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The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists


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  • 4 weeks later...

A healthy Thistle contingent appeared on the international stage in the 1920s, with 12 new entries in our story. By now well settled and much loved in Maryhill, Partick Thistle were strong in this decade, registering several Top 6 finishes as well as bagging a couple of Glasgow cups for the first time. For the club, the defining moment of the decade was undoubtedly the Scottish Cup triumph of April 16, 1921, when they defeated Rangers 1-0 in the final at Celtic Park. In total, 18 squad members contributed to that herculean 11-game battle, with 5 of them being internationalists including Jimmy Kinloch, Joe Harris, Kenny Campbell, Jimmy McMullan & Jimmy McMenemy. The British Championship was back in business after the war, and 9 of our boys became British Champions. On 25th February 1928, the ground-record attendance of 54,723 was set when Firhill, for the one and only time, hosted the national team. Future Thistle managerial legend David Meiklejohn played for Scotland but, alas, the home side lost one nil to Ireland on the day, ending hopes of sharing that season's British Championship with Wales. Scotland would regain her pride the following month when the “Wembley Wizards” defeated the English by 5 goals to 1 in London. There were three Thistle Wizards; former Jags Jimmy Gibson (Aston Villa) and Jimmy McMullan (Manchester City) played left and right half respectively, whilst goalie Jack Harkness (Queen's Park) had guested for the Jags a couple of years earlier. In this decade, we also seen the first non-Scot Jag to win a full international cap (whilst a Thistle player) in the form of Harry Chatton (Northern Irishman) as well as the first Jag to win a full international cap outwith the British Isles in the form of Bill Carnihan who appeared for the U.S.A. in 1925.

The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 5: 1920s →

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On 6/1/2025 at 6:00 PM, The Thistle Archive said:

^ No, the parameters were laid out in the introduction. Good point though. The capped (non-playing) Thistle managers include Davie Meiklejohn, Scot Symon, Willie Thornton, Bertie Auld, Pat Quinn, Bobby Watson, Gary Caldwell and, now, Mark Wilson!

 

God, we really are e retirement home for auld firm oldies, aren't we.

And to make matters worse, shouldn't Derek Whyte be added to that list?

ETA: Aaargh, and Murder MacLeod!

ETA: Peter Cormack

Edited by Jaggernaut
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9 hours ago, Albert's Ghost said:

Eh?

Yeah, sorry: Not OF, but might as well have been! And I'll leave it there.

Actually, a further comment: PC's statistics certainly aren't as bad as some of the other main characters/charlatans we've had as managers, but I think it's fair to say that we had higher expectations back then compared to now (sigh , that's a sign of how much we have declined). Anyway, I admired him as a player, but "didn't value him" as our manager.

Edited by Jaggernaut
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  • 3 weeks later...

For the first time, the Partick Thistle internationalists are being fully laid out, the story told. Hope you're all enjoying the journey and making some new discoveries along the way.

  • Who were newly capped as Jags in the 1930s?
  • Another father & son pairing!
  • Which player was nearly 7-years-not-out as a Jag when his run was broken by Scotland?
  • Who was the first of our boys to play in a World Cup qualifier?
  • In 1936, which nation was first to win the British Home Championship trophy?
  • Nazi flags and Sieg Hiel at Ibrox!

There's much to unpack in part 6, out today…

The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 6: 1930s →

 

 

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3 hours ago, The Thistle Archive said:

For the first time, the Partick Thistle internationalists are being fully laid out, the story told. Hope you're all enjoying the journey and making some new discoveries along the way.

  • Who were newly capped as Jags in the 1930s?
  • Another father & son pairing!
  • Which player was nearly 7-years-not-out as a Jag when his run was broken by Scotland?
  • Who was the first of our boys to play in a World Cup qualifier?
  • In 1936, which nation was first to win the British Home Championship trophy?
  • Nazi flags and Sieg Hiel at Ibrox!

