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Personal
Full name: Robert Hannah
aka: Bobby Hannah; Rab Hannah
Born: c1958
Birthplace: […]
Signed: 22 July 1974
Left: 30 April 1977 (free); 4 July 1977 (to Ayr Utd)
Position: Midfield
First game: Ayr United 5-3 away 1 May 1976 league
Last game: Dumbarton 3-0 home 18 August 1976 league cup
Internationals: None
Biog
Jock Stein had publicly acknowledged that the first team was slipping and he had brought in Tommy Burns, Casey & Hannah for development for the future.
Both he and Tommy Burns had been farmed out the previous season to Salisbury Callies based in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), run by ex-pat Danny Murphy, which was quite an experience.
Tommy Burns ruefully noted the conspicuousness of their Rhodesian work circumstances, especially when recounting a ‘race riot’ involving Chibuku, another club:
“One of the coaches of our all-white side, who had taken umbrage at a late challenge made on our goalkeeper, had simply walked on to the pitch and flattened the offending player with a single punch. As all hell broke loose, the fans tried to scale the fencing to exact revenge, and truncheon-wielding policemen lashed out at the fingers of those trying to invade the pitch, sending them slipping back down the wire… Even at its most frisky, the Calton was never like that, though having seen the living and working conditions those people had to endure I could understand their volatile temperament.”
The energetic inside forward made his debut as a substitute for fellow protégé Tommy Burns in a 5-3 league win at Ayr United on 1st May 1976 in what was one of the youngest Celtic sides ever fielded, with Aitken, MacDonald, Ritchie, Burns and Hannah all under 20. He played two days later in a 1-0 defeat to Hearts which wrapped up the league campaign as Celtic finished the league season again second to Rangers.
He only got to play one game in the next season for Celtic but it was in a 3-0 win over Dumbarton in the then pre-season League Cup group stage matches. He played no part in the league campaign as Celtic finally regained the league title.
Despite his early promise, Bobby Hannah didn’t make anything like the expected impact. After a total of just three competitive appearances he was released by Celtic in April 1977. He had been a sub in all the three games he had played in, but had not been given a chance for a full match appearance.
‘An Alphabet of the Celts’ by McBride et al put it all succinctly:
“What happened thereafter [after Celtic’s tours] to all Bobby’s fine promise is a mystery”.
He moved to Ayr United and, being a part time club, he embarked on a career in business. It was during one of these business meetings with John Alexander (Clyde chairman) that he became involved with Clyde, and in time became their general manager and then marketing operations manager.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1974-77 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Honours with Celtic
none
Pictures
Articles
Robert Hannah- Head of MatchdayOperations
https://craigrodger1994.wordpress.com/tag/robert-hannah/
By Craig Rodger
As another weekend of football comes and goes we often forget the amount of work and planning that goes into making each game run smoothly. The man in charge of matchday operations here at Clyde is Robert Hannah.Football has been part of Robert’s life for a long time as he lived out many an armchair fan’s dream by playing professionally at the very top level. His professional career started off at Celtic during a very successful period for the club before then moving to Ayr United.
“My footballing career took off in the 70’s whenI signed an S-Form for Celtic. After working my waythrough the ranks I was fortunate enough to have been involved with the first team on various occasions in domestic and European matches. I moved to Ayr United and, being a part time club, I then embarked on a career in business. It was during one of these business meetings with John Alexander (Clyde chairman) that I became involved with Clyde.”These days Broadwood might not always be as busy as we would like as we try and work our way up the leagues, but this does not change the level of care or attention to detail given when planning each home game.
“My role is to deliver a safe and enjoyable environment for fans on match days. The same model is used for every match, so a crowd of500 or2000 requires the same attention,although tailored to meet the requirements of each individual match.”
However, as with anything, there are always exceptions. A full house at Broadwood, a Champions League winner’s debut for the opposition, and live on the television… yes,that game against Celtic.
“This type of event requires weeks of preparation from our staff, directors and volunteers. Ticketing, doctors,first aid, ambulance, policing, stewarding, turnstiles operators, VIP’s, car parking, hospitality… the demands on our teamare considerable. Live on Sky, an early kick off, sub-zero temperatures hence the need for pitch protection,the build up tothis match had it all. Thankfully, the grass pitch passed an inspection and the match went ahead as scheduled. It was a fantastic achievement by all of our team to have staged such a successful event. The result was a bonus!”
A final message from the man which we owe a big thank you for every home game is a simple one:-
“Come along in your numbers, encourage and support the team and hopefully you’ll be rewarded with a win.”
Tommy Burns & David Hannah in Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe)
Scottish football and colonial Zimbabwe: sport, the Scottish diaspora, and ‘white Africa’
Celtic’s Tommy Burns certainly saw himself as part of a privileged labour hierarchy within Rhodesian football. Burns, perhaps the highest-profile Scottish footballer to play in Zimbabwe, in his 1989 autobiography (co-written with Hugh Keevins) only makes a page-long reference to his brief Summer 1975 loan period at Salisbury Callies. Burns and his Celtic teammate Rob Hannah received this opportunity via the network of Scots émigrés present in Zimbabwe: the manager of the all-white Salisbury Callies was a Scot, Danny Murphy, a Celtic supporter, who had requested young guest players for a summer tour of duty at his club. Burns ruefully noted the conspicuousness of his work circumstances, especially when recounting a ‘race riot’ involving Chibuku, another club:
One of the coaches of our all-white side, who had taken umbrage at a late challenge made on our goalkeeper, had simply walked on to the pitch and flattened the offending player with a single punch. As all hell broke loose, the fans tried to scale the fencing to exact revenge, and truncheon-wielding policemen lashed out at the fingers of those trying to invade the pitch, sending them slipping back down the wire… Even at its most frisky, the Calton was never like that, though having seen the living and working conditions those people had to endure I could understand their volatile temperament