Football mourns the tragic death of Tenerife striker Jesus de Miguel
Today, De Miguel died as a result of head and chest injuries sustained following a collision with FC Andorra’s goalkeeper, Jesus Owono.
The issue of death on the pitch is something which has obviously affected Celtic, not least one infamous incident in the 1930s. The first Celtic connection with an on-field death involved a player that had not yet pulled on the club’s green-and-white striped jerseys.
Dan Doyle went on to be a Celtic captain and club legend. But before this, he spent much of his career in England, including a period at Grimsby Town. During one game against Staveley in 1889, Doyle clashed with opponent William Cropper. The latter player sustained stomach injuries, and this led to his death. Doyle was cleared in a subsequent inquiry of any deliberate action.
This was far from the only such incident in this era. So often did players die or sustain serious injury that one newspaper in the 1890s used to publish what they called an annual ‘Butcher’s Bill’ of incidents across the previous year.
There was a strange story featuring a former Celt, Mick McKeown. In 1891 – after moving to play for Blackburn Rovers – McKeown was involved in an incident with Joe Schofield during a game against Stoke City.
Nothing of great significance seemed to come from this, except newspapers later reported that Schofield had died as a result of his injury. Bizarrely, this was then contradicted a few days later; Schofield was still alive and went on to continue playing, including later games at Celtic Park.
Another Celt involved in an on-field death was goalkeeper Thomas Burns. He appeared for the Bhoys in the early-1890s, including as part of the club’s second triumph in the Glasgow North Eastern Cup.
After leaving Glasgow, Burns moved to Blyth in the north-east of England. In the midst of one 1893 fixture, the ‘keeper received a heavy blow to the chest, breaking three of his ribs. Although it was believed he had recovered, he later collapsed and died with some people blaming this on his injury.
Of course, Burns was certainly not the only Celtic goalkeeper to meet such a tragic end. In September 1931, the Celts went to Ibrox to face Rangers in a league match.
At one stage, John Thomson raced from the Celtic goal to get the ball but instead his head connected with Rangers’ Sam English. Thomson was rushed to hospital but died that night when aged only 22.
In the years since then, deaths connected to on-field events have thankfully largely disappeared from Scottish football, although sadly not entirely.
The most recent example also had a Celtic connection. Former player Phil O’Donnell appeared for Motherwell against Dundee United in 2007. Tragically, he collapsed mid-game and died as a result of a heart attack, leading to widespread sadness and tributes.
As a contact sport, football will always carry the potential risk of injury. The more extreme violence which featured in football’s early years has thankfully disappeared, but there remain examples found around the world of when the game can end in tragedy.
This latest event involving Jesus de Miguel, is a sad reminder. The player, his family and team will now have the same sympathy that has unfortunately been extended to different Celtic figures throughout history.
