| Legends and Supporters | Celtic Books |
Details
Name: David W Potter
aka: David Potter
Born: 29 Aug 1948
Died: 30 July 2023
Ref: Scottish Football historian & enthusiast, author of countless excellent books on Celtic
Biog
David Potter
David Potter was a sports writer who had published around 34 books on Celtic & at least 40 others on other topics most notably football and cricket, and as a Celtic supporter he had a great emphasis in his works on Celtic.
His catalogue of work encompassed works on classic players from generations back (e.g. Sunny Jim Young and Tommy McInally) but also on recent eras as well including one on Celtic Park too. The greatest aspect was the academic rigour and quality of his works which are quite humbling, but he also found great anecdotes that are highly entertaining and informative on the subjects of his work.
A very prolific writer, he helped to provide information via his works which made his books an indispensable foundation for many others’ articles & reports.
Not afraid either of going against the grain, he had the courage to call a spade a spade and would provide opinions on issues with facts even if other Celtic fans have their old long held beliefs attacked (e.g. on Celtic players and caps awarded). He had no wish to pander to anyone, and instead be iconoclastic when the facts clearly provided the point.
A very fine writer too, there are many who enjoy his niche works which without him would have long passed the rest of us by in the footnotes of Celtic’s club history. He helped to bring back to the forefront of the support the wonderful characters in the club’s history and the environments surrounding them. If anything, you felt as if you were stepping back in time in their shoes, and that was a wonderful skill. David Potter’s catalogue of work helped to deconstruct Celtic down to the ground, and illustrated to the support the human side as much as the football side of the people and the club. Sometimes the stories can even touch you.
Many of those within Celtic historian circles are in debt to his work, and his books helped reignite interest in the club’s history away from the standard tentpole events.
As a supporter, he was a keen supporter & match attendee, and was a stalwart on the bus run by the Joseph Rafferty CSC Kirkcaldy.
“We must believe we can beat them all. That is why we wear the green and white. Willie Maley envisaged Celtic being the best in the World. So do I.”
David Potter
By background he was a former teacher of Spanish and Classics at Glenrothes High School, he was also a part-time classics teacher at Osborne House School in Dysart, but now the same role at Kirkaldy High School. He lived with his wife in Kirkcaldy.
He also commentated on football matches for Kirkcaldy’s hospital radio service and also wrote for the programmes for Celtic, Forfar Athletic and Raith Rovers.
It’s not just football that is his interest, but he has also umpired cricket matches in the summer and is a scorer for Falkland Cricket Club. His other passion was drama and he wrote a history of Kirkcaldy’s Auld Kirk Players.
Long into retirement, David Potter continued his ceaseless run of books. Not only a wonderful author, he also presented at events run by the ‘Celtic Graves Societies’, and with his great accent and knack for finding an interesting anecdote, it was a joy to listen to him.
He didn’t just write books, but also assisted everyone. The list is countless of all those (including this writer) who has been given invaluable help on sourcing any information on Celtic from his infinite fountain of knowledge of the club. David Potter was invaluable, helpful & selfless in all correspondence with his him. A truly humble man.
Notably, by background he was of Scottish Protestant descent, and had said that he had followed in the footsteps of his earlier family members. That is a key note as another example that demonstrates that the ties that have long binded the support to Celtic & Scotland has not alone been an Irish-emigrant monopoly.
He sadly passed away in July 2023 from cancer. At time of passing he was survived by his wife, three children and their grandchildren, as well as the family dog.
We are all so proud to have David Potter as a member of the Celtic family, and even more so as a great Celtic historian, whom many would rate as on a par with the more celebrated Campbell & Woods whose legacy has often overshadowed that of all the others within the niche field.
David Potter was a man who simply lived and breathed Celtic & its history, and some of us would argue that there was not anyone more knowledgeable of our club than him.
Quotes
“We must believe we can beat them all. That is why we wear the green and white. Willie Maley envisaged Celtic being the best in the World. So do I.”
David Potter
“Celtic are not an easy club to be neutral or wishy-washy about. They inspire strong emotions and passionate commitment.”
David Potter
“Great men are great because they are humble!”
David Potter
“The CGS are deeply saddened by this terrible news. David was a regular attender at many of our events where he spoke passionately about so many Celtic greats, with that wonderfully enthusiastic voice that brought a story to life & made so many smile.”
Celtic Graves Society @CelticGraves on David Potter (Jul 2023)
“A man who lived and breathed Celtic , I don’t think there was anyone more knowledgeable of our club than him.”
