James McAlinden (27 December 1917 – 15 November 1993) was an Irish footballer who played as a forward for several clubs, most notably,

Belfast Celtic Belfast Celtic Football Club was an Irish football club. Founded in 1891 in Belfast, it was one of the most successful teams in Ireland until it withdrew permanently from the Irish League in 1949. The club left the league for political reaso ...

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 ...

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club is an Irish professional Association football, football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is List of football clubs by competit ...

and

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth level of English football. The team are known as "The Shrimpers", a reference ...

. As an international, McAlinden also played for both Ireland teams – the IFA XI and the FAI XI. After retiring as a player, he went on to manage Glenavon,

Distillery Distillation, also classical distillation, is the process of separating the component substances of a liquid mixture of two or more chemically discrete substances; the separation process is realized by way of the selective boiling of the mixt ...

and

Drogheda United Drogheda United Football Club is a professional Irish association football club based in Drogheda, County Louth playing in the League of Ireland Premier Division. They play their home matches at Sullivan & Lambe Park. The current club is the ...

Club career

Belfast Celtic

In 1934, aged 16, McAlinden was playing for

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club based in East Belfast, Northern Ireland, that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882 and has since won more than 130 major honours. They are one of three Northern Iris ...

Reserves, when after a game against their reserves, he was offered a professional contract by

. McAlinden, together with Jackie Vernon,

Tommy Breen Tommy Breen (27 April 1912 – 2 March 1988) was an Irish footballer who played as a goalkeeper for, among others, Belfast Celtic, Manchester United, Linfield and Shamrock Rovers. Breen was a dual international and played for both Ireland tea ...

, Billy McMillan and

Charlie Tully Charles Patrick Tully (11 July 1924 – 27 July 1971) was a Northern Irish football player and manager who played for Celtic. Manager He led Bangor to its first senior honour, the County Antrim Shield, in 1970. He also managed the Irish Leag ...

, subsequently became a prominent member of the Celtic team managed by Elisha Scott. This team dominated the Irish League in the era before and during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Among his most notable contributions was scoring in the 2–1 win against Bangor in the 1938

Irish Cup The Irish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly referred to as the Irish Cup (currently known as the Clearer Water Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) is the primary Association football, football single elimination, knockout cup compet ...

final. After a spell with

, McAlinden returned to Celtic in 1939, helping the club to further honours before leaving for

in 1945.

Portsmouth

In December 1938 McAlinden signed for

for a fee of £7.500. He made his debut for the club against Chelsea and went onto became a regular in the side. Within six months of his arrival at the club, he helped them win the 1939 FA Cup final, beating

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

4–1. After the outbreak of the

, he played three times for Portsmouth in wartime regional leagues, but his first spell with the club ended when he then returned to

. McAlinden returned to Portsmouth for a second spell in 1946. In September 1947 he left Portsmouth once again and joined

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...

for a fee of £7,000.

Shamrock Rovers

Following the end of his second spell with

and before he rejoined

, McAlinden signed for

in September 1945. He made his debut against Shelbourne at Milltown on 16 September. While playing for Rovers his teammates included Paddy Coad, Peter Farrell and

Tommy Eglington Thomas Joseph Eglington (15 January 1923 – 18 February 2004) was an Irish footballer who played as an outside-left for, among others, Shamrock Rovers, Everton and Tranmere Rovers. Eglington was also a dual internationalist and played for b ...

. During his one season with Rovers, McAlinden helped the club reach the 1946

FAI Cup The Football Association of Ireland Senior Challenge Cup (FAI Cup), known as the Sports Direct FAI Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland (as well as D ...

final. However Rovers lost 3–1 to Drumcondra.

Stoke City

McAlinden joined

in September 1947 for a then club record fee of £7,000. He became regular inside forward under manager

Bob McGrory Robert Gerald McGrory (17 October 1891 – 24 May 1954) was a Scottish footballer who played in the Football League for Burnley and Stoke City with whom he later had a long spell as manager. McGrory played football with Dumbarton before joinin ...

in 1947–48 playing in 33 matches scoring just twice against

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

and

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. They compete in , the third tier of English football league system, English football. Huddersfield Town we ...

. His lack of goals saw him fall out of favour at the

Victoria Ground The Victoria Ground was the home ground of Stoke City from 1878 until 1997, when the club relocated to the Britannia Stadium after 119 years. At the time of its demolition it was the oldest operational ground in the Football League. Histor ...

and he was sold to Third Division South side

in October 1948.

Southend United

In 1948

signed McAlinden from

for a fee of £8,000. He continued to play for United until 1954 and during his time with the club he served as club captain. He also became something of a cult hero among the club's fans and is remembered as being possibly the best player ever to play for the club. In 1950, McAlinden was caught up in controversy after it was alleged that he received illegal payments during his second spell with

. As a result, he was suspended for the first two months of the 1950–51 season. In April 1954 he made his last home appearance for United in a 4–1 win over

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...

International career

When McAlinden began his international career in 1937 there were in effect, two Ireland teams, chosen by two rival associations. Both associations, the Northern Ireland – based

IFA IFA or Ifa may refer to: Organisations Economics * Independent financial adviser, a type of financial services professional in the UK * Index Fund Advisors * Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, representing actuaries in the UK * Institute of Act ...

and the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State (6 December 192229 December 1937), also known by its Irish-language, Irish name ( , ), was a State (polity), state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-ye ...

