The Lions' Roar Charity Match - United Against MND

CELTIC manager, Neil Lennon and rugby legend, Doddie Weir on Monday launched – on behalf of Celtic FC Foundation and the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation - a fantastic fundraising football match, to support research and other initiatives aimed at tackling Motor Neuron Disease (MND).

The Lions’ Roar Charity Match, will take place at Celtic Park on Friday, May 8, 2020 (KO: 7pm) – and will see the worlds of football, rugby and entertainment join forces, United Against MND.

The net proceeds of The Lions’ Roar Charity Match will be devoted to fighting MND through two equal beneficiary charities - Celtic FC Foundation (in memory of Jimmy Johnstone) and the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.

The two Foundations will pull together opposing legends’ squads including a number of familiar faces from both football and rugby, and also a few celebrity supporters.

The passion and commitment of the Celtic support will be largely driven by the loss of our Greatest Ever Celt, the legendary Jimmy Johnstone.

Jinky signed for his beloved Celtic in November 1961 and, during an illustrious 14 years, made a total of 515 appearances for the club, scoring an impressive 130 goals. The pinnacle of that was, of course, the European Cup triumph on May 25, 1967 when Celtic beat Inter Milan 2-1. Lisbon Lion Jinky, however, wasn’t content with just making his mark on that prestigious competition, and on Wednesday, June 7, 1967, in the Bernabeu Stadium, he and his team-mates provided the opposition for the great Alfredo Di Stefano’s testimonial. The legendary Read Madrid player may have been the focus of the night, but it was Jinky who grabbed all the headlines with a breathtaking display that had the Madrid fans shouting ‘Ole!’ at his every touch.

He remained an immensely popular figure amongst the Celtic support who, in 2003, voted him the Greatest Ever Celt. By that time, however, he was suffering from MND. He faced that battle against the toughest of opponents with incredible bravery and courage, always strengthened by the support of his family and the convictions of his faith.