@Highland_paddy (Jul 2023)
“So sorry to hear of this very sad news. David’s passion for Celtic shone through every time you met him and his commentary on many of the club’s great moments were legendary. Rest in Peace David.”
@EarlyCelt (Jul 2023)
“This is absolutely devastating. David was a really nice man, very intelligent and hilarious. He had his own unusual way of putting things and it was an honour to work on a Celtic book with him. His contribution to the Celtic library is enormous. Very sad news.”
Liam Kelly @cfcliamk96 (Jul 2023)
“A great help to me too, in various projects. Fantastic guy and endlessly generous with his time and knowledge. Sorry to hear this.”
Steve Finan (Jul 2023)
“David Potter, Celtic historian 1948-2023, RIP I’m going to miss him heavily. He’s been so invaluable, helpful & selfless in all our correspondence. We even pencilled in working together on some work. My thoughts are with his family.”
Joebloggscity of TheCelticWiki (Jul 2023)
A fitting tribute to a great man. David was a one-off. A great raconteur, a man with an eye for detail & someone who allowed his love for Celtic to suffuse but never misdirect his work. For generations, now and to come, he will be a cornerstone of knowledge of Celtic’s history.”
David Friel @DF57
“Very sad news about the death of football and cricket writer David Potter at 74. The Forfar-born bibliophile loved Celtic and wrote extensively about the club. But he was also passionate about cricket, knew so much about the game, and helped me enormously with my Freuchie book!”
Journalist Neil Drysdale
“David was a massive help during the writing of three of my books Graham. Always great company and generous with his time.”
@PaulJohnDykes
“The late, great David Potter, one of Europe’s most erudite and prolific football historians who, on top of being a classics teacher in Fife, wrote 34 books on Celtic FC and at least 40 other books in his lifetime.”
Journalist Graham Spiers
Links
Forums
Podcast
Biogs on Celtic players written by David Potter:
- Alec McNair
- Bobby Murdoch
- Charlie Gallagher
- Jim Young
- Jimmy Delaney
- Jimmy McMenemy
- Jimmy Quinn
- Jock Stein
- John Fallon
- Patsy Gallacher
- Sandy McMahon
- Tommy McInally
- Willie Fernie
- Willie Maley
Articles
‘DREAMS AND SONGS TO SING,’ CELTIC’S POTTER IS JUST MAGIC
By CQN Magazine on 10th March 2017 Football Matters
David Potter has written more than one Celtic book a year since his debut, Our Bhoys Have Won the Cup!, was released in 1996.
Over the last two years, he has published two Lisbon Lions’ autobiographies and he has an eye on a third!
Charlie Gallagher? What a Player! was released by CQN Books in 2016, and recounted the story of a Celtic figure who described himself as a “Nearly Man”.
David Potter captured Charlie’s tale poignantly, and rubber-stamped (if verification was ever in doubt) the inside-forward’s importance during Celtic’s golden age and entertained us with his wonderful biography on the original Holy Goalie John Fallon, a man who has been Celtic through and through all his days.
Paul John Dykes caught up with fellow Fife dweller, David Potter, for CQN as the pair spoke about all things Celtic:
How did your love affair with Celtic begin?
“I had no choice! My father was Celtic daft, but was also football daft which prevented him ever becoming a bigot. As I once said about him, ‘On his heart was written CELTIC in such large letters that there was no room for hatred or rancour towards anyone else’.”
What are your earliest memories of watching Celtic?
“29 March 1958 at Dens Park losing 5-3 and Bobby Evans falling in the mud on a very wet day.”
What types of Celtic songs can you remember from the terraces back then?
“Erin’s Green Valleys”, “Follow Follow, we will follow Celtic”, “There’s not a team like the Glasgow Celtic”, and “Hello, Hello, we are the Timalloys, Hello, Hello, You’ll know us by the noise, We f***ed the Rangers in the Cup, ‘Twas great to be alive, Not one, not two, not three, not four but five” – commemorating the Scottish Cup semi final win in March 1925 and still sung about over 30 years later. ‘The Celtic Song’ came out in 1961, and September 1 1962 was the day I first heard ‘Sean South of Garryowen’ at Tannadice Park.”
What are your memories (as a nine-year-old) of Celtic beating Rangers 7-1 in 1957
“Not being allowed to go – I was too young – and coming home from the pictures to find my father rambling and incoherent about 7-1 after hearing various rumours on the way home which I didn’t believe.”
