Thomas Gemmell (16 October 1943 – 2 March 2017) was a Scottish
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
player and
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activitie ...
. Although right-footed, he excelled as a left-sided
fullback and had powerful shooting ability. Gemmell is best known as one of the
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foo ...
side who won the
1966–67 European Cup; he scored the first Celtic goal in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of con ...
. Gemmell played 18 times for
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, and also played for
Nottingham Forest,
Miami Toros and
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
. After retiring as a player in 1977, Gemmell managed Dundee and
Albion Rovers
Albion Rovers Football Club is a semi-professional football team from Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. They are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League Two, the fourth tier of the Scott ...
.
Playing career
Celtic
In October
1961
Events January
* January 3
** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015).
** Aero Flight 311 (K ...
, Gemmell joined
Celtic
Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to:
Language and ethnicity
*pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia
**Celts (modern)
*Celtic languages
**Proto-Celtic language
*Celtic music
*Celtic nations
Sports Foo ...
from
Coltness United;
he signed youth terms on the same day as right winger
Jimmy Johnstone, who lived a few miles away and would also have a long association with the club.
He was one of the '
Lisbon Lions
The Lisbon Lions is the nickname given to the Celtic team that won the European Cup at the Estádio Nacional in Lisbon, Portugal on 25 May 1967, defeating Inter Milan 2–1. The name is likely due to the fact that the Lisbon-based Sporting foo ...
' who won the
1967 European Cup Final
The 1967 European Cup Final was a football match between Italian team Inter Milan and Scottish team Celtic. It took place at the Estádio Nacional in Lisbon, Portugal on 25 May 1967 in front of a crowd of 45,000. It was the final of the 1966� ...
against
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Inter i ...
, a final in which Gemmell scored an equalising goal with a shot from outside the penalty area.
Ironically, Gemmell should not have been in position to score the goal, as he had ignored team orders for one full-back to stay in defence at all times; the right back
Jim Craig had already ventured forward, and it was he who played the square ball for Gemmell to shoot, with both advancing on the Inter box.
He also scored in the
1970 European Cup Final
The 1970 European Cup Final was a football match held at the San Siro, Milan, on 6 May 1970, that saw Feijenoord of the Netherlands defeat Celtic of Scotland 2–1 after extra time. Ove Kindvall's goal in the 117th minute meant the trophy was ...
in a defeat to
Feyenoord
Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names before settling on being called after i ...
,
making him currently one of only three British footballers to score in two different European Cup Finals, the others being
Phil Neal
Philip George Neal (born 20 February 1951) is an English retired footballer who played for Northampton Town, Liverpool and Bolton Wanderers as a full back. He is one of the most successful English players of all time, having won seven First D ...
of
Liverpool
Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
and
Gareth Bale
Gareth Frank Bale (born 16 July 1989) is a Welsh professional footballer who plays as a winger for Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC and the Wales national team. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest wingers of his generation ...
of
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
.
Gemmell made 418 appearances for Celtic and scored 63 goals.
This total comprised 247 league (37 goals),
43 cup (5 goals), 74 league cup (10 goals) and 54 European (12 goals) appearances. His record for penalties was 34 goals from 37 attempts.
He placed sixth for the
Ballon d'Or
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual football award presented by French news magazine '' France Football'' since 1956. Between 2010 and 2015, in an agreement with FIFA, the award was temporarily merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year (f ...
in 1967 and 24th in 1968.
In his book, ''Lion Heart'', Gemmell revealed that, during his time at Celtic, he was on the receiving end of
sectarian abuse from certain teammates; he and teammate
Ian Young had been the target of "a handful" of colleagues who had wanted an all-Catholic team.
He also stated that he received verbal abuse on several occasions from some supporters of
Old Firm
The Old Firm is the collective name for the Scottish football clubs Celtic and Rangers, which are both based in Glasgow. The two clubs are by far the most successful and popular in Scotland, and the rivalry between them has become deeply em ...
rivals
Rangers due to his perceived status as a 'turncoat' (as a Protestant who played for Celtic), such as when attending matches many years after retiring.
