Sam Irving
Samuel Johnstone Irving (28 August 1893 – 12 December 1968) was an Irish footballer and manager. He played in The Football League for Bristol City, Cardiff City, Chelsea and Bristol Rovers, and for Dundee[1] in the Scottish Football League. He won the FA Cup, Welsh Cup and Charity Shield with Cardiff in 1927, having been a Scottish Cup runner-up with Dundee. At international level, Irving made 18 appearances for Ireland. After retiring as a player, he was co-manager of Dundee United.
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Samuel Johnstone Irving | ||
Date of birth | 28 August 1893 | ||
Place of birth | Belfast, Ireland | ||
Date of death | 12 December 1968 75) | (aged||
Place of death | Dundee, Scotland | ||
Playing position(s) |
Right half Inside right | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
Shildon Athletic | |||
Galashiels United | |||
Esh Winning | |||
1913–15 | Bristol City | 18 | (4) |
1919–20 | Blyth Spartans | ||
1919–20 | Shildon Athletic | ||
1920–26 | Dundee | 158 | (5) |
1923–24 | → Partick Thistle (loan) | ||
1925 | → New York Centrals (guest) | ||
1926–28 | Cardiff City | ||
1928–32 | Chelsea | 47 | (3) |
1932–33 | Bristol Rovers | 89 | (5) |
National team | |||
1923–31 | Ireland | 18 | (0) |
Teams managed | |||
1938–39 | Dundee United | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only |
Early life
Irving was born in Belfast on 28 August 1893 to Henry and Isabella Irving. His father worked as a blacksmith.[2] He served in the Royal Army Medical Corps during the First World War.[3]
Playing career
Club
Early career
Irving began his footballing career in the North-East of England, playing for a number of non-League clubs. In 1911 he had an unsuccessful trial with Newcastle United before finally being given his break in the Football League by Bristol City, for whom he signed in November 1913, After the First World War, Irving had spells back in the North-East of England playing with Blyth Spartans and again with his first club Shildon Athletic before signing for Dundee in 1920.[4]
Dundee
Irving made debuted for Dundee on the first day of the 1920–21 season in a 2–2 draw away at Falkirk on 16 August. At Dundee he was a Scottish Cup runner-up in with Dave Halliday and David McLean in 1925 when Celtic defeated Dundee 2–1 (Jimmy McGrory scored with a headed last minute winner). Within two years won the first of his 18 caps for his native Ireland, appropriately against Scotland in Belfast when the visitors won 1–0. Irving had a spell on loan with Partick in 1924 and guested for New York Centrals in the summer of 1925. In total made 183 appearances for Dundee netting 6 goals.[4]
Cardiff City
In June 1926 Irving signed for Cardiff City in an exchange deal that took Joe Cassidy the other way. He made his Bluebirds' debut in a 1–1 draw at Leeds United early in the season. He remained a regular in the side throughout the campaign, initially at right-half, but later shifting to inside-right, where he played in the 1927 FA Cup Final victory over Arsenal, Cardiff taking the trophy outside England for the first time. He continued as a regular in the Irish half-back line throughout his time at Ninian Park, filling in as inside-left for a match against Scotland in 1927 and also captaining the side.[4]
Chelsea
In March 1928 Irving joined Chelsea, serving as "a sharp-tackling fetch-and-carry" wing-half in their 1929–30 promotion campaign. While with Chelsea, Irving toured South America in 1929. The team were surprised by the unsporting behaviour of their opponents, and antics of the crowd who pelted them with oranges. Irving's answer was to catch the food, peel it and eat it.[4]
Management career and after
With his playing days behind him, Irving settled in Dundee where he ran a billiards hall. In 1938 he was involved in a takeover of Dundee United, taking control of the team as joint-manager/director with Jimmy Brownlie for the 1938–39 season. He stepped down from the manager's role after a year, but remained with the club as a director.[5]
Honours
References
- John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. Cite journal requires
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(help) - "Samuel Irving". IrishGenealogy.ie. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
- "North East War Memorials Project – Regional Content". www.newmp.org.uk. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
- "Played for Dundee and Partick – Sam Irving", dundeefc.co.uk, 28 December 2016
- "Dundee United A – Z ( I )". Dundee United FC website. Archived from the original on 14 June 2006.