The 1980 Scottish Cup final was up there with any of them; he set up the winning and only goal in extra-time, picked up the sponsor’s Man of the Match award at the end of 120 energy-sapping minutes and then lifted the famous trophy aloft as captain.

Alas, the riot that broke out on the pitch after the final whistle kind of overshadowed his outstanding personal display and the result.

“This is like a scene out of Apocalypse Now,” said Archie MacPherson famously in his BBC commentary as Celtic and Rangers fans clashed and mounted police charged them in a desperate bid to restore order.

It had certainly been The Longest Day for McGrain and his team mates before that.

“It was an Old Firm derby, a cup final and the last game of the season so it was a tense occasion,” said McGrain as he looked back on the match, which took place 40 years ago today, earlier on this week.

“It was scorching hot as well. I remember it being a torrid game, a real end-to-end affair. It was quite scrappy if you ask me. I wouldn’t say it was a classic. But it ended up being fantastic for us because we won it.”

The fatigue that Billy McNeill’s men were feeling as the edgy encounter wore on didn’t prevent them from taking the lead after Davie Provan had swung a corner kick into the opposition penalty area in the 108th minute.

“When the cross came over I thought: ‘We need to get this ball out the park’,” said McGrain. “I was tired and the whole team was tired. It was such a hot day. We had everybody up for the corner kick so we could score from it and win the game from there. But I thought: ‘If I lose the ball here the next player behind me is big Peter (goalkeeper Latchford)’.

“It was a comical corner kick. It broke to me outside the box. My first instinct was to get the ball out the park, to waste time. I miskicked it. George (McCluskey) stuck his foot out and it went in. A typical George McCluskey goal! I think Peter McCloy (the Rangers keeper) must have been too busy chuckling at my effort to save it!”

The shameful events that unfolded after referee George Smith brought an end to proceedings were no laughing matter.

“It was a great moment to be presented with the trophy,” said McGrain. “We had just beaten our greatest rivals after extra-time, our side of Glasgow was going mental. We were looking forward to going out onto the park to celebrate with our fans. I looked out and saw a few people on the park. I thought: ‘Well, I suppose that’s allowed in the circumstances’. But all of a sudden there were 200, 300, there.

“When we went down to the stairs to the pitch side we were told we couldn’t go out on the park to do the lap of honour. We didn’t know what was happening. A policemen came over and said: ‘It’s a battle out there’. It was the right decision. There were too many arms and legs flying about. It wouldn’t have been safe.

“When we came out of the ground there was a lot of police running about chasing people. But we got on the bus with the cup, not giving two hoots about anything. We were in our own world. We weren’t really aware of quite how bad it was. By the time we got back to Celtic Park, though, we had heard on the radio what had happened, how many people had been arrested.”

It was an unfortunate way for Bobby Lennox to bow out at Celtic. The Lisbon Lion, who had come on for Johnny Doyle in the second-half, picked up his 26th winner’s medal that afternoon. But the legendary striker was denied the opportunity to say a farewell to the fans and receive their appreciation for all of his heroics over the previous 17 years. McGrain felt for his friend.

“Bobby is the best guy I have ever met in football,” he said. “He is a nicest man you will ever come across. I played with him from the minute I broke into the team until he left. He was such a great professional. He loved the game.

“He always had a smile on his face Bobby, good, bad or indifferent. He had a great sense of humour. It was a shame for him I suppose. But at the end of the day he got the medal and he got the bonus. I am sure he was quite happy with that.”

McGrain was pleased for McNeill. The European Cup-winning skipper had succeeded Jock Stein two years earlier and lifted the Premier Division title at the end of his debut season in the dugout at Parkhead with a famous final day win over Rangers. But that was his first Scottish Cup triumph as a coach. “It was great for Billy to have done that as a player and then as a manager,” he said.

The riot, the worst in Scottish football in 70 years, led to 210 fans being arrested and 100 people suffering injuries, many of them serious. It also resulted in alcohol being banned from Scottish football grounds, an embargo that remains in place four decades later.

It hasn’t stopped the Celtic players of today growing accustomed to the taste of champagne in the last few years.

McGrain has sympathy for Scott Brown, Callum McGregor and Odsonne Edouard just now. They have been denied the chance to win a record-equalling ninth consecutive Scottish title and complete a fourth straight domestic treble by the coronavirus pandemic and football shutdown.

