George McLachlan

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George McLachlan
Personal information
Full name George Hardie McLachlan[1]
Date of birth (1901-09-21)21 September 1901
Place of birth Glasgow, Scotland
Date of death September 1964 (aged 62–63)
Place of death Branford, Connecticut, United States
Position(s)
Wing half
Youth career
Crosshill Amateurs
Parkhead
000 Rutherglen Glencairn
1921–1922 Queen's Park
1922 Celtic
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1922–1925 Clyde 62 (16)
1923–1924King's Park (loan) 42 (3)
1925–1929 Cardiff City 140 (22)
1929–1933 Manchester United 110 (4)
1933–1934 Chester 29 (7)
1934–1935 Le Havre
Managerial career
1934–1935 Le Havre
1935–1937 Queen of the South
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

George Hardie McLachlan (21 September 1901 – September 1964) was a Scottish professional

1927 FA Cup Final
.

In 1929, he was sold to Manchester United where he was later appointed club captain. He later played for Chester in 1933 before being appointed manager of French side Le Havre in 1934, where he also briefly played. He returned to Scotland in 1935, becoming manager of Queen of the South. He spent two seasons in charge of the side and also led the team on a 1936 overseas tour of France. He left the club in March 1937 and took up employment as a draughtsman before emigrating to the United States.

Club career

Born in Glasgow, McLachlan began his football career at Crosshill Amateurs before spending time with junior sides Parkhead and Rutherglen Glencairn. He later played for the junior teams of Scottish Football League sides Queens Park and Celtic. With the latter, he stayed for only two weeks before joining Clyde.[1][2] During his amateur career, McLachlan also worked in a number of different jobs, including as a draughtsman and a sailor.[3] McLachlan spent three years with the then Shawfield Stadium football club, interrupted by a short loan spell at King's Park Strollers.[1][4]

Cardiff City

Many

Daily Herald reported that "he delighted City's supporters with his fine form".[7] However his season was ended when he suffered a broken leg in the return fixture against Leicester in March.[1][8]

McLachlan returned from the injury on the opening day of the

1927 FA Cup Final, scoring in the club's 2–0 victory over Darlington in the fourth round.[9] Ahead of the final, the Daily Herald noted that McLachlan and Ernie Curtis had formed one of the "best wings in the First Division".[7] Cardiff went on to win the final on 23 April 1927, defeating Arsenal 1–0 with a goal from Ferguson to become the only team from outside England to have won the competition in its history.[5] McLachlan also helped the side complete a cup double by winning the Welsh Cup final two weeks later. He played in all five of the club's matches, scoring in the sixth and seventh rounds against Ebbw Vale and Barry Town United. In the final, Cardiff defeated Rhyl 2–0.[9]

During the 1927–28 season, McLachlan was ever present in the league for Cardiff, appearing in all 42 matches and scoring 11 times. This included playing the final matches of the season as a centre forward in place of the injured Ferguson.[10] McLachlan missed only one senior fixture for the club during the campaign, playing in 50 of the club's 51 matches in all competitions, and helped the side to victory in the 1927 FA Charity Shield by defeating amateur side Corinthian. Cardiff also retained the Welsh Cup by beating Bangor in the final.[10]

The

Firhill.[1]

Later career

Cardiff received an offer from First Division side Manchester United for McLachlan in December 1929 for a fee of around £4,000 (approximately £260,000 in 2020). With the club short of funds, the offer was accepted.[13][14] United's local rivals Manchester City had also submitted a competing bid for McLachlan after manager Peter Hodge had attended his last match for Cardiff.[15] He made his debut for United in a 3–1 win over Leeds United on 21 December before scoring his first goal for the side a week later in a 5–0 victory over Newcastle United. He scored only one further goal during the campaign,[16] but was described as having been "a great success" by The People.[17] During his first year with United, an injury crisis at the club led McLachlan to switch from his usual outside left position to halfback. His performances resulted in him retaining the position on a regular basis and, at the start of the following season, he was appointed captain of the side.[18]