With so many talented individuals playing for the club in the 1950s, why do you think that Celtic were only sporadically successful during that decade?
“Poor management. Poor training. A certain amount of vision, but no real coherent plans to develop it.”
During the dark days of the early 1960s, could you ever have imagined the glories that lay in wait?
“No. If anything, there was a fatalism that this was the way it had to be and the way it always would be. The Church, the Press, the Royal Family, the “people who ran society” all seemed to side with Rangers and worship their wealth.”
How was Jock Stein able to transform the team he inherited in the mid-1960s into the European champions?
“Choosing and developing good players, bringing out the best in Bobby Murdoch by changing his position, improving training along with Neil Mochan to make it enjoyable, manipulating the Press so that Rangers were marginalised, and giving the players and supporters belief in themselves. He also deserves great credit for rooting out the hooligans who were a considerable menace at that time.”
Where were you the day that Celtic won the European Cup?
“St Andrews University studying for my 1st Year Greek exam the following day.”
Which elements (if any) do you miss most about the football of your youth?
“None really. Football is far better now as a spectator sport. Behaviour and everything has improved, and a lot more middle class people go, and particularly more women. The really encouraging thing for the future of Celtic is the amount of women of child bearing age who go.”
What prompted you to write your first Celtic book? How long had you planned to embark on the project? How did you approach the research, writing, and publishing process?
“My first book was Our Bhoys Have Won The Cup! with a chapter on each of the 30 Scottish Cup triumphs from 1892 until 1995. I had already done them all as a series of articles for the Celtic View, and it seemed logical to try it as a book. The only problem was finding a publisher and I had many rejections, but eventually a now long gone publisher called John Donald in Edinburgh took me on.”
You have now written over 20 books on Celtic. How are you able to maintain such a prolific output? Can you tell me more about the writing process you employ?
“Simply because I love it and it is so much part of my life, I keep thinking of little other than Celtic and their past, and the secret is to get an idea and then work on it QUICKLY so that the enthusiasm does not wane. If you get an idea, DO IT.”
Having worked with such writers as Tom Campbell and Marie Rowan over the years, what do you most enjoy about the collaborative process?
“Each person has his/her own input. Tom loves the 1950s, Marie is more interested in the very early days and “bad” men (she is also a first class crime writer), whereas I probably go for the romantic figures like Quinn, Delaney, Gallacher and McInally.”
You are often cited as part of the holy trinity of Celtic historians along with Tom Campbell and Pat Woods. Can Celtic fans ever hope to see the three of you working on a book together?
“Not impossible.”
You have recently worked on two autobiographies. What were the main challenges of working with these ex-players on their life stories?
“Not upsetting anyone! Both were different characters. John (Fallon)had a few bees in his bonnet, whereas Charlie was such a lovely man and probably didn’t realise how great a player he actually was.”
Are there any other ex-players out there whose story you’d be interested in working on?
“John Clark, perhaps, but he doesn’t seem to want one done.”
What are the main differences between the world of publishing now, compared to when you released your first book?
“None really. It is all a whimsical, quixotic, unpredictable business.”
What other projects are you currently working on?
“None on Celtic at the moment. One on cricket, and another on Forfar Athletic.”
If you were to name a Celtic team made up of the finest players you have witnessed, who would make your greatest XI?
“Simpson; McGrain, McNeill, van Dijk, Tierney; Murdoch, Brown; Johnstone, Larsson, Lennox, Auld.”
Which CSC are you a member of and what is your typical routine of watching Celtic these days?
“Joseph Rafferty, Kirkcaldy. Leave 12.15 for a home game on a Saturday, arrive about 1.45, go and talk to John Fallon and others at the Celtic Superstore, buy some chips, go in to my seat in the Lisbon Lions stand. Away games are all different. I don’t go to them all because you actually do see the game better on TV, and once I have been to every ground, there is not always the desire to go back, as long as the game is on TV.”
In all your years of watching Celtic, how does the current manager and team compare?
“Up there with the best, but now Brendan must implant in them the belief and conviction for Europe. We must not go out expecting to get beaten. We must not listen to all the SKY Sports/BBC stuff about how good English football is. We must believe we can beat them all. That is why we wear the green and white. Willie Maley envisaged Celtic being the best in the World. So do I.”
Sad to report that Celtic Historian David Potter peacefully passed away this morning
By Editor 30 July, 2023 15 Comments
Celtic Graves Society
Sad to report that Celtic Historian David Potter peacefully passed away this morning
It is with great sadness that we can confirm that Celtic historian and Celtic Star columnist and author, David Potter, peacefully passed away as he slept at around 5.20am this morning, 30 July 2023. He was 74.
