THERE is precious little remaining of Glencraig today. Just a row of houses is all that is left of the once bustling and prosperous Fife mining town.

A motorist passing through on their way from Lochgelly to nearby Lochore on the winding B920 could quite easily miss it altogether.

Yet, a gathering there this afternoon will be every bit as important to Celtic as maintaining their remarkable 44 game unbeaten domestic record in their final three games of the 2016/17 season or landing what would be only the fourth treble in their entire 129- year existence to a small band of their supporters.

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Both Scott Brown, the club captain who hails from nearby Hill of Beath, and Jim Craig, the Lisbon Lion, will be among those to attend a short ceremony to mark the 100th anniversary of the passing of Peter Johnstone.

Johnstone, who played up front, in midfield and in defence for the Willie Maley team which won four consecutive Scottish titles from 1913 to 1917, was reported to have been killed in action aged just 29 on this day exactly a century ago at the Battle of Arras in northern France during the First World War.

Despite Brendan Rodgers’s team being on the brink of adding the William Hill Scottish Cup to the Betfred Cup and Ladbrokes Premiership titles they have already landed this term, Celtic will not let the occasion pass without showing due reverence. The hero from the lost village has not been forgotten.

For Jim Frew, the grandson of Johnstone as well as a lifelong fan of the Parkhead club, the presence of Brown, Craig and other senior club officials at the memorial garden built in the legendary player’s honour and opened two years ago, is a touching gesture.

His name may not have the same resonance of that of Bobby Collins, Billy McNeill, Roy Aitken, Tommy Burns, Henrik Larsson or any other Celtic player to distinguish himself in the modern era. But Peter Johnstone was just as revered in his heyday and his achievements every bit as noteworthy. His story is a remarkable and a tragic one.

“Peter Johnstone was born on December 30, 1887 – just a month or so after Celtic were founded,” said Jim. “Many people think Celtic were founded in 1888. They weren’t. They were founded on November 6, 1887.

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“Peter was 13 when he left school to go and work, as his father had, down the pit in Glencraig. But, like many boys in the area, he was quite a good footballer. He played for Buckhaven Juniors and Kelty Rangers and then for Glencraig Celtic.

“He signed for Celtic in 1908 after impressing in two Scottish Cup games against Strathclyde. He broke into the team the following year. He replaced Willie Loney, who was known as ‘The Obliterator’.

“Willie Maley’s first great team, which won six titles in a row between 1904 and 1910, was breaking up at that time, but he was starting to build his next great side. My grandfather became a part of that.

“He started off at inside left, moved to left half and finished up at centre half. He played in the four-in-a-row team and won 13 winners’ medals in total. His final game was the Glasgow Cup final against Clyde on October 7, 1916. He helped Celtic win 3-2.

“Much has been made of the unbeaten run that Rodgers’s side has been on this season and rightly so.

But Peter Johnstone played when Celtic set the all-time British record. They went 62 league games and 66 games in total without being defeated between 1915 and 1917.”

Jim continued: “My grandfather, who was referred to as Big Peter despite his size, was a Fifer. They tend to be quite outspoken. Willie Maley ruled Celtic with a rod of iron. But, by all accounts, my grandfather had many an argument with him and always stood his ground.

“He was one of the highest paid Celtic players. He received £5 a week. The average wage at the time was just £2 a week. But when war broke out professional footballers’ wages were cut to just £1 a week and they were asked to seek alternative employment to help the war effort.

“My grandfather returned to Glencraig Colliery. He worked 10-hour shifts down the mine which took his wage up to £2 a week. He also owned a newsagents shop at Parkhead Cross and drew £2 a week from it. So he was comfortably off.

“He was in three protected occupations – he was a miner, the sole proprietor of a business and a professional footballer. Footballers were exempted from conscription because the game was considered good for keeping the public’s morale up.

“But after another argument with Willie Maley in early 1916 he volunteered. He joined the 14th Battalion of the Argyll and Southern Highlanders. For a while, he travelled from where they were based in the south of England to Glasgow on a Friday night, went to his home in Dennistoun, played for Celtic on the Saturday and then returned to his unit.

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“In early 1917 he was moved to the 6th Battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders. They came back from the front line for three weeks of rest and recuperation. Because they had lost men the army had to get their numbers up. Peter joined them before they returned to France.

“He was involved in the battle for the chemical factory in Arras in some of the worst fighting of the war.

The battle didn’t, like some others, go on for months, it went on for weeks. But it witnessed some of the fiercest fighting of the war, some of it hand to hand. Around 4000 men a day died.

“My grandfather was reported missing in action on May 12, 1917.

Four days later he was reported to have been killed. There are various stories about how he died. One has it that he was shot by a sniper, another is that he was killed attempting to rescue a comrade. But the most likely story was he was killed by a shell exploding. His body was never found.

“Willie Maley was furious when my grandfather enlisted and when he found out he had lost his life he was distraught. Thousands of Celtic supporters shared in his grief.”

Despite his happiness at the memorial garden being built and his appreciation at Brown, Craig and other officials from Celtic attending the memorial service in Glencraig,

Jim would like a plaque in honour of his grandfather, as well as the other Celtic players, members of staff and supporters who lost their lives in the Great War, at Parkhead. First team players Donnie McLeod, Archie McMillan, Bobby Craig and Leigh Roose were also killed.

A dedication to the memory of Peter Johnstone is inscribed in Bay Eight of the Arras Memorial in the Fauborg d’Amiens Cemetry in France. There is currently nothing, though, at Celtic Park.

Celtic have spoken with the sprightly 74-year-old season ticket holder from Muirhead in the past and offered to erect a plaque in both the tunnel and the boardroom at Parkhead. But he feels that it should be on public display where supporters can pay their respects.

“It has really got to be at the front of the building so people can see it and spend a few moments in quiet reflection,” he said.

“Queen’s Park lost men in the war. They have a plaque inside the reception area at Hampden. Dunfermline have got a memorial in the stand at East End Park. Hearts have got a memorial to McCrae’s Battalion at Haymarket.

“I have offered to pay for it myself. It wouldn’t just be for one person.

It would be for all the other Celtic players, members of staff and supporters who lost their lives in the First World War, for all of the members of the ‘Celtic Family’ who made the ultimate sacrifice.”