Latest news with #CelticRangers
Daily Mail
06-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Pele, Muhammad Ali and Tiger Woods all have a place in this treasure trove of sporting memorabilia
IT started with two football shirts. They were placed in the cosy reception area of a small business. The company grew and so did the collection of sports memorabilia. Now, 30 years later, John Horne can reflect on how his business, JR Scaffolding, employs 200 people, And smile at how he became one of the biggest collectors of sports paraphernalia in the country. 'My wife, Annemarie, and myself started the business with 1100 quid,' he says. 'I had no business training. I had no experience of dealing with customers or contacts. We put a Celtic strip and a Rangers strip up in the reception. This was 1995 so they were signed by such as Pierre Van Hooijdonk and Jorge Cadete of Celtic and Ally McCoist and Gordon Durie of Rangers. They broke the ice when people came to visit us. 'They would ask what was my team. I never hid the fact that I was Rangers daft. But a tenner is the same colour no matter who you support.' This is said with a chuckle. Horne, manager director of JR Scaffolding, has watched his business affairs outgrow matters restricted to a tenner. He has lived a life that has taken him from Govan, through a football career that brought close encounters with such as Billy McNeill, and now to a thriving business. The sporting memorabilia, too, has moved to another level. Horne has put up 130 items for auction. These reminders of sporting triumph will help address the pain of human tragedy. The charities chosen for his largesse and that of the bidders will be close to his heart. 'The first is the Emmie Smillie Charity Foundation,' he says. Emmie died of cancer in 2015. 'Her father, Andy, has been my friend, my mentor and my father figure since my own dad passed. He was the one who told me to work for myself, to start my own business. He was the one who allowed us to use his yard and put a wee office in there. I am honoured to help the foundation.' The other charity also has personal links. MND Scotland has been chosen because his close friends are the Souttar family who lost their son Aaron to the disease three years ago, aged 42. The Souttar family, of course, has sporting heroes in the shape of both John and Harry, who play for Rangers and Leicester City, respectively. 'My youngest son, Evan, was at Celtic when he was 10 and so was Harry. They became good friends and so did me and Jack, Harry's dad. MND Scotland seemed an obvious choice.' The auction items reflect Horne's lifelong interest in sport. He has his own stories to tell of playing against Real Madrid youth teams and being praised by Billy McNeill, one of the greatest Celtic heroes. But, first, how and why did he amass such a collection of shirts, boxing gloves, signed portraits and, yes, even a signed Gazza water bottle that brings echoes of a day in 1996 that we need not go into too deeply? 'I would buy the stuff at charity auctions at sporting events and then people would approach me to see if I was interested in something. I was asked if I wanted a signed Jimmy Johnstone strip, for example. I think the guy thought I would be reluctant because I was a Rangers fan but I grabbed it right away,' he says. The memorabilia would either be stored or placed in the corridors of his large offices in Paisley. 'We have a dedicated Old Firm corridor and people just come to our offices to see it,' he says. The collection is fascinating for those who love sport. The football highlights include signed objects from Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi, Pele, Brian Laudrup, Graeme Souness, Shunsuke Nakamura and so many others. Boxing fans will be attracted by a signed Muhammad Ali photograph, a signed Lennox Lewis glove and Manny Pacquiao signed shorts. Golfers will set their sights on a Dubai Classic flag signed by Tiger Woods. The auction began on Monday and continues into next week. More than £11,000 has been pledged already but this should soar. 'I suppose I am a wee bit sad about losing some of the stuff but it is the right decision. It will all go to people who will cherish it and the funds will help the charities,' he says. The corridors will now feature images of the works completed by his firm. There will be one refuge in the offices for sporting memorabilia. 'We are building a staff gym and we will put some stuff in there,' says Horne. The 53-year-old businessman also has a museum in his home. It features Tommy McLean's shirt from the 1972 European Cup Winners' Cup final victory against Dinamo Moscow in Barcelona. It reached a world record £19,000 for a Scottish football strip. He also has memorabilia signed by Sandy Jardine. This is deeply personal, not just because Horne is a Rangers fan. 'I was signed for Hearts as a schoolboy when I was at Govan High,' he says. 'Alex MacDonald was the manager and Sandy, of course, was his assistant. Both had wonderful careers at Rangers.' Horne's career immediately went in another direction. He signed for Clydebank, playing with such talents as Chic Charnley and Owen Coyle, before signing as a teenager for Hamilton Academical. 'I had a great drive and ambition to make something of myself,' he says.. 'I realised quickly that I was not going to get anywhere fast earning 60 quid a week playing football.' The scaffolding business soon consumed him but he has much to look back on in football terms. He was given trials at Celtic and played in friendly matches and youth tournaments. 'I went to Spain and played in youth tournaments against Real Madrid, Ajax and Sporting Gijon,' he says. 'When I came back to Glasgow, Celtic asked me to play in a friendly. We were not doing too well at half-time and Billy McNeill, then the manager, came in and gave the players a roasting. 'He looked at me and said: ''Sorry, son, but I have forgotten your name.'' I told him and he told the other players: ''Look at him, he's not even signed here and he's playing as if he belongs here.'' Horne was scheduled to play in the Glasgow Cup final but the match was postponed because of a waterlogged pitch. He did play in a bounce match against the first team and that gave him a lasting memory. 'Paul McStay was playing and I have never seen anything quite like him,' he says. He then went to Leicester on trial but came back to Scotland and the Accies. 'I am an honest guy and I didn't do well at Leicester,' he says. 'I also realised that football would not fulfil my ambitions so Annemarie and I started the business.' Their personal partnership extends back to the days when they were just 15. 'We were so young when we started out,' he says. 'We worked hard and we had drive and ambition.' he says. 'We were dealing with big companies and I had no formal training in business or how to talk to these guys. So we had to do it our way and in our style. The Celtic and Rangers strips were a part of that. But we never forget that people helped us along the way. Andy Smillie was a huge part of that and still is.' Those strips hold more than just sporting memories.
