James Forrest - The Lennoxtown Academy Alumnus

 With the opening fixture of our league campaign under a week away, the match against Wolves at the Aviva stadium served as a good exercise in building momentum towards our challenge of retaining the Scottish title.  There was more than enough action in defence and in attack for us to over analyse, yeah we could be more clinical with the opportunities we carve out, or more switched on in defence, but the match in Dublin has to be seen as more minutes in the players legs and a day out for Celtic fans.

Before Brendan Rodgers and the squad turn their full attention to competitive football, Celtic have one more match to negotiate before the championship flag is unfurled against Ross County.    Athletic Club Bilbao will make the journey from the Basque Country to Glasgow's east end to formally close our pre-season activities as well as help our long serving winger James Forrest celebrate his testimonial.

It is fitting that the club who established “The One Club Award", which recognises  loyalty, commitment, responsibility, sportsmanship and respect.  All values the Basque giants hold dear, were chosen for this occasion.   Athletic themselves celebrated our greatest ever captain back in 2019 when Billy McNeill was added to their list of One Club Award winners at a ceremony held at half-time in front of a sell out San Mamés stadium.   For this gesture alone the team and fans making the journey to Glasgow are sure to receive a warm welcome on Tuesday night from the Celtic support.

Since making his debut for the first team on the 1st May 2010, James Forrest has become one of the most decorated players in our clubs history.  With over 460 appearances, over 100 goals and many, many more assists, Forrest has embraced the challenge of what is expected as a winger in the green & white hoops.  Signed from our youth team in 2009, Forrest is another fine example of our player development from young talent, to first team and international recognition.

Forrest's greatest run of form coincided with Celtics stranglehold of Scottish football between 2016-17 and 2019-20, when we secured an unprecedented Quadruple Treble.   James was pivotal in the explosive forward play under the direction of Brendan Rodgers and then from 2019 with the transition to Neil Lennon.

In an excerpt used from the official Celtic Treble Treble book, I wrote;

An Academy Graduate comes of age.

When Celtic made the trip to Perth to play St Johnstone in October 2018, the team & one player in particular put on a show for the faithful followers in the stands.   An incredible performance had Celtic 5 goals ahead before half time. Odsonne Edouard, & Callum McGregor both hit the net as we ran out 6-0 winners, but it was Academy Graduate James Forrest who stole the show, with 4 goals in a devastating 30 minute spell in the first half.

James Forrest's performance that day & his ability to be in the right place, at the right time, in big matches throughout the season, helped him secure Player of the year awards from fellow players & writers. A magnificent way to celebrate the continued youth development from the Celtic academy during our Treble Treble victory.

Whether it was that performance, his last Minute winner against Shakhtar Karagandy, the countless important goals at Hampden or his strike in the 5-0 drubbing of our city rivals to clinch the title, Forrest has been a mainstay of a dominant Celtic team, building for further success.

The match will be a great opportunity to welcome back our champions, but it will also be special to celebrate a man who has helped deliver so much success at Celtic Park.

The Artist, The Emancipator and the Exhibition City

When street artist Banksy announced his Cut and Run exposition being held at the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow, I am not going to lie I was absolutely thrilled.   So intrigued, in fact, I think I WhatsApped my entire family (in-laws and all) to let them know about it.  The opportunity to understand the mindset of the world famous and illusive Banksy as well as witness some of the tools of his trade was not only fascinating for me, it was a major coup for my home city of Glasgow.  Me?   I had to buy tickets for the first Saturday of the expo.

Glasgow is no stranger when it comes to exhibitions.  Our historic status as second city of the Empire means Glasgow was often at the forefront of the pomp and pageantry that goes with putting on a lavish show.  From the 1888 International Exhibition of Industry, Science and Art, which helped fund our world renowned Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, to the Empire Exhibition at Bellahouston Park in 1938, Glasgow was the staging place for countless showcase events.

After the managed decline in the city and the loss of many of its heavy industrial output, Glasgow was left in the shadow and had to rebuild as well as rebrand our global credentials.  A century on from hosting our first great exhibition, Glasgow was centre stage for the Garden Festival in 1988, attracting over 4 million visitors to the city.   This success was followed when our dear green place was christened the European City of Culture in 1990.  Over 30 years on and Glasgow continues to flourish and is recognised globally as centre of excellence for development, innovation and of course a very warm welcome.

