“No Kelly, No Keltic” – The story of James Kelly, Celtic’s legendary first captain | OneFootball

In Scottish history, 25 January is famous as being the birthday of Robert Burns. But for Celtic, there is a much more significant figure who was born on this day.

161 years ago today, Bhoys’ icon James Kelly entered the world. He was at the heart of Celtic’s rise to the top of Scottish football. In fact, it has even been said that “No Kelly, No Keltic.”

This is the story of James Kelly, Celtic’s legendary first captain…

James Kelly, Celtic FC. Photo The Celtic Wiki

Kelly was born on 25 January 1865, although some accounts mistakenly claim that he was born on 15 October. He was part of a large family of Irish descent and lived in Renton in Dunbartonshire. In future years, his town’s local team became one of the major clubs in Scotland, and arguably the world too.

As he grew up, Kelly was a renowned sportsman. He won sprinting competitions but it was football where he gained most recognition. In 1883, he began playing for Renton, and enjoyed major success when at the club.

In 1885, Renton beat fellow Dunbartonshire team Vale of Leven to claim the Scottish Cup. Although they then lost the 1886 final, by 1888 Renton were once again Scottish Cup holders. This led to a playoff match versus FA Cup holders West Bromwich Albion, and the Scots won this game to be crowned ‘Champions of the World’.

Kelly was part of all these moments, although he played in different positions. In his early career – including in the 1885 and 1886 Scottish Cup Finals – he was used as a forward. However, by 1888, he began to play as a centre half, which in those days meant central midfielder. This was in the 2-3-5 formation which was most common at the time.

As well as playing for Renton, Kelly had also appeared for Hibernian. Having such a talented player from an Irish background naturally brought him to the attention of Scotland’s large Irish diaspora.

In late-1887 – inspired by the success of Hibernian – many people from within the Glasgow Irish community moved to establish their own football team. On 6 November 1887, Celtic were formed. The next step was to secure the infrastructure needed to run a club.

Within a week of agreeing to set up Celtic, land had been rented that would become the original Celtic Park. Now action was taken to secure the players that would first represent the Celts. James Kelly was an essential part of these plans.

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James Kelly

Irish clubs in Scotland were not a new phenomenon. As well as Hibernian in Edinburgh, Harp were a prominent side in Dundee, and there were also multiple other examples of teams called Erin, Emmett, Shamrock and similar found across the country.

If Celtic were to succeed, securing the signing of prominent players with Irish heritage would be an important action. Given James Kelly’s success and national reputation – he was a Scottish internationalist too – his presence would help attract other players to the Bhoys. One issue concerning Kelly’s arrival at Celtic flags up a controversial matter in the early years of Scottish football. Until 1893, football rules prevented the payment of players, but most big clubs in Scotland simply made secret payments and broke these regulations.

Despite working as a joiner, Kelly was somehow able to afford a very expensive £650 fee to buy a pub. The likelihood is that Celtic were responsible for paying for this, using it as a means of enticing Kelly to come to and stay at the club.

As well as the financial inducement, Kelly had another important connection with early Celtic. In 1891, he married Margaret McErlean. Her father, Francis McErlean, was one of Celtic’s Founding Fathers and so his influence may have also attracted Kelly to Glasgow’s east end.

Whatever the key factor in bringing Kelly to Celtic, by May 1888 the club was ready to play its first game.

Encouraged by Kelly’s decision, many other prominent players agreed to represent the Celts. This includes his Renton teammate, forward Neil McCallum.

Neil McCallum – Celtic’s first goalscorer

The first Celtic Park was opened on 8 May 1888 in a match which did not feature Celtic. Cowlairs drew 0-0 with Hibernian in a ‘Grand Exhibition Match’. Three weeks later, James Kelly and the Celts played their first game, against the side that would become their biggest rivals, Rangers.

In a high-scoring fixture which the Bhoys won 5-2, Neil McCallum scored the Celts’ first ever goal. James Kelly was also the scoresheet and a hat-trick from Tom Maley completed the scoring.  The Celts were off and running, and Kelly had clearly demonstrated his importance. This issue would bring the Bhoys into conflict. Celtic hoped to have Kelly appear for them on a more regular basis, whilst Hibs wanted exactly the same thing. Renton also hoped to retain their talismanic figure. In the end – and surely connected to the payment issue mentioned earlier – it was the Glasgow Irish who won this battle.

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It was claimed that this decision had a profound impact on Renton. Club officials were said to have remarked that in future they would no longer sign Catholic players, because it would leave them as little more than a “training” club before these players ended up at Celtic.

James Kelly, Celtic FC

Now that Kelly had committed to Celtic, he became the first captain. He played for the club for nine years, until 1897. In that time, he was a central part of the club’s stratospheric rise to prominence, and all of its early successes and achievements.