– based FAI claimed jurisdiction over the whole of Ireland and selected players from the whole island. As a result, several notable Irish players from this era, including McAlinden played for both teams.

IFA XI

Between 1937 and 1948, McAlinden made 5 appearances for the IFA XI, making his international debut in a 1–1 draw with

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Pittodrie Stadium Pittodrie Stadium, commonly referred to as Pittodrie, from which the surrounding residential area has taken its name, is an all-seater stadium in Aberdeen, Scotland. Used primarily for Association football, football, it has been the home ground o ...

on 10 November 1937. His IFA XI appearances also include the 8–4 defeat against a ''Combined Services XI'' at

Windsor Park The National Football Stadium at Windsor Park (officially the Clearer Twist National Stadium at Windsor Park for sponsorship reasons), or the National Football Stadium, also known as Windsor Park is a association football, football stadium in B ...

on 9 September 1944. This team was basically a Great Britain XI and featured, among others,

Matt Busby Sir Alexander Matthew Busby (26 May 1909 – 20 January 1994) was a Scottish football player and manager, who managed Manchester United between 1945 and 1969 and again for the second half of the 1970–71 season. He was the first manager of an E ...

Stanley Matthews Sir Stanley Matthews (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English Association football, footballer who played as an Forward (association football)#Outside forward, outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the Br ...

Tommy Lawton Thomas Lawton (6 October 1919 – 6 November 1996) was an English football player and manager. Born in Farnworth and raised in Bolton, he played amateur football at Rossendale United, before he turned professional at Burnley on his 17t ...

and

Stan Mortensen Stanley Harding Mortensen (26 May 1921 – 22 May 1991) was an English professional footballer, notable for his part in the 1953 FA Cup final (subsequently known as the " Matthews Final"), in which he became the only player ever to score a hat- ...

. He also played against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 7–2 defeat at Windsor Park on 9 September 1946. He made his last appearance for the IFA XI on 10 October 1948 in a 6–2 defeat to England at Windsor Park. McAlinden made his first three appearances for the IFA XI while with

, his fourth while at

and his fifth while at

FAI XI

In 1946, while with

, McAlinden also made 2 appearances for the FAI XI. He was one of several players born in Northern Ireland who benefited from the FAI's attempts to establish their all-Ireland influence. In June 1946 when the FAI organised an Iberian tour, McAlinden, together with Jackie Vernon, Billy McMillan and Paddy Sloan, was one of four Northern Irish players called up. McAlinden subsequently played in both the 3–1 defeat to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

on 16 June and then helped Ireland gain a surprise 1–0 victory against

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

on 23 June 1946.

Coaching career

In 1955 McAlinden became player/manager of Glenavon. He continued playing for a further year before finally retiring as a player to concentrate on management. During a thirteen-year spell with Glenavon he guided them two Irish League titles, three

victories and one Gold Cup. After leaving Glenavon, McAlinden worked as a full-time scout for

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Coventry, West Midlands. The club plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club is nicknamed The Sky Blues after the sky blue colou ...

before taking charge at

in 1969. He subsequently guided a Distillery team that included a young

Martin O'Neill Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, (born 1 March 1952) is a Northern Irish professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Association football, player who played as a midfielder. After a brief early career in the Irish Leag ...

to a win in the 1971

. Later in his first season with

he guided them to the 1976

final, only to lose 1–0 to Bohemians.

Career statistics

Club

*Sourced from

International

Source:

Honours

Player

Belfast Celtic * Irish League **''Winners'' 1935–36, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1939–40, 1940–41, 1941–42, 1943–44: 7 *

: **''Winners'' 1938, 1941, 1943: 3 * Gold Cup **''Winners'' 1934–35, 1939–40, 1940–41, 1943–44, 1944–45: 5 *

County Antrim Shield The County Antrim & District Football Association Senior Shield (more commonly known as the County Antrim Shield) is a football competition in Northern Ireland. The competition is open to senior teams who are members of the North East Ulster F ...

**''Winners'' 1935–36, 1936–37, 1942–43, 1944–45: 4 Shamrock Rovers * Inter-City Cups: 1 **''Winners'' 1946 Portsmouth *

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

**''Winners''

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

: 1

Manager

Glenavon * Irish League **''Winners'' 1956–57, 1959–60: 2 *

: **''Winners'' 1957, 1959, 1961: 3 * Gold Cup **''Winners'' : 1956–57 1 Distillery *

: **''Winners'' 1971: 1 **''Runners Up'' 1969: 1 Drogheda United *

**''Runners Up'' 1976: 1

References

; Specific ; General * *''The Boys in Green – The FAI International Story'' (1997): Sean Ryan *''Soccer at War – 1939 – 45'' (2005): Jack Rollin

External links

Southend United fansite

Ireland (FAI) stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:McAlinden, Jimmy 1917 births 1993 deaths Belfast Celtic F.C. players Dual Irish men's international footballers League of Ireland managers League of Ireland players Men's association football forwards Glenavon F.C. players Ireland (FAI) men's international footballers NIFL Premiership players Republic of Ireland men's international footballers from Northern Ireland Association football managers from Northern Ireland Association footballers from Belfast Men's association footballers from Northern Ireland Portsmouth F.C. players Pre-1950 IFA men's international footballers Shamrock Rovers F.C. players Southend United F.C. players Stoke City F.C. players English Football League players Drogheda United F.C. managers Glenavon F.C. managers Lisburn Distillery F.C. managers Place of death missing League of Ireland XI players NIFL Premiership managers Men's association football player-managers