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Fullname: David Storrier
aka: Davie Storrier
Born: 25 October 1872
Died: 27 January 1910
Birthplace: Arbroath
Signed: 4 May 1898 (from Everton)
Left: 26 Oct 1901 (to Dundee)
Position: Left-Back
Debut: Celtic 2-1 Third Lanark, League, 20 Aug 1898
Internationals: Scotland / Scottish League
International Caps: 3 (1 as captain) / 2
International Goals: 0 / 0
Biog![[Untitled]](https://wikifoundryimages.s3.amazonaws.com/b94b26b00e3b598788433f4777e9d33d "[Untitled]")
Arbroath-born David Storrier was an athletic left-back who signed for Celtic in May 1898 from Everton, for whom he played in their losing 1897 FA Cup final side.
David Storrier cost a Scottish record transfer fee of £320 when Celtic signed him from Everton in 1898. When Celtic made their offer, David Storrier apparently didn’t hesitate, jumping on a train for Glasgow as soon as the offer had been made, and signed on for the Hoops.
He made his debut on August 20th that year in a 2-1 league win at home to Third Lanark. David Storrier established himself in the team and was a consistently solid and dependable performer in defence. Quick and strong the experienced former Evertonian went on to become Celtic captain and he skippered the side which lifted the Scottish Cup in 1899 following a 2-0 final victory over Rangers.
He helped Celtic to a second Scottish Cup triumph in 1900 with a 4-3 victory in the final v Queen’s Park at Ibrox (a wonderful combination to win over and at). However, he had been out for a long stretch of the season, and so had not played in any of the preceding matching in this Scottish Cup run, and it was his first match since December 1899.
David Storrier also captained Scotland that year in a clash with a 9-1 win Ireland at Celtic Park, and won all three of his caps at Celtic, including a 2-1 loss v England and a 6-0 win over Wales.
Despite the success in the Scottish Cup, Celtic never won the league during his time at the club, and interestingly Celtic only won in one of the matches against Rangers in which he had played in during his time. He was dropped after a 2-1 loss to Rangers in the Ne’er Day derby in 1901.
In the summer of 1901, David Storriers’ career with Celtic effectively ended when he was suspended by Celtic “on suspicion of malingering”, but it is not clear exactly what basis there was for this allegation. He may simply just have been ill.
The only goal he scored for Celtic was in a 7-0 win over Clyde in the Glasgow Cup in September 1898.
He eventually was offloaded and left Celtic for Dundee in October 1901 after a total of 40 league & Scottish Cup appearances for the Bhoys. He missed out on a league title medal as Celtic were champions the season before he had arrived at the club, but struggled to compete against a dominant Rangers side in the league during his tenure.
He was a bit of a traveller, later moving to Millwall having met Bob Hunter (Millwall manager) on holiday in Scotland.
A keen all-round sportsman, David Storrier also played cricket at county level for Arbroath United and Forfarshire. In 1902, he was struck on the head by a cricket ball and suffered unconsciousness from the impact, but recovered. He continued to play cricket back when he returned to Arbroath after his stint at Millwall.
He later returned to Arbroath, where sadly he died from tuberculosis relatively young on 27 January 1910, at the age of 37.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1898-1901 | 34 | 6 | n/a | n/a | 40 |
| Goals: | 0 | 0 | – | – | 0 |
Honours with Celtic
Scottish Cup
Pictures
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Articles
Scottish Referee
16 June 1902
Dave Storrier by Fraser Clyne
https://www.arbroathfc.co.uk/about/afc-legends/dave-storrier/
The development of football as a professional sport in England in the late 1880’s and early 1890’s resulted in many Scots being enticed to move South, lured by the prospect of potential fame and fortune.
A number of Red Lichties joined this exodus, including full-back David Storrier who signed for Everton in 1893 after just one successful season at Gayfield.Storrier, who was born in Arbroath, joined the Maroons as a 20 year-old in 1892 after playing for another local club known as the Dauntless. He helped the Lichties win the Northern League which was a highly prized title in those days with senior teams from Perth, Dundee, Angus and Aberdeen all taking part. Storrier’s fine performances attracted numerous scouts from the big city clubs who were anxious to snap up promising young players and it was no surprise when the 21 year-old defender joined the gold rush and signed for the Goodison Park side.Storrier played for Everton for five seasons in the English top flight and was in the team that lost 3-2 to Aston Villa in the 1897 FA Cup Final at Crystal Palace. He was reasonably successful during his spell on Merseyside but eventually things turned a little sour when the club failed to win the First Division title.
Davie believed the Liverpool outfit had grown tired of their Scottish imports and he decided it might be in his interests to move back to Scotland. He tipped off a journalist and within a few days Celtic had come along with a deal. Storrier didn’t hesitate, jumping on a train for Glasgow as soon as the offer had been made, and signed on for the Hoops.
Despite taking a while to settle at Parkhead, the Arbroath man went on to make numerous important league and cup appearances for Celtic over a three year period.
His best spell was in 1899 when he was capped for Scotland against England, Wales and Ireland. Davie helped the Scots thrash Wales 6-0 at Wrexham, then captained the side that crushed Ireland 9-1 in Glasgow. Scotland’s only defeat that season came in the third game when England triumphed 2-1 at Villa Park when another legendary Lichtie, Ned Doig, was the Scotland keeper.
Storrier was also captain of the Celtic team that defeated Old Firm rivals Rangers 2-0 in the 1899 Scottish Cup Final. He won a second winner’s medal the following year when Queen’s Park were defeated 4-3 in the final at Ibrox. Throughout his time at Parkhead, however, Celtic never won the League title.In 1901 Storriers’s career took a nose dive when he was suspended by Celtic “on suspicion of malingering.”
Its not clear exactly what basis there was for this allegation, but Davie moved on to Dundee. He played just 10 games for a struggling Dens Park outfit that finished the season second bottom of Division One. Storrier took to the road again, this time signing for Millwall who at the time were managed by Scotsman Bob Hunter.
Davie played for the London club until 1904 when he retired from the game and returned to Arbroath where he had business interests. A keen all-round sportsman, Storrier also played cricket for Arbroath United.
He died in 1910.
Article contributed by Fraser Clyne author of The History of Arbroath Football Club
fyi: Red Lichtie: (so named because of the red light in Arbroath harbour that used to guide fishing boats home)