TRAGIC: A former Celtic star, died at the age of 50 following a brief fight with cancer.

Stuart Grey, a former Celtic player, died at the age of 50, barely months after being diagnosed with a rare cancer.

According to a statement made by the club today, everyone at Celtic is “deeply saddened by the news” and their thoughts and prayers are with Stuart’s family and friends during this difficult time.Celtic players will wear black armbands in honour of Stuart at today’s encounter against Ross County.

Stuart, the son of Eddie and the nephew of Frank Grey, both of whom played for Leeds United in the early 1970s, came through Celtic’s youth systems and made his debut on May 1, 1993, in a 1-0 home win over Aberdeen.

This was the first of 32 games He played for the Hoops and scored once, in a 4-1 home win over Raith Rovers in May 1996.

He joined Tommy Burns’ Reading team in 1998 and spent three years there before moving on to Rushden & Diamonds for four years, where he made 142 appearances.

Dad-of-five Stuart, who resided in Harrogate, started a fundraising drive for his own medical care after being diagnosed with stage four cholangiocarcinoma, a disease that originates in the bile ducts, in September.

He’d been warned that by the time cholangiocarcinoma symptoms appear, it’s usually too advanced for surgery, the only known cure.

Stuart was also diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), a chronic liver illness with no known cure, which doctors suspect may have contributed to the cancer’s progression.

Writing about the Stuart wrote on his brother Nick’s GoFundMe page: “The severity of my disease means that physicians believe my life expectancy to be considerably decreased. However, there are treatments for cholangiocarcinoma that can extend life expectancy and, in rare cases, cure this dreadful cancer, and I am determined to battle it with everything I have.”

After more than £50,000 was raised, Stuart said: “To everyone who gave and sent words and good wishes, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you. It means everything to me and my family to see the support we have.