Anthony Ralston is coming of age

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Celtic F.C.

·29 September 2023

Anthony Ralston is coming of age

Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers has already expressed the importance of having players who have come through the Celtic ranks in the team, and that was endorsed this week in the lead-up to Saturday’s game against Motherwell when Anthony Ralston signed a new deal at the club.

Even though the defender is still only 24-years-old, by the time the current contract comes to a close in 2027, he will have been at the club for 20 years.

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That’s the sort of home-grown experience you just can’t buy in, and the knock-on effect is that, just as the likes of James Forrest and Callum McGregor passed on their knowledge to him, Ralston can do likewise for other younger Celts coming through the ranks.

Speaking to the media at Lennoxtown before the weekend trip to Fir Park, he said: “I do feel it’s important. I feel that the system at Celtic for me coming through, personally, was a hard journey to get to this point and I’m one of the lucky ones that was able to break through.

“There are a lot of kids through all the time that don’t, but I’ve been able to have role models like Callum and Jamesy that I’ve seen do it and give everybody that bit of hope that you can.

“Hopefully, like I’ve had from them, I can show the kids that they have a chance as well, as if I can do it, they can.

‘It is a hard road, but it shows it’s possible if you just put the work in and dedicate yourself to doing a job.’

“It is important and I’m just glad I’m one of the lucky ones who have been able to do it.”

Aside from breaking through as a Celtic Academy graduate, Ralston has also had to prove himself against players brought in from other clubs with each passing transfer window, but he feels that the impetus is there to show your worth to the team no matter who is battling for a place in the side.

He said: “It depends how it’s perceived from outside, but I feel that you’re always having to prove yourself whether you’ve come through the ranks or whether you’re a signing.

“You need to always come in and prove that you’re worth it, and that you can do the job.

“And that’s done by football, so I feel that whether you come through the ranks or whether you’ve been bought in, you become part of a collective and part of a squad, and that’s the unit that brings you success. So it doesn’t overly matter when we all come together.”

And that collective unit means that the defender will be helping other to settle in to the first-team environment whether they come up the Celtic ladder or arrive during a transfer window.

He said: “I’m adapting, I’m not a kid any more, so when there are younger kids coming into the team, it’s trying to help them settle in as much as possible, especially if they’re coming in from a different background, different countries.

'It’s the likes of myself, or the boys that have been here for a long time or came through and knows the club well, to help them settle in as best as possible so that they can perform at their best.'

“It’s a different time now for me, and now after signing the contract I’m going to be here until I’m slightly older again.

“So it’s just kind of adapting through my career into that experienced level when I can hopefully help younger boys, because I’ve been there myself as well at 18, 19, 20, to help them best as possible settle in to do the best that they can.”