His captaincy of the side started poorly as the team struggled in the First Division and were described by the Sheffield Independent as "the weakest team in the division" in September 1930.[19] The Independent's assessment proved telling as United went on to finish bottom of the First Division, nine points behind their nearest rivals.[20] McLachlan was ever-present during the season, appearing in all 42 league and 4 FA Cup matches, scoring twice. Upon the team's return to the Second Division, McLachlan gradually fell out of favour, appearing in 45 matches over the following two seasons.[16] McLachlan scored four goals in 116 games for the Red Devils in his four years with the club.[1]

In June 1933, McLachlan was appointed as a player-coach at Football League newcomers Chester, who were embarking on only their third Football League season. He left the club after a single year.[1]

Managerial career

McLachlan had a spell as player-manager with French second tier side

Scottish First Division side.[1]

In 1935, McLachlan was the successful applicant out of almost one hundred who applied for the job as manager of top division Dumfries side, Queen of the South. His appointment was announced on 29 June.[1][4] He was one of two applicants on the final shortlist, beating out Queen's Park trainer Bert Manderson who decided to remain with his side.[22] In his first season, McLachlan led the club to a 15th-placed finish.[23] At the end of the campaign, the club undertook an 11-game 1936 overseas tour and the Algiers invitational tournament. Queens returned with the trophy after beating Spanish side Racing Santander in the final.[1][4]

The following season saw further struggles as the club finished in 18th position.[23] On 22 March 1937, with five games remaining of the 1936–37 season, it was announced that McLachlan would be leaving the club on 30 March. The week was intended to allow the outgoing manager to offer advice on team building for the next season. Willie Ferguson was named as McLachlan's successor.[1][4]

Later life

McLachlan moved to Glasgow following his departure from Queen of the South and briefly reported on matches for The Sunday Post. He took up employment as a draughtsman for Babcock & Wilcox until 1947 when he took up a role with Farrel Corporation in Derby, Connecticut. McLachlan later became a French teacher in the Connecticut school system having picked up the language during his time with Le Havre. In 1964, he underwent exploratory surgery due to a persistent stomach complaint. The surgery discovered inoperable cancer and McLachlan died in September the same year at his home in Branford, Connecticut.[1]

Honours

Cardiff City[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "George McLachlan". Queen of the South F.C. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  2. ^ John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  3. ^ "'Pools Vs. Chester". Hartlepool Northern Daily Mail. 3 March 1934. p. 8. Retrieved 28 April 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  4. ^ a b c d "The Queens" by Iain McCartney on Creedon Publications, 2004
  5. ^ a b Shuttleworth, Peter (4 January 2009). "Cup Friends Reunited". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 March 2021.
  6. ^ "The Whirligig of Football". Derby Daily Telegraph. 14 November 1925. p. 4. Retrieved 7 March 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. ^ a b "Cup Final Portraits". Daily Herald. 18 April 1927. p. 8. Retrieved 13 March 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. ^ Shepherd 2002, p. 27
  9. ^ a b Shepherd 2002, p. 28
  10. ^ a b Shepherd 2002, p. 29
  11. ^ Shepherd 2002, p. 30
  12. ^ Shepherd 2002, p. 31
  13. .
  14. ^ "McLachlan Joins Chester". Cheshire Observer. 10 June 1933. p. 16. Retrieved 27 April 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  15. ^ "Promising Roker Park Reserves". Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette. 19 December 1929. p. 13. Retrieved 24 April 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  16. ^ a b "George McLachlan". mufcinfo.com. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Posts Always in the Way". The People. 20 April 1930. p. 17. Retrieved 27 April 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  18. ^ "Manchester United's Hopes". Halifax Evening Courier. 29 August 1931. p. 7. Retrieved 27 April 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  19. ^ Walters, F.C. (22 September 1930). "Wednesday Win With Ease". Sheffield Independent. p. 10. Retrieved 28 April 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  20. ^ "League Division One end of season table for 1930–31 season". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  21. ^ "McLachlan's Success at Le Havre". Cheshire Observer. 6 October 1934. p. 3. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  22. ^ "Queen of the South's New Manager". Belfast Telegraph. 27 June 1935. p. 6. Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  23. ^ a b "Queen of the South". Football Club History Database. Retrieved 31 August 2021.

Bibliography

  • Shepherd, Richard (2002). The Definitive: Cardiff City F.C. Nottingham: SoccerData Publications. .