Stephen McGinn (born 2 December 1988) is a Scottish former professional

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

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

. He is currently the U18s coach at the St Mirren youth academy. McGinn began his career with St Mirren in his native Scotland, before moving south of the border to sign for English

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

side

Watford Watford () is a town and non-metropolitan district with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of Central London, on the banks of the River Colne, Hertfordshire, River Colne. Initially a smal ...

where he spent three and a half years but was on the sidelines for over a year due to a knee injury and was loaned to

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1886, the club were inaugur ...

upon his return to fitness. He moved to

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

in June 2013, leaving the club in February 2015. After a short stint with

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

, McGinn then had 18 months with

Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 188 ...

. McGinn returned to St Mirren in January 2017 and helped them win promotion in 2017–18. He left St Mirren during the 2020 close season, and played for

Hibernian Hibernian may refer to: * Of Hibernia, Latin name for Ireland; hence ** Irish (disambiguation) Hibernian, Hibernians or The Hibernian may refer to: Sports clubs * Hibernian F.C., a Scottish football club, founded 1875 * Hibernian W.F.C., a Sc ...

and Morton during the 2020–21 season. McGinn signed for

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock ( ; ; , ), meaning "the church of Mernóc", is a town and former burgh in East Ayrshire situated in southwest Scotland. The town has served as the administrative centre of East Ayrshire Council since 1996 and is the region's main ...

in June 2021, and helped them win the

2021–22 Scottish Championship The 2021–22 Scottish Championship (known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons) was the ninth season of the Scottish Championship, the second tier of Scottish football. The season began on 31 July. Ten teams contested the league: Ar ...

. He then moved to

Falkirk Falkirk ( ; ; ) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a resident population of 32,422 at the ...

, where he captained the team that went unbeaten during the

2023–24 Scottish League One The 2023–24 Scottish League One (known as Cinch (company), cinch League One for sponsorship reasons) was the eleventh season of Scottish League One, the third tier of Football in Scotland, Scottish football. The season began on 5 August 2023. ...

season before retiring at the end of the season and taking a role as a youth coach at St Mirren. McGinn also represented Scotland at under-19 and under-21 level. His brothers

Paul Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

and

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

also became professional footballers, who also played for St Mirren and Hibernian.

Club career

St Mirren

Born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

and raised in

Clydebank Clydebank () is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, it borders the village of Old Kilpatrick (with Bowling, West Dunbartonshire, Bowling and Milton, West Dunbartonshire, Milton beyond) to the w ...

, McGinn started out at St Mirren FCBC (formerly the Football Club's Boys Club, now Youth Football Club), aged seven. He signed professional forms with St Mirren in July 2006, making his debut as a substitute on 1 January 2007 against

Inverness Caledonian Thistle Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club, commonly known as Caley Thistle, Inverness CT or just Inverness, is a professional football club based in Inverness, Scotland. The team competes in , the third tier of the Scottish Professional Footba ...

. His first full appearance was in a 5–1 loss to

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

on 20 January 2007, also scoring his first goal. For the 2007–08 season, McGinn started on bench before making his first start of the season against

at Parkhead on 8 December, he scored the opening goal in a 1–1 draw. His second goal of the season came as the only goal against Hearts. He made his first ever

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Dumbarton Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...

on 12 January 2008, coming on in the 88 minute. McGinn was named in the starting XI for the 2008–09 season, making a start against Celtic on the opening day. On 5 October 2008, he scored a vital goal against

Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...

, where St Mirren won 1–0, the team's first home league win over Rangers in 22 years. McGinn started the 2009–10 season on bench in the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup, also known as the Premier Sports Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a football competition open to all Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) clubs. First held in 1946–47, it is the oldest national League cup in ...

game but then went on to score on his first start of the season in a 2–1 loss to

on 15 August 2009. He continued his season with a brace against

Rugby Park Rugby Park, also known as The BBSP Stadium Rugby Park for sponsorship reasons, is a association football, football stadium which is the home of Scottish Premiership club Kilmarnock F.C. and is situated in the Scotland, Scottish town of Kilmarnoc ...

, where The Buddies came from behind to win 2–1.

Watford

McGinn signed for

in January 2010, for an undisclosed fee. He made his first Watford appearance as a substitute against

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

on 27 February 2010, and finished the season making two starts and seven sub appearances. The following season McGinn established himself as a first-team regular for Watford, missing just four games between August and the end of February, before damaging his knee ligaments in a 1–1 draw against

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system after winning the 202 ...

. He was ruled out for the rest of the season and underwent knee surgery. McGinn returned to fitness a year later, playing 45 minutes in a reserve game, insisting afterwards that he felt good and stronger than when he got injured. In July 2012, McGinn signed a new contract to keep him at Vicarage Road for another year, with a one-year option held by the Hornets to extend the deal. Having failed to make an appearance for Watford during the first half of the following season, in January McGinn signed for

on loan until the end of April. He scored his first goal for Shrewsbury in a 2–1 home loss to

on 9 February. In June 2013, Watford announced that McGinn's contract would not be renewed and that he was due to be released as a free agent.

Sheffield United

Following his release from Watford, McGinn signed for

League One League One or League 1 may refer to: Association football * EFL League One, the third tier of football in England. * China League One, the second tier of football in China * K League 1, the top-tier football in South Korea * Lao League 1 * Lea ...

side

in June 2013, agreeing a two-year contract with the option of a third year. McGinn made his debut for the Blades in the opening fixture of the following season, in a 2–1 home win against

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football, football club in Nottingham, England, which competes in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of Football in England, English football, following promotion and relegation, promotion ...

