Willie Maley
Encyclopedia
William "Willie" Patrick Maley (born Newry
, County Down
, Ireland), 25 April 1868 - 2 April 1958, Glasgow
, Scotland
was a famous Scottish football coach
, and the first manager of Celtic Football Club
and one of the most successful managers in Scottish football
history. He led Celtic to 30 major trophies in 43 years as manager.
; his family moved to Scotland
when he was young. As a young man, Maley was much more involved in athletics than in football, although he had played a few games for Cathcart Hazelbank Juniors in 1886 and had played with Third Lanark
from later that year.
to join Celtic that Brother Walfrid and the rest of the Celtic deputation first met Willie Maley (Tom was out courting his wife-to-be), and their casual invitation to Willie to also come along was perhaps the most important in Celtic's history.
In 1888, he was signed by the fledgling Celtic and became one of the club's first players as a midfielder. In 1896, he made a single appearance for Manchester City
in a Second Division
match against Loughborough
.
, earning two caps in 1893 against England and Ireland.
for the club in his first full season as manager.
Mr Maley never worked with his players in training, he watched games from the directors' box and never indulged in team talks or spoke to his players at half-time or post-match.Mr Maley would not even announce the team: players learned if they were in or out through reading the line-up in the newspaper.
Celtic had been a buying club in their opening decade, spending heavily to bring professionals to the club. Maley decided to scrap that and rely almost entirely on recruiting youngsters fresh from junior football.
He created a young team who won six league titles in a row between 1905 and 1910 and won the first Scottish League and Scottish Cup doubles. They were the best team in Glasgow, and the six-in-a-row record remained unbroken until the 1960s. The stars of that side included right-back Alec McNair
("the Icicle"); inside-right Jimmy McMenemy
("Napoleon"); and the centre-forward Jimmy Quinn
.
When they grew old,Mr Maley built a second team, including Patsy Gallacher
(and the ageless McMenemy), which won four titles in succession between 1914 and 1917 and set what is still the UK record for an unbeaten run in professional football: 62 games (49 won, 13 drawn), from 13 November 1915 until 21 April 1917.
That side won two more titles, in 1919 and 1922. Celtic continued to gather trophies throughout the 1920s and in the mid-1930s Mr Maley built his third great team, featuring Jimmy Delaney
and Jimmy McGrory
. This side won the league title in 1936 and 1938 and the cup in 1937. By then, Maley was approaching 70.
Mr Maley was the longest serving manager at Celtic. In his 43 years as manager, he won 16 league titles, 14 Scottish Cup
s, 14 Glasgow Cup
s and 19 Glasgow Charity Cups.
The Maley years ended in a less than happy fashion. With Celtic at the bottom of the table, after a meeting with the board of directors in February 1940, Mr Maley finally 'retired'.
Newry
Newry is a city in Northern Ireland. The River Clanrye, which runs through the city, formed the historic border between County Armagh and County Down. It is from Belfast and from Dublin. Newry had a population of 27,433 at the 2001 Census, while Newry and Mourne Council Area had a population...
, County Down
County Down
-Cities:*Belfast *Newry -Large towns:*Dundonald*Newtownards*Bangor-Medium towns:...
, Ireland), 25 April 1868 - 2 April 1958, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
was a famous Scottish football coach
Football Manager
Football Manager is a series of football management simulation games developed by Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game began its life in 1992 as Championship Manager; however, following the break-up of their partnership with original publishers Eidos Interactive, Sports Interactive...
, and the first manager of Celtic Football Club
Celtic F.C.
Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...
and one of the most successful managers in Scottish football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
history. He led Celtic to 30 major trophies in 43 years as manager.
Early life
Maley was born in Newry Barracks, where his father was a soldier in the British ArmyBritish Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
; his family moved to Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
when he was young. As a young man, Maley was much more involved in athletics than in football, although he had played a few games for Cathcart Hazelbank Juniors in 1886 and had played with Third Lanark
Third Lanark A.C.
Third Lanark Athletic Club was a football club that originally existed between 1872 and 1967, 95 years in existence, based in Glasgow, Scotland. Third Lanark were known as Thirds, the Warriors, the Redcoats and the Hi Hi's...
from later that year.
Club career
It was on a visit to the Maley home in Cathcart in December 1887 to invite his brother Tom MaleyTom Maley
Tom Maley was a Scottish football player and manager.Born in Portsmouth to a soldier from County Clare, Maley spent his entire playing career in Scotland, with Partick Thistle, Dundee Harp, Hibernian, Third Lanark and Celtic. An amateur during his playing days, he worked as a school teacher and...
to join Celtic that Brother Walfrid and the rest of the Celtic deputation first met Willie Maley (Tom was out courting his wife-to-be), and their casual invitation to Willie to also come along was perhaps the most important in Celtic's history.
