Allan McGraw (29 July 1939 – 1 March 2023) was a Scottish football player and manager, most associated with Greenock Morton.

Playing career

McGraw started his playing career with Greenock Morton. Playing in Division Two he set a Scottish record for most goals scored in a season. He finished as Morton's top goalscorer in five consecutive seasons, and appeared in the 1963 League Cup final. He helped the club to promotion to the top flight in 1964, having scored a record 61 goals in 52 appearances that season. It was the first time Morton had played at that level since 1952, but two seasons later the Ton were relegated back to the Second Division. Following that relegation, Morton sold McGraw to Hibernian for £15,000 (£ today). He scored eight goals in his first 11 appearances for Hibs, including wins against Hearts and Rangers. McGraw scored a goal which meant that the club reached the 1969 League Cup final, but he was unable to play in the final due to injury. McGraw had been stretchered off during the semi-final, but later returned to the field as Hibs had already used their one permitted substitute. He took a number of pain killing injections in order to play while injured. This ruined his knees, causing great pain and necessitating the use of

walking stick A walking stick or walking cane is a device used primarily to aid walking, provide postural stability or support, or assist in maintaining a good posture. Some designs also serve as a fashion accessory, or are used for self-defense. Walking st ...

s for the rest of his life. He later played for Linfield for one season and spent a season back at Morton without appearing in a league match.

Managerial career

McGraw returned to Morton as manager in 1985. Players he managed included

Derek McInnes Derek John McInnes (born 5 July 1971) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Scottish Premiership club Kilmarnock. He featured prominently for Greenock Morton, Rangers, West Bromwich Albion and Dund ...

, John Anderson, David Wylie and Alan Mahood. Towards the end of his time as manager, McGraw's team missed

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

to the Scottish Premier Division by one goal in the 1995-96 season.

Personal life and death

McGraw stood for election as an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

for West Renfrewshire in the

1999 Scottish Parliament election The first election to the devolved Scottish Parliament, to fill 129 seats, took place on 6 May 1999. Following the election, the Labour Party and the Liberal Democrats formed the Scottish Executive, with Labour Member of the Scottish Parliam ...

. His son

Mark Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * F ...

also played for both Morton and Hibs. McGraw died on 1 March 2023, at the age of 83.

Honours

Player

Morton * Scottish Division Two: 1963–64 Individual * Scottish Division Two top scorer: 1963–64

Manager

Greenock Morton *

Scottish First Division The Scottish Football League First Division was the second tier in the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The First Division was introduced in 1975–76 to replace the old Scottish Football League Division Two, as ...

: 1986–87 *

Scottish Second Division The Scottish Football League Second Division was the third tier of the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013. History The Second Division was created in 1975, as part of a wider reconstruction of the Scottish Football League (SFL ...

: 1994–95 Individual *Scottish First Division Manager of the Year: 1986–87 * Scottish PFA Second Division Manager of the Year: 1994–95

Lifetime achievement

Scottish Football Hall of Fame The Scottish Football Hall of Fame is located at the Scottish Football Museum. Nominations are made each year by fans and a committee selects the inductees. The first inductions to the Hall of Fame were in November 2004 in a ceremony at Hampden Pa ...

inductee: 2017 * Scottish PFA Special Merit Award: 1998

References

External Links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McGraw, Allan 1939 births 2023 deaths Greenock Morton F.C. managers Greenock Morton F.C. non-playing staff Greenock Morton F.C. players Hibernian F.C. players Linfield F.C. players toronto City players Scottish Football League players Scottish football managers Scottish men's footballers People from Govan Footballers from Glasgow Scottish Football League managers Renfrew F.C. players Scottish Football Hall of Fame inductees Men's association football forwards