David McCracken (born 16 October 1981) is a Scottish

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player and coach, whose last role was as co-manager of

Falkirk Falkirk ( gd, An Eaglais Bhreac, sco, Fawkirk) is a large 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 ...

between 2019 and 2021. McCracken, who played as a

central defender In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

, was a Scotland under-21 internationalist, having made five appearances at that level between 2001 and 2003. McCracken started his career with

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...

in the

Scottish Premier League The Scottish Premier League (SPL) was the top level league competition for professional football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football' ...

and was a first team player there for seven years before leaving in May 2007. He subsequently played in England for

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

clubs

Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play their ho ...

Milton Keynes Dons Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...

and

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

before returning to Scotland with St Johnstone in 2011. He joined Falkirk in August 2013, playing with the club for four seasons, before finishing his playing career with

Peterhead Peterhead (; gd, Ceann Phàdraig, sco, Peterheid ) is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is Aberdeenshire's biggest settlement (the city of Aberdeen itself not being a part of the district), with a population of 18,537 at the 2011 Census. ...

Career

Dundee United

McCracken made his competitive senior debut in a

(SPL) match against

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 Fo ...

on 2 May 2000. In the 2000–01 season, he made nine appearances, mostly at full back, and scored his first goal in the opening day defeat to Celtic at Tannadice. McCracken made his debut for Scotland under-21s in a 1–0 win over

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

. He played 22 times for the first team during season 2001–02. The 2002–03 season saw McCracken make 30 appearances and in 2003–04 he was part of the first team for all but seven games, to bring his total appearances to 99, during which he scored three times. He was then part of the side that finished fifth in the league to give Dundee United their best finish since 1996–97. McCracken had missed only two matches during the 2004–05 season, helping the side reach the semi-finals of the

Scottish League Cup The Scottish League Cup (also known as the Viaplay 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 existen ...

, when he was injured during a

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Queen of the South. He only managed another two games before the end of the season, but was awarded a new two-year contract in July 2005. McCracken missed just five matches in the whole of the 2005–06 season, taking his total of appearances for Dundee United to 165, as the club finished in ninth place in the SPL for a second consecutive season. McCracken was told he was free to leave the club at the end of the 2006–07 season, making his final appearance in a last day 0–0 draw at home to

Motherwell Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lanarks ...

Wycombe Wanderers

On 13 June 2007, David McCracken joined

on a two-year deal, playing his first English club. After the move, McCracken says joining Wycombe was good opportunities to work under manager compatriot

Paul Lambert Paul Lambert (born 7 August 1969) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player, who was most recently the manager of Ipswich Town. Lambert played as a midfielder and won the Scottish Cup in 1987 with St Mirren as a 17-year-ol ...

He was then announced as captain on 9 August 2007, and made his début two days later in the 1–0 loss at home to

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England. The club competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They have spent their complete his ...

. In November, McCracken soon suffered an injury after tore his calf injury, that will left him on the sidelines for two weeks. He made his return for the club, on 14 December 2007, in a 2–0 win over

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

His first goal arrived in the 1–0 home win over

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...

on 16 February 2008, which was his only goal in his first season at Adams Park. Having failed to reach the League One following the play-offs, McCracken was soon devastated following Lambert resignation and left the squad let down because of this. The next season was prove an impressive second season with the club culminated in Wycombe's promotion to Football League One, as well as McCracken being named in the PFA League Two Team of the Year for the 2008–09 season. In January, McCracken improved contract with the club was stalled, leading been the subject of transfer speculation. His second goal for the club came on the final day of the season, as part of a 1–2 home defeat to

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 25 November 1862, it is the ...

. After the season, McCracken was offered a new contract. However, McCracken turned down another deal with the club, which left him a difficult decision to turned down a new deal with Wycombe. Ahead of a match between MK Dons and Wycombe, on 22 September 2009, Manager

Peter Taylor Peter Taylor may refer to: Arts * Peter Taylor (writer) (1917–1994), American author, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction * Peter Taylor (film editor) (1922–1997), English film editor, winner of an Academy Award for Film Editing Politi ...

warned the club's supporter not to boo McCracken will only make the Scot more determined.

Milton Keynes Dons

On 20 June 2009 it was announced that he had signed for the Chairboys' neighbours

on a two-year deal. On his first training with the club, McCracken says he never meet newly manager

Roberto Di Matteo Roberto Di Matteo (; born 29 May 1970) is an Italian professional football manager and former player. During his playing career as a midfielder, he played for Swiss clubs Schaffhausen, Zürich and Aarau before joining Lazio of Italy and Chels ...

. He made 41 appearances, scoring one goal. In his one year at stadium:mk (under Paul Ince), he made little impact and was sold on to Brentford.

