The Thistle Archive

The Bobby Lawrie story is similar to many who played in the most famous of Partick Thistle teams on 23 October 1971. He arrived at Firhill from Irvine Meadow in 1969 and his introduction to first team football at Firhill was hardly in ideal circumstances. After the gloriously exciting decade that the 1950s were for Partick Thistle, the 1960s, aside from the title challenge of season 1962-63, were a downward spiral for Partick Thistle. The last full season of the decade had seen Thistle finish fifth from bottom. Not relegated since the start of the century, the writing was nevertheless on the wall for the club.

The 1969-70 season was an unmitigated disaster for Thistle from start to finish. The League Cup threw up the humiliation of an 8-1 defeat at the hands of St Johnstone and early League form wasn't exactly providing much room for optimism either. It was in these bleak circumstances that winger Bobby Lawrie was handed his debut against Clyde at Shawfield in September 1969. It would be nice to report that Lawrie helped turn the tide in Thistle's favour but it didn't happen that way. Thistle lost their fourth straight League game that afternoon. Indeed in a season where Lawrie would play 21 times for Thistle he was part of a winning Thistle team on just three occasions. Not surprisingly given that kind of form, Thistle were relegated at the end of the season.

Better times though were just around the corner and Lawrie, and a whole crop of young players, would have time to develop in the Second Division in 1970-71. Davie McParland took control of first team matters and under his influence players like Bobby Lawrie really started to come to the fore. There were a few hiccups along the way, particularly in the opening few months of the season, but once Thistle got going there was no stopping them. Promotion was clinched with four games of the season still to play with the title following just a couple of weeks later. Lawrie's contribution to that success was significant. Described as a "direct, fearless winger" with "two good feet" and "promise and power on the wings" he played over 30 games and chipped in with a more than useful nine goals including one of Thistle's two in the title clinching fixture against Queen's Park at Firhill. The following season he would score an even more high profile goal.

The story of Thistle's League Cup win of 1971 hardly needs to be recounted but Lawrie's contribution to the 4-1 victory needs to be highlighted. It was Lawrie's 15th minute goal, perhaps with a deflection off Celtic defender, that gave Thistle a 2-0 lead. It was also his free kick that led to Thistle's fourth towards the end of an amazing first half. Lawrie's contribution to Thistle in the first half of the 1970s though was much more than a goal and an assist in the League Cup Final. In the League Cup winning season he played in all but two of Thistle's 34 League games and he remained a regular squad member for the next three seasons as well. Lawrie appeared in the Thistle first team for the last time in September 1975 as a substitute in a win against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park. After his departure from Firhill he had a spell down the west coast with Stranraer. After leaving Stranraer he joined Ardeer Thistle and re-established a relationship with junior football in Ayrshire. It was a relationship that would last for a further 25 years.

After a spell at Troon, in 1995, he became manager of Whitletts Victoria, one Ayrshire's least fashionable – in an unfashionable world - junior teams. Based in Ayr they received next to no support, and resources were frequently stretched to breaking point. So much so that as late as 2001 and at the age of 54 Lawrie would still pull the boots on to help out on the field. Not that his commitment stopped at playing. At the height of Thistle's financial problems in season 1997-98 he auctioned off his prized League Cup Winners medal from 1971, the proceeds of which were split equally between the 'Save the Jags' campaign and Whitletts Victoria. For that gesture alone Bobby Lawrie deserves the title of a 'Thistle Great'.