For an unholy Catholic like me who’ll require snookers to get into heaven the prospect of Tommy Burns joining the pantheon of saints is a beguiling one.

During his lifetime, the former Celtic player was blessed with a gift considered sacred in the West of Scotland: the ability to play football so well that it could lead to life-changing moments that occasionally seemed transcendental.

“Tommy twists; Tommy turns, Tommy Burns,” we used to sing to John Philip Sousa’s immortal “The Stars and Stripes Forever” as the silky playmaker seemed to glide past opposing defences as though guided by some unseen presence.

Yet, it was in the way that the flame-haired midfielder led his life away from football that has compelled a group of Scots Catholics to initiate the process for his canonisation.

The news that Tommy Burns may soon become only Scotland’s second post-Reformation saint was broken yesterday in the Diocese of Paisley’s official podcast. This fact alone means that the cause for sainthood is being taken seriously by the Catholic Church in Scotland.

Those who were close to Mr Burns before he died of skin cancer in 2008 have often borne witness to his personal virtues as a human being and his faithfulness to the Catholic Church.

His death also bequeathed to us one of the most profoundly moving images of a city divided by tribal passions. Ally McCoist, one of Rangers’ greatest-ever players, carried the coffin of his old rival alongside Walter Smith the legendary Ibrox manager. As he bore the body of his friend and rival from St Mary’s Church in the Calton, Mr McCoist wept openly.

Tommy Burns with his great friend and rival, Walter Smith........

© Herald Scotland