James McClelland (11 May 1902 – 1976) was a Scottish

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

. Born in

Dysart, Fife Dysart ( ; (IPA: �tʲiːʃəɾʃt̪) is a town and former royal burgh located on the south-east coast between Kirkcaldy and West Wemyss in Fife, Scotland. Dysart was once part of a wider estate owned by the St Clair or Sinclair family. They ...

, he played for Rosslyn,

Raith Rovers Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the as a member of the Scottish Professional Football League. The club has won f ...

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 ...

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional association football club in Preston, Lancashire, England. They currently play in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English footbal ...

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

Bradford Park Avenue Bradford (Park Avenue) Association Football Club, sometimes abbreviated as BPA AFC, is an association football club based in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in , at the eighth tier of the English football league ...

and

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

Raith Rovers

McClelland was born in Dysart in Fife and began his career with nearby

Southend United

He joined Southend in 1923. At Southend he led the scoring charts during 1924–5, with 16 goals in 23 games.

Middlesbrough

In March 1925 he moved to

Ayresome Park Ayresome Park was a football stadium in the Ayresome area of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. It was the home of Middlesbrough F.C. from its construction in time for the 1903–04 season, until the Riverside Stadium opened in 1995. It ...

intended to replace Ian Dickson.Ian Dickson on Queens Legends, qosfc.com
/ref> In 1925–26, McClelland was an ever-present in Middlesbrough's Second Division line-up, top scoring with 32 goals in 38 games. The following season began badly for Boro, losing three and drawing one of their first four games, scoring just one goal in the process.

George Camsell George Henry Camsell (27 November 1902 – 7 March 1966) was an English Association football, footballer who scored a club record 325 league goals in 419 games for Middlesbrough F.C., Middlesbrough, and 18 goals in nine appearances for England ...

was given a chance for the fifth match of the season after an injury to McClelland. Camsell who scored a record 59 goals as 'Boro won promotion to Division One. McLelland was replaced as the last player to top score there before Camsell did so for 10 consecutive seasons.

Bolton Wanderers

Bolton paid £6,300 for McClelland's transfer from Middlesbrough in March 1928, at the same time allowing John Smith to move to Bury. McClelland immediately became a hit. Taking over at centre-forward, McClelland made his first appearance (away to Burnley) on 17 March 1928. He scored a debut goal in the 2–2 draw. He played in every game then until the end of the season - 10 appearances; 8 goals (including the Burnley game). In 1927/28 Bolton Wanderers finished 7th in Division 1."Bolton Wanderers FC - The Official History 1877-2002" Simon Marland After a poor start to 1928-9 he moved to inside-right. Although his goals dried up, he was an important member of the side that won the FA Cup beating Portsmouth 2–0 in the final. McClelland made 39 league appearances, scoring 1 goal. He appeared in all 8 games of the FA Cup run and scored 1 goal (in the 5–2 victory against Liverpool in the 4th Round Replay at Burnden Park). In 1928/29 Bolton finished 14th in Division 1. In 1929/30 Wanderers finished 15th in Division 1. McClelland made 8 league appearances, scoring 1 goal. He then left Bolton Wanderers to join Preston North End.

Preston North End

In October 1929, McClelland moved to Preston North End, for a £5,000 fee, and scored 22 goals in 53 games before returning to the First Division with Blackpool in February 1931.

Blackpool

McClelland made his debut for Harry Evans' Blackpool late in the 1930–31 season, in a 3–3 draw against his former club, Bolton Wanderers, at

Bloomfield Road Bloomfield Road is a association football, football stadium in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Blackpool F.C., Blackpool Football Club since 1901. It is the third stadium in the club's existence, the previous two be ...

on 21 February 1931. He scored the Seasiders' second goal. He went on to make a further 12 league appearances that season, scoring three more goals (including two in a 5–1 victory at home to his future club, Manchester United, on 21 March).Calley, Roy (1992). '' Blackpool: A Complete Record 1887–1992'', Breedon Books Sport, p. 236 In 1931–32, McClelland made 15 league appearances and scored six goals.Calley, Roy (1992). ''Blackpool: A Complete Record 1887–1992'', Breedon Books Sport, p. 238 The following campaign, 1932–33, he made 38 league appearances and scored 15 goals. He also scored twice in Blackpool's run to the fifth round of the

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 ...

.Calley, Roy (1992). ''Blackpool: A Complete Record 1887–1992'', Breedon Books Sport, p. 240 McClelland left Blackpool for Bradford Park Avenue in the summer.

Manchester United

McClelland joined Manchester United at the start of the 1936–37 campaign, making his debut in the 3–1 defeat at Huddersfield Town on 2 September. Unable to gain a regular place in the United first team, McClelland only made five appearances in his one season at the club, and only registered one goal (in a 2–1 win over Stoke City in March) in only his second match. After his career with Manchester United ended, he was given a coaching role with the club, looking after the MUJAC (Manchester United Junior Athletic Club) players from the beginning of the 1938–39 season. He remained in a coaching role with Manchester United until the outbreak of the Second World War.

Death

He died in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

in 1976 at the age of 73.

References

External links

MUFCInfo.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:McClelland, Jimmy 1902 births 1976 deaths People from Dysart, Fife Scottish men's footballers Men's association football forwards Manchester United F.C. players Raith Rovers F.C. players Southend United F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Bradford (Park Avenue) A.F.C. players 20th-century Scottish sportsmen