Willie Maley

Today, April 25, we celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Willie Maley, Celtic’s longest-serving and most successful manager in terms of silverware won.

It was on this day 154 years ago in 1868 that Willie Maley was born in Newry but it was when the family settled in Glasgow that the future of the Maley family, and that of a football club founded in the East End of the city, was sealed.

A member of the first Celtic team, Maley created his own history at the club and is regarded as one of the most prominent figures of the last 134 years.

FIRST TO THE POST
Willie Maley was the first manager of Celtic Football Club. He took over at the age of just 29 and his official title was Secretary-Manager. Brother of Celtic player and director Tom Maley, Willie was appointed in 1897 and took on team duties that were previously carried out by the committee. He was initially paid an annual salary of £150. He stayed on as Celtic manager until 1940 and won a total of 16 league titles and 14 Scottish Cups. In addition, he won 14 Glasgow Cups and 19 Charity Cups. He was at the helm for close to 2,000 games and that incredible record of one of the greatest managers football has ever seen will surely never be surpassed.


RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING
The year of Celtic’s first-ever game was, of course, 1888 and the original line-up for the match included a young Willie Maley, who started in midfield against Rangers. It’s fitting that he was there from the start, considering the influence he would go on to have at the club over the next 50 years. Celtic won the match 5-2 and Maley played his part. Neil McCallum scored the first Celtic goal and went on to grab a double in that game. Tom Maley (below),Willie’s brother, was credited with a hat-trick in some quarters. The first page of Celtic’s history had been written.


ON THE PITCH
A talented half-back, Willie played a total of 96 competitive games for Celtic between 1888 and 1897, scoring just two goals. He signed from Third Lanark after starting out with junior side Cathcart Hazelbank. Born in Newry, Ireland, Willie was a talented athlete who caught the eye of the Celtic committee immediately. In 1892, when Celtic won their first Scottish Cup, he was an inspirational figure in the side. It would be a sign of things to come. Maley officially retired when he took on the role of manager, but pulled on his boots and the Celtic strip one last time on an emergency basis during a European tour in 1904.


OFF THE PITCH
In the modern game, managers are doing well if they last a few seasons but Willie Maley’s Celtic career was built on longevity. He stayed at the club as manager for a staggering 43 years, winning 30 first-class trophies along the way. His was a hard act to follow and his impact on the club cannot be overestimated. He led Celtic to runs of six and four consecutive league titles during the early part of the century and put them on the football map all over the globe, taking his team on tours throughout the world and raising the profile of Celtic immensely.




TITLE DEEDS
Maley led Celtic to six consecutive titles between 1905 and 1910. At that time, Celtic could lay claim to being the best team in world football and their six-in-a-row haul would stand as a club record until the late 1960s and early ‘70s when Jock Stein’s all-conquering side dominated Scottish football. The stars of Maley’s most successful side included the prolific Jimmy Quinn, Alec McNair and Jimmy McMenemy. Yet, he wasn’t finished there. Soon after the six-in-a-row run, he led Celtic to four successive titles after creating yet another fearsome team. During his tenure, Maley managed all of the greats – including the likes of Patsy Gallacher, Jimmy Delaney and Jimmy McGrory


WILLIE MALEY HONOURS
As a player

(May 1888-November 1896)

Championships 3

Scottish Cups 1

Scotland Caps 2

League Caps 2

As a manager

(April 1897-February 1940)

Championships 16

Scottish Cups 14

Glasgow Exhibition Trophy (1902)

Empire Exhibition Trophy (1938)

 

Interesting Facts you Probably Didnt Know About Willie Maley -

He came from an Irish background, although his family had historically served in the British army. His father served in the army while in Ireland.

Aswell as being Celtic daft unusually for someone of that persuasion he was an enthusiastic royalist. He went on to own a small bar in the city centre and kept a picture of the king above the bar. The Parkhead Forge....prior to it being the shopping centre it was a foundry. During the First World War it was, like many other foundries, converted to make munitions for the war effort. The King at the time visited Parkhead Forge where Willie Maley met the King and the royal family and treasured a photograph of this to his dying day.