BBC News
29-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Sheridan questions 'excitement' around Hearts deal
Cillian Sheridan has questioned the "excitement" around Tony Bloom's £9.86m investment in Hearts and the Brighton owner's intent to challenge for whose Jamestown Analytics already had an ongoing relationship with Hearts, hopes the Tynecastle club can "disrupt the pattern of domination which has been in place for far too long" after completing a deal to buy a 29% stake."Celtic and Rangers will be doing something similar themselves," former Celtic, Kilmarnock and Dundee forward Sheridan told BBC Radio Scotland's Sportsound."I think there's maybe too much excitement about how much of a difference it's going to make." No team outside Celtic or Rangers has won the Scottish top flight in 40 years, with Sir Alex Ferguson's Aberdeen champions in Sheridan added: "£9m or £10m. I don't think that's going to challenge Celtic or Rangers. Celtic could go and buy, and I would imagine they probably will, one player in a transfer in the region of that."It might elevate Hearts above the rest of the pack but I don't think it's enough to challenge the [top] two, really."Last season, Brighton finished eighth in the Premier League, just missing out on Europe. Hearts were seventh in the Scottish Premiership."Brighton's model was, probably similar to Brentford's, getting players at bargain prices," said ex-Republic of Ireland international Sheridan, who is now with Brechin City."They get players who are unheard of. At what stage in the pecking order do Hearts come into it?"Do Hearts get the players that Brighton don't want? Which ones are Hearts getting?"
Daily Mail
21-06-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Lennon Miller's dad Lee confirms Scotland star is set to leave Motherwell this summer... and would favour a move abroad
LEE MILLER has confirmed his son Lennon is primed to move on from Motherwell this summer - with the Fir Park teenager's heart now set on a transfer abroad. The 18-year-old enjoyed a scintillating season in claret and amber, becoming the Lanarkshire club's youngest ever captain and attracting interest from clubs across Europe. This week, new Motherwell manager Jens Berthel Askou admitted he's working on the assumption he'll lose his star player before the season begins. The Steelmen hope to net upwards of £5m for a talent who recently became a full Scotland international. And while Celtic and Rangers have been credited with an interest in the midfielder, his father - the former Falkirk and Aberdeen striker - indicated that his ambitions lie elsewhere. Asked if he believed Lennon would move in this transfer window, he said: 'I think so, yeah. There's a lot of interest in Lennon. I go on Twitter and it's a new club every day. 'In terms of bids going in for him, there's nothing gone in this summer. 'There were a few bids in January and the valuation of Lennon wasn't met, so it's one of those ones we'll just wait. 'Lennon's on holiday now, he's chilling out, just relaxing, ready for the season coming ahead but who knows where that'll be. No idea.' Miller revealed, however, that his son is likely to follow the recent trend of emerging Scottish talents who've sought to broaden their horizons by moving overseas, primarily to Italy. 'His preferable choice would be abroad,' he added. 'He's not just going to go to a club for the sake of it. It needs to have the right environment, it needs to have the right manager, the right club. 'Lennon's not bothered with the money side of things, that'll come. Obviously, it's a short career and you need to earn money. 'But he wants to go and progress his career and then kick on again. 'So, we'll see. I don't know what that'll be. But it needs to be a place where he can then grow again.' Miller looked set to earn a big money move in January until a hairline fracture of his ankle sidelined him. Since then, he's made his full Scotland debut against Iceland with his first start then coming away to Liechtenstein. With speculation surrounding his now future mounting by the day, his father feels it's better for all concerned if that matter is now resolved. 'A bit of uncertainty isn't great,' he said. 'Although, he just gets on with it, he just plays football, that's what he's there to do. 'He just wants to play football whatever it is, whatever it may be. 'But the next move for Lennon is so important in terms of his development.. His development is key in this.'
BBC News
20-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Derbies & festive schedule among Celtic's standout games
The first Glasgow derby of the 2025-26 Scottish Premiership season will be at Ibrox on Sunday, 31 Rodgers' side will make the short trip across the city for a 12:00 BST champions welcome Rangers to Celtic Park for the new year derby on Saturday, 3 January. The final pre-split meeting of the Glasgow rivals is pencilled in for Saturday, 28 about the festive schedule? Celtic host Aberdeen on Saturday, 20 December then complete 2025 with trips to face newly-promoted Livingston and round off the pre-split campaign on Saturday, 11 April the same way they started it - by hosting St at the fixture list, where do you think Celtic will be after 10 games? Share your views here.
