Full Name: Robert Young Collins ("Bobby Collins")
Born: 16 Feb 1931
Weight: 9st 3lbs
Height: 5ft 4in high.
Debut: 13 Aug 1949
Left: 1957 (to Everton)
Intl Caps: 31 games ( with 12 goals)


[Player Pics]

Born Robert Young Collins in Glasgow on 16 February 1931, he was the eldest of six children and followed his local club, Third Lanark, as a boy, often squeezing under the fence to see them play accompanied by brother Davie. Both Everton and Celtic chased his signature and the Merseysiders offered his Pollok club a £1,000 transfer fee. The 17-year-old initially agreed to the deal, but quickly changed his mind when he heard that Celtic manager Jimmy McGrory was after him and signed on as a part timer at Parkhead in 1948 for a weekly wage packet of £8. He made his debut against Rangers 13 August 1949 in a League Cup clash with Rangers. 71,000 Parkhead supporters saw the youngster perform admirably on the right wing, tormenting Rangers veteran Jock Shaw.

He became an automatic choice, winning rave reviews after his first League goal, the winner in a 3-2 victory over Hearts. John Jessiman of the Sunday Express: "Little Bobby Collins, game as a pebble, built like a Brencarrier, and in his element at inside-right, crashed home a picture opportunist goal, fired first time. Away up on the terracing behind the goals, out flew the green scarves. He brings back to Celtic, this boy, the immortal fire of Patsy Gallagher. His idea of progress is the shortest way through … the technique of the electric drill! When he was not hurling himself at the entire Hearts defence he was back defending. That was Patsy's way. After the Collins winner, the roar from the Parkhead faithful went on for five minutes. No wonder!" He enjoyed a fine debut season, scoring seven League goals, though Celtic trailed in fifth. Nevertheless it was the club's best finish since the war. 1951 saw the club slip to a seventh place finish, though Collins' 15 goals made him top scorer, and included a hat trick in a 6-2 win against East Fife.

There was also a first trophy since 1938 as they captured the Scottish Cup. Collins was ever present in the Cup run, helping the Celts beat Motherwell 1-0 in the final before a 132,000 capacity crowd.

Collins' outstanding club form caught the eye of the Scotland selectors and he was called up to the full international squad in the autumn of 1950. Injury forced his withdrawal from a fixture with Switzerland, but he made his full debut soon afterwards, at Cardiff against Wales on 21 October 1950. Bobby laid on a cross for Billy Liddell to head home spectacularly en route to a 3-1 victory. Collins retained his place for home matches with Northern Ireland, a 6-1 triumph with Billy Steel scoring four, and Austria. The latter game brought a depressing landmark with a 1-0 defeat leaving the Scots as the first home international nation to lose on their own turf to overseas opposition. The setback prompted a radical rebuilding programme, and it was four and a half years before Collins regained a place.

Despite winning the St Mungo Cup competition in the autumn of 1951 by beating Aberdeen in a Hampden Park final, Celtic again finished no better than mid table in the League in 1952. They had a bunch of outstanding individuals, including Collins and the mercurial Charlie Tully, but could not function consistently as a team, trailing in a hugely dispiriting ninth in an up and down campaign.

Collins was transferred to Everton - a transfer he was not happy with - in 1957. Although his arrival sparked a revival in the team, he was the subject of petty jealousy and poison pen letters. He moved from there to Leeds Utd, then of the second division, in 1963. He was credited, by no less a talent than Eddie Gray, with being a major influence in the creation of the great Leeds side of the 1960s. He received the Football Writers' Player of the Year in 1965, the first Scot to win the award.

Bobby Collins on Bobby Collins and other Celtic greats: "I GREW up in Polmadie on the south side of Glasgow. It proved to be the perfect place for a young lad interested in football as it was situated between Cathkin Park and Hampden Park.

I used to go and watch lots of sides; Third Lanark, Celtic and Rangers. There were some wonderful players to see and guys like Jimmy Mason, Jimmy Carabine and Alex Venters were my favourites.

