Bobby Collins

Celtic

Collins was born on 16 February 1931 in Govanhill, Glasgow, Scotland, the eldest of Tom and Bella Collins's six children. He signed a contract with Everton from Pollok at the age of 17, but after a contractual dispute he eventually ended up joining Celtic instead of Everton; he was also working as an apprentice cobbler at the time. He made his debut at outside-right against Old Firm rivals Rangers on 13 August 1949, getting the better of Jock Shaw he helped Celtic to a 3–2 Scottish League Cup victory. Despite being just about 5 ft 3 in (1.60 m) tall, Collins was a strong, hard-working midfield player who was in the Celtic team as a 17-year-old and stayed there for ten years, winning the Scottish Cup in 1951, and the Scottish cup double in 1954. Affectionately known as the Wee Barra by Celtic fans, he was idolised by three generations of supporters. The grandfathers loved his throwback style of keeping the ball close, the dads loved his all-out action style and the kids just wanted to play like him. He was also called up for international duty in 1950, and maintained a frequent presence in the Scotland squad in the later stages of the decade. Collins also represented the Scottish League XI 16 times, scoring 12 goals.

Everton

In 1958 Collins joined Everton where he played until 1962.

Leeds United

Collins was an astute addition to the Leeds squad by manager Don Revie in 1962, helping the club avoid relegation. Revie later described Collins as…

Collins went into management, with spells at Huddersfield Town, Hull City and Barnsley. He also coached within the Leeds youth set-up in the 1970s and then again in the late 1990s.

Club

International

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Collins goal.

Managerial record

Celtic

Glasgow Cup: 1950, 1956; runner-up 1951, 1952 Scottish Cup: 1951; runner-up 1955 Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup: 1953; runner-up 1951, 1954 Scottish Football League First Division: 1953–54; runner-up 1954–55 Scottish League Cup: 1957, 1958 Leeds United

Football League Second Division: 1963–64 FA Cup runner-up: 1964–65 Bury

Football League Third Division runner-up: 1967–68 Individual

FWA Footballer of the Year: 1964–65