Gavin Paul Rae (born 28 November 1977) is a Scottish professional

football manager ''Football Manager'' (also known as ''Worldwide Soccer Manager'' in North America from 2004 to 2008) is a series of football management simulation video games developed by British developer Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game beg ...

and former

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who is ...

who played as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. He was recently the head coach of

National Premier Leagues NSW The National Premier Leagues NSW is a semi-professional soccer competition in New South Wales, Australia. The competition is conducted by Football NSW, the organising body in New South Wales (the other being the National Premier Leagues Northern ...

club

Hakoah Sydney City East FC Maccabi Hakoah Sydney City East FC, commonly known as Maccabi Hakoah, is an Australian semi-professional soccer club based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club was formed in 1939 as Sydney Hakoah by members of Sydney's Jewish community. They pla ...

. Rae started his playing career with

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 ...

, making over 200 league appearances for the club. He moved to Rangers in January 2004, but struggled to hold down a regular place in their team due to injury. He moved to

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

in 2007 and featured regularly in the team that reached the

2008 FA Cup Final The 2008 FA Cup Final was an association football match between Cardiff City and Portsmouth held at Wembley Stadium, London, on 17 May 2008. The final was the showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the 2007–08 Footba ...

. Rae left Cardiff in 2011 and had spells later in his career with Dundee and

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 ...

. He also won 14 caps for

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

between 2001 and 2009.

Club career

Dundee

Rae was born in

. His first club was

. In total he made 223 games for the club scoring 26 goals in a period of eight years. In November 1999 he memorably scored a last minute winner to beat future club Rangers at Ibrox. Rae stuck with the club during the bad financial days during the 2003–2004 season when Dundee hit administration until he was sold to Rangers for £250,000 in January 2004.

Rangers

Rae made his debut for Rangers on 3 January 2004 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 ...

but only lasted 30 minutes due to a

hamstring injury Straining of the hamstring, also known as a pulled hamstring, is defined as an excessive stretch or tear of muscle fibers and related tissues. Hamstring injuries are common in athletes participating in many sports. Track and field athletes are ...

. After recovering, he managed to score his first goal against Dundee, his former club. However, he suffered another injury, damaging his knee 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 24 April 2004. His road to recovery was hit by several set-backs before he finally made his return to the Rangers first team on 18 February 2006 against Hibernian. He went on to make regular appearances in the Rangers team, particularly towards the end of the season with fellow midfielder

Barry Ferguson Barry Ferguson (born 2 February 1978) is a Scottish football coach, former player and pundit who was most recently the manager of Alloa Athletic. Ferguson spent most of his playing career at Rangers, in two spells either side of a £7.5 mil ...

requiring an operation due to a long running leg injury. In the 2006–07 season, Rae was given the captaincy in a number of games when Barry Ferguson was not playing. On 1 January 2007 he was announced as permanent captain after Ferguson's meeting with

Paul Le Guen Paul Joseph Marie Le Guen (, ; born 1 March 1964) is a French professional football manager and former player. He was most recently the manager of Ligue 2 club Le Havre. During his playing career, Le Guen played as a midfielder, and enjoyed a su ...

, which saw Ferguson stripped of the captaincy and removed from the squad. On 4 January 2007 Le Guen resigned from the managerial position at Rangers and new manager

Walter Smith Walter Ferguson Smith (24 February 1948 – 26 October 2021) was a Scottish association football player, manager and director, primarily associated with his two spells as manager of Glasgow club Rangers. A defender, Smith's playing car ...

re-appointed Ferguson as club captain. He was offered a new deal at the club by Smith but he decided it would be better for him to attempt to find first team football. Rae left Rangers as a free agent at the end of the 2006–07 season when his contract expired. On 21 May 2007 he was linked with a move to Hearts with his former teammate at Rangers, Stephen Hughes but the move did not come to fruition.

Cardiff City

Rae was watched by several sides from England, Wales and Scotland and came very close to joining

Football League Championship The English Football League Championship (often referred to as the Championship for short or the Sky Bet Championship for sponsorship purposes) is the highest division of the English Football League (EFL) and second-highest overall in the En ...

side

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

but instead on 23 June 2007 he joined Championship side

along with fellow Scotsman Steven MacLean on a free transfer. On 26 June 2007 he was quoted in an interview saying "Believe me, I am coming to Cardiff fully fit and fully committed. I am fired up to make the most of this chance". On his arrival Rae found himself in first team action from the start of the season due to a long-term injury to

Riccardo Scimeca Riccardo Scimeca (born 13 June 1975) is an English football coach and professional footballer. He who played as a defender notably in the Premier League for Aston Villa, Leicester City and West Bromwich Albion. He also played in the Footbal ...

and also took over the captaincy for the 2–1 home win against

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

with

Darren Purse Darren John Purse (born 14 February 1977) is an English former professional footballer who now coaches the Cardiff City U23s. A centre-back, he began his career at Leyton Orient, before winning a £100,000 move to Oxford United in July 1996. ...

starting the match on the bench, Scimeca injured and Stephen McPhail dropped from the side and he scored his first goal for the Bluebirds not long after on 15 September in a 2–1 victory over

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...

. He went on to make a total of 55 appearances in all competitions in his first year, more than any other player at the club including playing in all 6 matches during the clubs run to the

FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final, commonly referred to in England as just the Cup Final, is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football ev ...