He called the Easter Rising something along the lines of "ignorant and silly people causing trouble".

His infatuation with Celtic was so great that it ruined his marriage and his wife divorced him

In 1940 he did not willingly resign and had turned down a substantial pay off offer previously. He was effectively 'nudged' out the door against his will. This left him bitter against the board and he refused thereafter to enter Celtic Park or attend the games.

He loved football in general and because he would no longer go to Celtic Park he would then regularly be found at Ibrox watching rangers games. He was a close friend of Bill Struth.

He eventually patched up relations with the club and returned to Celtic Park. He was even brought out as a very old man during the 1950's at half time and scored a penalty in front of the cheering fans.

 

HHe was a hard man and not always an easy one to like as a general rule, by all accounts. He was that way with both the press and his own players. Indeed, he would often hold his 'pressers' at his Bank restaurant (Queen St), and players would often find out if they were in the team, or being elevated from the reserves to firsts by reading about it in newspapers rather than by the man himself. But his record especially in the first half of his tenure as manager, and the results beween 1897 - 1925 ish. There were many aspects for which he was a real pioneer for, and the Celtic performances benefitted from.

However, by the mid-1920's and 1930's he was more obstinate, both with players and in general, and less dynamic in his approach. As this more staid and less imaginative approach took hold, the motivational sway gave way to more pragmatic approaches, which was good for Celtic as a business but not always quite as much on the pitch, and even the acrimonious circumstances surrounding the end of his time as manager, not long before WWII also highlights a man who at that time was sort of looking after his own self interests rather than the good of the club.

If anyone is interested, they should definitely check out 'The Head Bhoys' book by Graham McColl.

That all said, it cannot be understated enough how much Celtic owes to Maley.

 

A statue of Celtic's first manager, Willie Maley, is set to be unveiled next month in Newry, Ireland.

Born in 1868, Maley took charge of the Hoops between 1897 and 1940. He was in the Parkhead dugout for 43 years, winning 30 trophies across that spell.

He is also the longest-serving manager in the club's history. Planning permission for the statue was granted in August last year.

The project is being progressed by the Newry Willie Maley Memorial Group, a community program which has been campaigning for a tribute for the former Hoops boss for a significant period.

So far, £80,000 has been raised towards the project, in conjunction with Celtic fans and the wider local community.

A spokesperson for the group said: "As pointed out previously, this project was funded by you (Celtic fans) and only you with no financial backing from any party or official office and that's something to be proud of, for in the years ahead we can look back and say without contradiction that statue is owned by the supporters."

 

Holy *

 

I knew that he was a bit of a royalist but not to that extent. Disappointed

 

* *

Willie Maley was his name, he brought great Britain flags to the games..

 

Does this mean we have to have a rethink?

 

We'll give him a squeeze incase there's been some kinda mix up..

The whole thing is wild though. No even just one mishap, the full thing is next level taking the *. King above his bar. Easter rising ignorant and silly people causing trouble. Had an issue with the board so done a Sean Connery

 

Always surprises me that folk are surprised to find out about Maley and his history/views tbh.

 

I think I've seen about his da before but I genuinely didn't know about any of the above like that at all..

 

As I say it’s because it’s so different shall we say that’s why it surprises me so much mate. The Willie Maley song will be less liked by a few more now

 

FFS I'm sorry I read this now. I won't be able to sing that song the same ever again. Serious too!

 

Most in the country thought this at the time and where even spat on by the public when getting brought to mount joy or the prison hospital. Alot where just happy with the status quo untill the major uprising started. Ironically today Ireland is in a similar or worse state now(apart from the indiscriminately killings) as was then and no one gives a *. Similar selfish mindset as was back then.

It was the same with the provisionals, they had very little support when first regrouped. Alot didn't want anything to do with violence of any sorts.

 

Rest in peace, Mr Maley.

