James Forsyth (18 October 1904 – 1982) was a Scottish

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player, trainer and

physiotherapist Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

, who made more than 350 appearances in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

playing as a

left half In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

inside left In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on be ...

for

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

, Gillingham and

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

. Born in

Armadale, West Lothian Armadale (, ) is a town within the county of West Lothian in the Central Belt of Scotland. It lies to the west of Bathgate and to the east of Blackridge, West Lothian, Blackridge. Armadale, formerly known as Barbauchlaw, is an ex-mining town wh ...

, he began his playing career in his native Scotland with Armadale and

Bathgate Bathgate ( or , ) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland, west of Livingston, Scotland, Livingston and adjacent to the M8 motorway (Scotland), M8 motorway. Nearby towns are Linlithgow, Livingston, and West Calder. A number of villages fall under ...

, and finally retired from playing in 1943 to become assistant trainer of Millwall. He then became first-team trainer at

Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. The club currently competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. Ipswich Town were founded in 1878 but did not turn ...

, a post he held for 15 years, and was

caretaker manager In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a caret ...

of the club for a brief period in 1964, between the departure of

Jackie Milburn John Edward Thompson "Jackie" Milburn (11 May 1924 – 9 October 1988) was an English football player principally associated with Newcastle United and England, though he also spent four seasons at Linfield. He was also known as Wor Jackie (par ...

and the arrival of

Bill McGarry William Harry McGarry (10 June 1927 – 15 March 2005) was an England international association footballer and manager who spent 40 years in the professional game. He had a reputation for toughness, both as a player and as a manager. A right ...

. He retired in 1971 and died in 1982.

Honours

Individual * Ipswich Town Hall of Fame: Inducted 2012

References

1904 births 1982 deaths Scottish men's footballers Men's association football wing halves Bathgate F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Gillingham F.C. players Millwall F.C. players English Football League players Scottish football managers Ipswich Town F.C. managers Date of death missing Place of death missing Armadale F.C. players Men's association football inside forwards Footballers from Armadale, West Lothian Athletic trainers 20th-century Scottish sportsmen {{Scotland-footy-midfielder-1900s-stub