Hunter, John

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Personal

Fullname: John Hunter
Born: 13 April 1916
Died: […]
Birthplace: Coatbridge
Signed: 17 May 1941 (loan)
Left: December 1941
Position: Goalkeeper
Debut: Queen’s Park 2-5 Celtic, Charity Cup, 21 May 1941
Internationals: none

Biog

Kilmarnock keeper John Hunter played 17 Regional League games for Celtic as a wartime loan signing. He was Celtic’s fourth wartime goalkeeper, as the club struggled to find a reliable custodian for the goals. It was said of him that “[he] brings rare power and confidence into his work”.

He had been Kilmarnock’s goalkeeper in the classic Scottish Cup final (& replay) matches in 1938 v East Fife, which was won by East Fife in extra-time 4-2 in the replay. In a no score draw game between Kilmarnock and Celtic at Rugby Park, it was reportedly the goalkeepers who were the stars of the show. However, this should be taken in light that this was a vast improvement after he had been in goals for Kilmarnock only a couple of weeks beforehand in a 9-1 drubbing by Celtic in the league at Celtic Park! In four games prior to signing for Celtic he had conceded 12 goals, with just the one goalless. Despite the hard time in goals against Celtic, his first match v Celtic was actually a famous win for Kilmarnock over Celtic in the Scottish Cup, a 2-1 win against the odds.

The Coatbridge-born custodian signed for the Bhoys on 17th May 1941, and then played his first game for the club on 21st May 1941 at Hampden as Celtic defeated Queen’s Park 5-2 in the Charity Cup, but then lost the final 2-1. Celtic then played in the Summer Cup 5-2 in the next match, and then finally he kept a clean-sheet as Celtic beat Hibs 1-0 in the same tournament. So already in this end of season tournament run, which helped to get John Hunter settled into the Celtic first team, he had conceded nine goals, and it was to demonstrate to him how hard it was going to be at a poorly performing Celtic.

Regarded by some as a more than able keeper, John Hunter had to combine playing football with nightshifts at a boilermaker factory, and he would turn out for teams just hours after finishing a shift. Due to work he was forced on one occasion to miss a game v Falkirk.

John Hunter was to be a first choice keeper for the first half of season 1941/42, but it wasn’t easy. He conceded 33 goals in the league plus another 3 in the Glasgow Cup (a 3-2 defeat to Rangers). James Culley was preferred for the rest of the season after John Hunter, but his record was to be little better.

On paper, John Hunter had a very poor record, with just the one shut-out in 17 league matches. His only shut-out in the league was in a 2-0 victory v Queen’s Park, but he still conceded 3 in the next week in a 3-0 defeat to Rangers.

However, this was wartime and it must all be noted that Celtic were simply a shambles at the time, with board incompetence & meddling hampering the team management. Some could argue that results didn’t necessarily reflect his ability at the club especially as he had to combine long work hours & nightshifts with then playing for Celtic.

He came to Celtic with a genuinely high reputation, and it must be noted that Celtic did come third in the league for least goals conceded that season, with only the two teams finishing above Celtic in the league standings conceding fewer goals. Admittedly, Celtic had conceded 50 goals in 30 league games that season, so it appears that every side was lacking in defensive capabilities at the time.

He reputedly did have one miracle save from Dougie Wallace of Clyde in the last minute of a league game (13th September 1941) that epitomised his competence as a goalkeeper. As the records show, that didn’t paper over the rest of his time.

By the start of 1942, he had moved on from Parkhead and would serve in the navy before returning to Kilmarnock in 1945. Records state he later played for Stenhousemuir in 1948-49, before being freed in 1949.

Playing Career

Honours with Celtic

None

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