Charlie Nicholas paid tribute to Frank McGarvey and insisted his name will be forever etched in the histories of Celtic and St Mirren.
The 66-year-old passed away on New Year’s Day after a brave battle with pancreatic cancer. The striker, who won seven Scotland caps, had two spells at St Mirren, won a big-money move to Liverpool and returned for spells at Celtic, Queen of the South and Clyde in the senior ranks.
McGarvey netted 100 goals in his five years at Celtic and also lifted the Scottish Cup with St Mirren in 1987 in his top-flight career. Former Celtic teammate Nicholas admitted: “Frank helped me improve as a footballer. We were getting taught how to make runs as a striker and Frank just did it naturally. He just didn’t stop running and working. He had tremendous courage, he always wanted the ball and went again and again.
“He never hid. Celtic got the best of him although he won the Scottish Cup at St Mirren and his other club also got their benefits.
“It was a great purchase by Billy McNeill, bringing him back. If I am being honest I think he was truly under-rated. When he was younger he should have got international call-ups.
“He still scored 100 goals and he is in the Celtic 100 club, which was great for him. He helped to make history at both Celtic and St Mirren and will be forever remembered at both clubs.”
Nicholas admitted McGarvey was a joy to be around and always brought a smile to his face. He admitted: “We played together and had a good partnership. There wasn’t a great deal of communication on the pitch, it just seemed to happen.
“He was a guy who was a bit older but he was non-stop laughter. Nothing was taken seriously, until he got on the pitch.
“Frank put his heart and soul into the jersey wherever he played. St Mirren where he started, even at Liverpool where he never got a chance and all the way to junior football. People call him the tin man and others would say he was drilling for oil because he was always running around in circles.
“I remember he scored a hat-trick against St Mirren. I was waiting in the middle for him to cross the ball three times but he he kept turning and turning and then smashed it in the top corner.
"It was a brilliant goal. I remember walking up the tunnel with him and I said I won’t be making another run for you because you don’t like passing. He laughed and then he went into the toilet and was sick because he had put so much effort into the game.”
Nicholas went to visit McGarvey recently in hospital and even though he was struggling he still left his visitors with a smile on their faces. He explained: “I am smiling as I talk about Frank. I will always remember him with a smile on his face.
“Davie Provan, Tony Fitzpatrick and myself went to see Frank in the Royal a few weeks ago. We had a brilliant couple of hours with him. He was just a guy who made me smile.
“I cherished the time we had with him because Frank and we all knew that time was running out. It is still sad now that it happened.
“I will also say his three boys and his daughter have been absolutely extraordinary. They have been there when their dad needed them and Frank will be looking down at them and all his family proudly.”
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