Neil Lennon’s charges had been due to take on Aberdeen in the Scottish Cup semi-final when the game was suspended in March and could potentially have been taking part in the final yesterday.

“The chance has been taking away from them,” he said. “I am sure it will get finished later in the year when football starts up again. But going to Hampden in May to play in the Scottish Cup final is a great tradition and they have been denied that. Still, they have got to give them the Premiership. I think they deserve it.”

McGrain turned 70 at the start of this month and his birthday celebrations were curtailed somewhat by the Covid-19 outbreak and social distancing restrictions.

However, the Celtic great, a world-class footballer who overcame diabetes and a fractured jaw during his playing days and has made a full recovery from the minor heart attack he suffered six years ago, is meeting the challenge head on.

“It is hard,” he said. “It is a horrible situation. But you have just got to deal with it as best you can. I am okay. I still get out for walks, nothing too strenuous.”

The 53-year-old was arrested on Saturday night outside a home in St Kilda and was charged with stalking and other offences.

But his mug shot and a photo of him in a long blonde wig and wearing a dress, taken inside a police station, were leaked.

“Disgraceful. Taking photos unlawfully and sharing them. And these were sneaky photos while in Police interview in Police Station by a Police Officer,” one of his lawyers, Bill Doogue, tweeted.

“Police should investigate and those involved pull down immediately.” Victoria Police are investigating the dissemination of the images. Laidley, a 1996 premiership winner and later coach with the Kangaroos, faced Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Sunday and will remain in custody until May 11 after not applying for bail.

AFL great ‘is behind bars after being arrested on stalking and multiple other charges and NOT applying for bail’

• North Melbourne Kangaroos legend Dean Laidley is behind bars in Melbourne
• The 53-year-old was arrested after an incident in St Kilda on Saturday night
• Laidley was charged with stalking and other matters and did not apply for bail
• Do you know more? Contact jackson.barron@mailonline.com 

By Jackson Barron and Charlie Coë For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 04:50 EDT, 3 May 2020 | Updated: 08:50 EDT, 3 May 2020

Advertisement

(KMAland) — We are moving into the 21^st week of the 2019-20 sports calendar year. Are you having fun yet? On to Seven Points…

Point 1: The Chiefs – yes, the Chiefs! – are going to the Super Bowl

As a young lad, I found a love and a passion for Kansas City professional athletics. Of course, I chose the one that played in the baseball stadium rather than the football stadium. Well, to say that I chose it would be a bit disingenuous. My dad put this sickness inside of me.

While I was all about the Royals, I was not a fan of the Chiefs. I am not a fan of the Chiefs. I actually developed some sort of sick competition in my head between the two professional franchises. It makes no sense, I know, but it sits in my brain and won’t leave. For years, the Royals were getting their butts kicked in that competition. The Chiefs have been one of the best franchises in the NFL while the Royals – for a large part of my life – were at the bottom of MLB.

Of course, things leaned Royals in 2014 and 2015 when they improbably advanced to Game 7 of the World Series against the Giants and then clowned the Mets on their way to their first championship since 1985. I know some Chiefs fans really think they’ve been suffering for a long time, but try being one of the worst teams in the league for three decades.

I know, I know. There have been playoff catastrophes and heartbreaks, but the Royals didn’t even bother getting to playoffs. Or even getting close to the playoffs. There was never any hope with the Royals. There’s almost always been hope with the Chiefs. You don’t know long-suffering unless you’ve been to the K to watch guys like Jose Guillen, Angel Berroa, Aaron Guiel, Mendy Lopez, Chris Getz and the like fumble around. Anyway…

It’s not that surprising that the Chiefs would go to the Super Bowl. They have a strong owner that cares only about winning. They play in the NFL, where everybody is pretty much playing on an even field with a salary cap. They made an outstanding coaching hire in Andy Reid, and they’ve made smart/outstanding draft decisions and additional strong acquisitions. And yeah, they played the 4 and the 6 seed in the top-heavy AFC to get there.

But make no mistake, this is an outstanding team that deserves to play in the Super Bowl. I really wish we could have seen Baltimore/Kansas City in the AFC Championship, but I’m good with settling for KC/San Francisco in the Super Bowl. These are two outstanding football teams, and even though I would rather hammer nails through my feet than have to cheer for one of them, I will enjoy this one as a football fan. Go Royals.

Point 2: Speaking of the Royals….

The Kansas City Royals, which – by the way – had the bigger accomplishment in winning the 2015 World Series than the Chiefs would have by winning this year’s Super Bowl (smirk), are close to or have already agreed to a one-year deal with Alex Gordon.