Later career
In December 1971, Gemmell transferred to
Nottingham Forest to cover for
Liam O'Kane
William O'Kane is a Northern Irish former footballer.
He played as a defender.
Club career
O'Kane began his career with Derry City F.C. He signed for Nottingham Forest in November 1968 and made his League debut on 30 April 1969 against Leeds U ...
. At the end of that season Forest were relegated from the top flight.
In 1973 he had a short stint with the
Miami Toros in the
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to:
*North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league
*North American Soccer League (2011–2017)
The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league ba ...
. He returned to Scotland, signing for
Dundee
Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...
in July 1973, and won the
1973 Scottish League Cup Final
The 1973 Scottish League Cup Final was played on 15 December 1973 and was the final of the 28th Scottish League Cup competition. It was contested by Dundee and Celtic. Dundee won the match 1–0, with Gordon Wallace scoring the winning goal.
M ...
against former team Celtic. He retired from playing in 1977.
International
Gemmell made his international debut for
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...
against
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
at Hampden on 2 April 1966.
The following year on 15 April, he played in the famous
Home Championship
The British Home Championship
* sco, Hame Internaitional Kemp
* gd, Farpais lìg eadar-nàiseanta
* cy, Pencampwriaeth y Pedair Gwlad, name=lang (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Champio ...
match where Scotland recorded a 3–2 victory over World Champions England at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
, ending that team's run of nineteen games without defeat.
He won 18
caps
Caps are flat headgear.
Caps or CAPS may also refer to:
Science and technology Computing
* CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters
* Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Ja ...
and scored one goal from the penalty spot against
Cyprus
Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...
in an 8–0 win in a
1970 World Cup qualifier.
Gemmell's final appearance for Scotland came in 1971.
Coaching career
After retiring as a player, Gemmell stayed to manage Dundee from 1 June 1977 to 15 April 1980.
He signed
Jimmy Johnstone, his former teammate at Celtic, for Dundee.
Gemmell later managed
Albion Rovers
Albion Rovers Football Club is a semi-professional football team from Coatbridge, North Lanarkshire, Scotland. They are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League Two, the fourth tier of the Scott ...
from 1986–1987
and again from 1993–1994.
Later life and death
In 1994, Gemmell sold his collection of Celtic medals at auction for £32,000; they were purchased by Glasgow businessman
Willie Haughey
William Haughey, Baron Haughey, (born 2 July 1956) is a Scottish businessman, philanthropist and chair of City Facilities Management Holdings Ltd.
Career
Haughey had attended Holyrood Secondary School followed by Langside College, and then work ...
, who has close ties with the club and loaned them back to Celtic to be put on display.
He was inducted to the
Scottish Football Hall of Fame
The Scottish Football Hall of Fame is located at the Scottish Football Museum. Nominations are made each year by fans and a committee selects the inductees. The first inductions to the Hall of Fame were in November 2004 in a ceremony at Hampden Pa ...
in 2006.
Gemmell died on 2 March 2017, aged 73, after a long illness.
His funeral was held on 10 March with a procession starting from Celtic Park, and was attended by former teammates, serving Celtic manager
Brendan Rodgers
Brendan Rodgers (born 26 January 1973) is a Northern Irish professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Premier League club Leicester City.
Rodgers began his career as a defender at Ballymena United, where he stayed ...
and
Rangers managing director Stewart Robertson.
References
External links
profileat Scottish Football Association
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gemmell, Tommy
1943 births
2017 deaths
Scottish footballers
Scotland international footballers
Scottish football managers
Celtic F.C. players
Nottingham Forest F.C. players
Dundee F.C. players
Dundee F.C. managers
Albion Rovers F.C. managers
Scottish Football League players
English Football League players
Footballers from Motherwell
Scottish Football Hall of Fame inductees
Miami Toros players
North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players
Scottish Football League representative players
Association football fullbacks
Scottish Football League managers
Newmains United Community F.C. players
Place of death missing
UEFA Champions League winning players
Scottish expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Expatriate soccer players in the United States
Scottish expatriate footballers