A few months ago I wrote about the football publications of the Simmath Press, an obscure Dundee publisher who covered a wide range of Scottish clubs in the late 1940s and early 1950s.
   Although prolific, they were not the only small publisher to attempt to cash in on the post-war boom in Scottish football. I have collected a number of club brochures from the 1940s which were produced by two small Glasgow publishers, and which are now rare and sought after.
   The trend began with Argyll Publishing Company of 65 Jamaica Street, who brought out three pictorial souvenirs in 1947, covering Celtic, Rangers and Hamilton Accies (pictured below). The first two had obvious commercial potential, the latter perhaps less so. Retailing at a shilling each, they offered photos and information, printed A4 on good quality paper, and seem to have been approved by the clubs as they contained welcome messages from the managers William Struth (Rangers), James McGrory (Celtic) and James McStay (Hamilton). The number of pages were determined by the number of adverts sold, hence the Rangers had 36 pages, Hamilton had 32 and Celtic had 24.

Those three appear to represent the total output of Argyll, but the idea was seized upon by another Glasgow firm, Galbraith Publications of 12 Renfield Street. In 1948 they began to issue a wide range of similar souvenir pictorials, under the banner of the British Football Annual. Focussing on the west coast clubs they also reached to Edinburgh and, somewhat surprisingly, to Manchester; but they avoided Celtic and Rangers. Galbraith produced at least a dozen brochures, selling at a shilling each, although a couple of the later ones were sixpence.
   They have a great deal of contemporary charm, with good information about the players and the staff at the clubs, and are all well illustrated, but are light on statistical detail. Sizes range from 24 to 36 pages, again depending on advertising sales, and they are all A4. The Third Lanark brochure even has a colour team photo.   

Somewhat surprisingly, Galbraith also ventured into junior football with the Lanarkshire League pictorial, which provides a fascinating insight into a little known area of Scottish football with some rare team photos of obscure and long lost teams like Douglasdale Juniors and Douglas Water Thistle. It extends to 32 pages.

Having been so prolific in 1948-49, perhaps the financial reality was not so rosy for Galbraith. Sales must have been disappointing as I can find no record of them producing any other publications, and indeed their office in Renfield Street was used to sell vacuum cleaners and washing machines. 
   Here is a checklist of all the known brochures in the British Football Annual series: Airdrieonians, Clyde, Dunfermline Athletic, Elgin City, Falkirk, Hearts, Hibernian, Manchester United, Morton, Motherwell, Partick Thistle, Queen of the South, St Mirren, Stirling Albion, Third Lanark and Lanarkshire League. If anyone can add to that list, please let me know.

Over seventy years on, the tour of Britain by Dynamo Moscow retains a legendary status. The four matches played by the Russians in November 1945 enthralled vast crowds, concluding with a match at Ibrox against Rangers.
   Yet there was a real risk the final match might not have taken place, after the Russian team refused to play if Rangers fielded their newest signing, Jimmy Caskie. Guest blogger Douglas Gorman has taken a fresh look at the controversy, and you can read his article here.
   Jimmy Caskie, a diminutive left winger, came to the fore with St Johnstone in the 1930s and after starring for the Scottish League select he joined Everton in 1939.