John Cumming (Scottish footballer)

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For other people with the same name, see John Cumming.

John Cumming
Personal information
Full name John Cumming
Date of birth (1930-03-17)17 March 1930
Place of birth Carluke, Scotland
Date of death 6 December 2008(2008-12-06) (aged 78)
Place of death Carluke, Scotland
Position(s)
Wing half
Youth career
Carluke Rovers
1948–1950 Heart of Midlothian
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1950–1967 Heart of Midlothian 359 (36)
International career
1954–1957[1]
Scotland B
 2 (1)
1954–1960 Scotland 9 (0)
1955[2] Scotland A vs B trial 1 (0)
1955–1960
Scottish League XI
 7 (1)
1959–1960[3][4] SFA trial v SFL 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

John Cumming (17 March 1930 – 6 December 2008) was a Scottish

Scottish League
.

Club career

Cumming signed for

Carluke Rovers
. Cumming signed fully for Hearts in January 1950. He was quickly dubbed the "Iron Man" for his fearless and resolute tackling. His versatility seen him play at either wing-half or left-back. He even appeared as a goalkeeper for one reserve match.

Dave Mackay had previously been on schoolboy terms at Hearts. Mackay joined the club's pro ranks in 1951. Cumming and Mackay became the duo who made that team tick for the remainder of the 1950s. "He never had a bad game. It was either a fairly good game or an excellent game," said Mackay of Cumming.

Cumming is the most decorated player in Hearts' history, having played throughout the club's most successful era. In nine seasons from 1954 to 1963 Hearts won seven trophies.[5] He won two league championship medals, one Scottish Cup medal and four Scottish League Cup medals.[5]

His commitment to the team is typified by his quote now displayed above the entrance to the players tunnel at

1956 Scottish Cup Final
; he returned to the playing field and was named man of the match 3–1 win against Celtic. Despite his commitment, he retained control of his temper and was never booked in his career. He was the only player to collect medals for all seven of the trophies Hearts won in this period.

Cumming retired from playing in 1967. He was a trainer at Hearts for a decade after ending his playing days and later returned to work in the steel industry. Cumming remained a regular at Hearts games until illness confined him to a nursing home.

International career

Cumming played nine times for

Magical Magyars' era Hungary
team in December 1954. This was a few weeks after Cumming won his first major trophy, and represented the first of four caps between December 1954 and May 1955. He then gained five further caps between April and June 1960, when his second league-winning campaign reached its conclusion.

He also represented the

Scottish League XI.[6]

Personal life

Cumming and his wife Jean had a daughter, Jean, a son, James, and five grandchildren. He died on 6 December 2008.[7]

The John Cumming Stadium in his home town of Carluke is named in his honour.[8]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Scotland B player Cumming, John, FitbaStats
  2. ^ Easter Road game should not have been played, Glasgow Herald (page 4), 22 February 1955
  3. ^ The selectors still have problems, The Bulletin, 17 March 1959
  4. ISBN 9781785312458.[permanent dead link
    ]
  5. ^ a b c "Hearts great Cumming passes away". BBC Sport. BBC. 8 December 2008.
  6. ^ "SFL player John Cumming". London Hearts Supporters' Club. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
  7. ^ Murray, Ewan (16 December 2008). "John Cumming". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 December 2008.
  8. ^ Carluke stadium named after Hearts hero John Cumming carlukegazette.co.uk

External links

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