The Broxburn footballer who swapped shale pits for silverware

Jan 21 2010 by Eric MacKinnon, West Lothian Courier

The Courier takes a look back at the colourful, and often controversial, career of West Lothian’s unsung footballing hero, former Celtic and Hibs star Peter Meechan

He settled well into the Celtic side but his Hoops career ended in controversial fashion after he refused to play a match against Hibs following a player strike in November 1896.

Meechan and two fellow Celtic stars, John Divers and Barney Battles, refused to turn out unless a journalist, who had heavily criticised Celtic following a Glasgow Cup defeat against Rangers the previous week, was removed from the press box.

Initially the whole team refused to play but, in the end, it was Meechan, Battles and Divers who would not back down.

That game, on November 21, 1896, against Rangers, was to be his last with the club as he was banned from ever playing for them again.

The Courier revealed the trio’s fate in an article on December 5, 1896.

“The business committee of Celtic FC met last night to discuss the actions of Meechan, Battles and Divers on Saturday in refusing to play against the Hibs.

“The delinquents were brought in but had no explanation to make, apart from demanding their release from the club.

“This was, of course, refused and they were told to attend a meeting with the SFA when their case would be brought up.

“It was resolved that whatever the action taken by the English and Scottish FA , that the three offenders will never be allowed to play for Glasgow Celtic again.

“The feeling was that nothing less than a 12-month suspension would be sufficient.”

The Courier continued with the story a fortnight later in the Boxing Day edition, when it revealed the Celtic trio were not happy to be left receiving a half -crown pension during their suspension from the team and they reported the players seemed in a ‘sorry plight.’

The tale continued in the next issue, January 2, 1897, when the Courier ran a story under the headline ‘The Celtic Suspends’, revealing one of trio may be offered an olive branch by the club — but unfortunately it was not our Broxburn Bhoy.

“It is believed that the Celtic are contemplating taking back Battles and playing him with Doyle at left-half, thus allowing King to move up to centre position.

“Meechan it is thought will go to Everton and Divers is anxious to share his fortunes with Meechan and may accompany him to Liverpool.

“But Aston Villa are in Glasgow with the avowed purpose of signing the Celtic left winger.”

Meechan did move on to Everton after making 25 appearances for Celtic and scoring one goal.

It wasn’t all bad news for Peter in 1896 though as Peter won a full Scottish cap against Northern Ireland in a 3-3 draw during the Home International Championships at Solitude Ground, Belfast.

Meanwhile, Meechan’s switch to Everton was for the record-breaking sum of £450, but Celtic only received £250 in the deal with Sunderland taking the other £200.

This was because Sunderland still held the player’s English registration, and not because of a sell-on clause as has been reported elsewhere.

On Merseyside, Meechan played 28 times and featured in his first FA Cup final but Everton lost out to Aston Villa at Crystal Palace that day in 1897 — going down 3-2.

The next stop for the West Lothian wonder was the south coast after he penned a deal with a Southampton side then playing in the Southern League.

The deal to take Meechan to Saints was for £200 and he joined an established and successful side packed with internationals and ex-Division One players.

In addition to helping his new side to three successive Southern League championships, Meechan was part of the side who reached the FA Cup Final in 1900.

Southampton were the first southern side to reach the showpiece final in 17 years but once again Meechan found himself at the heart of yet more controversy.

On route to the final, the rampant Saints knocked out three top-flight clubs, including Meechan’s former club, Everton.

But on the day of the game, Meechan, and his Scottish colleagues – including Bob Petrie – were angered by the selection of an out-of-form English forward, Jack Farrell, who had not scored since the previous January, over the free-scoring Roddy McLeod.

The English players wanted their forward in the team and got their way.

But the bitterness between the two camps showed on the field and led to a heavy 4-0 defeat to an unfancied Bury side.

So Meechan was on the move again and he moved to Manchester City in the 1900–01 season, making his City debut in a 2–1 win against Sheffield United.

A year later, he was wearing Barrow colours before his career took him full circle and back to his home town side of Broxburn.

With his football career now behind him, partially because of a dodgy knee, Peter looked to find a better way of life for his family and they upped sticks and emigrated to Canada in 1905, settling in Nova Scotia.

Life across the Atlantic wasn’t all he hoped it would be and his search for work within the football industry in Canada – even the US proved fruitless – and he was forced to go back to mining.

Tragically, Meechan died early at the age of 42 and with his wife, Annie Thompson, expecting their eighth child. Even to this day, his cause of death remains a mystery.

A letter from a great grand-daughter of Peter’s in Canada reveals there are conflicting stories of his passing.

Lynn Munro, of Ontario, Canada, revealed in a letter to Duncan Holley, Southampton FC club historian, that even the family are unsure over the exact cause.

She wrote: “My Aunt Sheila believed he died of an abdominal abscess, which may have been appendicitis.

“But my father told us a story about my great uncle Jim, who was lost in the snow when he was just six years old.

“Peter went out to look for him and ended up with pneumonia, which he never recovered from.

“There is also a story he was suffering from black-lung disease after working in the mines and the pneumonia added to that.”

Peter passed away in Port Morien in June 1915 and he is buried in St Mary’s Cemetery, Nova Scotia.