November 3rd 2007 will be a memorable date for a number of members of the Medway Emerald CSC.
Not only did Celtic beat Kilmarnock 2-1 in the lunchtime kick off to remain
three points clear at the top but the aforementioned members travelled to the
Spirit of 67 CSC in Kilburn to enjoy an evening of entertainment in the company
of Lisbon Lions Billy McNeil and Bertie Auld with Charlie and the Bhoys
supplying the soundtrack to the night.
Auld and McNeil spent the first half of the evening happily signing autographs,
shaking hands and posing for photographs before taking to the stage to regale
the gathered faithful with tales of the late great Jock Stein, of playing for
Celtic and just how much it means to still be part of the finest team in
Scotland.
They then took responsibility for the raffle with Bertie drawing the winning
tickets and Billy presenting the prizes and I
’m pleased to report that club member Ryan McLorey scooped the first prize of a
framed Celtic shirt signed by both Auld and McNeil and a copy of the original
program from the game.
The evening was rounded off by Charlie and the Bhoys performing a second set of
favourite Celtic anthems.
On a personal note and as a veteran of countless concerts and festivals, I don’t usually do the star-struck thing, perhaps because many of our rock stars
actually prove to be quite disappointing in the flesh. All the same, I did find
myself fearing a Wayne
’s World moment, worrying I might prostrate myself before their feet and declare
my unworthiness. It was a sense of foreboding compounded by the fact that these
living legends were so human, so approachable and - unlike many of today
’s ‘badge-kissers’ - so obviously Celtic supporters through and through, just like the rest of us.
Bertie Auld was my childhood idol, all stemming from a photo of him that
appeared in a copy of the Daily Record produced book
‘My Team Celtic’. It depicted him with what I took then to be a look of dogged determination and
decided to carry that attitude into my own endeavours. I can
’t say it turned me into the Jinky of my era, in fact I was always better at
rugby than I ever was at football, but it is an approach that has served me
well throughout both my personal and professional life, that carried me onwards
(and upwards!) through that last 430 steps of the Heavenly Gateway in China
when all my legs wanted to do was collapse.
And as we know, there’s only one king Billy and that’s McNeil, thank flip!
