Falconer, Willie

F | Player Pics | A-Z of Players

Personal

Fullname: William Falconer
aka: Willie Falconer
Born: 4 April 1966
Birthplace: Aberdeen
Signed: 10 February 1994
Left: 16 January 1996
Position: Striker/Midfielder
First game: Hearts 2-0 away 12 February 1994 league
Last game: Hearts 4-0 away 23 September 1994 league
Only goal: Dundee United 3-1 away 2 April 1994 league
Internationals: Scotland U21

BiogFalconer

Unheralded upon his arrival in 1994 – manager Lou Macari infamously quoted that he ‘didn’t expect him to set the heather on fire’ – yet he was to make a landmark which no other is likely to ever match. Willie Falconer proved to be an unwitting catalyst in the downfall of the old board, as the Bank’s decision not to honour the first instalment of Falconer’s £350,000 fee triggered the resignations of directors David Smith and Chris White from the Celtic board (“Sack the Board“).

So without lifting a finger, Willie Falconer had written himself into the annals of Celtic folklore and brought down the old Biscuit Tin board. It was quite an entrance for the new man, and made him a bit of an unlikely cult hero.

Back on the pitch things weren’t to be as successful. As a player, Willie Falconer found his most productive form as a hard-working foil for the more glamorous Pierre Van Hooijdonk in the Scottish Cup run of 1995, scoring against Meadowbank Thistle, and then crucially in the semi final replay versus Hibs to help Celtic through to the final. That trophy victory ended a long drought for the club, and Willie Falconer can hold his head high for this one. He won a place off the bench as a substitute in the Scottish Cup final, something he deserved.

For the remainder of the time, Celtic was a difficult environment to play in. The club had only just embarked on the new era with the clean sweep of the old with a new board, new manager and new players, and a new stadium development a priority. No player was going to easily prosper in this environment and there was a desperation to stop Rangers reaching ten-in-a-row league titles which didn’t help. The whole situation was up in the air.

The arrival of Andreas Thom as first choice strike partner for the blossoming Van Hooijdonk saw Falconer marginalised as an auxiliary midfielder or defender, most often for the second XI.

His work rate and attitude were recognised by the Celtic support with a chant of “Ooh ah Falconer” in the same manner as which Manchester United fans of the same era lionised Eric Cantona.

Falconer went on to give sterling service to Motherwell and Dundee, prompting speculation of a belated Scotland call during this Indian Summer to his career.

After football, Willie Falconer was to be a regular sight in Glasgow’s West End, where he runs an O’Brien’s sandwich bar franchise, and then worked in property rental.

We hope him all the best. A fair player who tried and did his best at a difficult time.

Playing Career

Club From
___________
 To
___________		 Fee
___________		 League Scottish/FA Cup League cup Other
Clyde 03/07/2002 01/07/2003 Free 10 (8) 4 2 (0) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0
Grimsby 28/03/2002 03/07/2002 Free 1 (1) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0
St Johnstone 10/08/2001 28/03/2002 Free 16 (9) 3 0 (1) 0 1 (1) 0 0 (0) 0
Clydebank 01/08/2001 10/08/2001 Signed 1 (0) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0
Dundee 01/07/1998 01/08/2001 Free 70 (8) 17 3 (2) 0 5 (0) 4 0 (0) 0
Motherwell 16/01/1996 01/07/1998   57 (1) 10 5 (0) 0 3 (0) 1 0 (0) 0
Celtic 10/02/1994 16/01/1996 £350,000 40 (2) 5 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (1) 0
Sheff Utd 13/08/1993 17/04/1994 £ 400,000 n/a            
Middlesbro 16/08/1991 13/08/1993 Swap n/a            
Watford 17/06/1988 16/08/1991 £ 300,000 n/a            
Aberdeen 01/08/1982 17/06/1988 Signed 77 (0) 13 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0 0 (0) 0
Lewis United 01/08/1981 01/08/1982   n/a            
Totals     £700,000 272 (29)
App(sub)
 52
Goals
 10 (3)
 0 9 (1) 5 0 (1) 0
      goals / game 0.17 0 0.5 0

Honours with Celtic

Scottish Cup winner

Pictures