Gary Glen (born 22 March 1990) is a former Scottish professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...
who played as a
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
Livingston
Livingston may refer to:
Businesses
* Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010)
* Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline
* Livingston International, a North American custom ...
and
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 18 ...
.
Career
Hearts
Born in
Livingston, West Lothian
Livingston ( sco, Leivinstoun, gd, Baile Dhunlèibhe) is the largest town in West Lothian, Scotland. Designated in 1962, it is the fourth post-war new town to be built in Scotland. Taking its name from a village of the same name incorporated ...
, Glen – a former pupil of
Broxburn Academy
Broxburn Academy is a secondary school in Broxburn, West Lothian, Scotland.
Notable alumni
*Hannah Bardell – Scottish National Party MP for Livingston (2015–present)
*Sir Alexander Haddow – Physician and pathologist
* Chris Lilley – Comp ...
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
, but turned them down as he thought he was more likely to make it as a footballer with Hearts than with the
Old Trafford
Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...
club. Highly rated by the Hearts coaching staff, Glen earned his first involvement with the first team squad when he was an unused substitute in a league match at
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 ...
on 5 March 2007. At the age of 16, he made his senior debut as a substitute against
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 ...
on 17 March 2007.
He began to feature more for the first team towards the end of the 2007–08 season, with his first start coming against St Mirren at Tynecastle on 19 April 2008 scoring his first senior goal to put Hearts in front as Hearts came back from a goal down to win 3–2. This led to Glen being awarded the ''Clydesdale Bank U19 Graduate award'' for his breakthrough to the first team. He continued his form with the only goal of the game in his second start against
Inverness Caledonian Thistle
Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club, commonly known as Caley Thistle, is a professional football club based in Inverness, Scotland. The team currently competes in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional F ...
on 26 April. In April 2008 he signed a new four-year contract extending his stay until the summer of 2012.
On 3 May 2008 edition of '
Soccer AM
''Soccer AM'' is a British football-based comedy/talk show, produced by Sky Sports.
First broadcast in 1995, the programme currently airs on Sky Showcase, Sky Sports Premier League and Sky Sports Football at 10.30am on Saturdays during the fo ...
', Glen and fellow Hearts youngster Matej Rapnik, appeared on the sub program, 'Skill Skool', where they went head-to-head in a battle of skill. On 14 May 2008 Glen picked up his first red card for kicking out at Gretna player
Craig Barr
Craig Barr (born 29 March 1987) is a Scottish footballer who plays as a defender for Tranent. Barr has previously played for Gretna, Queen of the South, Livingston, Airdrieonians, Raith Rovers and Dumbarton, as well as Swedish club Östersu ...
during the last game of the season.
Glen was accused of lacking a good attitude toward his game by manager Csaba László and consequently failed to become a regular in the Hearts team during season 2008–09. He failed to make another first team appearance until 27 December 2008, appearing against
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
as a substitute. On 11 January 2009, Glen came off the bench with 10 minutes remaining and scored a decisive 94th-minute goal against Hibernian at
Easter Road
Easter Road is a football stadium located in the Leith area of Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the home ground of Scottish Premiership club Hibernian (Hibs). The stadium currently has an all-seated capacity of , which makes it the fifth-larges ...
in the fourth round of the
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,city rivals out of the cup.
Glen became a regular starter for the Hearts first team in season 2009–10, under new manager Jim Jefferies who was confident of Glens ability despite suffering a Hernia injury. He scored his first goal of the new season against
Dunfermline Athletic
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...
hamstring
In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury.
In quadrupeds, ...
injury in pre season, this and a series of further injuries limited him to just 14 appearances the following season. Glen was offered to go on loan to
Brechin City
Brechin City Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the townDespite the name of the football club, Brechin is not an official city. Brechin was historically known as a city because it has a cathedral. of Brechin in Angus. The club w ...
to gain experience but turned this down, preferring to stay with Hearts.
In December 2011, with Hearts experiencing financial difficulty, Glen was told that he was free to either find a new club in the January 2012 transfer window, or he would be released when his contract expires in summer 2012. He made his first appearance of the season after recovering from injury as a substitute on 7 January 2012 as a substitute against
Auchinleck Talbot
Auchinleck Talbot Football Club is a Scottish football club based in Auchinleck, East Ayrshire. They currently play in the .
The club is also a member of the Scottish Junior Football Association, and have won the Scottish Junior Cup on a reco ...
in the
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Dunfermline
Dunfermline (; sco, Dunfaurlin, gd, Dùn Phàrlain) is a city, parish and former Royal Burgh, in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. The city currently has an estimated population of 58,508. Accord ...
. At the end of the season Hearts confirmed his contract had not been renewed and he left the club.
Ross County
After leaving Hearts, Glen signed a one-year contract with Ross County in June 2012. In his opening season, he managed to score three goals in 26 appearances – the majority of them substitutions. His first came in the home game versus
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 ...
on 15 December where he equalised and made the game one all. His second didn't come until 2 February, where he again scored against Dundee, this time to make it 2–0 to the Staggies at Dens Park. His third and final goal of the season came against
Aberdeen
Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...
on 26 February, where he scored the winning goal at Pittodrie.
At the end of the 2012–13 season, Glen was given a contract extension to stay at the club. Glen was released by Ross County on 16 May 2014 after finding his first team opportunities limited, making just 15 appearances in the 2013–14 season.
Livingston
In July 2014, Glen signed for
Livingston
Livingston may refer to:
Businesses
* Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010)
* Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline
* Livingston International, a North American custom ...
on a one-year deal ahead of the 2014–15
Scottish Championship
The Scottish Championship, known as the cinch Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland
Scotland (, ...
season. He extended his stay with them for the following season.
Cowdenbeath
After two seasons with
Livingston
Livingston may refer to:
Businesses
* Livingston Energy Flight, an Italian airline (2003–2010)
* Livingston Compagnia Aerea, an Italian airline (2011–2014), also known as Livingston Airline
* Livingston International, a North American custom ...
, Glen signed for
Scottish League Two
The Scottish League Two, known as cinch League Two for sponsorship reasons, is the fourth tier of the Scottish Professional Football League, the league competition for men's professional football clubs in Scotland. The Scottish League Two was ...
side
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 18 ...
in June 2016. Glen spent one season with the club before being released in June 2017.
Scotland youth
He has featured for Scotland at youth team level, scoring against Northern Ireland and England in the 2005
Victory Shield
The Victory Shield is an annual football tournament competed for by the under-16 teams of Scotland, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Wales. The Victory Shield had traditionally been competed for by the four Home Nations, but the Football A ...
. He went on to represent the Scotland under-19 team on five occasions.
Career statistics
Personal awards and achievements
*
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' ...
Clydesdale Bank U19 league graduation award
*
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' ...