Harold Davis (10 May 1933 – 26 June 2018) was a 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 ...
Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...
after his father was injured during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. He began his senior football career at
Scot Symon
James Scotland Symon (9 May 1911 – 30 April 1985) was a Scottish football player and manager. He also played cricket for Scotland in an age when it was possible to play and excel in several sports.
Footballer
Symon started his professional c ...
's East Fife and quickly gained praise as a tough tackling, no-nonsense defender, but was drafted for national service in 1951 and shunned easier alternative postings to join the
Black Watch
The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regime ...
. Whilst in the army he fought in the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
and was seriously injured on the battlefield; he spent two years in hospitals recuperating from bullet wounds to his abdomen and foot.
While recovering from his injuries, Davis was determined not just to live a 'normal' life but to be extremely fit and overcome any challenge, the first being the medical opinion that he would no longer be able to play professional football. His progress impressed David Kinnear, a physiotherapist at the facility who had once played for Rangers, now managed by Scot Symon, and as a result of the mutual connections Davis signed for the reigning Scottish league champions at the age of 22. He helped them retain their title in his first campaign at Ibrox.
That was the first of seven winner's medals he would claim during eight years at the
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
club, making 272 appearances in all competitions and also taking part in a continental final when Rangers lost out to
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fol ...
Immediately after his playing days ended, Davis had a three-year spell as manager of Queen's Park in Scotland's second tier. He then returned to Rangers as a coach working with Davie White, followed a year as manager of Queen of the South and a stint coaching at Dundee (again under White, during which they won the 1973 Scottish League Cup Final) before leaving football to run a hotel in
Wester Ross
Wester Ross () is an area of the Northwest Highlands of Scotland in the council area of Highland. The area is loosely defined, and has never been used as a formal administrative region in its own right, but is generally regarded as lying to t ...
where he was able to continue a passion for
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
. In 1998, he survived a broken neck sustained in a road accident.
Honours
Rangers
*
Scottish 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 sout ...
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,1961–62
*
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 ...
European Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...