All at Dundee FC are saddened by the death of former winger Billy Campbell, at the age of 81.
Campbell was a speedy, impish, but lightly built winger. Billy played for Dundee in the 1967 League Cup Final and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup semi, the same season in a four-year Dens Park spell during which he earned 6 full caps for his country.
William Campbell was born in Belfast on July 2nd 1944, and was brought up on the Shankhill Road. He made his footballing debut at the age of just 16 for Belfast club Distillery, having been spotted playing for the Boys Brigade, and he was soon attracting the attention of cross-channel scouts.
In September 1964, Sunderland agreed a £7,000 fee for the 20-year-old Campbell’s signature and made his League debut in a 3-0 First Division defeat by Sheffield United in November. Over the following two seasons, he made just four further appearances, and although his impact at Roker Park was limited, Billy did win his second Under-23 cap for Northern Ireland.
During the summer of 1966, the outside-right was brought to Dens Park by manager Bobby Ancell, and the Irishman made his debut in a League Cup sectional tie on the opening day of the 1966/67 season.
Unusually in those days, Billy wore contact lenses, and the short-sighted Campbell once played a lovely ball to a rather bemused ball boy. However, he soon became a regular in the Dundee side and a favourite with the fans, and after winning a third Under-23 cap against Wales in February 1967 – his first international honour as a Dee – he made his full debut for Northern Ireland in a 1-0 win over Scotland at Windsor Park in October.
A week later, Billy was in the Dundee side which lost 5-3 to Celtic in the 1967 Scottish League Cup Final at Hampden. He played in all ten matches in the cup run, scoring both home and away against Motherwell in sectional ties, but ultimately had to be content with a runners-up medal against the reigning European champions in what is regarded as one of the best Scottish finals of the Twentieth century.
Three days after the final, Billy lined up on the right wing against Royal Leige in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup second round tie at Dens. By then, The Dee had defeated DWS Amsterdam in the first round and, after dispatching the Belgians 7-2 on aggregate and FC Zurich (1-0 both home and away) in the quarter-finals, met the mighty Leeds United in the semis, fifty years ago this week.
Campbell had played in all six ties en route to the semi and would play in both matches against Don Revie’s side, but after a 1-1 draw in the first leg at Dens, it was the English side that progressed to the final after a 1-0 win at Elland Road.
Club v Country rows were as prevalent in the Sixties as they are today, and Dundee had to withdraw both Billy Campbell and Sammy Wilson from the Northern Irish team scheduled to meet Wales in February 1968 due to a cup replay with Rangers.
He did, however, play against England at Wembley earlier that season in a match that doubled up as a British International Championship match and a Euro 68 qualifier and the following season scored his one and only goal for his country in a 4-1 win at home to Turkey in a World Cup qualifying tie.
Strangely, he wasn’t selected for the next four internationals but returned to face the Soviet Union towards the end of the 1968/69 season. In total, Billy went on to win half a dozen caps for his country – all as a Dundee player – his last two coming against Scotland in Belfast and Wales in Cardiff in April 1970.
By then, he had also played his last game for Dundee and in the summer of 1970, four years after arriving at Dens Park, Billy moved on to Motherwell in a swap deal for winger Jimmy Wilson.
Billy served Motherwell for four seasons before returning home to be player/manager of Linfield in a move the Belfast Blues would have welcomed four years earlier, had they not been outbid by Motherwell. Campbell spent a successful eighteen months at Windsor Park, leading them to the Irish League title in 1975. He impressed many at the club with his knowledge and professionalism.
Campbell returned to Scotland, finishing his senior playing career with Hamilton Academical, making his debut on Boxing Day 1976 in a 1-0 win over Morton. But he made just two further appearances, scoring in a 2-1 defeat by Arbroath, and bowing out following a 1-1 draw with Dumbarton. He later played with Lossiemouth in the Scottish Highland League and in the early Eighties returned to Fir Park as assistant manager to Bobby Watson.
At Dens, Campbell is remembered fondly as providing pace as part of an attractive attacking blend that included Jocky Scott, Jim McLean, George McLean and fellow Irishman Sammy Wilson, who took the Dark Blues to a major cup final and a European semi-final.
Our thoughts are with Billy’s family and friends at this painful time.
Rest in peace, Billy.
Biography by Kenny Ross, Club Historian