I started off playing in the Life Boys when I was just eight. Then I moved on to the Boys' Brigade. As I became more interested and involved in the game, I started concentrating on how the top players did things at matches. I looked at how they moved and how they beat each other. Even then, every game I played I wanted to win. Indeed, in every game I ever played in my life I wanted to win.

Polmadie had a juvenile team and they asked me to play when I was just a teenager. You were pitted against experienced guys and it was a big step up. You had to get rid of the ball quickly or get clattered. I learned that pretty quickly.

I left school when I was 14 and became what was known as a scrap boy at the Empire Aluminium Company. I worked hard at it and did well. But I left after two years and became a shoe repairer. It was what a friend of mine was doing and it was a far better number.

I joined Pollok Juniors when I was 16. I was spotted playing for them by Everton and they soon tried to sign me when I was 17. I even went down to Liverpool to see the facilities and set-up there and was all set to move to England.

However, the day before I was due to leave, the Celtic manager, Jimmy McGrory, approached me and asked to sign me. I couldn't believe it. But I had been something of a Celtic supporter - although I watched Third Lanark as well as Rangers - and agreed to join them. They all had great footballers and that was all that interested me. I joined when I was 17 in 1948.

I HAD never seen McGrory play. But my father had seen him in his heyday in the 1920s and 1930s and told me what a marvellous striker he was and about all the wonderful goals he scored. He was all right and we got on fine. But he was not what you would term a coach. He didn't say an awful lot to his players.

Alex Dowdalls, on the other hand, was a very good physio and they left things up to him. We did plenty of ball work but it was all after official training. The sessions basically entailed a lot of laps of the stadium and sprints. We used to run up and down the terracing steps. It was tough but it kept you going when you were playing. In fact, I am over 70 now but can still run.

MY first game was a tough one - it was against Rangers. But we won it. I was up against Jock ''Tiger'' Shaw and had a smashing game. I went out there thinking: ''I'm going to run that old so-and-so into the ground.'' It was the perfect start to my career.

"I remember going through the middle and Willie Wood fouled me and we got a penalty. He moaned like hell, but he clipped me. Fortunately, we won 3-2 and I was never out of the team thereafter. When Celtic played Rangers you simply had to win and it didn't matter how. If you didn't win then you knew you wouldn't be able to go out for a while!"

"My early games for Celtic went well and I soon settled into the team's pattern of play … I was expected to play as a link man in attack as well as a striker who had to get his share of goals. It was a challenge, but if the manager thought I was capable of playing in that role then that was fine by me.

"There was no over complication in tactics. Talk never centred on 4-2-4, 4-3-3, diamond formations or sweeper systems, we believed in attacking football. That was our style of play. If we were on the attack we'd have five forwards and two wing-halves looking for opportunities and supporting each other. If we were on the defensive we'd track back to support our defenders.

"Of course, we had players who could control a game; intelligent footballers like Bobby Evans, Willie Fernie, Charlie Tully and John McPhail, and with players of this calibre in the side changing tactics came natural to us and we were able to adapt. If we had to battle we could and if we were able to play our natural game we did."

I must be honest, the [Celtic v Rangers] game never meant anything to me. Not in the way it does with some fans. My father was a Catholic and my mother was a Protestant. I grew up as a Protestant. But there were more Protestants than Catholics at Celtic back then. Willie Fernie was another one. And Jock Stein, too. Rangers, of course, had a different attitude for many, many years.

I had attended Old Firm games as a supporter when I was a youngster and had been taken aback by how ferocious things could get off the park. Nothing ever really happened at the matches. But afterwards there were always unpleasant incidents away from the grounds.

I played against the likes of George ''Corky'' Young, Ian McColl, Sammy Cox, and goalie Bobby Brown. Honestly, if these guys were playing the game today every one of them would be worth millions and millions of pounds. That is no exaggeration.