He was a tough, no-nonsense kinda guy. In all honesty, he probably far outstayed how long he should've been in charge for and that only added to his position becoming more entrenched and any challenges to hias power and authority becoming almost non-existant for most of his tenure, til right at the end. Never an easy man to like, but one that have to respect - similiar to Fergus McCann in that way.

 

It was on April 2, 1958, that Celtic's legendary manager, Willie Maley, passed away at the age of 89.

He had been the club's first, as well as the longest-serving and most successful manager in terms of silverware won. And supporters continue to sing a song in celebration of all he did for Celtic.

Willie Maley was born in Newry on April 25, 1868, but it was when the family settled in Glasgow that the future of the Maley family, and that of a football club founded in the East End of the city, was sealed.

A member of the first Celtic team, Maley created his own history at the club and is regarded as one of the most prominent figures of the last 134 years.

FIRST TO THE POST
Willie Maley was the first manager of Celtic Football Club. He took over at the age of just 29 and his official title was Secretary-Manager. Brother of Celtic player and director Tom Maley, Willie was appointed in 1897 and took on team duties that were previously carried out by the committee. He was initially paid an annual salary of £150. He stayed on as Celtic manager until 1940 and won a total of 16 league titles and 14 Scottish Cups. In addition, he won 14 Glasgow Cups and 19 Charity Cups. He was at the helm for close to 2,000 games and that incredible record of one of the greatest managers football has ever seen will surely never be surpassed


RIGHT AT THE BEGINNING
The year of Celtic’s first-ever game was, of course, 1888 and the original line-up for the match on May 28 included a young Willie Maley, who started in midfield against Rangers. It’s fitting that he was there from the start, considering the influence he would go on to have at the club over the next 50 years. Celtic won the match 5-2 and Maley played his part. Neil McCallum scored the first Celtic goal and went on to grab a double in that game. Tom Maley (below),Willie’s brother, was credited with a hat-trick in some quarters. The first page of Celtic’s history had been written



ON THE PITCH
A talented half-back, Willie played a total of 96 competitive games for Celtic between 1888 and 1897, scoring just two goals. He signed from Third Lanark after starting out with junior side Cathcart Hazelbank. Born in Newry, Ireland, Willie was a talented athlete who caught the eye of the Celtic committee immediately. In 1892, when Celtic won their first Scottish Cup, he was an inspirational figure in the side. It would be a sign of things to come. Maley officially retired when he took on the role of manager, but pulled on his boots and the Celtic strip one last time on an emergency basis during a European tour in 1904.

OFF THE PITCH
In the modern game, managers are doing well if they last a few seasons but Willie Maley’s Celtic career was built on longevity. He stayed at the club as manager for a staggering 43 years, winning 30 first-class trophies along the way. His was a hard act to follow and his impact on the club cannot be overestimated. He led Celtic to runs of six and four consecutive league titles during the early part of the century and put them on the football map all over the globe, taking his team on tours throughout the world and raising the profile of Celtic immensely.


TITLE DEEDS
Maley led Celtic to six consecutive titles between 1905 and 1910. At that time, Celtic could lay claim to being the best team in world football and their six-in-a-row haul would stand as a club record until the late 1960s and early ‘70s when Jock Stein’s all-conquering side dominated Scottish football. The stars of Maley’s most successful side included the prolific Jimmy Quinn, Alec McNair and Jimmy McMenemy. Yet, he wasn’t finished there. Soon after the six-in-a-row run, he led Celtic to four successive titles after creating yet another fearsome team. During his tenure, Maley managed all of the greats – including the likes of Patsy Gallacher, Jimmy Delaney and Jimmy McGrory.



WILLIE MALEY HONOURS
PLAYER
(May 1888-November 1896)
Championships 3
Scottish Cups 1
Scotland Caps 2
League Caps 2

MANAGER
(April 1897-February 1940)
Championships 16
Scottish Cups 14
Glasgow Exhibition Trophy (1902)
Empire Exhibition Trophy (1938)