Tommy Burns

[The Tartan Hoop]

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11781_3568658,00.html

one word, gutted.

My best wishes go to the family, friends and the team that he loved. :(

[Redondo85]

Bloody hell, i was not expecting this at all.

A real model professional on and off the park.

RIP. :(

[Gordon EF]

R.I.P. Tommy:(

Always seemed like a decent man who was passionate about Celtic and Scotland.

[bobbybhoy1]

Ynwa...

[Burkies Ginger Mop]

Pretty gutted about this. Again it seems like one of the good guys goes before his time.

[celtic76]

A class act and a legend at Parkhead. Best wishes to his family.

[rooster]

A gentleman, and true football man. R.I.P

[celtic76]

http://www.randalstowncsc.co.uk/home/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=217&Itemid=2

Sign the Petition !

[Fonsos]

This is truly a sad day for the entire world of football.
When you think of Tommy Burns, you can't help but think
of pure class on every level.

Fonsos

[frasermc]

so sad with this news this morning.

Tommy, you were an inspiration as i was growing up. you played football the way it deserved to be played. your team's did the same.

you are a true great. a Celtic legend

thank you for all the memories.

god bless you. You'll Never Walk Alone.

http://www.sporting-heroes.net/files_football/BURNS_Tommy_19890311_GH_R.jpg

Tommy Burns 1956-2008

[Lanesra]

R.I.P
Todays players could learn a lot about loyalty from a man like him

[frasermc]

Celtic chairman John Reid: “The passing of Tommy Burns is devastating news and my sincere and heartfelt sympathies go to Rosemary and Tommy's family.

“Tommy is someone who was loved by so many of us. He was a man of true integrity and dignity. As a Celtic player, manager and coach, Tommy served Celtic with distinction and true professionalism.

“He was a true gentleman and someone who had the ability to connect and engage with anyone he met.

“As Celtic supporters we recognised Tommy as one of our own and Tommy in turn was always delighted to spend time in the company of fellow fans.

“It was a privilege to know Tommy Burns. He was a man who gave so much to the club he loved over so many years.

“Tommy's passing will be mourned by the entire Celtic family. He will be hugely missed by us all, but he is someone we will never ever forget.”


Our manager: “Of all the signings I’ve made, the most important thing I did when I came to Celtic was bring Tommy into the coaching team,” said an emotional Celtic manager.

“Through his intelligence, common sense and humour, he made me understand what Glasgow was all about. Without him, I would have gone off my head! Tommy kept me sane at times.

“It was just a privilege to be in his company every day. I worked with him every day, laughed and joked with him, and it’s been like that for three years. That’s why the loss has hit us so hard.

“I came to Celtic three years ago and it’s been a fantastic journey. But the best part of it is being able to call Tommy Burns a friend for the last three years.

“No disrespect to the football, but being Tommy’s mate for three years has been the best part of coming to this club.

“We’re talking about legends here, but I’ve always said that people won’t just be judged as a footballer – and there weren’t many better than Tommy – but as a person. He’s top of the league when it comes to being a man.

“I think there’s a difference between legendary footballers, and legendary men. I know what I would like to be remembered as.”

[frasermc]

Funeral arrangements:

The funeral of Tommy Burns will take place on Tuesday, May 20, 2008 at St. Mary's Church, Abercromby Street, Calton, Glasgow. The Requiem Mass will begin at 12.15pm.

St. Mary's is a parish which Tommy was extremely close to personally. St. Mary's Church Hall was also the birthplace of Celtic Football Club, when in November 1887, Brother Walfrid along with others discussed the establishment of a football club to feed the poor in the East End of Glasgow.

Unfortunately, due to restrictions on seating at the church, access to the service will be predominantly for family, friends and club representatives and there will only be very limited public access.

Following the Requiem Mass, the funeral cortege will pass by the Main Stand at Celtic Park where supporters will have the opportunity to pay their respects to Tommy Burns.

[Shipdawg]

What a wonderful person.

I had the pleasure of meeting Tommy around 9 years ago while I was taking a tour of Parkhead. It was in the trophy room. I went with our youth club and we were touring thru Scotland.

I remember the conversation as if it were today. We talked for about 20 minutes on the state of youth soccer and development of the game and players in the United States. It was a great conversation and I could not believe he had more questions for me as opposed to me asking him.

