore be hard to believe given that initial form that he would go on to only score a further 16 goals for Celtic before being transferred by Celtic boss at the time Lou Macari.
Considering Creaney proved he could score at Premier League level as well as big games in Europe it’s surprising he only played 111 games for the club, his goal against Sporting Lisbon is evidence of that European pedigree and is well worth a look.
He also scored a well finished goal at Celtic Park when he scored in a 2-0 Scottish Cup win on 17 March 1991 in a game that immediately became known as the St Patricks Day massacre. It was an unexpected result but the performance also belied the gulf in class between the sides. Celtic played them off the park that day. Some have said that game saved Billy McNeill from the sack. Either way St Patrick was smiling on Celtic that day and Gerry more than played his part.
He also did it against Rangers at Ibrox. Gerry scored the winner in a 2-0 league victory with Charlie Nicholas scoring the first. Creaney proved in that game he knew how to find the net against the Ibrox side at a time Rangers were signing the best of defensive talent. Their backline were no mugs.
You’d have to therefore question the judgment, given the dearth of talent available at the club, to let such a young home-grown talent slip away. You can have a look at Creaney’s goal at Ibrox here.
When you also take into account that following his transfer to English side Portsmouth in 1994 that he scored 30 goals in 62 games in England’s Division One you’d certainly conclude he was allowed to leave far too early.
Mind you Lou Macari never quite showed he had the grasp on the managing game that Gerry showed in front of goal, so perhaps the player shouldn’t take that decision too personally.
If there were a couple of things Gerry Creaney lacked it was a burst of pace and balance. Macari’s decision therefore to utilise him at right wing in his final season was folly and sadly resulted in the tail end of his Celtic career seeing him as a target for the Jungle’s disgruntled. There were more deserving targets than Gerry Creaney but times were tough and frustration was rife.
Targets for the whipping boy were bound to be needed. Gerry Creaney being played out of position and running the right wing in an alien position and in front of the Jungle was always going to get the treatment. He didn’t deserve that.
Gerry had his own say on how things came to an end at Celtic and how he feels about the club:
“Lou Macari basically pushed me out. He has his own ideas and unfortunately his ideas and my talent didn’t mix… My allegiance to the club will never die, I am Celtic born and bred.”
Lou Macari might not have rated you Gerry but you lived the dream. 53 goals in 111 starts is testament to that.
To the supporter who wore the shirt with pride, from the supporter who loved to watch you wear it. Thanks for the memories Gerry.
Niall J
