During the formation of Celtic Football Club, several players made the move from Hibernian to the Glasgow outfit. John Glass, the man ‘to whom the club owes its existence’ according to Celtic legend Willie Maley, had a big part to play in that.
Brother Walfrid is credited with founding the club, but John Glass established it. Glass had a big part to play in not only Celtic but Scottish football entering the professional world. Glass bulking up the squad with Hibs players also played a significant part in Celtic’s early success as well as a sign of things to come.
As Hibs fans are never slow to remind us that we keep poaching all their best players, we decided to sit down and create a starting XI of players Celtic have signed from the Easter Road side…
GK // Fee: £4K // Apps: 188
Ronnie Simpson fell out of favour at Easter Road under new manager Jock Stein and was moved on to Celtic. A year later, Stein moved to Celtic, where himself and Simpson would go on to win the European Cup.
Ulrik Laursen
CB // Fee: £1.5m // Apps: 49
Laursen was brought in by O’Neill to solve the problems in the left-back position. He went on to become a strong squad player who was well-liked by the supporters.
Pat Stanton
SW // Fee: Swap deal for Jackie McNamara Snr // Apps: 44
Stanton was a Hibs legend, having played for the club for 13 years. When joining Celtic, Pat was only a few weeks short of his 32nd birthday. However, this was exactly the calibre of player and experience Celtic were after.
Gary Caldwell
CB // Fee: Free // Apps: 148
Caldwell’s move to Celtic was very underwhelming for supporters. However, manager Gordon Strachan was a big fan and stuck by him despite several costly mistakes.
Pat McGinlay
LM // Fee: £525K // Apps: 61
McGinlay moved to Celtic after a successful spell at Hibs. Pat quickly gained the love of supporters due to his work rate and performances. McGinlay was a standout performer in what is one of Celtic’s worst seasons to date. Due to a change in management, the midfielder fell out of favour and moved back to Easter Road, much to the disappointment of many Hoops fans.
Scott Allan
CM // Fee: 300K plus Liam Henderson (loan) // Apps: 17
After a successful year at Hibs, Scott Allan signed a four-year deal with Celtic. The player never quite got his chance at Celtic, spending many years out on loan before returning to Hibs in 2019.
Scott Brown
CM // Fee: £4.4m // Apps: 619
Scott Brown is one of Celtic’s most decorated players, only slightly behind Bobby Lennox and Billy McNeil. The midfielder captained Celtic to 20 of the 22 trophies he won in his Celtic career.
John Collins
RM // Fee: £1m // Apps: 229
Collins was Celtic’s first ever million-pound signing. The midfielder scored two almost identical free-kicks against Rangers in separate derbies. A midfield of Collins and McStay is one that fans will always look back on fondly.
LS: // Fee: £150k // Apps: 32
Riordan came to Celtic as one of Scotland’s most promising talents, having been part of the exciting young Hibs team under Tony Mowbray. Unfortunately, Riordan’s Celtic career never took off. He struggled to gain much game time although showed glimpses of his ability when given the chance.
Darren Jackson
CF: // Fee: £1.25m // Apps: 42
The signing of Darren Jackson was definitely one that turned heads. During his time at Hibs, Jackson was well known for his on-field antics and was heavily disliked by opposing fans, Celtic included. Jackson suffered off-field medical issues a month after signing for Celtic. On his return, Jacko came off the bench in a 1-1 draw against Rangers to a standing ovation. “That reception will live with me forever”, said the striker.
Anthony Stokes
RS: // Fee: £1.2m // Apps: 192
While at Celtic, Stokes formed a deadly partnership with team-mate Gary Hooper. The two would link up incredibly well in games and neither were shy of a goal or two. Stokes played a massive part in Celtic’s 2011/12 title win, chipping in with many important goals.
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