. The following season began badly for Rae when, after making just two appearances, he chipped a bone in his leg just below his knee during a 2–1 win over

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 ...

in the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

. Rae was told that he could continue playing with the injury if he could withstand the pain, returning to the side after a month out. He went on to appear in 46 matches in all competitions for Cardiff, the second highest amount behind Roger Johnson. Rae started the 2009–10 season on the bench but was handed his first appearance of the year after 45 minutes of the opening game with

Joe Ledley Joseph Christopher Ledley (born 23 January 1987) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. He started his career with then Championship side Cardiff City where he spent six years. He helped the club to the F ...

suffering from an illness. With Ledley away on international duty, he was handed a start in a 3–1 win over

Dagenham & Redbridge Dagenham & Redbridge Football Club is a professional association football club based in Dagenham, Greater London, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Often known simply as Dag ...

in the first round of the

Football League Cup The EFL Cup (referred to historically, and colloquially, as the League Cup), currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual knockout competition and major trophy in men's domestic football in England. Organised by the ...

and scored the first goal of the game. He made his 400th club appearance in a 4–3 win over

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

on 24 October 2009, coming on for Stephen McPhail, and made his 100th league appearance for Cardiff on 1 November 2009 against

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

as a substitute. During a 4–4 draw with

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Peterborough have a long-standing ...

on 28 December 2009, Rae suffered a broken hand keeping him out for up to 4 weeks, but returned on 9 January 2010 against

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

after a remarkable recovery. On 9 April 2010, Rae was confirmed to be sidelined for the rest of the season after he suffered a ruptured tendon in his ankle. Having fallen out of favour at the start of the 2010–11 season following the arrivals of

Danny Drinkwater Daniel Noel Drinkwater (born 5 March 1990) is an English professional footballer who is a midfielder. He is currently a free agent. Having come through the youth academy at Manchester United, he spent time on loan with Huddersfield Town, Cardif ...

and

Seyi Olofinjana Seyi George Olofinjana (born 30 June 1980) is a Nigerian former footballer who played as a midfielder. Olofinjana began his career with local sides Crown and Kwara United before moving to Europe with Norwegian side SK Brann. After two seasons ...

, Rae was allowed to open talks with

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

in August 2010 over a possible transfer. Rae left Cardiff later in the summer.

Return to Dundee

were interested in signing Rae, but on 14 October 2011, he signed a short-term deal with his former club

. Rae scored against

Morton Morton may refer to: People * Morton (surname) * Morton (given name) Fictional * Morton Koopa, Jr., a character and boss in ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' * A character in the ''Charlie and Lola'' franchise * A character in the 2008 film '' Horton ...

in a 2–1 victory. On 26 November 2011, Rae scored a header against

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 ...

won 4–2. Rae also scored against Kilmarnock in a fourth round Scottish Cup Replay with Dundee losing out 2–1.

Aberdeen

On 30 January 2012, Rae signed for his home town club

. He scored his first goal for the club in 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 ...

against

Greenock Morton Greenock Morton Football Club is a Scottish professional football club, which plays in the Scottish Championship. The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest senior Scottish clubs. Morton was renamed Greeno ...

, and his first league goal for

on 23 September 2012 playing against

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 ...

. He then went on to score goals against Hibs and

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. ...

. Rae left Aberdeen at the end of the 2012–13 season, as his contract was not renewed.

Third spell at Dundee

On 6 June 2013, Rae once again joined

, this time as a player/coach. He scored his first goal in this spell in a 4–1 win against

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; also sco, Dumbairton; ) is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. In 2006, it had an estimated population of 19,990. Dumbarton was the ca ...

on 12 October 2013. He decided to leave the club after gaining promotion to the Scottish Premiership in May 2014 and subsequently retired.

Hakoah Sydney City East FC

In September 2014, Rae moved to Australia and signed with

club

. He became their head coach in January 2018. He is currently playing for Pagewood Botany FC

International career

Rae was still at Dundee when he gained international recognition, winning his first cap for

in 2001 against

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

. On 24 March 2008 he received his first call-up to the squad for two years, and also his first while at Cardiff. He came on as a substitute at half-time during a 1–1 draw with

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. Rae was once again called up to replace the suspended

James McFadden James Henry McFadden (born 14 April 1983) is a Scottish football coach and former professional player who played as a forward. McFadden started his playing career with Motherwell, where he came to prominence in the 2002–03 season by scoring ...

in a

2010 World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

qualifier against

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

on 9 September 2009.

Career statistics

Honours

;Dundee *

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 (, ...

(2): 1997–98, 2013–14 ;Hakoah Sydney City East *

Waratah Cup The Waratah Cup is a knockout cup competition in New South Wales, run by the governing body of football in NSW, Football NSW. Teams competing in the Waratah Cup come from the National Premier Leagues NSW, National Premier Leagues NSW 2, Natio ...

(1):

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

;Scotland *

Kirin Cup The is an association football tournament organised in Japan by the Kirin Brewery Company. The host, Japan, is a participant in every edition. The tournament was founded in 1978 then known as Japan Cup (International competition which national ...

(1): 2006

References

External links

* *
Gavin Rae player profile
at cardiffcityfc.co.uk
Gavin Rae player profile
at football.co.uk

at 4thegame.com

at rangers.co.uk {{DEFAULTSORT:Rae, Gavin Scottish footballers Scotland international footballers Scotland under-21 international footballers Association football midfielders Dundee F.C. players Rangers F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Aberdeen F.C. players English Football League players Scottish Premier League players Scottish Football League players 1977 births Living people Footballers from Aberdeen People educated at Oldmachar Academy Scottish Professional Football League players Scottish expatriate footballers Scottish expatriate sportspeople in Australia Expatriate soccer players in Australia Scottish football managers Scottish expatriate football managers Expatriate soccer managers in Australia Hakoah Sydney City East FC players FA Cup Final players