Duffy, Robert – The Celtic Wiki

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Fullname: Robert McFarlane Davidson Duffy
aka: Robert Duffy, Bertie Duffy
Born: 19 April 1913
Died: […]
Birthplace: Dundee
Signed: 5 October 1935
Left: 1940 (RAF), April 1947 (Free)
Position: Half-Back
Debut: Celtic 3-3 Hamilton Accies, League, 16 Jan 1937
Internationals: none

Biog

A more than capable left-half Bertie Duffy saw his Celtic first team chances limited due to arriving at the club when the Hoops boasted a half-back line of Geatons, Lyon and Paterson.

With such talented competition it was always going to be hard for Bertie to break through at Parkhead after signing for the Bhoys from Lochee Harp in October 1935.

The Dundee-born player eventually made his debut in a 3-3 league draw at home to Hamilton in January 1937, and was unlucky not to score having been one of three Celts that day to have struck the cross-bar with shots. The Scotsman noted him to have done well in the match on the day.

He was a left-half in the side that retained the Charity Cup, in a 4-3 victory v Queen’s Park on 15 May 1937.

Despite some excellent reserve performances, Duffy’s first team chances remained limited and he went on to make only four first team league appearances intermittently over three seasons.

He only played one match in season 1937-38, as Celtic won the league title for the last time for a generation. He had a small role in the race to the title, playing in a 3-2 victory over Morton in September 1937, so could celebrate being part of a league title winning side. Sadly for Celtic, it was then the beginning of a long poor era, and the club was not again to win the league title again until 1953/54.

He had just two appearances in season 1938/39, both in January 1939 but Celtic lost the two matches (1-0 to Queen’s Park and 4-0 to Raith Rovers).

Still a Celtic player on paper he joined the RAF in 1940 for the war years. He impressed with several English clubs as a guest, including Newcastle, Rochdale and Leeds. He was even tipped as “a potential Scottish international“.

A potentially big loss for Celtic during the war years who were desperate for any quality to help the club out in a dire time on the field during that era (as much as all else).

He reached a level of PTI Sgt Bertie Duffy RAF.

He was released by Celtic in 1947.

Playing Career

APPEARANCES	LEAGUE	SCOTTISH CUP	LEAGUE CUP	EUROPE	TOTAL
1935-47	4	0	N/A	N/A	4
Goals:	0	0	–	–	0

Honours with Celtic

(Honours below are only for those campaigns in which the player has played in at least one match in the campaign)

Scottish League

1937-38
(played one league game in this season)

Pictures

Player Pics

Articles

From Leeds Utd site:
source: http://www.ozwhitelufc.net.au/players_profiles/D/DuffyR.php
Duffy: Robert McFarlane Davidson (Bertie)WW2 Guest: 1945-1946 (Leeds United War-time Guest Player Details)

Right Half

Born: Dundee: 19-04-1913

Debut: v Chesterfield (a): 25-08-1945

Height & Weight: Unknown

Robert Duffy started with Dundee St Josephs and then Lochee Harps as a Left Half and signed for Celtic on 5th October 1935.

He was a capable Wing Half but could not break into the Celtic first team as Geatons, Lyons and Paterson were the first choices. He made his debut for Celtic in a 3-3 draw at home to Hamilton Academical in January 1937.

While he showed excellent form in the Reserves he was restricted to only four games in the first team before being released in 1947. He joined the RAF in 1940 and rose to the rank of PTI Sergeant.

He guested with Newcastle United, Bradford City, Port Vale, Swansea Town, York City, Huddersfield Town and Rochdale, as well as Leeds United.

He played for United in the first fifteen games of the 1945-46 Football League Northern Section. He made his debut at Saltergate where Chesterfield inflicted a 1-3 defeat on United and it wasn’t until the sixth game that United took a point from a game when they won 2-0 at Goodison Park against Everton.

United won four and drew one of the fifteen games he played and his final game saw them humbled to the tune of 1-6 by Manchester United at Old Trafford to finalise his sorry stay on 24th November 1945.

He did guest for other clubs playing once for Bradford City in 1941-42 and three times in 1943-44, in 1942-43 he guested for York City twice and Huddersfield Town once and also scored once in eleven appearances for Rochdale.

In 1944-45 he had twenty-one games for Newcastle United, three for Swansea Town and two for Port Vale.