ON A scorching hot day in May, 1967, Dorothy Connor settled down to watch Celtic play Inter Milan in the final of the European Cup at the Estádio Nacional in Lisbon, Portugal.

It was a game the Glasgow club was not expected to win - but they did, by two goals to one.

Rutherglen woman Dorothy Connor remembers the victory well – because it inspired her to take a chance which changed her life.

Glasgow Times: Dorothy Connor with her dad, Jack, and brother, DouglasDorothy Connor with her dad, Jack, and brother, Douglas (Image: Dorothy Connor)

“By late afternoon, the streets of Glasgow were deserted that day – all the big engineering works, shipyards, offices and colleges had closed early so everyone could get home to see the match,” she recalls.

“It was an early kick-off - 5.30 - and as I sat down with my mum, dad and my brother there was an air of great excitement, a bit like Hogmanay.”

After the final whistle, says Dorothy, “Rutherglen erupted”.

READ MORE: 'The only way is up': The fascinating story of Glasgow's infamous high-rises

“My brother went out with his pals and wasn't seen till the next day,” she laughs. “My mum and dad went down the Main Street to see the crowds throng in the street. It didn't matter whether you supported Celtic or not, it was a matter of national pride for many. The first time a British club had lifted a major title in Europe. The underdogs had won the day. It was the stuff of dreams.”

Dorothy recalls: “That night, I went to a careers event at Rutherglen Academy where I met a tired and jaded newspaper reporter, who told me that my ambition to be a journalist ‘was just not going to happen.’”

As all the boys who came to speak to him were handed leaflets and told apprenticeships could be arranged for them, Dorothy says she left with the following words ringing in her ears.

“It's no job for a nice wee lassie like you, why don't you be a nurse?” she laughs.

“But I had just watched the game of the century. They said Celtic could never do it but they did. So I went home and wrote out my plans for the next few years. I would pass all my exams, become an expert shorthand writer, and get the job of my dreams.

“At 16 I left school with all my Highers and worked for the NHS and in public relations, all the while writing to every local newspaper in the country. I finally got a junior reporter job, even though the advert said: ‘Young man, 20-24 wanted, with previous experience.’”

She grins: “I was 17, female and had no experience, but I got the job, probably in no small part because I had the cheek to apply for it.”

Dorothy became an awardwinning journalist and worked all over Scotland. Football was important to her whole family - her grandfather James Kelly founded Rutherglen Ladies FC.

READ MORE: 'Guid oan ye, missus': Glaswegians remember the Queen's visits

Dorothy adds: “I still have that list I made out on the evening of May 25, 1967, having ticked off all my ambitions and many other things I could never have dreamt of. All because a team of Glasgow boys refused to take no for an answer, and neither did this Rutherglen girl.”