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Celtic 3-2 Dunfermline
(by TheHumanTorpedo)
From Inter Milan to Barcelona many of Celtic’s greatest triumphs have occurred in the company of football’s elite. Memorable nights against some of the most fabled names in the game. The glamour and glory of these occasions can often mean that what is forgotten is that the road to greatness always begins from a much more humble place.
There has been no more glorious period in Celtic history than the Jock Stein era. An era littered with big games and famous opponents. But it may be argued that the most important victory of that time came not against Inter or Leeds but rather Dunfermline Athletic.
Today Dunfermline are fighting for their very survival. But during the 1960’s the only battle that really concerned supporters at East End Park was that for Scottish football’s major honours.
The birth of the club’s golden era can be traced to March 1960 when the struggling Pars appointed a certain Jock Stein as manager. Within weeks the appointment reaped rewards as the former Celtic skipper led his team clear of relegation. With the impressive Stein in charge the priority of the Pars would quickly switch from survival to silverware.
Jock remained a popular figure at Parkhead but in 1961 he gave Hoops fans little to cheer when Dunfermline lifted the Scottish Cup after a 2-0 replay victory over a rudderless Celtic.
Having guided the club into Europe Stein would eventually move on from Dunfermline to Hibernian but in Willie Cunningham the Pars appointed a successor determined to build on the foundations laid by the man from Burnbank. Indeed by the spring of 1965 Cunningham and his team were in eager pursuit of a league and cup double.
But it wasn’t just on the domestic scene where the Pars were impressing. Between 1961 and 1970 East End Park played host to some 20 European ties and on only one occasion did the home side fall to defeat. During an unforgettable era sides such as Stuttgart, West Brom, Everton, Bilbao, Valencia and Zaragoza tasted defeat in Fife.
These were mythical days in the Kingdom.
For Celtic fans the early 1960’s had been anything but swinging. The team hadn’t won a major trophy since the League Cup final of 1957 and disillusionment was rife both on the terraces and in the dressing room. Jimmy McGrory was manager in name only with power on and off the pitch resting with Bob Kelly in the boardroom.
Season 1964-65 would represent a watershed moment in the club’s history. A youthful side of immense potential had been curtailed for years by a lack of leadership and Kelly’s disastrous meddling with team selection. For proud and ambitious men like Billy McNeill the exit door to Parkhead was an increasingly tempting option.
A 2-1 League Cup final defeat to Rangers in October 1964 was the latest body blow to a team desperate to reward the Parkhead fans with a trophy. Celtic suffered a slump in form and as a New Year approached even Bob Kelly recognised the time had come for change. So it was that in January 1965 Kelly announced that Jock Stein would be returning to Celtic as manager.
Stein would not take up his post until March but the announcement instantly injected a renewed sense of hope throughout the entire club. Jock had impressed many during his time as player and coach at Celtic and his stature within football was rapidly on the rise. For many players and fans Jock wasn’t regarded as the best man for the job, he was the only man for the job.
In his last act as manager of Hibernian Stein guided the Edinburgh side to a Scottish Cup victory over Rangers. That same weekend Celtic would progress to the semi-finals with a deserved win over a good Kilmarnock side. With the arrival of Stein now imminent the Parkhead faithful began to dream of their first Scottish Cup in 11 years.
In the semi-final’s Celtic would defeat Motherwell to set up a Hampden date with Dunfermline who defeated the Easter Road men in the battle of Stein’s former chargers.
The build up to the big day was tense. So much hope had been invested in Stein by the Celtic support that any setback would be hugely damaging to their collective spirit. Another painful disappointment might have just proved that one too many.
For both manager’s the contest was laced with a personal rivalry. Stein had been instrumental in Cunningham’s appointment as manager but their relationship was soured by frequent suggestions that Cunningham was simply riding to success on a team constructed by the Celtic boss. There was no doubt that Cunningham saw Hampden as the perfect opportunity to dismantle any such suggestion.
In the run up to the big day Celtic’s form had been erratic as Stein used meaningless league encounters to tinker with his team and tactics in preparation for the Final. With Dunfermline chasing the league title the Pars had little chance or need to experiment but as the season approached a thrilling climax there were increasing signs the Fifers ambitions were starting to unravel.
In the week before Hampden Dunfermline played St.Johnstone at home in a match where victory would have near ensured the championship. But the Pars faltered to a disappointing draw. That dropped point would prove vital in the title race. It would also prove costly for an out of sorts Dunfermline forward – a certain Alex Ferguson – who would be dropped for the Cup Final.
Despite this as the morning of April 25th 1965 dawned the team from East End Park were the favorites to end that day as Scottish Cup holders. But for the vast majority of 108,000 that filled the slopes of Hampden there was sense that at long last this was to be there day.
The pitch was bathed in sunshine as the game kicked-off and from the early moments Celtic attacked. The early encounters were fast and frantic but despite enjoying the better of the early exchanges it was the Hoops who suffered the first setback when after 15 minutes Melrose hooked home the opener after the Bhoys failed to clear a cross ball.
The Celtic reaction to that early setback was impressive as they continued to push an increasingly ragged Dunfermline back deep into their own half. Then, just after the half hour mark, the Bhoys got their just reward.
Collecting the ball some 30 yards from goal Charlie Gallagher showed fine footwork to create a shooting chance. He unleashed a fearsome rising drive that smashed off the crossbar and shot high into the air. As the defenders anxiously awaited the ball to descend from the sky the typically tenacious Berite Auld rushed into the six yard box to force the ball home.
Now roared on by an ecstatic support Celtic looked to grab another before the break. But yet again the Pars were able to deliver a slick counterblow. With halftime just a minute away Dunfermline made a rare foray into the Celtic half and won a free kick some 25 yards out. As Celtic set up their defensive wall the quick thinking Melrose slipped the ball into the path of McLaughlin who drilled home a fine low shot.
With their team trailing again it was a long half-time interval on the slopes of Hampden. But inside the Celtic dressing room the message from Jock Stein to his players was simple – change nothing. The rewards will come.
How right he was. Within seven minutes of the restart Celtic were level. The inspirational Auld was again the goal-scorer. Shooting low into the net after a fine move involving the impressive Bobby Lennox.
Dunfermline realised containment was not an option and the second half developed into a fine and even contest which swung from one end to the other. As the match progressed weariness inevitably began to creep into the play yet both teams refused to settle for anything other than victory.
Then it happend. The moment that would spark a decade of glory. With just nine minutes remaining Celtic forced a corner.
As Charlie Gallagher prepared to take the kick Billy McNeill – standing some 25 yards outside the penalty area – lost his marker with a late burst towards goal.
As McNeill charged forward Gallagher hit a firm and high corner into the area. McNeill had timed his move to perfection. He sent team-mate Lennox sprawling before leaping. His jump seemed to take him higher than the Hampden floodlights and he hung momentarily in the sky before thumping the ball into the Dunfermline net with a perfect and powerful header.
For the briefest of moment there was a silence. And then from the near 100,000 Celtic supporters present their was a delirious, deafening roar. A roar that would not be silenced for the next ten years.
Celtic would lift the Scottish Cup and under Stein the trophy famine was replaced by a feast. A feast that Jock would later claim owed much to this first taste of silverware. As Harry Andrews in the Scottish Daily Express proclaimed: “Parkhead is Paradise once more.”