Royals beat writer Jeffrey “Flanny” Flanagan tweeted yesterday: “Sources indicate the Royals and Alex Gordon are “getting close” on a one-year deal. Might be announced Tuesday or Wednesday after his physical.”

I laughed about those last three words because Alex Gordon taking a physical must be an absolute marvel, but I see this only as good news. Alex Gordon – the single greatest hero from that 2015 champion – can play for the Royals as long as he wants. He’s still elite defensively, and he had a pretty solid year at the plate in 2019.

There are some that don’t understand why the Royals would want to bring him back. They think that it will disrupt the rebuild. Now, I would agree with that notion if there was actually some sort of young outfielder that he was blocking, but I don’t think Bubba Starling, Brett Phillips or any other number of quad-A type outfielders are going to be a part of the future anyway. So, let’s see some more Gordo.

Point 3: My ongoing gag with the charge call in basketball continued

I charged up the Creston faithful on Friday with this tweet.

Now, if I had to do it all again, I probably would have left that last part off of there. I need to better understand that not everybody is familiar with my ongoing gag with the charge call in basketball. Basically, I hate charges*. I don’t hate the people taking them, and I don’t hate the people calling them. I hate the rule. I also think it’s misapplied quite often.

*I will note that I don’t mind when primary defenders beat their offensive player to a spot and then take it in the chest. Those charges are A-OK with me. I’m just not big on the slide-ins or slide-unders that make up for what is generally poor defense (not talking about this specific instance since it was sort of a frantic scenario).

Anyway, my final “….charge is not an acceptable answer” was simply an ode to that. I should have known it would lead to an emotional, visceral reaction from those that it personally impacted. There were some ugly moments involved, including the misapplication of your/you’re, but that’s going to happen. (I really think teachers should re-teach that, though. It’s a simple lesson, really.)

Either way, I apologize for the comment that raised the ire of the Creston folks. In the end, I was and am still impressed with the effort on both sides on that play. In other words, “both teams played hard.”

Point 4: McGregor/Cowboy

Boy, the UFC really could not have matched up a worse duo. Not when it comes to fighting. When it comes to being a solid, respectable human being.

McGregor has been investigated for two sexual assault allegations. Innocent until proven guilty, but he doesn’t exactly have a clean history. And then there’s Cowboy Donald Cerrone, who has dropped several homophobic slurs and rants in the past. While he did apologize after the first one, there was a recent sit down with Brendan Schaub where he continued that behavior.

So, who do you root for when two pretty bad humans get together in the octagon? I suppose you just hope it ends quickly. And fortunately it did.

Point 5: What are you doing for others?

As I was writing this, I thought I was starting to run out of ideas, points and other thoughts. Then I saw a tweet from Council Bluffs, Abraham Lincoln’s volleyball account. It’s a picture of Martin Luther King Jr. (it’s MLK Day, by the way) with one of his many great quotes: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question: What are you doing for others?”

The tweet also has a hashtag that I love: #BeKind. I can’t say I always lived up to this ideal, but I try to every single day. I think one of the most important things in this nation right now is to try and carry on those kinds of things. Care for one another, love one another and be kind to one another. We’re living in a contentious time. Let’s do our part to better that.

Point 6: Our schedule this week is going to WOW you

Look at this…

Tuesday: St. Albert at Glenwood boys on KMA 960, 7:30 PM (Trevor)

Wednesday: Corner Conference Girls Tournament at Stanton – Sidney vs. Fremont-Mills & East Mills vs. Stanton on FM 99.1, 6:00 PM (Brent)

Thursday: Corner Conference Boys Tournament at Malvern – Stanton vs. Sidney & Fremont-Mills vs. East Mills on FM 99.1, 6:00 PM (Me)

Friday:  Corner Conference Girls Consolation & Championship at Malvern on 960, 6:00 PM (Brent) & Martensdale-St. Marys at Mount Ayr girl/boy doubleheader on FM 99.1, 6:00 PM (Trevor)

Saturday: John J. Harris Wrestling Invitational on 960, 3:30 PM (Trevor & Steve Baier) and Corner Conference Boys Consolation & Championship at Griswold on 99.1, 6:00 PM (Derek)

Extra Point: Have a great week!

Enjoy the 21^st week of the calendar!

Send any questions, comments and/or concerns to dmartin@kmaland.com.