Celtic’s first season was a clear indicator that the Bhoys were to become one of Scotland’s premier clubs. Under Kelly’s on-field leadership, they reached three cup finals, including the Scottish Cup. For a new team to do this in their first season was unheard of. Although they lost this final, Celtic did claim their first ever trophy, the 1889 Glasgow North Eastern Cup.

By 1891, the Bhoys won their first major trophy when they were triumphant in the Glasgow Cup. And then the following season, it was a momentous time as the Celts won the so-called ‘Holy Trinity’ of Scottish Cup, Glasgow Cup and Charity Cup. As a reminder that Kelly’s on-field influence was not just about his playing skills, he scored in both the Scottish Cup and Glasgow Cup Finals.

1892 saw Celtic depart the original Celtic Park and move a short distance to their second – and current – home. This season coincided with yet more success and Celtic history as the Bhoys secured their first League championship. Kelly became the first Celtic captain to lead his team to the title.

As well as starring for Celtic, Kelly was highly respected across Scotland and beyond. He played for the Scotland national team on eight occasions – scoring on once – and was also regularly selected to play for Scottish League Selects and Glasgow Selects too.

In the early years of the Scottish League, Celtic emerged as the most successful of teams. Although Dumbarton won the first two titles – the first of which was shared with Rangers – the Bhoys then won three out of the next four championships. Kelly was captain as the Celts were title winners in 1893, 1894 and 1896.

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By 1897, Kelly was 32 and increasingly too old to play at the same high level he had shown throughout his career. However, that did not end his part in the Celtic story. That same year, Celtic became a Limited Company, with shares being issued in the club.

In April 1897, Kelly was one of the people who secured some of the 5000 shares that were issued in the Celtic Football and Athletic Company. As well as this, he became a member of the Celtic Board. This started a three-and-a-half decade directorship on the Celtic Board, including five years as Chairman from 1909 to 1914.

The year that he stepped down as Chairman is remembered across the world for much more somber and significant reasons. 1914 saw the outbreak of World War One, and it was a conflict which would bring a heavy price for the Kelly family.

His sons Frank and Jim both went to war and suffered greatly. In 1919, after the end of the conflict, Frank was still in France and was killed in a train accident. Also, his brother Jim had been gassed when in the trenches and his health never fully recovered from this.

When James Kelly first arrived at Celtic, he had lived in the east end of Glasgow, close to Celtic Park. However, he then moved to Blantyre where he lived with his wife. They had ten children, who were raised in the Lanarkshire town.

In Kelly’s local community – and away from football – he was a prominent figure. As well as running pubs, he had other businesses including a hotel and engineering company. He was also involved in local politics and served in various elected positions, including as a councillor, a Justice of the Peace and also on Blantyre school board.

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1931 saw Kelly’s last notable involvement in Celtic history. He accompanied the Bhoys as they travelled to USA, the first time that a Celtic team had played outside of Europe. However, during this trip he complained of head pains, which were said to be connected to an injury that he had sustained when still playing.

The end of James Kelly’s personal story came in the early-1930s. On 20 February 1932, he died as a result of a cerebral thrombosis, which news reports at the time attributed to his head injury. He is buried at St Patrick’s Cemetery in New Stevenston; in 2017, the Celtic Graves Society held a commemoration event at his grave which was attended by fans and club representatives.

James Kelly, Celtic FC

After his death, the Kelly and Celtic connection did not come to an end. His place on the Celtic Board was taken by his son, Robert, and in later years he too would become Chairman. Furthermore, at the time of Fergus McCann’s takeover in 1994, two of James Kelly’s nephews were members of the Board: Kevin Kelly and Michael Kelly.

James Kelly, Celtic FC

If seeking to describe James Kelly’s influence on Celtic, there is no shortage of places to start. He is recorded as playing 139 times for the club, and scoring 11 times, and in fact these figures cover only major tournaments and do not include numerous friendlies and other competitions.

Kelly is part of almost every notable Celtic ‘first’, including first game, first captain, first trophy, first Scottish Cup win, first League title and many, many more. Given that it was his presence in the team that helped attract many of his teammates, it is impossible to overstate his influence.

A famous quote which was once said of him was ‘No Kelly, No Keltic’. Simply, this means that without him, Celtic would never have succeeded in the way they did. For a Celtic man such as James Kelly, there can be no greater epitaph.

Matthew Marr

If you want to learn more about Celtic history, follow Hail Hail History on Twitter/X. You can also take part in a FREE Celtic history walking tour. Visit celticwalkingtours.wordpress.com for more information.

Click on cover to order a hardback copy

Matthew’s debut Celtic book titled ‘The Bould Bhoys – Glory to their name’ was published by Celtic Star Books last year and is available to order HERE. This brilliant book is also available on Amazon Kindle for just £3.49 and includes all photo sections that appear in the hardback edition.

Matthew Marr with his debut Celtic book, Glory to their name, which tells the story of Celtic’s first ever title win. Photo The Celtic Star

Celtic in the Thirties by Celtic Historian Matt Corr is published in two volumes by Celtic Star Books.

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