On Wednesday we posted this message on twitter at the request of David’s lovely wife Rosemary:
David Potter had a rare and severe reaction to his immunotherapy treatment and is now in the High Dependency Unit at the Victoria Hospital receiving treatment. Not feeling great and voice very weak so I am texting for him just to let you know. Your prayers are welcome.
Rosemary, his wife.
And prayers were certainly said and candles lit for this great Celtic man who has contributed so much to Celtic Football Club over his lifetime. David has been a huge supporter of The Celtic Star, and indeed other Celtic sites over the years, always wanting to ensure that the great stories of the club’s history were passed down the generations.
Today we received the saddest news that we we dreading from Rosemary and once again this is shown below.
Thank you for your prayers for David which he much appreciated.
The sad news today is that David’s condition deteriorated yesterday overnight and he slept away peacefully at 5.20am.
He had received anointing with holy oil and prayers on Friday when we didn’t know whether he would recover or not and was comforted by that.
It’s too early for us to have thought of anything further but I will keep you informed of any future arrangements.
Thank you for your prayers and support.
Rosemary
Rest in Peace David Potter, a legend among the Celtic support. You’ll Never Walk Alone.
David Potter’s incredible legacy – The priceless gift you leave for the Celtic family
By Matt Corr 31 July, 2023 No Comments
David Potter’s incredible legacy – The priceless gift you leave for the Celtic family
Just heard the devastating news about David Potter, DP to his friends.
Heartbroken for Rosemary and his family. Hopefully they will be comforted in some way by the outpouring of love and respect which has flowed since the dreadful news broke this evening and which no doubt will continue over the coming weeks and months as folk share their memories of David.
Where do you start to talk about DP, this extraordinary man? A force of nature. A dear friend to whom so many of us owe so much.
I was first introduced to him around three years ago, when David Faulds had the idea of putting three authors of different generations together to tell the story of Celtic’s birth and the immediate aftermath. Liam Kelly and myself were the other authors involved. David’s name and reputation were legendary amongst aspiring writers like us so I admit to being a bit apprehensive ahead of meeting him. I need not have been so. What struck me immediately was his enthusiasm for ‘the project’ from the get go, which would have done justice to someone half his age and writing his first book.
“What do you need from me and when do you need it?”
And that’s what you got.
That was DP then and that was DP for the next three, all too short now, years.
New ideas. Offers of help. Nothing ever a hassle.
The joint project, Walfrid & the Bould Bhoys, was a huge success, selling out completely, David’s name a guarantee that it would be worth reading.
DP loved the Celtic. End of. A love he inherited from his father, Angus, to whom he constantly referred in his earliest memories of following our great club. Like the day of Hampden in the Sun, back in October 1957, with his dad so excited about the result he couldn’t get the words out coherently, a young DP hanging on desperately awaiting the outcome. He brought history to life with his anecdotes. And he made it fun.
And he was as comfortable discussing today’s stars as those of a century ago, or more in some cases. DP is responsible almost single handedly for ensuring that the story of Alec McNair was shared with today’s generation of Celtic supporters. That was the nib. It wasn’t about making money from selling books, for the bulk of David’s literary career I suspect it cost him to get those stories out there. It was about writing the stories of those players who wore our Hoops in a way that readers could embrace and enjoy. And he did it brilliantly.
I’ve had the pleasure of editing his books over this past few years but that’s not really an accurate description. It would be fairer to say that I had the pleasure of reading his work first and then being in a privileged position to see it being devoured by Celtic supporters all over the world with nothing but positive feedback.
Not that the praise would ever go to his head. A great example of DP’s humility for me was with his next book, the Willie Fernie biography ‘Putting on the Style.’ DP called on his old university pal John McCue to write the chapter on Willie’s brief spell at Middlesbrough. It was one chapter in the book which covered Willie’s life with the vast majority researched and written by DP but it was not a matter for debate that John would share full author credit. That was the deal.
DP’s third solo publication with Celtic Star Books was The Celtic Rising, looking at the year of 1965 from the re-signing of Bertie, the appointment of Jock and the subsequent domestic and continental success enjoyed by a team that appeared to be going nowhere, ironically following that 7-1 cup final more than seven years earlier. Reading the account of the then teenage DP brought every emotion vividly to life, from the pain of yet another defeat at the hands of our rivals to the elation of that glorious victory in the spring of 1965, when the world changed forever.
