Death of Celtic legend Bobby Collins
It is with great sadness that the club has learned of the death of Celtic legend, Bobby Collins, who has passed away at the age of 82.
Bobby, known affectionately by supporters as ‘The Wee Barra’, was born in the Govanhill area of Glasgow on February 16, 1931 and he signed for Celtic in August 1948. He made his debut for the Hoops in a 3-2 League Cup section victory at Celtic Park over Rangers on August 13, 1949. He would go on to make a total of 320 appearances, scoring an impressive 116 goals, one of only 28 players to have scored over a century of goals for Celtic.
He played for the club at a time when there a lot of great individuals but the team were unable to find a level of consistency that would have delivered success on a regular basis. However, Bobby Collins was a central part of every one of Celtic’s post-war triumphs prior to Jock Stein’s arrival at the club as manager. He was part of the team which won the Scottish Cup in 1951, beating Motherwell 1-0 in the final, while he helped the Hoops win the one-off St Mungo Cup in August of the same year, beating Aberdeen 3-2 at Hampden. Another one-off trophy was secured in 1953 as Celtic unexpectedly won the Coronation Cup, beating Hibernian 2-0 in the final. On their way to Hampden, the Hoops beat Arsenal 1-0, with Collins scoring the only goal of the game direct from a corner, before seeing off Manchester United 2-1 in the semi-final. And in the subsequent season 1953/54, Celtic won the league and cup double, with The Wee Barra playing a pivotal role in the heart of the Celtic midfield. He also played his part in Celtic’s first two League Cup triumphs. In 1956/57, he scored the first goal in the 3-0 replay victory over Partick Thistle, and a year later he was part of the legendary Celtic team which beat Rangers 7-1 to retain the trophy.
Bobby Collins was transferred to Everton in 1958 – there were rumours that the deal was done to finance new floodlights for Celtic Park – and he remained at Goodison for five years before joining Leeds United, then in the English Second Division. As captain he helped them gain promotion to the old First Division, and was awarded the English Football Writers’ Player of the Year in 1965 in recognition of his contribution as Leeds finished runners-up in both the league and FA Cup that season, ensuring his place as a legendary figure with the Yorkshire club.
A serious injury the following season in a European tie effectively called time on his top-flight career. He was also capped 31 times for Scotland, scoring 10 goals.
Bobby Collins was a true Celtic legend and one of Scotland’s all-time great players. His contribution to the success of both Celtic and Leeds United is testament to that.
The thoughts and prayers of everyone at Celtic are with Bobby’s family and friends at this very sad time.
Farewell to the Wee Barra, RIP!
Verfasst: Mi 4. Dez 2013, 19:46
