Celtic's cult heroes - David Potter

Celtic are a club that is rich in Cult Heroes. The legends assembled here are not necessarily the best players to appear in green and white, but the ones who developed the most affinity with the Bhoys' incredible support; who were deified and came to stand for something more than mere footballers. Celtic FC are often described as a "family". This may be true, but in most families they are black sheep, outcasts and reprobates, as well as loyal defenders of the family tradition. "Celtic's Cult Heroes" depicts both sorts of players, and makes no attempt to whitewash the bad boys. All twenty heroes are or were at one point or other much loved by the Celtic faithful who saw in each of them something to identify with. There was for example Dan Doyle the man who failed to turn up for a Scottish Cup tie, yet remained a hero; the saintly Jimmy McGrory; Tommy McInally, the rebel without a cause; and, the tragic Bertie Thomson.Dixie Deans recovered from the trauma of a missed penalty in a shoot-out to score a Scottish Cup final hat-trick and less than three weeks later, 'Champagne' Charlie Nicholas was adored for his glamour as much as his prolific goal-scoring ability and in more recent times there have been the ultra-professional goal machine Henrik Larsson and Shunsuke Nakamura - neither Irish nor Catholic - who have done so much to make Celtic a worldwide institution. "Celtic's Cult Heroes" contains many anecdotes and asides, and is a must for every Celtic fan. It is written from a fan's point a view - and in this case a fan who is addicted to the sight of green and white ribbons on silverware, and who cannot ever understand any player who would turn his back on the green and white brigade.