James McGhee

James McGhee (2 April 1862 in Lugar, Ayrshire – 30 July 1941 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)^[1] was a Scottish footballer who played for Hibernian and Celtic, and later became a manager with Hibernian's city rivals Heart of Midlothian.

Playing career

McGhee began his career in his native Ayrshire with Cronberry in 1878 and then Lugar Boswell two years later before moving to Edinburgh side Hibernian in 1883.^[1] Hibernian had been founded for the benefit of Edinburgh's immigrant Irish Catholic population but the club quickly became a beacon for the Irish-Catholic minority throughout Scotland. They were able to attract players from Irish communities across the country and with this abundant supply of talent they rapidly became one of the dominant sides in Scotland. McGhee was one such player and, as a free-scoring inside forward, he developed into a key part of the side. He is still Hibs record goalscorer against Hearts with at least 24 goals. He scored a remarkable 5 goals in the first 25 minutes in the Rosebery Charity Cup final of 1887, Hibs winning 7–1.^[2]

In 1887, McGhee captained Hibs to victory in the Scottish Cup, the first time a side from the east of Scotland had won the tournament.^[1] A year earlier, alongside teammate, James Lundie, he had become the first Hibs player to be capped by the Scottish national side.^[3][4] Hibs suffered a rapid decline when the foundation of Celtic in 1888 usurped their position as the standard-bearers of the Irish community. After a brief period with St Bernard's, McGhee followed the example of many of his former Hibs team-mates by moving to Celtic. He later ended his playing career with short spells with Dykebar and Abercorn.^[1]

Hearts manager

In 1908, McGhee was hired as manager of Hibernian's

McGhee died on 30 July 1941 in Philadelphia, PA. He is buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery with his wife, Ellen.

References