Fraserburgh will face Celtic in a pre-season friendly this summer – 53 years on from the Hoops playing the Broch in a charity game following the Fraserburgh lifeboat disaster.
The Breedon Highland League side will welcome this season’s treble winners to Bellslea on Saturday July 1, with all the money raised from the game being donated to Fraserburgh Lifeboat Station.
On April 28 1970, eight days before they faced Feyenoord in the European Cup final, Jock Stein’s Hoops made the trip to the north-east to face the Broch.
The match was played to raise money for the families of the five crewmen of the Duchess of Kent who died on January 21 1970 when the lifeboat capsized attempting to come to the aid of Danish fishing vessel Opal.
There were plans for Fraserburgh to play Celtic in 2020 – the 50th anniversary – but they had to be put on hold because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Broch chairman Finlay Noble was quick to thank the Hoops for their willingness to return to the north-east.
He said: “Celtic have been absolutely brilliant, they realise the importance of the game 53 years ago.
“It’s a part of their history the fact they came up to play us and they were always keen to replicate it for the 50th anniversary.
“Then Covid intervened, which meant it was pushed back, but Michael Nicholson Celtic’s CEO approached me at the League Cup final and asked if we’d still be keen on having the game.
“I said we definitely would be, so it was agreed once the season came to a close they would have a better idea of when they’d be available.
“We’re not sure what sort of team Celtic will send up, but – regardless of that – it’s a great gesture from them.
“I know the guys at the lifeboat station are absolutely thrilled as well.
“It was just over a week before they played in the European Cup final that they played us.
“Unfortunately they lost that European Cup final, so I don’t know if they blame the Broch for that!
“Jock Stein is one of the most famous individuals in Celtic’s history and also Scottish football history.
“The fact his team came up to Fraserburgh before a European Cup final is a great part of their history.”
Lifeboat station a massive part of the town
Noble says for Fraserburgh and other coastal towns, lifeboat stations are a major part of the community – and he is pleased they will be able to raise money for the RNLI.
He added: “The lifeboat tragedy left a big mark on Fraserburgh as a place.
“I remember as a child in the 70s you used to hear the boom when they let off a flair at the lifeboat station.
“You heard this big booming noise right across the town and then sometimes there was a second one.
“If there was a second one, you knew it was something major and we’d bike down to the harbour to see the lifeboat being launched.
“Whenever you heard that, you always thought: ‘Oh no, something’s happened at sea.’
“That noise was always a big thing for the folk of the Broch and for people in any coastal town.
“The lifeboat station is a massive part of any coastal town.
“All the money raised from the game will be donated to Fraserburgh Lifeboat Station.
“In 1970, the money raised from the game went to the families who had lost loved ones.
“Thankfully there hasn’t been a tragedy like that since.”
Tickets for Fraserburgh v Celtic will on sale at the RLNI Station on Fraserburgh’s Shore Street Monday June 12 and Tuesday June 13.
🖤🤍NEXT HOME GAME🤍🖤
💥ALL TICKET💥
⚽️Fraserburgh v Celtic
🏆RNLI charity Match
🗓Sat 1st July 2023
🌍Bellslea Park
⏱Kick Off 3.00pm
➡️£10 Adult
➡️£5 Concession
TICKET INFO 🧵………. pic.twitter.com/i3BQDumBtK
— Fraserburgh FC (@FraserburghFC) June 5, 2023
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