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With thanks to Calgacus for a few of the posts compressed into this opening post. He posted them during my first attempt. I abandoned them previously due to the amount of research needed.

There is a very plausible argument to suggest that Hibs would have won the league flag that season had Stein stayed on at Easter Road. On March 10th however, he had gone back to Glasgow, to Parkhead, where he would utterly transform the Scottish Football landscape

But what if Jock Stein had not been offered the Celtic Job? In this timeline, the Celtic board decides to hold out until the end of the season to look for a new manager. Stein stays at Hibs......

My new timeline. My first sports timeline.

Fitba.


Glory, Glory to the Hibees.

April 23rd 1965 is a day which will live long in the hearts of the inhabitants of Leith. For the first time in thirteen years, Hibernian Football Club are champions of Scotland after a roller coaster weekend where Hearts, their deadly Edinburgh rivals almost snatched the league flag from under their noses.

Knowing on the Friday when they travelled to Firhill that they needed a win, notched the tension up tenfold, and they left it very late. A winner came though in front of the 7,000 travelling fans, when Pat Stanton headed home with seven minutes to go. Hibs stood on the edge of greatness. They now just needed Kilmarnock to do them a favour and the team from Ayrshire duly delivered.

Things looked bleak for the men from Easter Road when Willie Wallace, the goal machine from Gorgie put Hearts ahead. Things remained steady, and the title looked set to be heading to Tyncastle until the last ten minutes, when Kilmarnock’s young prodigy helped Hibs to the league title with a stunning brace, the winner coming in injury time. Hearts were truly broken. Hibs were the Champions. Jock Stein was clear when asked how he expected Scotland’s champions to do when they took on the best in Europe. "Bring it on." Hibs are back.

Top of the Scottish League.

Team Pld W D L Pnts.
1)Hibernian 34 23 5 7 51
2)Kilmarnock 34 22 6 6 50
3)Hearts 34 22 6 6 50
4)Dunfermline* 33 21 5 7 47

*Dunfermline cannot win titleGlory, Glory to the Hibees.

April 23rd 1965 is a day which will live long in the hearts of the inhabitants of Leith. For the first time in thirteen years, Hibernian Football Club are champions of Scotland after a roller coaster weekend where Hearts, their deadly Edinburgh rivals almost snatched the league flag from under their noses.

Knowing on the Friday when they travelled to Firhill that they needed a win, notched the tension up tenfold, and they left it very late. A winner came though in front of the 7,000 travelling fans, when Pat Stanton headed home with seven minutes to go. Hibs stood on the edge of greatness. They now just needed Kilmarnock to do them a favour and the team from Ayrshire duly delivered.

Things looked bleak for the men from Easter Road when Willie Wallace, the goal machine from Gorgie put Hearts ahead. Things remained steady, and the title looked set to be heading to Tyncastle until the last ten minutes, when Kilmarnocks young prodigy helped Hibs to the league title with a stunning brace, the winner coming in injury time. Hearts were truly broken. Hibs were the Champions. Jock Stein was clear when asked how he expected Scotlands champions to do when they took on the best in Europe. "Bring it on." Hibs are back.

Top of the Scottish League.

Team Pld W D L Pnts.
1)Hibernian 34 23 5 7 51
2)Kilmarnock 34 22 6 6 50
3)Hearts 34 22 6 6 50
4)Dunfermline* 33 21 5 7 47

*Dunfermline cannot win title


Changes ring out at Parkhead.

The summer has got off to an explosive start, with both sides of the Old Firm changing their managers within days of the end of the season. The Scottish Cup winners Celtic, who upon the retiral of manager of twenty years Jimmy McGrory will be looking to vastly improve on their shocking league position of eighth with the appointment of the manager of Dundee, Bob Shankly.

Shankly who led plucky Dundee to the semi-finals of the European Cup just two years ago is seen as a manager whose stock is rising in the Scottish game. Hoops fans will be hoping that he achieves even more success at Parkhead. Shankly made it clear that within days several signings would be present at CelticPark.