Incredible person.

Hail Hail......

[frasermc]

lifted this from the BBC forum. many thanks to the person that posted it there. he's a Killie fan and i felt it should be posted for us to remember that he played a big part in a lot of Kilmarnock fan's lives as well,


"Hearing the news on the radio this morning I drove in to work with a tear in my eye. Strange to be so moved by the death of someone that I didn't know personally, and I'm never fond of hollow-ringing public outpouring of grief.

I'll miss Tommy Burns as a senior figure in Scottish football and as one of the most important figures in the history of Kilmarnock Football Club. I started to follow Killie as young 'un just as we were scrapping our way out of Division Two and decided to hop on the bus or moan at my dad to take me along to see my local club. In the early days I certainly wasn't expecting, or getting, entertaining, earth-shattering football and big-name signings. It didn't really feel a great deal more impressive that my friend who plodded along to see the Juniors every week.

For me that all changed the day Tommy Burns signed for Kilmarnock. I'd been aware of him and admired him as a player because my dad and most of his family are Celtic fans, and to see a player of his quality playing in the blue and white stripes at a fairly ramshackle Rugby Park was something altogether new for me - I felt like I'd suddenly been given a free ticket to silky soccer which I'd previously only ever seen on television and wasn't altogether sure existed in real life.

As a player he was an inspiration, and undoubtedly a true hero for me. The agony on his face as his long-range lob bounced over the bar, the joy a he slumped to his knees after guiding us to survival in the Premier League at Hibs - memories which he has gifted me and which I'll always treasure.

As a manager, he began to introduce the feeling that maybe 'big time' wasn't just something reserved for other fans, something for Old Firm fans to rib me about, something to watch on television. Suddenly players my dad and other had told me about were playing for Kilmarnock and we were not only gaining promotion but surviving and holding our own, mainly thanks to TB.

He tapped into my own dream that football could and should be exciting, dramatic and entertaining, and he did it at Kilmarnock! A bus journey away from home! Instead of being jealous that Barcelona, Madrid, Man United fans had inherited all that excitement through a freak of birth I got to enjoy it for myself.

Of course, all good things come to an end. What manager wouldn't attract bigger clubs after the level of success he'd had at Kilmarnock, and with inevitability, Celtic came calling, and Tommy Burns left Kilmarnock Football Club.

Was I angry? Maybe, naively, for a little while. Was I disappointed? Oh yes. It felt like being dumped for the first in school all over again. But I knew fine well that I'd have jumped at the chance of managing the team I love, and couldn't hold it against him for long - anything else would have been pointless.

Always a gentleman, Tommy managed to act with the same class off the pitch as he had so often exhibited on it for Kilmarnock, Celtic and Scotland. I don't throw the word 'hero' about too often, but he was, and is, a true hero to me. I'd started to follow Kilmarnock before him, but he's responsible for getting me hooked.

I'll miss him. Best wishes to all his family and friends. Rest in peace Tommy - a football legend."

[frasermc]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2337/2494949270_bbb5a9a575_o.jpg

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[frasermc]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2391/2494950602_ef18213f75_o.jpg

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[frasermc]

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2397/2494952930_d2c22399f2_o.jpg

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all pictures from Kerrydale Street.

[frasermc]

Tommy Burns YNWA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCWcWS5ZOgM)

[frasermc]

a big thank you to Rangers FC for cancelling their proposed open top bus tour as a mark of respect and for their kind words,

Rangers Football Club was shocked and saddened to learn of Tommy Burns' tragic passing.

He was admired and respected by supporters of all clubs and indeed everyone involved in Scottish football.

The game has lost a true legend today and our thoughts are with Tommy's friends and family at this difficult time.

Tommy could teach us all a thing or two regarding our two clubs.

in his own words,

"I think the saddest thing about the Old Firm rivalry is the people who have lost their lives after these games in the past, for such stupid reasons," he once said.

"This is football. I remember Jock Stein always said that: it's just a game.

"To think that people can go out with hatred in their heart and take away people's sons or brothers or fathers is just beyond belief. That's the way I think about it now: it's only a game.

"Educate the kids to integrate with one another and not pay any attention to who's a Catholic and who's a Protestant, and any of that rubbish.

"Just go out there, support your team, make good friends and get on with your lives."