David McLean (3 February 1884 – 14 February 1951) was a Scottish association footballer and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

. McLean played as a Winger.

Player

McLean was born in

Buckhaven, Fife Buckhaven is a town on the east coast of Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth between East Wemyss and Methil. Buckhaven is on the Fife Coastal Path, and near to Wemyss Caves and Largo Bay. History The name Buckhaven is probably from the Sc ...

. He played for Buckhaven United,

Cambuslang Rangers Cambuslang Rangers Football Club are a Scottish football club based in Cambuslang, South Lanarkshire. Nicknamed ''The Lang'', ''Camby'' or ''The Wee Gers'', were formed in 1899, they play at Somervell Park and wear blue strips (uniforms). They ...

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 ...

, Ayr United and Cowdenbeath. He first joined East Fife in 1911 as player-manager.

Manager

East Fife and Bristol Rovers

After joining East Fife as player manager he led them to victory in the Scottish Qualifying Cup Final in 1920-21. East Fife were admitted to the

Scottish Football League The Scottish Football League (SFL) was a league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4 km south ...

in 1921 and reached the

1927 Scottish Cup Final Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

. McLean was appointed manager of Bristol Rovers in 1929. He left after just over a year. He and returned to East Fife in 1931. McLean led them to victory over

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock (, sco, Kilmaurnock; gd, Cill Mheàrnaig (IPA: ʰʲɪʎˈveaːɾnəkʲ, "Marnock's church") is a large town and former burgh in East Ayrshire, Scotland and is the administrative centre of East Ayrshire, East Ayrshire Council. ...

in the 1938 Scottish Cup Final.

Heart of Midlothian

Hearts appointed McLean manager on a five-year contract in June 1941. He played a significant role in rebuilding the club during the Second World War. The first seeds of the Tommy Walker managerial success at Hearts were sown by McLean. On 9 October 1948, after a mediocre start to the 1948–49 season McLean combined three young forwards, Jimmy Wardhaugh,

Willie Bauld William Russell Logan Bauld (24 January 1928 – 11 March 1977) was a footballer who played for Newtongrange Star, Heart of Midlothian, Edinburgh City and the Scotland national team. Heart of Midlothian Bauld was born in Newcraighall, Edin ...

and

Alfie Conn Sr. Alfred "Alfie" Conn (2 October 1926 – 7 January 2009) was a Scottish professional footballer, most commonly remembered as part of the ''Terrible Trio'' of the Heart of Midlothian side of the 1950s, along with Willie Bauld and Jimmy Wardhaug ...

, for the first time.Scott, ''The Terrible Trio'', 10–11 They became dubbed the ''Terrible Trio'' and scored over 900 Hearts goals between them (Wardhaugh 376, Bauld 355, Conn 221).Hearts FC Hall of Fame
/ref>Scott, ''The Terrible Trio'', 101–103 A few weeks later in December 1948, Tommy Walker left during his third season at Chelsea to return to Hearts. He took the role of player-assistant to McLean, whose intention was that Walker would be a steadying influence in a developing young team. However, after a single appearance at right-half in a 1–0 home defeat by

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

, Walker retired to concentrate fully on learning the managerial ropes. Tangible progress was made in the League Championship in 1949-50 when Hearts finished third. As Walker had become more influential, McLean was co-opted to the board on 16 March 1950. McLean's death on 14 February 1951 saw Walker promoted to the position of manager; his reign was to prove the most successful period in the club's history.Price, P12 Walker was always quick to acknowledge the contribution made by McLean and his fatherly interest in the welfare and development of the players. The important foundations Walker inherited from McLean included the ''Terrible Trio'' forwards, the full back pair of Bobby Parker and Tam McKenzie and half backs Bobby Dougan and

Davie Laing David Laing (20 February 1925 – 15 July 2017) was a Scottish professional footballer. Laing played for Hearts for eight years and represented the Scottish League XI while there in 1952. His last game for the club was on 4 September 1954 in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mclean, David 1884 births 1951 deaths Association football wingers Scottish footballers Cambuslang Rangers F.C. players Celtic F.C. players Ayr United F.C. players Cowdenbeath F.C. players East Fife F.C. players Scottish Football League players Scottish football managers East Fife F.C. managers Bristol Rovers F.C. managers Heart of Midlothian F.C. managers English Football League managers Scottish Football League managers People from Buckhaven Footballers from Fife Scottish Junior Football Association players