It is clear. The Celtic have lost their footing in recent years, and intend to win their place back. Its going to be one hell of a season.



EXPERIMENT WITH LAW AND GILZEAN HANDS SCOTS VICTORY


From Our Glasgow Correspondent



Scotland 2, Spain 0




In the west wind that howled around HampdenPark on Saturday night, Scotland eked out a morale raising victory against a strong Spanish side. Spain were on the attack for most of the game, even in the face of the driving wind in the second half, and in the end the Scots could count themselves lucky to come away the victors.
Fouling, much of which was unusually brutal and stupid, marred the game. Undeniably, the Scots were the first to perpetrate it. Spanish players retaliated and Ravilla, their right back, was ordered off the field, although Scotland could justifiably have been penalized by the same method.

Scotland’s experiment of staging the match on a Saturday night paid off to the extent of drawing a crowd of 61, 457, but the experiment of playing Law at centre-forward seemed to be failing completely. He took a long time to reach any understanding with his team-mate Gilzean. The suggestion that Law, with his quick reflexes, could lead from in front and seize chances near goal - a notable deficiency against England at Wembley - was only realised in the dying moments of the match.

If there had been a real pouncing type of centre-forward, always in the forefront of attacks, then three low crosses from Hughes and Henderson in the second half would not have been missed as they were. Law, sometimes taking part in movements 10 yards behind his half-backs, seemed to be no great problem to the masterly Olivella.
Playing against the strong wind in the first half, Spain immediately displayed the more fluent attacking game which was the main contrast between the two teams throughout; they made the ball glide across the surface like a well-controlled ice-hockey puck. Aguirre was the clever initiator in the first half-hour, but gradually the tall Luis became the dominant figure.

Indeed, it may be said that Scotland were lucky to have avoided going a goal behind because brown, their outstanding player, triumphed in what was almost a personal duel between him and Luis for 10 minutes in the second half. After Hughes had almost succeeded in galloping through where all the accredited thoroughbreds of the Scottish front line had failed, the Spaniard did the same, although with more elegance.

But his efforts, and those of his team-mates, were mocked by an unlikely passage of play in the final 5 minutes that handed the Scots victory. First Henderson capitalised on a mistake by Iribar in the Spanish goalmouth to tuck home an easy goal that looked like the winner. Then finally, after more than an hour of fruitless endeavour, Gilzean and Law combined in a perfect manoeuvre to justify Mr Stein’s faith in them. A stray pass in the middle of the park fell to Gilzean, who jinked past two Spanish players and flicked a ball to Law, just inside the penalty box. The Manchester United man rose to the opportunity with a perfect headed shot into the far corner of the goal.

SCOTLAND -Brown (Tottenham Hotspur) ; Hamilton (Dundee), McCreadie (Chelsea) ; Bremner (Leeds United), McNeill (Celtic) (Captain), Greig (Rangers) ; Henderson (Rangers), Collins (Leeds United), Law (Manchester United), Gilzean (Tottenham Hotspur), Hughes (Celtic).
SPAIN ---Iribar (Bilbao) ; Ravilla (Atletico Madrid), Reija (Zaragossa) ; Glaria (Atletico Madrid), Olivella (Barcelona) (captain), Zoco (Real Madrid) ; Ufarte (Atletico Madrid), Luis (Atletico Madrid), Marceline (Zaragossa), Aguirre (Bilbao), Lapetra (Zaragossa).
REFEREE---K.Howley (England).


Extracts From Denis Laws Autobiography.
There were three matches that spring, and another five that autumn. Together, they would go a long way towards deciding the winner of the Home Championship (which ran until spring of 1966). But the important part for all of us was the World Cup qualification. To play in the World Cup just next door in England, in front of the fans many of us played in front of week in week out for our clubs, seemed too good to miss.

We had won our first game against Finland at Hampden, and Italy had stumbled already, drawing their second game against Poland in April.
Both Italy and Poland were good teams, but we knew we were at least their equal, and with the promise of a World Cup in England, we were determined to qualify. First up were away games against Poland and Finland again. Then in the autumn, home games against Poland and Italy.