In 1888, he was signed by the fledgling Celtic and became one of the club's first players as a midfielder. In 1896, he made a single appearance for Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
in a Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
match against Loughborough
Loughborough F.C.
Loughborough Athletic and Football Club were an English football club based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, that played in The Football League at the end of the 19th century.-History:...
.
International career
Due to spending a considerable amount of his childhood in Scotland, he also played for the Scottish national teamScotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
, earning two caps in 1893 against England and Ireland.
Manager of Celtic
In 1897, the board of Celtic directors appointed Willie Maley, at just 29 years of age, as Secretary-Manager - the first manager - of Celtic. He won the League ChampionshipScottish Football League
The Scottish Football League is a league of football teams in Scotland, comprising theScottish First Division, Scottish Second Division and Scottish Third Division. From the league's foundation in 1890 until the breakaway Scottish Premier League was formed in 1998, the Scottish Football League...
for the club in his first full season as manager.
Mr Maley never worked with his players in training, he watched games from the directors' box and never indulged in team talks or spoke to his players at half-time or post-match.Mr Maley would not even announce the team: players learned if they were in or out through reading the line-up in the newspaper.
Celtic had been a buying club in their opening decade, spending heavily to bring professionals to the club. Maley decided to scrap that and rely almost entirely on recruiting youngsters fresh from junior football.
He created a young team who won six league titles in a row between 1905 and 1910 and won the first Scottish League and Scottish Cup doubles. They were the best team in Glasgow, and the six-in-a-row record remained unbroken until the 1960s. The stars of that side included right-back Alec McNair
Alec McNair
Alec McNair was a Scottish football player and manager. He played as a defender for Celtic and represented the Scotland national team in fifteen official internationals between 1906 and 1920. McNair also represented the Scottish League XI 16 times. He then managed Dundee from 1925 until...
("the Icicle"); inside-right Jimmy McMenemy
Jimmy McMenemy
James "Jimmy" McMenemy was a Scottish footballer, who played for Celtic from 1902 to 1920. He made 515 appearances and scored 168 goals....
("Napoleon"); and the centre-forward Jimmy Quinn
Jimmy Quinn (Scottish footballer)
Jimmy Quinn was a Scottish footballer who played for Celtic and represented Scotland.Signed for Celtic by Willie Maley from junior club Smithston Albion in 1900, he took several seasons to make his mark, playing at outside- then inside-left before being moved to centre...
.
When they grew old,Mr Maley built a second team, including Patsy Gallacher
Patsy Gallacher
Patsy Gallagher was an Irish footballer, playing in the wing right position, and most noted for his career at Celtic.-Early life:...
(and the ageless McMenemy), which won four titles in succession between 1914 and 1917 and set what is still the UK record for an unbeaten run in professional football: 62 games (49 won, 13 drawn), from 13 November 1915 until 21 April 1917.
That side won two more titles, in 1919 and 1922. Celtic continued to gather trophies throughout the 1920s and in the mid-1930s Mr Maley built his third great team, featuring Jimmy Delaney
Jimmy Delaney
James "Jimmy" Delaney was a Scottish football player who enjoyed a 24-year playing career.- Career :...
and Jimmy McGrory
Jimmy McGrory
James Edward "Jimmy" McGrory was a Scottish football player and manager for Celtic who holds the record for most career goals in British football...
. This side won the league title in 1936 and 1938 and the cup in 1937. By then, Maley was approaching 70.
Mr Maley was the longest serving manager at Celtic. In his 43 years as manager, he won 16 league titles, 14 Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
s, 14 Glasgow Cup
Glasgow Cup
The Glasgow Cup is a knockout football tournament open to teams from Glasgow. It was competed for annually by senior Glasgow clubs from 1887 until 1988. It is now competed for between the youth teams of Rangers, Celtic, Clyde, Partick Thistle and Queen's Park.It is dominated by the Old Firm of...
s and 19 Glasgow Charity Cups.
The Maley years ended in a less than happy fashion. With Celtic at the bottom of the table, after a meeting with the board of directors in February 1940, Mr Maley finally 'retired'.
Cultural references
His Celtic career is detailed in song, Willie Maley by Mr David Cameron, one of the most popular Celtic songs amongst fans,Further reading
- Willie Maley - The Man Who Made Celtic, written by David Potter, published by Tempus Publishing, 2003.