Although he was a Rangers man through and through, one of the best pals I ever had was the late, great George Young. I met him through the Morton manager, Hal Stewart. He used to run Co-Operative Cigarettes functions. As a payment for turning up, players got a few quid and as many fags as you could smoke. Hal was such a good fellow.

WHEN I turned 21 I was due to be called up for National Service. But I knew my football would be curtailed for two years. So, to get out of it, I went and worked down a coal mine just outside Dunfermline. I stuck that out for the time I was meant to be on service. The people I met down the pits were all terrific folk.

I used to train with Cowdenbeath during the week and then go back and train with my Celtic team- mates one night a week and meet up with them for the match at the weekend.

I weighed 9st 3lbs and was 5ft 4in high. I played in a variety of positions. But I was probably best as an inside forward. To my mind, nobody plays like I used to. I liked running forward and shooting at goal. Then I would chase back and defend. That just doesn't happen now. I scored hundreds of goals that way as well.

"It was really disappointing to miss out on the [1954] Cup final, but I was delighted for the lads. I'd been injured for around ten weeks, but after battling back to fitness I'd hoped to be in contention. It wasn't to be though, and I couldn't complain because the team had played well and reached the final without me. I had to wait for my chance to get back into the first XI. I was just delighted to play and score in the final League game two days after the Cup final and enjoyed all the celebrations. Our fans were ecstatic. It was a wonderful achievement because the team had been in inconsistent form for a number of years so it was fantastic to put a run together. Overcoming Hearts was a great effort by the squad."

Jock [Stein] was a great pal of mine. He would go on to become a brilliant manager and lead Celtic to years of unprecedented success. But he was an outstanding player as well. When he came into the side he rejuvenated us. He was left-footed and slotted in well on that side of the park, was excellent in the air and was a good passer. We fed off him and started to win things again.

Some supporters had threatened to boycott games if he was selected, which was incredible. Jock may have been turning professional at the age of 28, but you had to give him a chance. Fortunately the manager did give him an opportunity and Jock soon settled into the team.

Jock read the game well, could spot danger and opportunities quickly and as a player we all respected him, but it was as a captain that you really saw his credentials. He was always encouraging and demanding more effort, and got it. Nobody escaped praise when it was warranted or a sharp word where necessary."

Sean Fallon worked as his assistant and he was a great bloke, too. He was a different kind of player altogether. When he went in for a tackle he really went in for a tackle. It was just the way he played. You have to have somebody who can look after themselves on your side.

WILLIE Fernie was a smashing player for both Celtic and Scotland. He was not what you would call ferocious. Fernie knew what he was going to do and how to beat men. He was very clever. He played at inside left or inside right or inside forward.

Bobby Evans and I were great friends, too. He came from Pollokshaws, where I lived for a long time, and we used to get the bus in to training. He was a smashing chap and a brilliant player for Celtic, Chelsea and Scotland. Indeed, he won a total of 48 caps. That was something else in those days.

We won the League Championship, the League Cup and the Scottish Cup during my time. But we weren't allowed to represent Scotland in the European Cup. The Hibs chairman at the time was on the SFA Committee and they were put forward to play in it instead. And they reached the semi-final as well. It was a massive disappointment not being allowed to go and play over there.

The hardest game I ever played in was against European opposition in 1950. We played Lazio in Rome in what was meant to be a friendly. But they were just vicious. They kicked lumps out of me. We gave as good as we got. However, when we got them back to Parkhead we annihilated them.

THE first time I played for Scotland was against Wales down at Ninian Park back in 1952 when I was only 19 or 20. We won 2-1. There was no manager as such in those days. But I think that was the match that Matt Busby came in and took charge.

I scored quite a lot of goals for Scotland. In fact, one of the best goals I ever scored was against West Germany in 1957 when we triumphed 3-1. I also netted a beauty against a good Polish team. I think that, in total, I scored 12 goals in 31 games. That is not a bad ratio.