I laughed out loud at David’s attempt to remain undercover on the train returning from Hampden after the League Cup final victory over Rangers later that year, getting on at the wrong station after two Yogi penalties had confirmed us as the new dominant force in Scottish football. Trying not to look happy as a stranger asked him about the match, nodding in the right places, only to find in the Central Station concourse that the stranger was a Celt doing exactly the same thing!
They say that every man should write a book, so that he has a legacy to leave behind him when he passes on. Well, David W Potter, DP, you have left the most incredible legacy, a lifetime of work which will ensure that the stories of the past will continue to be regaled in Celtic circles well into the future. It is a priceless gift you leave us.
I treasured your friendship, loved your passion and I will miss you immensely.
A final couple of thoughts.
In a past life, DP was a Classics teacher. A scholar. So it was with a bit of doubt that I mentioned to my son one midweek at Easter Road that I thought the elderly gent bouncing up and down a few rows in front of us with the Ultras was David Potter! As we left at the end, I shouted ‘David’ and getting no response I left thinking I was mistaken. Dropping him a note and a photo when we got home he confirmed rather sheepishly that it was indeed him.
And when I asked him for a photo to go on the sleeve of his Icicle book he sent me two, one of the scholarly grandad and another of him as a supporter, celebrating the Treble Treble at Hampden. DP was both and much more, but I will choose to remember him with that fabulous image from Hampden, pure joy in the rain as HIS team make history.
You’re a huge part of that history now, DP.
Rest in peace my dear friend.
Matt
David Potter was standing at Hampden wearing what looked like a French Foreign Legion cap
By Editor 31 July, 2023 3 Comments
Myself with Mike Maher and David Potter ahead of the Champions League match at Celtic Park against Shakhtar last season
David Potter was standing at Hampden wearing what looked like a French Foreign Legion cap
David and Rosemary Potter were married for 52 years, or as David would say 52 seasons ago. In the early summer of 2021 I met David at the service area at the Kincardine Bridge and we talked about the season just finished and Celtic’s failure to reach 10IAR (for a second time). He wasn’t at all downbeat and talked about us being third time lucky. He then did some calculations on his own life expectancy and reckoned he could just about make it if he looked after himself.
He wasn’t looking for ten more years, but ten seasons and there was no doubt in his mind that Celtic – at that time no-one had really heard of Ange Postecoglou and Eddie Howe was playing extremely hard to get – would get back to winning ways. David put the loss of that title down to one thing and one thing only and that was the fact that the Celtic supporters weren’t there.
He was a remarkable man, so humble, so willing to help anyone and everyone. On hundreds of occasions we’d receive emails from readers, many who had distant relatives who played for Celtic of whom they knew very little. Each and every time my solution was to introduce them to David who would inform, advise and go to great lengths to assist. It happened so often that on reflection I took it for granted, he just loved doing it and he really did get as much out of it as the Celtic families and supporters he helped.
The Celtic Star would not be the success that it is without David Potter. Writers like Matt Corr, Liam Kelly, Matthew Marr and many others have all been attracted to this site because of the presence of David Potter, who has been there since we started and has almost certainly had an article published every single day. David would write his articles and email them to me to post on his behalf. What turned out to be his final project was to write a Celtic Player of the Day after he concluded an entire season of Celtic on this Day, which started on 1 August last year and we will now repeat from tomorrow for the new season.
David would supply his Player of the Day in batches of ten and I have many more ready to be published that should see us through the next few months. Then other writers on the site will be asked to take over and help finish the job David started.
David Potter in mid 1990s.
David’s early books from the mid-1990s were all until recently self funded. He once told me that he doesn’t play golf and folk his age had membership fees to pay at their golf courses. His hobby was Celtic and that’s what he spent his money on. He would pay to have his books self published and would never make a profit. That was never his plan, or his wish, it was never a business, it was a calling for David Potter.
I have the manuscript for his last book which covers Celtic in the 1980s (Charlie Nicholas, look away now!). We’ll speak to Rosemary about that but it will be out on Celtic Star Books at some point down the line, once family approval is given.
His last book, The Celtic Rising covered the time in David’s life when Celtic’s fortunes changed for the better and accordingly 1965 was a year very close to his heart. It was also the year I was born.