. Having been allowed to join Dundee on loan on 30 January 2015, McGinn's contract was then cancelled by Sheffield United on 2 February 2015.

Dundee

On 30 January 2015, McGinn moved on loan to

for the rest of the season. He joined his younger brother

at the

Dens Park Dens Park is a football stadium in Dundee, Scotland, which is the home of club Dundee F.C. and has a capacity of . Tannadice Park, the home of rivals Dundee United, is just 200 yards (183 metres) away. History Dundee moved to "Dens" from the ...

club. On 2 February 2015, he signed permanently for Dundee after his Sheffield United contract was cancelled by mutual consent.

Wycombe Wanderers

On 4 August 2015, McGinn joined League Two side,

after a successful trial with the club. He signed a two-year contract, live on

Sky Sports News HQ Sky Sports News (SSN) is a British paid television sports news channel run by Sky, a division of Comcast. History Sky Sports first started broadcasting sports news bulletins when it began broadcasting the Premier League in the autumn of ...

's ''92Live'' programme. On 13 February 2016, McGinn scored his first goal for Wycombe, the only goal in a league win against

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third level of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

Adams Park Adams Park is a Association football, football stadium in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, England. Built in 1990, it is the home ground of the local Wycombe Wanderers F.C., Wycombe Wanderers Football Club in EFL League One, League One, with a c ...

. On 25 January 2017, McGinn left Wycombe Wanderers after his contract was cancelled by mutual consent.

St Mirren (second spell)

McGinn signed an 18-month contract with St Mirren in January 2017, and played a major part in helping the club avoid relegation. He captained the club in season 2017–18, and was influential in helping Saints win the

Scottish Championship The Scottish Championship known as the William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional association footb ...

title. After gaining promotion, McGinn then signed a two-year contract extension in April 2018. In June 2020, McGinn left Saints when his contract expired.

Hibernian

In September 2020, McGinn signed a contract with

that ran until the end of the 2020–21 season.

Greenock Morton (loan)

In March 2021, McGinn joined

Greenock Morton Greenock Morton Football Club is a Scottish professional football club, which plays in the . The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest Scottish clubs. Morton was renamed Greenock Morton in 1994 to celebr ...

on loan until the end of the season.

Kilmarnock

McGinn signed for

in June 2021. He would enjoy a successful season and win the

with Killie.

Falkirk

On 9 June 2022, McGinn signed for

Scottish League One The Scottish League One, known as William Hill (bookmaker), William Hill League One for sponsorship reasons, is the third tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional association football, foot ...

side

on a one-year deal with an option for a one-year extension. In March 2024, McGinn won the League One title with the ''Bairns'' on the same night they destroyed Montrose at

Links Park Links Park is a football stadium in Montrose, Scotland. It has been the home ground of Montrose F.C. since 1887. Links Park was opened in 1887 on land rented from the ' Auld Kirk'. To help finance the new ground, Montrose F.C. rented the pitch ...

. Having led Falkirk to an unbeaten league season as

club captain The captain of a football/soccer team, sometimes known as the skipper, is a team member chosen to be the on-pitch leader of the team; they are often one of the older or more experienced members of the squad, or a player that can heavily influ ...

, the club confirmed that McGinn would leave at the end of his contract in the summer of 2024. Soon afterwards McGinn announced his retirement from playing football.

Coaching career

A week after retiring from playing, McGinn was announced as the U18s coach at his old youth club St Mirren's youth academy.

International career

McGinn played for Scotland under-19s in a goalless draw against

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

in 2007, and marked his debut for the under-21s by scoring in a 5–2 win against

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

in April 2009. He went on to make a total of 8 appearances at under-21 level.

Personal life

McGinn was born to parents Stephen and Mary, a teacher. His grandfather, Jack McGinn, was

chairman and

Scottish Football Association The Scottish Football Association (; also known as the Scottish FA and the SFA) is the governing body of football in Scotland and has the ultimate responsibility for the control and development of football in Scotland. Members of the SFA incl ...

president. McGinn was raised in

Duntocher Duntocher (Scottish Gaelic: ''Dùn Tòchair'' or ''Druim Tòchair'') is a village in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. It has an estimated population of 6,850. The etymology of the name of the village indicates that its name means "the fort on the ...

alongside his three younger siblings,

and twins

and Katie. His brothers are also professional footballers. Between May 2018 and January 2020, Stephen and Paul both represented St Mirren, and the brothers were in the same squad at Hibernian for the

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

season. John has also represented both clubs, and like Stephen came through the youth system at St Mirren. In 2020, McGinn became a father for the first time.

Career statistics

Honours

St Mirren *

: 2017–18 Kilmarnock *

: 2021–22 Falkirk *

: 2023–24

References

External links

*
Sheffield United FC Official Player Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGinn, Stephen 1988 births Living people Footballers from Glasgow Footballers from Clydebank Men's association football midfielders St Mirren F.C. players Watford F.C. players Shrewsbury Town F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Dundee F.C. players Hibernian F.C. players Scottish people of Irish descent Scotland men's youth international footballers Scotland men's under-21 international footballers Scottish Premier League players Scottish Professional Football League players English Football League players Scottish men's footballers Greenock Morton F.C. players Kilmarnock F.C. players Falkirk F.C. players St Mirren F.C. non-playing staff 21st-century Scottish sportsmen