Brentford

In July 2010, McCracken signed a two-year contract with another League One side

. Upon the move, McCracken says joining the club left him playing catch-up in terms of pre-season training. Like his time at Brentford, McCracken, once again, made a little impact. After making only two starts for the club, McCracken moved to

Bristol Rovers Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been c ...

on 18 January 2011 on an initial one-month loan deal. On the last day of the transfer window, McCracken loan spell at Bristol Rovers was extended, until the end of the season. On 25 April 2011, McCracken then received a red card for a professional foul after elbowing

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...

in a 2–1 loss against

AFC Bournemouth AFC Bournemouth () is a professional association football club based in Kings Park, Boscombe, a suburb of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest division of English club football. Formed in 1899 as B ...

which he missed the entire match for the rest of the season. At the end of the season, McCracken was released by the club after his contract was terminated by mutual consent.

St Johnstone

On 23 June 2011 McCracken signed a two-year contract with St Johnstone, a few days after being released by the club. Teammate

Peter Enckelman Peter Mikael Enckelman (born 10 March 1977) is a Finnish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Enckelman represented Finland and previously played for TPS Turku, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Cardiff City, St Johnstone a ...

praised manager

Derek McInnes Derek John McInnes (born 5 July 1971) is a Scottish professional football manager and former player who is the manager of Scottish Premiership club Kilmarnock. He featured prominently for Greenock Morton, Rangers, West Bromwich Albion and Dund ...

for signing McCracken and

Frazer Wright Frazer Wright (born 23 December 1979) is a Scottish former professional footballer and current assistant manager of club Stenhousemuir. Wright, who started his career with Stranraer played for Kilmarnock, St Johnstone, Dumbarton and Stirlin ...

after losing

Michael Duberry Michael Wayne Duberry (born 14 October 1975) is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He started his career with Premier League side Chelsea, and also played in the top flight for Leeds United and Reading, and ...

on a free transfer, where he returned to England. Having been an unused substitute in the matches or not in the starting line-up at the start of the season, McCracken soon have his playing time increased throughout the season. On 17 March 2012, McCracken scored his first goal for the club, in a 3–0 win over St Mirren. In 2012–13 season, McCracken start his season, appearing in all of their two UEFA Europa League qualifiers against Turkish side

Eskişehirspor Eskişehirspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional football club located in Eskişehir. Eskisehirspor has a total of six trophies, making them the sixth most trophies holders in Turkey. Founded in 1965, Eskişehirspor competed in the top division ...

. Soon after, McCracken soon suffered an illness from a virus. In mid-November, he fractured his cheek bone during a 1–1 draw against

after clashing with

Victor Wanyama Victor Mugubi Wanyama (; born 25 June 1991) is a Kenyan professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Major League Soccer club CF Montréal and the Kenyan national team. Wanyama became the first ever Kenyan player to scor ...

. Following a further diagnosis of the injury, it announced that he would miss up to six weeks and might require surgery. After a making a return against Heart of Midlothian, He scored his first goal two days later, in the fourth of Scottish Cup, in a 3–0 win over

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 189 ...

. Later in the season, McCracken soon regained his place in the first team. At the end of the 2012–13 season, McCracken left the club after having his contract withdraw, but believes the club would have a change of heart and the main reason of his contract offer withdraw was his recurring of injuries.

Falkirk

Following his departure from St Johnstone, McCracken joined

on a one-year contract. After a brief struggle with an injury at the beginning of the season, McCracken quickly established himself in the Falkirk side. Following a successful season, on 1 May 2014, he agreed a new one-year contract with The Bairns, running until 2015. McCracken was released by Falkirk in May 2017.

Peterhead

On 2 July 2017, McCracken signed for

Coaching career

During his time with Peterhead, McCracken took on coaching responsibilities. He left Peterhead in November 2019 to take a coaching position at Falkirk, working with

Lee Miller Elizabeth "Lee" Miller, Lady Penrose (April 23, 1907 – July 21, 1977), was an American photographer and photojournalist. She was a fashion model in New York City in the 1920s before going to Paris, where she became a fashion and fine art ...

. After a few games in interim charge of the team, McCracken and Miller were given control until the end of the 2019–20 season. McCracken and Miller were sacked by Falkirk in April 2021.

Career statistics

Club

Managerial record

*initially caretaker. Made permanent on 13 December 2019. * statistics includes the 3-0 forfeit win over Kilmarnock in the Scottish League Cup on Tuesday 6 October 2020.

Honours

;Dundee United *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2004–05 ;Falkirk *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,2014–15 Individual *

PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...

: 2008–09 Football League Two

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McCracken, David 1981 births Footballers from Glasgow Living people Men's association football defenders Scottish men's footballers Scotland men's under-21 international footballers Dundee United F.C. players Wycombe Wanderers F.C. players Milton Keynes Dons F.C. players Brentford F.C. players Bristol Rovers F.C. players St Johnstone F.C. players Scottish Premier League players English Football League players Falkirk F.C. players Scottish Professional Football League players Peterhead F.C. players Falkirk F.C. non-playing staff Scottish football managers Scottish Professional Football League managers Falkirk F.C. managers