SENTINELCELTS

Morning,all.

We all grew up on the legend of The Lisbon Lions, and some of us were lucky enough to see them in action. Big Packy even saw them against Vojvodina! I myself only saw them as a unit on one occasion, against Clyde in 1971, but I saw them all in action in many other games alongside other players who were coming through and making their own mark at the club. Legends they undoubtedly were, famed throughout the game, but that cut little ice with the selectors of the Scottish national side. 

Those worthy blazers in Park Gardens reckoned they knew a player when they saw one, and they evidently didn’t see enough in our European Cup winners to award them with appearances for the national side. This despite repeated failure to qualify for either of the two major tournament final stages during the Lions heyday, and for some considerable time before that. 

Lack of international recognition by these people and their successors for our top players is often given for the lack of support from Celtic fans for the national side. There can be few fans anywhere in the world with so little interest in this side of the game, and I can sympathise with that opinion. I think it is perhaps a little simplistic to use it as the catch-all explanation, for there are certainly one or two others available. It is then unusual to see one of our own being so well-rewarded at international level when he is less of a fixture at club level!

I’m talking of course about Anthony Ralston, a player who made his first-team debut as a 17yo in May 2016. He was another of our youngsters given their chance by Ronny Deila, albeit it in the dying embers of his time with us. He was loaned out as a teenager to Queen’s Park and Dundee United in order to gain experience, though he got little game time. He saw more of that in his early 20s at St Johnstone, but at none of them did he set the world on fire and have us eagerly awaiting his return to the fold. In truth, many of us had given up on him; we saw him as a player with 100% commitment, but one who lacked the quality required for Celtic Park. 

The arrival of Ange Postecoglu seemed to galvanise the player. At that time he was still a raw almost agricultural full-back,but Ange saw in him something different. He saw the only right back that we had on our books! Tony took his place in our starting line-up, and we muttered about there still being a few weeks left in the summer window to get someone in more capable of filling that berth. Ange duly did so, signing Juranovic on the last day-but Tony still managed to make a whopping 47 appearances for us in that season. Which is around 40% of his total in the eight years since he made his debut. In no other season has he managed as many as twenty. 

He can of course consider himself unfortunate to have been up against two established internationalists in his position. Juranovic was replaced by Alastair Johnston, and our Canadian Ironman is every bit as much the warrior as Ralston. He will mix it with the worst while outmatching the best of opponents. Big T is though a very handy fella to have around as back-up,and no less a judge than Steve Clarke-who knows a thing or two about the right-back position-has had him as a fixture in the squad all year. To the tune of eleven caps this year alone, and eighteen in total. The latter being the same number achieved by Tommy Gemmell, I might add. 

In fact,Ralston has had more game time for Scotland this year than he has had for Celtic! That’s a crazy statistic, innit? There can’t be many players anywhere who can hardly get a game at club level, yet be a fixture in the international side. He only turned 26yo last Saturday, and there are many years left in our man yet. As an example of how poorly rewarded at international level Celtic players continue to be, Tony need only look to his colleagues. James Forrest has barely came off the bench in the last five years. Callum McGregor took four years as a first choice in the Celtic team and a squad player for Scotland before he was actually given his debut at the ripe old age of 25. By which time he held four league winners medals, two of which were as part of our run of trebles. 

I hope Anthony Ralston continues to be selected for Scotland, and I hope too that he continues to perform well on request for our club. He probably has more difficult opposition for the role at club level than at international level, and with Alastair Johnston being a similar age and reportedly about to extend his own contract with us, he will likely have to get used to being a worthy and trusted deputy. But there is no shame in that, for AJ is fast shaping up as our best there since the legend that is Danny McGrain. And with Big T there, we know that the plan to have suitable replacements to hand throughout the team is in good hands. 

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Above article by BMCUWP