There's much to unpack in part 6, out today…

The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 6: 1930s →

 

 

internationalists-20.jpg

Brilliant and informative as always.

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Part 7 out today... in the 1940s, war interrupted play but it didn't stop our great stories unfolding...

  • Shankly, Husband & McGowan join the club.
  • Whose last-minute assist vs. England won Scotland the British Championship in 1946 but was deemed "unofficial"?
  • You wait seven decades for an English internationalist then three come along at once!!!
  • Who was the first Jag to defeat the reigning World Champions?
  • Spare a thought for the Jag who scored in his only "official" appearance for Scotland in November 1949 which helped us "qualify" for the Brazil '50 World Cup. Players wanted to go but, alas,the SFA declined the invitation. 

The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 7: 1940s →

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We're at the halfway point in our internationalists odyssey, and the 1950s was a classic chapter in the story. Scotland play at World Cups for the first time. Heard about the guy who made 34 consecutive senior Scotland matches (1948 to 1953) but didn't go to the 1954 World Cup? Two Jags made it, but another missed the cut. Which Jag was in the running for Sweden '58 but missed out? A mighty adventure for Northern Ireland in '58, but which Jag was thwarted with a training injury just days before their World Cup opener? Last minute dramas, pitch invasions, World Cup mis-adventures, it's all here!

p.s. to @lady-isobel-barnett - see if you can spot which of your past forum thoughts has been echoed in this chapter!  :detective:

The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 8: 1950s →

 

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At the time, there was a train of thought with the old skool that the British Home Championship was the ultimate tournament, which just sounds bizarre and ridiculous these days. George Young was a titan for Scotland, but went off on a pre-season jolly with Rangers instead of going to Switzerland '54 (albeit the club dictated it)! 

 

 

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43 minutes ago, The Thistle Archive said:

p.s. to @lady-isobel-barnett - see if you can spot which of your past forum thoughts has been echoed in this chapter!  :detective:

 

Have only skimmed over this and I'll certainly be reading it later on in detail but perhaps referring to 

Quote

It has been said that a partnership of Ewing and McBride might have delivered the flag itself - what might have been!

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

There were zero 'PTFC direct' caps in the 1960s (a rarity), although the escapades of our former and future Jags made for a rich and storied adventure all the same.

  • Our second footballing Olympian!
  • Tarzan, lord of the apes!
  • Two Thistle internationalists in the same house!
  • Scotland hit Spain for six in Madrid!
  • Scotland 'World Champions' in 1967!
  • Tournament football in Ho Chi Minh City during Vietnam war!

A surreal episode...

The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 9: 1960s →

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  • 2 weeks later...

It was apt in the club's centenary decade that our internationalists story was so noteworthy too, and we were reaching record numbers on that front. 18 Thistle men were capped in the 70s (14 of them new to our 'Who's Who' A-Z), winning 116 caps under the associations of Finland, New Zealand, Scotland and the USA.

  • Who was the youngest-ever to be capped whilst a Thistle player?
  • Partick Thistle player replaces Partick Thistle player at half-time in a Scotland match!
  • Which two Jags played in the fabled Maracanã?
  • Who scored for Scotland with his first touch before even kicking the ball?
  • Heard the one about the Scottish player who won a FIFA award at the 1978 World Cup?
  • The Diego Maradona experience!
  • Alf Stamp vs. Alan Hansen at the World Cup?!

From Haiti to Brazil to New Zealand to Germany, it's a truly global chapter...


The Definitive Who's Who Of The Partick Thistle Internationalists, part 10: 1970s →

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For us of a more mature age we took qualifying for the world cup finals thru the 70's,80's and 90's for granted, sadly no longer the case and i don't see it changing for 2026 either. 

Being pedantic now, but the vet who used the James Herriot pen name was James Alfred Wight and not Wright as stated in the Jim Herriot section. :whistling:

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