We were told to focus on winning every game up till then. The last game would be away against Italy in December, and if we could qualify before then, that difficult game wouldn’t matter.
Somehow we also had to fit in a couple of Home International games against Wales and Northern Ireland!



The friendly against Spain was a big occasion for us. They were one of the best teams in the world, having won the European Championship the year before, and featured many of the household names from Real Madrid and Barcelona. The team that met us was not their best - quite a few players missing, including the great Gento. We on the other hand had a full team, but I was pushed into the front of attack as part of an experimental tactic. The experiment failed, but somehow we still won the game. I scored our second goal, and we counted ourselves lucky to have got away with it. They all count though!


SCOTLAND WIN IN POLAND


------------



LAW FIRES HAT-TRICK



Poland 1, Scotland 3



CHORZOW, POLAND, May 23. ---Scotland came back from a goal down to win two vital points in their group eight World Cup qualifying match here today. Poland took the lead in the fifth minute of the second half, but Scotland hit back to equalise 25 minutes later. In spite of wet and gusty weather, a crowd of 100,000 turned out to watch the match. Lentner gave Poland the lead with a shot from eight yards as Brown came out in an attempt to save.

COME BACK

Scotland came back with a long range drive from Law after 75 minutes, with Szymkowiak left stranded. He scored again 5 minutes later, this time with a diving header from close range. A scrambled goal-line flick in the closing seconds saw Law take the plaudits as the Poles went home empty-handed. While Poland were much improved on previous matches, Scotland looked unstoppable in the final half hour.
POLAND ---Szymkowiak ; Szeczepanski, Ozlizlo ; Bazan, Gomoch, Grzegorczyk ; Banas, Nieroba, Liberda, Pol, Lentner.
SCOTLAND ---Brown ; Hamilton, McCreadie ; Greig, McNeil, Crerand ; Henderson, Collins, Martin, Law, Hughes.---Reuter
OTHER WORLD CUP RESULTS.---Russia 2, Greece 1 ; East Germany 1, Hungary 2.



SCOTS MAKE HEAVY WEATHER OF IT


Finland 0, Scotland 1




HELSINKI, May 27. ---Scotland maintained their chance of qualifying for next year‘s World Cup finals in England by beating Finland here tonight in a scrappy qualifying tie.
Scotland, who won the first leg 3--1 in Glasgow last September, seldom impressed against the Finns, whose team included 10 amateurs, but their win, which followed their 3--1 win against Poland last Sunday, sufficed to keep them at the top of Group Eight in the qualifying competition.
The Finns fought hard, and their defence was able to keep a tight rein for long periods on the lively Scottish forward line. In attack, however, they seldom impressed. They were slow, kept the ball too close, and gave their opponents time to recover.
Law, at inside-right, once again stood out for Scotland. Finnish critics were full of praise for him. It was he who scored the winning goal 10 minutes into the second half, when a through pass from Willie Hamilton found the striker 10 yards from goal. A superb finish with the right foot provided a bright park in an otherwise poor match.
FINLAND ---Nasman ; Makipas, Kautonen ; Holmqvist, Rinne, Heinonen ; Kumpulampi, Peltonen, Hyvarinen, Ruotsalainen, Nuoranen.
SCOTLAND ---Brown ; A. Hamilton, McCreadie ; Greig, McNeil, Crerand ; Henderson, W. Hamilton, Martin, Law, Hughes.---Reuter
OTHER WORLD CUP RESULTS.---Norway 5, Luxemburg 0.