I LEFT Celtic after nine years there in 1957. The reason was simple - they wanted rid of me. I moved to Everton for about (pounds) 25,000. I wasn't particularly happy about the transfer. They sold Willie Fernie around about that time, too. He went down to Middlesbrough for around (pounds) 20,000. With the money they got for us, they covered the Celtic end of the ground. Consequently, that proved to be a bad investment.

My last game in Scotland was against Rangers for Morton at Ibrox. We won 2-0 and I scored the second goal. I can remember their right-back got the ball. Their manager, Willie Waddell, was shouting at him: 'Don't pass it back! Don't pass it back!' But he obviously didn't hear the instruction because he passed it back and I picked up the ball.

I rounded the keeper and had an empty net to put the ball into. I thought: 'Will I just tap it in? Oh, what the hell!' So I hammered it. It was a nice way to finish off my career here.


I HAVEN'T been back to see Celtic in a long, long time. There is no-one on board who would remember me. Sir Robert Kelly was in charge when I was a player there and he has gone now. He was a smashing bloke. But I still like to watch them on television. In fact, I like watching any game if the players are any good.

I watched the Old Firm game that finished up 3-3 down here in England this season [2002-2003]. Henrik Larsson is obviously a wonderful talent, but the guy I really like in the game today is Neil Lennon. He works tirelessly, always passes it to somebody in the clear and gets back well.

Bertie Auld on Bobby Collins: "Bobby Collins was a model footballer and a major influence on me during my career. He was in the Celtic team when I broke into first team football and was a member of the Scotland XI when I won my first cap against Holland.

""Bobby made me feel so welcome at Celtic from the start. I remember him giving me his Adidas boots from the 1958 World Cup finals. They were slightly big for him at the time but they were my first major manufacturer's pair. I was the envy of all the younger players breaking through in the squad! Bobby was great with the young kids at Celtic. In the late Fifties there were no full time coaches as such, we had a manager who selected the team, although he was influenced by the chairman, and we had a physio.

The coaches were the more experienced players. The club had a particular dress code and Bobby looked the part both on and off the pitch. He was always immaculately dressed and a model professional. Everyone admired him.

"We got on really well both on and off the park. Bobby made you feel so important because he realised that the reserves today were the first team players tomorrow. A number of us at the club, Billy McNeill, Steve Chalmers and myself, went on to become part of the Lisbon Lions. Others such as Pat Crerand starred at Manchester United. Bobby helped us all.

"On the park, if things were going wrong, he was always encouraging and a great source of inspiration. It was brilliant being in the same team as Bobby, but a nightmare for opponents! He never stopped you from expressing yourself, and if you had a bad game or made a mistake he would be the first to offer alternatives. You could not help but admire him.

"Bobby was a winner. He was also a manager's dream because he could play in various positions, but in my opinion he was devastating at inside-right. Bobby was physical and a wee bit robust but he was not a dirty player. His all action game meant that he picked up injuries that would have finished most players, but Bobby always came back stronger, His strength of character was astonishing.

"There were so many games when Bobby had a major impact. I remember when Celtic won 4-1 at Rangers in a Cup match. Bobby controlled the game from start to finish; he was immense, and then in my first international against Holland he was again outstanding. One other game that has to be recalled was again against Rangers, this time in the 1957 League Cup final, when we won 7-1. Unfortunately for me after playing in all the earlier rounds, I missed out on that famous occasion and had to play in a reserve match against Queen of the South, but I've seen a film of the game and it was one of those days when everything went right and Bobby was at the hub of everything positive. He was incredible.

"Whenever Celtic supporters recall great stars from the Fifties, they nominate the Wee Barra. The term 'legend' is used far too much these days, but not in the case of Bobby Collins, both as a team player and as an individual. His name is up there with the very best, and I know it's the same at both Everton and Leeds United where he was just as sensational. "Bobby Collins could have graced a team in any era; he was one of British football's greatest stars."


Links
Bobby Collins Pictures
Bobby Collins on Celtic 7-1 Rangers