Bobby Murdoch, who died on May 15th aged 56, was a crucial member of the Celtic football team which, in May 167, became the first British club to win the European Cup, beating Internazionale of Milan 2-1 in Lisbon.
Their nickname, the Lions of Lisbon, has survived the years, as indeed has the admiration and affection in which Bobby Murdoch was held by other members of that Celtic team.
Inter were strong favourites in that game and took the lead. In the second half Tommy Gemmell put the sides level, and the winning goal came when Bobby Murdoch, who was beginning to stamp his authority on the game, shot - he had a very powerful right foot - and Steve Chalmers diverted the ball home. Jock Stein, Celtic's manager and architect of their success, described Bobby Murdoch that evening as the team's best player.
It was Stein who so successfully converted Bobby Murdoch from an inside-right into a right-half, controlling the midfield play with his excellent technique and perceptive passing.
"To watch Bobby was an education. He could shape to make a pass with his right foot and then turn on a sixpence and make the same pass with his left. He had radar vision, marvellous at putting long balls into a clear space," was how a former team-mate described him. Bobby Murdoch was born in Rutherglen and began playing for his school under-12s at the age of seven. He left school at 15 and took a job as a sheet metal worker. At about the same time he began training with Motherwell, but soon signed for Celtic, turning professional at 17. He made his debut in 161, when another player turned up for a game without his boots.
The following year, he badly damaged his right ankle in a collision with the Hearts goalkeeper, Gordon Marshall. The injury never really mended, but he bravely played on. In 15, a tribunal decided that this was an industrial injury, which entitled him to compensation.
"I had to play through the pain barrier," he said. "This is a victory for all injured footballers."
It was surprising that he should win only a dozen caps for Scotland, the first in 165 against Wales, the last in the 1965-70 season versus Austria. In April 16 his powerfully-struck goal gave Scotland a 1-1 draw against West Germany in a World Cup eliminator in Glasgow. He made 44 appearances for Celtic between 1962 and 1973, scoring 105 goals. He won eight championships, four Scottish cups, five league cups and was Scotland's player of the year in 1969. In September 1973, to his dismay, Jock Stein gave him a free transfer to Middlesbrough. "I think Jock wanted more runners in the team," he said, "but that didn't really make sense to me, because you can cover the ground a lot faster with a good pass than you can by running."
He was manager Jack Charlton's first signing, scored on his home debut and missed only two games that season, when Middlesbrough won the second division title. He finished his playing career in 1975, after almost 100 games for Middlesbrough, and then joined their coaching staff.
In 1981, he became manager, but in his first season in charge the side were relegated to the second division; the following season, he was just about to tee off on a golf course when called back to the club and dismissed.
His health was often poor: hip trouble forced him for a time after retirement to walk with a stick, he had to conquer alcohol problems, and by the summer of 1987 his life was a disaster. The pub he ran had failed, he had been made bankrupt and his wife Kathleen had left him, though his son John stayed by his side. Bobby Murdoch is survived by his wife Kathleen, two sons and a daughter.
Robert (Bobby) White Murdoch: born 1944; died, May 2001