Gary Muir (born 15 December 1985) is a Scottish professional footballer, who plays for St Cadoc's Y.C.

United States

After playing in Scotland during his teenage years, Muir moved to the United States to develop his playing career and was uniquely awarded a 100% scholarship fund. A successful four years in the USA began as Captain of the Louisburg College Hurricanes for two seasons in

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

, leading to Captaincy at the University of Hartford in

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

. In 2005, he was awarded

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

status in the NJCAA, named in the Division I All-Region team, and also selected for the Mid-Atlantic district team. Muir took the Hurricanes to the semi-finals in the NJCAA Championships and received the Regional Player of the Year Award, as well as being named the Most Valuable Player of the season. In 2006, Muir signed for the

University of Hartford The University of Hartford (UHart) is a private university in West Hartford, Connecticut, United States. Its main campus extends into neighboring Hartford and Bloomfield. It enrolled approximately 6,000 undergraduate and graduate students as ...

by Ex-Portugal, Benfica and Porto coach Dan Gaspar at the US National College Championships. 2006 saw Muir playing in all 17 games, scoring three goals and assisting on six occasions. He was also named Most Valuable Player at the

Hartwick College Hartwick College is a private liberal arts college in Oneonta, New York. The institution's origin is rooted in the founding of Hartwick Seminary in 1797 through the will of John Christopher Hartwick. In 1927, the seminary became a four-year coll ...

Invitational.

Professional career

Muir originally was invited back to Scotland to sign for Livingston in the Scottish championship in 2007, however, the sale of the club prevented the deal moving forward and Muir featured for Stirling Albion in the Scottish First Division (championship) for the remainder of the 2007–08 season. Signing for Irish Premiership side

Lisburn Distillery Lisburn Distillery Football Club is a Northern Irish intermediate football club who are based in Ballyskeagh, Lisburn. A founder member of the Irish League, they currently play in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League, the third tier of the Nor ...

in 2008 proved to be an important move in Muir's career after being offered deals from a variety of clubs in the Scottish first and second divisions. starting every game, scoring 13 goals, assisting on 15 occasions and was awarded 11 Man of the Match awards. He also scored his first senior football

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

at the club. Distillery finished fourth in the IPL, qualifying for the preliminary qualification rounds of the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

. A foot fracture sidelined him for four months. After recovering Muir returned to Scotland with Clyde in September 2009, however, this was only to be short term before heading back across the water to play at

Ballymena United Ballymena United Football Club is a semi-professional football club from Northern Ireland. Based in Ballymena, County Antrim, the team competes in the NIFL Premiership and plays home matches at the Ballymena Showgrounds. The club has been man ...

for the remainder or the 2009–10 season where they reached the Irish cup final. In 2010 Muir signed for Airdrie United in the Scottish First Division and at the end of the season was approached and offered a deal to play in Central America at

Antigua GFC Antigua Guatemala Fútbol Club is a Guatemalan professional football team based in Antigua Guatemala. They compete in the Liga Nacional, the top tier of Guatemalan football. They play their home games at the '' Estadio Pensativo''. They are nic ...

. During another season of multiple goals and assists Muir scored a memorable second career

. Muir signed for Vittoriosa Stars in Malta. Making a huge impact bringing the club from 11th position in the league table up to 5th – 11 undefeated games, scoring five goals and providing seven assists. In the 2012–13 season, Muir played an influential role at Again winning promotion to the Premier Division, scoring nine goals and assisting on 15 occasions. 2013–14 saw Muir move to the most successful club in Maltese history,

Floriana Floriana ( or ''Il-Floriana''), also known by its title Borgo Vilhena, is a Floriana Lines, fortified town in the Port Region, Malta, Port Region area of Malta, just outside the capital city Valletta. It has a population of 2,205 as of March 2014 ...

, after agreeing a deal. During the 2013–14 campaign he only missed one game during the entire season, he achieved 10 goals and 10 assists and was a significant performer during the club's AME Cup triumph. Muir was resigned under new head coach Giovanni Tedesco . Having spent two successful seasons as club captain scoring 12 times and assisting in 18 goals, Muir transferred to old firm rivals

Sliema Wanderers Sliema Wanderers Football Club, nicknamed "tax-Xelin" ( of the shilling), is a professional Maltese football club. It is the most successful team in Malta and hails from the seaside town of Sliema. It currently plays in the Maltese Premier Leagu ...

. Muir's move in season 2015–16 turned out to be a major success turning out for the stripes 35 times, the most appearances of any of the playing squad. He scored one goal and assisted in 11 from the fullback's positions. He won the prestigious FA trophy, the club's 21st time, qualifying for the

UEFA The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; ; ) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach soccer, beach football in Europe and the List of transcontinental countries#A ...

Europa league qualifying rounds. Muir's achievements ended high as he was a nominee by the MFPA season 2015–16 for the league's best left full back award. Muirs performances and success on the pitch led to a transfer to

Birkirkara Birkirkara (abbreviated as B'Kara or BKR) is a city in the Eastern Region, Malta, Eastern Region of Malta. It is the second most populous on the Malta (island), island, with 24,356 inhabitants as of 2020. The town consists of five autonomous pari ...

where he signed for the club until the end of season 2018/19. Success through the years in the premier league seen him help clubs qualify for the

Europe league on numerous occasions. Winning the Malta summer cup on two occasions and the prestigious Malta FA trophy. Muir was also part of the squad which played in the super cup final. On 26 June 2018, it was announced that Muir had signed for Glenavon. He played in the club's most successful win against coach

Ole Gunnar Solskjær Ole Gunnar Solskjær (; born 26 February 1973) is a Norwegian professional football manager and former player who currently manages Süper Lig club Beşiktaş. He spent the majority of his playing career with Manchester United and made 67 appea ...

and his

Molde FK Molde Fotballklubb () is a association football, football club based in Molde Municipality, Molde, Norway, that competes in Eliteserien, the top flight of Norwegian football league system, Norwegian football. Founded on 19 June 1911, the club w ...

side in their

UEFA Europa league The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

home tie. After a small number of appearances Muir left the club by mutual consent in January 2019.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Muir, Gary 1985 births Living people Footballers from Stirling Louisburg Hurricanes men's soccer players Hartford Hawks men's soccer players Stirling Albion F.C. players Lisburn Distillery F.C. players Clyde F.C. players Ballymena United F.C. players Airdrieonians F.C. players Antigua GFC players Vittoriosa Stars F.C. players Floriana F.C. players Sliema Wanderers F.C. players Birkirkara F.C. players Gżira United F.C. players Glenavon F.C. players Scottish Football League players Scottish expatriate men's footballers Scottish men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Malta Expatriate men's footballers in Guatemala Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Scottish expatriate sportspeople in Guatemala Scottish expatriate sportspeople in Malta Scottish expatriate sportspeople in the United States Men's association football midfielders Men's association football defenders 21st-century Scottish sportsmen NIFL Premiership players