------------Played / won /drawn /lost/ goals for /goals against/ points
Scotland -----3-------3---- 0----- 0----- 7--------- 2---------- 6
Italy ---------3 ------2 ----1 -----0 -----10 --------1 ----------5
Poland -------2 ------0 ----1 -----1 ------1 ---------3 ----------1
Finland -------4 ------0 ----0 -----4 -----2 ---------14 ---------0

October 21, 1964, Glasgow, Scotland - Scotland 3 - 1 Finland
November 4, 1964, Genova, Italy - Italy 6 - 1 Finland
April 18, 1965, Warsaw, Poland - Poland 0 - 0 Italy
May 23, 1965, Chorzow, Poland - Poland 1 - 3 Scotland
May 27, 1965, Helsinki, Finland - Finland 0 - 1 Scotland
June 23, 1965, Helsinki, Finland - Finland 0 - 4 Italy


Opening day fixtures. 1965/66 season. Scottish First Division. 25th August 1965.

Aberdeen v Stirling Alb
Clyde v Dundee
Dundee Utd v Celtic
Falkirk v St Mirren
Hearts v Hamilton Acad
Hibernian v Partick Thistle
Morton v Kilmarnock
Motherwell v Dunfermline Ath
Rangers v St Johnstone

Gorgie Goal Machine joins Celtic

Shocks were abound yesterday at Parkhead as Hearts leading scorer for the past few seasons, Willie Wallace, signed for a reported £45,000. He stated his goals straight away, to break in as a regular to the Scotland team and to win the league championship with the hoops.


Rangers Sign Cooke.

Dundee’s Charlie Cooke today signed for Rangers for a Scottish Record transfer fee of £75,000. Cooke is said to have been delighted at the move and is looking forward to his new career with the Ibrox Giants. The move comes amid frantic transfer activity from Rangers, who have signed several players including young Tommy McLean from Kilmarnock and Kai Johansen from Greenock Morton....

Stein Resigns as Scotland Manager.

Jock Stein today resigned with immediate effect from his position as manager of the Scotland national team. He announced that it is his duty to attempt to lead Hibernian to European success, and to do so he would have to concentrate his time on events at Easter Road. He summed it up by stating to do otherwise would be unfair.

The SFA are now actively seeking a new Scotland Manager.


Waddell appointed Scotland boss on Full time basis.

Willie Waddell today left Kilmarnock to become the manager of the Scotland national team. The former Kilmarnock manager, who led the RugbyPark team to runners up position in the First Division last season, admitted he was surprised by the approach.

“It is my goal to take us to the goal of reaching the World Cup next season in England.” He announced at the press conference where he was shown to the media at MountFlorida. He added that he was delighted that the SFA had chosen him for the honour of leading the nation.

Waddell replaces Jock Stein, who led Hibernian to the League title last season, and has resigned so he can concentrate on matters in Leith. Whatever happens, Scotland has its first full time manager.


Celtic win at Tannadice.

Dundee United 0 Celtic 2

In a sensational debut, Willie Wallace scored a double as Celtic defeated a weak looking United side at Tannadice yesterday.

Both sides created early chances, with Wallace unable to get enough power on a header after two minutes, whilst Uniteds Swedish talent, Orjan Persson had a header cleared off of the line two minutes later. The turning point of the match was just after quarter of an hour when Uniteds Norwegian Finn Seeman was sent off after allegedly head butting Celtics Jinky Johnstone.

Following this incident, Celtic controlled the game, and were rarely out of the United half. The inevitable occurred after 25 minutes when Johnstone powered a cross which was missed by almost the entire United Defence and met by the head of Wallace who powered the header home.

Celtics dominance continued into the second half, but they just couldn’t break down the plucky Terrors defence.

The Second Half continued much as in the First, with Celtic dominating proceedings. The only surprise was that United held out as long as they did as ten minutes from time, Wallace secured the result with a rasping shot from just outside the area, which left the United keeper helpless.

Bob Shanklys reign at Parkhead has began in the city where he left, and with the result he would have wanted. Celtic got the win.


Opening Day Results.

Aberdeen 2-0 Stirling Alb
Clyde 1-1 Dundee
Dundee Utd 0-2 Celtic
Falkirk 1-2 St Mirren
Hearts 5-0 Hamilton Acad
Hibernian 2-1 Partick Thistle
Morton 0-0 Kilmarnock
Motherwell 0-0 Dunfermline Ath
Rangers 4-1 St Johnstone
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