The book arrived in early November 2022 and on the night Celtic played Real Madrid in the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in the Champions League, David came over to my house to sign the copies of his latest book for supporters who had pre-ordered. He was expecting to sign 50 books, then get his dinner and watch the game. However such was the demand for The Celtic Rising that he had over 500 to sign.
David fully expected a Celtic victory that night. He always expected that and he talked about being robbed there in 1980 and winning in 1967 as justification for his confidence. As the evening wore on he became more interested in signing the books rather than watch Celtic exit European football for another season!
Before arriving at my place that evening he went to visit a friend who lived nearby who was struggling after losing his wife a few years ago. David knew that a widow who lived nearby was being very kind to his pal and regularly brought over home-made baking, including on that day, some delicious homemade apple pie. Impressed by the cuisine David duly encouraged his friend to consider a romance with the lady in question, believing that they would both be better off together than living alone and that the food would be brilliant!
The Celtic Rising sold out very quickly and we had to re-order another print run, which is also close to selling out, there are under 20 copies remaining. As the author David was quite astonished and delighted at the success of The Celtic Rising and when Matt Corr accounted for the expenditure and shared the profit with the author, David was in receipt of his biggest ever payment for writing a Celtic book. Both myself and Matt at the time were especially thrilled at this outcome for David Potter, and that was long before his health concerns started in the spring.
We published a story on The Celtic Star a while back, either last summer of the summer before. It was about a chap who attended Glenrothes High School who had David Potter as his Latin teacher and despite having no background in languages he went on to be appointed as the Dean at Oxford University in Classics. On his appointment, he credited David Potter with setting him on the road to an astonishing career. That wee story sums up David Potter perfectly.
David attended St Andrews University and studied Latin and Greek. He had important exams in May 1967 so was heartbroken to have missed the European Cup Final in Lisbon. He knew that Celtic would win.
David inherited his love of football and Celtic from his dad, as is often the case. His love of Celtic comes from a non-Catholic background and he understood and disowned sectarianism and religious intolerance but he was always clear where the problem stemmed from and it was not from the Celtic support.
His teaching career was spent at Glenrothes High School where he taught Classics and Spanish. He had a lifelong love of cricket and drama, both of which he learned at school and in the case of drama at his BB group. He acted with the Auld Kirk Players of Kirkcaldy since 1974, and after a long career in umpiring, he became the Scorer of Falkland Cricket Club in 2005. He was also an enthusiastic member of the Joseph Rafferty Celtic Supporters Club. One summer a few years back he supplied a series of amusing articles on The Celtic Star on cricket relating to the Falkland club and provided a great Celtic slant each time!
David and Rosemary married in 1972 and had three children Alison, Susan and Andrew, and six grandchildren – Hannah, Euan, Katie, Michael, Anna and the late Callum who died tragically of Bone Cancer in 2011.
His first book, on Celtic’s Scottish Cup win in 1995, was published in 1996 and he’s never stopped since. Indeed he still hasn’t stopped because he has so many Celtic Player of the Day features and his as yet unpublished Celtic in the 1980s book is still to come out. We will of course do him proud on that.
David was good enough to keep me informed about his illness and as before he was scheduling things around Celtic matches. The good thing about when he was getting his operation, he told me, was that it gave him a chance to be back for Trophy Day after reluctantly admitting he’d have to miss the trip to Easter Road. And if that didn’t happen, he’d be at the Scottish Cup final.
Honestly I didn’t think that was going to happen and sure enough he had to admit defeat for trophy day at Celtic Park. A week later on Scottish Cup Final Day we parked the car miles away from Hampden and were making our way to the ground. Just as we were passing the police station, my attention was drawn by a wooden stick hitting my leg and I turned around to see David Potter standing there on that incredibly warm afternoon, wearing what looked like a French Foreign Legion cap, as protection for the wound he had from his operation. He joked about the hat and chatted excitedly about the game and the chance to win another Treble.
He was standing with some of his friends from his Kirkcaldy supporters bus and he introduced me as The Celtic Star Editor as if I was the one with the status. His friends were put right on that straight away, but of course they all already knew.
That was the last time I saw my great friend, David Potter. He may not have seen Celtic win 10IAR but in his final game, he saw Celtic win a world record eighth treble and he had seen every single one of them. What a record that is!
Over the last 24 hours I’ve come to realise something about David Potter – he never really gave up teaching. When he retired he simply started teaching the Celtic support and in doing so he has enriched the lives of so many people, most of whom never had the privilege to meet him. For him The Celtic Star was his classroom and every morning he would deliver his latest, entertaining lesson to thousands of readers.
