| T | Player Pics | A-Z of Players |
Note: There has been more than one player to play for Celtic with the same name, so please check the other namesake if need be.
Personal
Fullname: David Turnbull
Born: 4 Apr 1904
Died: [….]
Birthplace: Hurlford
Signed: 26 Feb 1927
Left: 3 Sep 1928 (Ayr Utd)
Position: Left-half
Debut: St Johnstone 1-0 Celtic, League, 23 April 1927
Internationals: none
Biog
A very highly rated junior player David Turnbull signed for Celtic in February 1927 from Kilbirnie Ladeside.
Once said to be the hottest junior property around, so a great catch for Celtic. However, it wasn’t to be for David Turnbull.
The Hurlford-born left-half made his debut stepping in for John McFarlane in a 1-0 league defeat to St Johnstone on 23rd April 1927, in a match that saw four changes from the last game. By this time, Celtic had already conceded the league.
Celtic had won the Scottish Cup only a few weeks before his debut but had finished the league in 3rd place, well behind Rangers who had won the league taking the title off of Celtic’s hands. To rub things in, Rangers defeated Celtic at Celtic Park in the league just two days after Celtic had won the Scottish Cup.
His final appearance was in a 2-1 victory over Partick Thistle in the final league game of the season. John McFarlane was back in the side for the next season, in what was to be John McFarlane’s last at Celtic.
Despite his reputation in the juniors, David Turnbull made only a total of just two competitive first team appearances for the Bhoys.
Not the first or last unable to make the step-up to the senior leagues and make a success of it.
In fairness, Celtic had begun a downturn, and their league title success the season before he arrived, in 1925-26, was the club’s last for a decade. Even the Scottish Cup success was the last trophy the club was to win for four years.
He was loaned to Ayr United to gain experience and ultimately signed fulltime for their club in September 1928.
He was later freed at his own request on 22 December 1931, and ex-Celt Willie McStay took him to Glentoran in 1932.
Quotes
Q. Will Celtic join the Provincial League?
Or is it better for colts to watch their seniors than to play serious football?A. No. Celtic allow reserves like David Turnbull to play for clubs like Ayr Utd. A reserve side is superfluous to Celtic’s progress.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1927-28 | 2 | – | – | – | 2 |
| Goals: | 0 | – | – | – | 0 |
Honours with Celtic
None