Former Celts

Seven years on- Tommy Burns never forgotten

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Tommy BurnsSeven years ago today Celtic Football Club lost a legend with the death of Tommy Burns.

Two months after stepping down from his job as first team coach to Gordon Strachan TB was no longer with us.

Around 9am on a Thursday morning the news broke, at the age of just 51 he was gone, never again would he be seen in and around the club he adored.

As a player, as manager and as first team coach he had always been a supporter with thousands of fans having their own personal memory of meeting him at some stage as well as the millions of memories created on the pitch.

Coming through the ranks he was a contemporary of George McCluskey and Roy Aitken with his Celtic career kicking off at the tail end of the Lisbon Lions.

TB: “When you pull on that jersey you’re not just playing for a football club, you’re playing for a people and a cause”

Over 15 years he played alongside Danny McGrain, Kenny Dalglish, Pat Bonner, Murdo MacLeod, Davie Provan, Paul McStay, Billy Stark before leaving Celtic to become first team coach at Kilmarnock.

In 1994 he returned to Celtic as manager, teaming up with Fergus McCann and although his spell as manager brought only one trophy it did signal the re-birth of the club into the modern giant that we have today.

After a testing season at Hampden Burns built a side that had supporters clambering to get into the new look Celtic Park with the exotic talents of Pierre van Hoojidonk and Andy Thom matched up with McStay, John Collins, Peter Grant to play a thrilling brand of football.

Gordon Strachan: “Coming here he made me understand what Glasgow was about. If I didn’t have him I’d have gone off my head!”

There was no happy ending to his three years as manager, a Scottish Cup semi-final defeat to Falkirk accelerated his departure- a year later when Celtic stopped 10-in-a-row no one cheered louder.

Spells at Newcastle and managing Reading were followed by a return to Celtic to assist Kenny Dalglish with a place heading up the youth set up found under Martin O’Neill.

Alan Stubbs: “When we lost a game he gave the impression he was personally responsible and owed the Celtic fans an apology.”

An old playing adversary, Gordon Strachan brought TB in to assist the first team alongside Gary Pendrey, an unlikely partnership since there was little love lost between the two men as players.

After two title wins, and on their way to a third, Burns had to step down, the day after his emotional funeral Celtic won the SPL title at Dundee United with one name in the thoughts of the players and supporters.

There are many famous quotes from TB, after winning the 1988 double he was asked about the Celtic support and replied: “They are there and they are always there, God bless every one of them.”

RIP TB

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