The incredible story of Celtic legend Bobby Hogg | OneFootball

The incredible story of Celtic legend Bobby Hogg

Part 1 – A star is born

Legendary Celtic defender and captain Bobby Hogg was born Robert Brown Hogg at Elmbank, Burnhead, Larkhall at 5.30pm on Sunday, 10 May 1914. The previous day, two goals from Jimmy ‘Sniper’ McColl and one from winger Andy McAtee had given Double-winners Celtic a 3-0 victory over Queen’s Park in the Glasgow Charity Cup semi-final at Hampden. The Hoops would duly add that trophy to the collection on the following Tuesday, with a 6-0 rout of Third Lanark at the same venue, before setting off on what would be an historic tour of Hungary, Austria and Germany.

Celtic 1913/14 with the Scottish Cup

It was on that continental trip that the infamous Budapest Cup clash with English FA Cup-winners Burnley took place, a 1-1 draw in the Hungarian capital later that month followed up by a 2-1 success for Celtic at Turf Moor on the opening day of September, by which time the country was at war with the three nations which the club had visited just a few months earlier.

Budapest Cup and medals

Bobby’s parents were Coal Miner Robert Hogg and Cecilia Cameron Hogg, nee Smith, at that time residing at the above address in Burnhead, Larkhall. The birth was registered by Bobby’s dad on 25 May, a date which would later become synonymous with the greatest day in Celtic’s history. On that particular day in 1914, the Celtic party had left Vienna and were heading for a match with Hertha BSC in Berlin, the first of three games to be played in Germany that week.

Photos from Charlie Doherty of Berliner FC Preussen v Celtic, 1914.

Bobby’s mum and dad were both older than Celtic! Robert Hogg was born on 4 January 1883 at Barrack’s Row, Carfin, Lanarkshire, whilst Cecilia Cameron Smith was born at Noblehouse, Newlands, Peeblesshire on 10 January 1885. The parish of Newlands lay on the border of Peeblesshire and Midlothian, sandwiched between West Linton and Eddleston.

Robert Hogg and Cecilia Cameron Smith married at the Christian Institute, Larkhall on Friday, 25 September 1908. Robert was 25 years old and lived at 58 Miller Street, Larkhall. His parents (Bobby’s paternal grandparents) were Robert Brown Hogg – a Coal Miner whom Bobby was named after – and Janet Hogg, nee Brownlie, who married at Low Waters, Hamilton on 19 July 1872.

Bobby’s mum Cecilia was a 23-year-old Domestic Servant. Her address is given as Ashgillhead, Dalserf and her parents (Bobby’s maternal grandparents) were John Love Smith – a Gemstone Miner – and Janet Smith, nee Gilroy, who had married at Dalserf on 24 February 1882. The witnesses to the marriage were Andrew Hogg – Robert’s younger brother – and Agnes Smith, Cecilia’s teenage sister.

As an aside, 24 hours after the marriage of Robert and Cecilia Hogg, Willie Maley’s ‘Team of all the talents’ continued their defence of the four trophies won the previous campaign by drawing 2-2 with Rangers at Celtic Park in the semi-final of the Glasgow Cup. The story of that match was built around the outside-right featuring for Rangers, Alec Bennett, who a few months earlier had scored the title-winning goal at Ibrox – for Celtic! Part of what many consider to be Celtic’s greatest-ever forward line, Alec switched allegiances to Rangers and scored both goals against his former club in the 2-2 draw mentioned above. His replacement on Celtic’s right flank that afternoon was Willie Kivlichan, who had joined Celtic from Rangers in the spring of 1907! A qualified doctor, Willie would be on duty at Ibrox that fateful day in September 1931 when Celtic’s young goalkeeper John Thomson suffered his fatal injuries.

At the time of the 1911 Census, taken on Sunday, 2 April as Celtic prepared for a Scottish Cup final meeting with local club Hamilton Academical at Ibrox six days later – Hampden was still out of bounds following the Riot Final of 1909 – Robert Hogg (28, Coal Miner Hewer, born in Carfin) and Cecilia Hogg (26, born in Newlands) are living in a terraced home at 25 Brown Street, Larkhall with their two infant daughters, 21-month-old Janet – named after both grandmothers – and baby Margaret, who arrived just three months earlier in January 1911. Both girls were born at number 10 Brown Street, Larkhall.

As a further aside, that Hamilton Academical cup final team featured a young outside-right enjoying his first season as a senior footballer. His name was John Herbert McLaughlin and if that rings a bell then you probably know your Celtic history. His father of the same name was a Founding Father of Celtic and a key administrator and influencer in Scottish football. Two late goals from Jimmy Quinn and Tom McAteer in the Ibrox replay brought the cup home to Celtic Park after the first match had ended goalless.

Hamilton Academical’s cup-final team 1910/11 featuring John H McLaughlin.

A decade later, the Hogg family has expanded significantly.

The Census record taken on 19 June 1921 shows Robert Hogg (38 years/5 months, a Coal Miner Hewer with Summerlee Iron Co. Ltd., born in Old Monkland, Lanark) and Cecilia Hogg (36/5, born in Newlands, Peebles) now living at 128 Raploch Street, Larkhall, in the shadow of Gasworks Park, home of Scotland’s oldest surviving junior football club, Larkhall Thistle.

Gasworks Park, Larkhall

The Hoggs now have seven children: Janet (11 years/11 months), Maggie (10/5), Cecilia (8/7), future Celt Robert (7/1), John (4/11), James (3/1) and William (6 months). All of the children were born in Larkhall and all seven seem to have been given a family name as a middle name.

Janet Gilroy Hogg, born at 10 Brown Street, Larkhall on 6 July 1909 Margaret Lindsay Hogg, born at 10 Brown Street, Larkhall 8 January 1911 Cecilia Cameron Hogg, born at Elmbank, Burnhead, Larkhall on 16 November 1912 Robert Brown Hogg (Bobby), born at Elmbank, Burnhead, Larkhall on 10 May 1914 John Smith Hogg, born at 128 Raploch Street, Larkhall on 29 July 1916 James Brownlie Hogg, born at 128 Raploch Street, Larkhall on 4 May 1918 William Smith Hogg, born at 128 Raploch Street, Larkhall on 24 November 1920

An eighth and final child, Annie Brown Hogg, would duly complete the family in 1924.

Bobby, his siblings and his dad.

To be continued…

Hail, hail!

Matt Corr

Follow Matt on Twitter/X @Boola_vogue

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