The tough economic downturn in Glasgow after the 2nd world war as well as our long history of protest, reform and deep desire for social justice perhaps played a small part in Banksy choosing Glasgow to host his exhibition.  As I walked through the display at GOMA it was striking absorbing the commentary provided with each stencil and exhibit.   That need to question everything is easily translated from the social commentary that Banksy puts so eloquently into his artwork.  We can all interpret differently, for some it will be grafitti, for others it will be art.   For me it is a platform of protest and desire for change. 

Banksy makes sure to point out that in his mind you will only see one masterpiece as part of the exhibition.  That wonder can be witnessed every day in Glasgow and is stationed outside the host venue.   The statue dedicated to Arthur Wellesley, The Duke of Wellington has been the centre point of Glasgows ability to never take itself too seriously over the decades.   A traffic cone placed on the Duke's head has been a mainstay of Glasgow life for almost 50 years.

The Iron Duke, famous for his victory over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo and leading 19th century Britain as Prime Minister on 2 occasions, provides another beautiful contradiction in Glasgow.  For a Tory politician to have a statue in the centre of our city is one thing, but for the same man to be one of the leading voices for the Catholic Emancipation Act perhaps sheds some light on the power of driving much needed change.

Whether you see the cone on Wellingtons head as art or vandalism is your choice, similar to the global impact of Banksy and his works.  One thing I will say is do your best to go along & take in the exhibition - it is a real eye opener into the mystique behind the murals Banksy delivers.

Celtic Park Stadium Tour. The History and Emotion

The close season gives fans a chance to recharge batteries and reflect on the season just ended.  For Celtic fans we have a few more news stories to digest over the summer, with Brendan Rodgers returning  as manager and the club cashing in on one of our most dynamic players, selling Jota to the ever expanding Saudi Pro League.

Even with all that going on, the need to get a fix of Celtic in any way whatsoever is still foremost in many fans minds.   If you’re one of the fortunate ones to be travelling to Japan or Dublin for the pre-season friendlies I am sure the occasions will be etched in your memory forever.   For those staying a lot closer to Paradise, that fix might be taking in the tour at Celtic Park.   For me, the tour has become an annual summer event ever since I started going to the matches with my children in 2011.  This summer is no different.

A lot has changed on the Celtic Stadium tour recently, and to be honest it's for the better.   The new sports lounge nestled in the south west corner provides a welcome that is fitting with a club our size, and one that continues to entertain visitors from around the world.  The lounge gives visitors an opportunity to shelter from the summer rain in Glasgow, enjoy snacks and refreshments before and after the tour, as well as taking in the memorabilia from matches through pictures and pennants from our global travels over the years.

The tour itself is a just a magnificent and at times emotional walk through the historic achievements of one of the worlds most decorated football teams.  The collection of silverware and medals each with their own story is enough to give you goose bumps.   From humble beginnings in small parish hall less than ten minutes walk from the stadium, to European champions and our most recent world record 8th domestic treble, our guide Stephen provided the commentary as we followed in the footsteps of the giants of our club.  From Walfrid, Maley and McGrory to Stein, McNeill, McStay Larsson and Kyogo  - it really is something special.

From the trophies of the boardroom, to the Lisbon lions and then the home dressing room, Stephen not only gave the historical context of our achievements, he added in his own personal experiences of following Celtic from a young age; for me the very fabric of what makes Celtic fans, those stories behind the matches and the memories.

The walk down the famous Celtic Park tunnel opens up to the wide expanse of our impressive 60,000+ seated stadium.  The modern theatre is testimony to the fans who invested heavily when Fergus McCann arrived in 1994 and steered the team and club into the 21st century and our modern day dominance of Scottish football.

From the dugouts you get a pitch side view of one of the most lauded stadiums in world football, but can only imagine the crescendo that would spur the players on every matchday.  The tour then wraps up in the directors box before heading back through the main stand to the sports lounge where you have the opportunity to relax and reflect on the tour.

No matter how many times I do the tour, it will always pull on my heartstrings having the opportunity to listen and see the story of Celtic.