A True Celtic Hero

It was 100 years ago his week that Celtic’s Peter Johnstone was killed in action in the green fields of France.

- Joe Sullivan

IT was on October 7, 1916 that Peter Johnstone won his last medal as a Celt in his last game for the club, the last of 13 medals in eight years as a first-team player and, like his first, it was a Glasgow Cup win

However, following this last game, a 3-2 win over Clyde, he didn’t join another club, he didn’t retire from the game – after picking up his medal, the 28-year-old simply re-joined his company in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders as Private 285250 and never returned to the Hoops.

The First World War had claimed another victim. It was a conflict which affected individuals, families, communities and organisations in every country caught up in the war, and Celtic Football Club was no different.

As the world was plunged into war in 1914, all aspects of life changed and as millions headed off to the Front, the Great War was to have its effect on Celtic and a number of its players.

As the war progressed the implications for the game were significant. Player salaries were reduced, employment in munitions factories on Saturdays resulted in a sharp fall in attendance, both by spectators and players and the pressure to complete the fixture card was significant.