From his early days as a young fan of St Mirren to his renowned career with Celtic, Dixie Deans made a significant mark on Scottish football, particularly with his memorable performances in cup finals at Hampden Park.

It’s a poignant twist of timing that Deans passed away just as Celtic and St Mirren are set to clash in the Premier Sports Cup final in Glasgow this weekend.

Born in the industrial town of Linwood, near Paisley, in 1946, Deans grew up dreaming of representing his hometown team in their iconic black and white kit.

Though too young to witness the games from the stands, Deans joined the jubilant crowds celebrating the team’s victories in the town.

His football journey eventually took him to Celtic Park, after a stint with Motherwell, solidifying his status as one of the greats in the history of Scottish football.

Celtic icon John ‘Dixie’ Deans sadly passed away earlier this week at the age of 79

The frontman netted over 100 goals for the club, including hat-tricks in two domestic cup finals

He played alongside some of Celtic’s most iconic figures, including Jimmy Johnstone (right)

Cemented by a goalscoring record and two iconic cup final hat-tricks that even today provide an indelible reminder of his lethal prowess as a striker supreme.

As his biographer, I can guarantee there would have been no question of split loyalties in the Deans household over tomorrow’s proceedings. Dixie was a devoted Celtic man, an unwavering love affair that stretched back to the day in 1971 when Jock Stein plucked him from Fir Park until his passing this week at the age of 79.

He was a rapscallion on and off the pitch, possessed of a typical west of Scotland devilment. Authority did not always sit well and a seam of indiscipline was hotwired into his DNA.

Putting him in a Celtic team alongside the likes of fellow scamp Jimmy Johnstone was like putting Dracula in charge of a blood bank.

Stein, however, recognised that beneath the roguishness was a quintessential footballer who, at 25, could provide a deadly cutting edge to a callow team slowly emerging from the shadow of the Lisbon Lions.

And his potency in a two-pronged Celtic attack would provide the perfect foil for a young Kenny Dalglish. It was to be a heavenly goalscoring marriage in the days when they were master and apprentice.

Deans once said of their partnership: ‘He always knew where I was and I always knew where he was. It was almost telepathic. Even at a young age, Kenny had it all.

‘But I like to think I played my part with his footballing education.’

Deans instantly clicked with the Parkhead faithful in the days when the nexus between working- class fans and working-class players was steadfast and intrinsic.

European Cup-winning manager Jock Stein brought Deans to Celtic Park in 1971

That bond continued long after his retirement in his role as a matchday host when he liked nothing better than to regale visitors with tales of a footballing life less ordinary.

Ostensibly, he was the footballer’s footballer.

And, yes, he once really did take would-be footballer and closet Celtic fan Bob Marley under his wing as the curtain came down on his career in Australia.

In contrast to today’s pampered princelings, he signed for Celtic for £50 a week, which was still a decent remuneration and above the UK average.

Before putting pen to paper, he cheekily tried to strong-arm Stein for a signing-on fee, a little bit on the side.

‘This is Celtic, son,’ said Stein in a voice that brooked no equivocation. ‘We don’t do that. But we’ll always look after you.’

Stein’s instincts, honed by a Lanarkshire mining background, understood that Deans was a rough diamond, a rare mineral to be polished and treasured.

He was rewarded with a return of 125 goals in 186 games, a ratio that would be warmly welcomed by Parkhead fans today.

Deans formed one half of a deadly striking partnership with Kenny Dalglish whilst at the club

Dixie once told me: ‘Jock was a big man in every sense of the word. He was definitely not to be messed with.

‘His man-management was incredible. He said if he had got me two years earlier, he’d have made me the best striker in the world. He made you feel 10 feet tall.’

Yet, on occasion, Deans tested Stein’s patience to the shearing point. He made no secret of the fact he liked the odd snifter.

It was not uncommon on a Friday night before a game when the phone would ring in a popular Paisley or Foxbar hostelry.

A shout would ring out from behind the bar: ‘Is there a John Deans in here?’

When Dixie reached the phone and said hello, the caller clicked off. Reporting for duty at Parkhead the next day, he would find his name omitted from the team by a manager who was a strict teetotaller.

His next pay poke would also be considerably lighter.

He said: ‘Jock had spies everywhere. It reached the point where I was rumbled so often I thought someone must be tailing me.’

It was a tactic Sir Alex Ferguson would later adopt to corral wayward players to keep them in check.

Stein also frowned on facial hair. When Dixie lost two teeth in one game and grew a moustache to cover up the damage done to his top lip, Jock demanded he find a razor to remedy the situation tout de suite.

Aside from the odd financial sanction, though, Stein’s loyalty to Deans was resolute.

No better evidence of this can be found than in the aftermath of the night in May 1972 when his infamous penalty miss against Inter Milan in the semi-final of the European Cup cost that team the chance to walk upon the shoulders of those Lisbon giants of 1967.

It was a hellish moment that forever remained frozen in time in his mind’s eye.

He recalled: ‘I felt terrible for big Billy (McNeill), Jinky and Bobby Lennox, but Jock told me not to blame myself. Someone else could have taken a penalty and missed.

‘It was hard to live with but I have to say not one Celtic fan ever gave me grief about it. Not one.’

Deans, though, dug deep into the reservoirs of a gritty personality that thrived on adversity and challenge.

His career began at Motherwell, where his goals took the club back to the top tier in 1969

Deans was capped just twice by Scotland despite boasting an impressive scoring record

Redemption came precisely 17 days later when Celtic faced off at Hampden against Hibernian in the Scottish Cup final.

The 5-2 win was notable for Deans plundering a famous hat-trick. Grainy TV footage that survives from the match captures him at his impish best in front of goal.

His second goal, in which he twice skipped past Hibs keeper Jim Herriott on the goalline, became part of Hampden folklore.

He left the pitch to the sound of adoring supporters chanting ‘there’s only one Dixie Deans’.

‘See wee man, they love you,’ said Johnstone, who remained a lifelong friend.

Two years later in the League Cup final, he again put Hibs to the sword, bagging another three-goal haul in a 6-3 victory to become the first player in Scottish football history to score a hat-trick in two major finals.

His feats in green and white hoops would eventually see him inducted into the inaugural Parkhead hall of fame.

Tomorrow’s showdown between Celtic and St Mirren at the same Hampden arena would have undoubtedly brought a wry smile to his face.

So it seems entirely appropriate that both sets of supporters tomorrow rise as one to remember John ‘Dixie’ Deans, a footballer who embodied the very best traits of his profession as a striker par excellence. Warts and all.

■ There’s Only One Dixie Deans: The Autobiography by Dixie Deans and Ken McNab. Check out: www.birlinn.co.uk