Without David Potter you would not be reading The Celtic Star and because of David Potter you are reading a site that stands out for its quality and its historical coverage of Celtic which many believe is unmatched anywhere, so no wonder the Celtic family mourns the loss of the one and only David Potter.
David, you were a wonderful Celtic man, a great family man and a wonderful friend. Yours was a life lived brilliantly and you will remain an inspiration for a very long time to come. Requiescat in pace.
YNWA and will never be forgotten.
David Faulds – Celtic Star Editor
A few messages from two of our other writers Niall J and Paul Gillespie below….
Hi David, Hope you are doing okay today.
Incredibly sad news to hear about David’s passing. Celtic and TCS have lost a great writer and historian but you I’m sure have lost someone you got to know very well over the years too. He leaves an incredible body of work behind for future generations but as a pal and a great supporter of the site you must be feeling it quite acutely today.
Chin up mate, his work reached so many more people by way of The Celtic Star – and Walfrid and the Bould Bhoys in particular will stand the test of time for sure – you played a massive part in that and I’m certain DP would have appreciated just that alongside your friendship and support.
Hail Hail
Niall J
Hi David,
I am so sorry for the loss of Mr Potter to The Celtic Star Family.
It’s been made even more palpable for me with the loss of my uncle George recently.
We laid him to rest today.
My heart is even more broken hearing about another great man passing…
I want you to know that I am forever grateful that I was able to consider myself a colleague of his – if only remotely and for a brief period.
The work you and people like David do reaffirm my love for the cultural phenomenon we call Celtic.
Chin up and all the best,
Paul Gillespie
David W. Potter
https://forfarathletic.co.uk/item/5534-david-w-potter
[Monday, 31 July 2023 10:54]
Many Forfarians of all walks of life will be saddened to hear of the fairly sudden death at the age of 74 on Saturday in his adopted home of Kirkcaldy of one of Forfar’s more famous ‘exports’ David W. Potter.
In what has not been a summer to remember on that front for the ‘Loons’ it marks the passing of yet another member of the Forfar Athletic ‘family.’
David was brought up in Peffers Place in the town back in the 1950’s and attended the North School and Forfar Academy excelling academically at both, in fact probably being one of the few pupils ever in the town to study Greek!
His further education continued in a similarly successful mode at St. Andrews University before he became a teacher not surprisingly of Latin and Spanish at Glenrothes High school for nearly forty years.
Away from work and family commitments David had a great interest in football and cricket, both fuelled in his early days in the ‘toonie.’
On the cricket front he was a young scorer at Strathmore for many a season, before going on to umpire at various levels of the game throughout Scotland before returning to the score box in 2005 at Falkland Cricket Club, where he was also match secretary until his untimely passing.
On the football front David never hid the fact that this first love was Celtic, but it would be fair to say Forfar Athletic were not far behind.
From the nineties onwards he utilised his undoubted literary talents to write astonishingly over fifty books many in excess of 500 pages on a varied mix of subjects. A great many however were about Celtic, the club’s origins and stars of the past.
However apart from contributing a regular column to the Forfar Athletic programme for many a year, he also put pen to paper to produce three books which were of great interest to Forfar fans.
‘Wee Troupie’ the life story of Forfar, Everton and Scotland legend Alec Troup was the first followed by ‘Forfar Greats’ in 2009.
Then eight years on ‘Forfar Athletic On this Day’ was his latest creation.
He also a few years later provided a similar publication which drew acclaim from all quarters simply about events in general over the years that occurred in the town of his birth which always remained so close to his heart.
David whose other great interest was Amateur Dramatics, his first foray on stage coming back in the early sixties while a member of an at the time vibrant 2nd Forfar Boys Brigade company.
He was an active member of the Fife based Joseph Rafferty Celtic Supporters Club and enjoyed his many outings to Celtic Park but he admitted he was equally at ‘home’ in his seat in the east end of the stand at Station Park out with the cricket season always spreading encouragement in his backing of his beloved ‘Loons’ in the company of lifelong friend Richard Grant.
Another sad loss to FAFC, but more so to his wife Rosemary and his family to whom our sympathy is extended at this sad time.
DWP will be missed by so many of that there is no doubt.
David Potter
https://www.falklandcricketclub.com/news/david-potter-2794492.html
By Robbie Nellies
11 hours ago
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Sad News
We have been left shocked and deeply saddened to learn of David’s sudden passing on Sunday. David appeared to be making good progress following his operation but sadly his recent visit to Scroggie was to be his last.
