Jock Simpson
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | John Robert Simpson | ||
Date of birth | 25 December 1886 | ||
Place of birth | Pendleton, England[1] | ||
Date of death | 4 January 1959 | (aged 72)||
Place of death | Falkirk, Scotland | ||
Position(s) | Outside right | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
– | Grange Rovers | ||
– | Laurieston Villa | ||
1905–1911 | Falkirk | 176 | (100) |
1911–1919 | Blackburn Rovers | 151 | (16) |
1916–1919 | → Falkirk (loan) | 91 | (15) |
– | Falkirk Amateurs | ||
– | Falkirk Orient | ||
Total | 418 | (131) | |
International career | |||
1910 |
Scottish League XI | 1 | (0) |
1911–1914 |
Football League XI | ||
1911–1914 | England | 8 | (1) |
1916–1917 | Scottish League (wartime) | 3 | (1) |
1918 | England (wartime) | 1 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
John Robert Simpson (25 December 1886 – 4 January 1959) was a
Club career
Simpson's footballing career began with Laurieston Villa, and after a trial with Rangers, he signed for Falkirk in 1905.[2] The club finished runners-up in the Scottish Football League twice during his six-year spell (1907–08 and 1909–10), and he scored over 100 league goals, sometimes playing at centre forward, including 32 from 33 appearances in 1907–08, the highest total in the country.[4]
In January 1911, Simpson moved to
After a comeback to senior football with Falkirk during World War I (when all official English football was suspended but the Scottish League continued), this being fairly unsuccessful due to the enduring effects of kicks from opponents during his peak years, he finally saw out his final playing years with Falkirk Amateurs, then Falkirk Orient in the Falkirk Wednesday Shopkeepers League.[5] At Falkirk he played a total of 269 Scottish League matches, including the wartime as a 'guest player', scoring 116 goals.[5]
International career
Simpson represented the
He made his full international debut for
He also appeared for the
Personal life
Simpson was born in Pendleton, Lancashire,[2] to Scottish parents who returned to work in their home town of Falkirk within months of his birth.[5] Several family members (including Harry Simpson) were also footballers at local teams, and he was related to the Australian international cricketer Bob Simpson.[5]
After his football career, he settled in Falkirk, running a public house in the town; he died in 1959 and is interred in Falkirk Cemetery.[14]
References
- ^ a b Profile at Spartacus Educational Archived 2011-10-24 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ ISBN 1-899468-67-6.
- ^ John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine.
- ^ Scotland - List of Topscorers, RSSSF, 20 June 2019
- ^ a b c d e Falkirk FC - 100 Club - John Simpson, Falkirk Football Historian, 29 November 2010
- ^ "[SFL player] Jocky Simpson". Londonhearts.com. London Hearts Supporters' Club. Retrieved 17 December 2011.
- ^ "England Players – Jock Simpson". England Football Online. 16 May 2015.
- ^ "Jock Simpson". Englandstats.com.
- ^ Football League v Southern League, Before The 'D'...Association Football around the world, 1863-1937, 27 November 2017
- ^ English League XI - 1914/15, Colorsport
- ^ War Fund Match | Home Scots, 2; Anglo-Scots, 1., The Glasgow Herald, 4 January 1917
- ^ 45,000 view the charity 'national match, Sunday Post, 9 June 1918 (via Partick Thistle History Archive)
- ^ Testimonials, Clubs and Forces, England Football Online
- ^ John Simpson's Gravestone, Falkirk Football Historian, 15 March 2013