James (Jimmy) Johnstone


1944 - 2006

Football player. Born in Bothwell, Johnstone, known as 'Jinky', was educated in Viewpark and Uddingston. He began playing football at a young age and by the time he was thirteen he was a ball-boy at Celtic and playing for their youth team. Playing for the first team from 1963, Johnstone grew into a skillful and entertaining winger, with a remarkable record. He gained a reputation as Celtic's greatest ever player, helping his team to become the first British club to win the European Cup in 1967, the Scottish Cup on four occasions, five League Cups and the Scottish Championships a remarkable nine times. Johnstone left Celtic in 1975 and spent some time in the USA, with the San Jose Earthquakes, before joining Sheffield United (1975-76) and ending his career with several minor clubs. During this career he scored a total 130 goals and had 23 outings for the national team.

Johnstone was inducted as one of the first members of the Scottish Sports Hall of Fame in 2002. In his last years he campaigned to find a cure for Motor Neurone Disease, including making a charity record with Jim Kerr (b.1959) and Simple Minds. He died at his home in Uddingston, having succumbed to the disease.


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