David began scoring as young lad in Forfar at Strathmore CC then umpired for may years before becoming Falkland CC’s scorer in 2005. He performed scoring duties for the club’s 1st XI for over 20 years spending many happy hours in both our old scorebox and lately in the scorers’ tent.
In 2019 David wrote an article entitled ‘View from the Scorebox’ which included the following.
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‘The Scorer’s enjoyment of a Saturday or Sunday afternoon depends on two things. One is obviously how the team is doing, but the other factor is the opposition Scorer. Five hours can be a long time to spend in a scorebox with one person, but in the main, they have all been charming people – injured players, recently retired players, the wife of the captain, the girlfriend of one of the players, crusty old blow bags, curmudgeonly pedants, enthusiastic amateurs who are just learning (a euphemism for they have never done it before) have all shared my box on a summer afternoon.’
Typical David beautifully capturing his brilliant sense of humour.
David formed a very close friendship with the club’s other Scorer Keith Meakin and every Spring the pair would meet up for a coffee in Falkland to map out which matches each would score in for the up-and-coming season.
President Robbie Nellies recalls a humorous incident before David joined Falkland and took place in a match between Ayr and Falkland at Ayr. David was umpiring along with his cousin also called David Potter. Robbie was batting at the time and was given out simultaneously by both umpires caught behind and stumped off the same delivery. David often had a chuckle about this.
David was an advocate and enthusiastic supporter of junior cricket often offering wise words of advice and encouragement to youngsters. He particularly loved scoring for our U16 team when they took part in the Moray League travelling to grounds far afield such as Huntly.
David joined the club’s committee in 2007 and since then has served as Treasurer, Secretary and latterly Match Secretary.
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He was also a terrific ambassador for Falkland Cricket Club promoting the club at every opportunity which often included praising the youth set up and quality of our cricket teas.
In 2018 David was deservedly awarded Honorary Life Membership in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Falkland CC and to cricket.
David was kind, warm, friendly, generous and a true gentleman, a better person you would not hope to meet.
We thank David for his wonderful contribution to Falkland Cricket Club and to the wider game of cricket. It will never be the same at Scroggie without David around. He will be sorely missed but remain forever in our memories.
This Saturday the club will hold a minute’s silence at 11.50am at Scroggie prior to start of the Eastern Premiership match against Stoneywood Dyce. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Rosemary, family and friends at this very difficult time.
Obituary: David Potter, prolific football and sports writer
3rd August
Celtic
Sport
By Matthew Marr
https://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/23700051.obituary-david-potter-prolific-football-sports-writer/
David Potter
Born: August 29, 1948
Died: July 30, 2023
David Potter, the prolific and well-known football and sports history writer, has died in Kirkcaldy aged 74.
Potter was best known for his work on Celtic Football Club – writing more than 30 books on the team – but also authored around 40 other texts covering different clubs and sports.
Born in Forfar in 1948, he was educated locally before attending St Andrews University to study Latin and Greek. This took him to Fife, where he lived for the rest of his life, and also into his profession of teaching.
Potter spent more than 30 years teaching Spanish and Classics at Glenrothes High School. This latter subject he also later taught on a part-time basis at Osborne House School in Dysart.
In 1996, he took an action which would shape the remaining years of his life when he wrote his first book. Titled ‘Our Bhoys have won the cup’, this recorded Celtic’s Scottish Cup experiences up to that point.
Across the following three decades he extended his Celtic library, writing or co-writing at least 34 published books, covering topics as diverse as the lives of Sandy McMahon, Alec McNair and Bobby Murdoch, through to Celtic’s time in competitions like the European Cup and League Cup.
In addition to these books, he wrote multiple articles as well as being involved with different sports websites, most notably The Celtic Star, who published many of his books.
His football research enthusiasm was not restricted to Celtic.
Potter also composed texts on Scottish clubs such as Raith Rovers and Forfar Athletic, as well as the Scottish national team and English sides including Newcastle United and Sunderland.
Although football was his overwhelming love, he was also a cricket enthusiast. As well as authoring numerous books on this sport, he served as an umpire and scorer for many years and helped organise competitions such as the Fife Cup.
Giving further evidence of his significant energy, Potter also found time for non-sporting activities. This included researching local history and an enthusiasm for drama which saw him act with the Auld Kirk Players of Kirkcaldy since 1974.
Potter was married to Rosemary for more than 50 years. He is survived by her, as well as three children and many grandchildren too.
