Iain Thomas Russell (born 14 November 1982) 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 last 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 ...
for
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 ...
, on loan from
Pollok
Pollok ( gd, Pollag, lit=a pool, sco, Powk) is a large housing estate on the south-western side of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The estate was built either side of World War II to house families from the overcrowded inner city. Housing 30,0 ...
.
Russell came through the youth teams at
Annan Athletic and
Rangers before making a few appearances for
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 ...
. Since leaving the ''Well'', Russell has also played for
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
Alloa Athletic
Alloa Athletic Football Club is a Scottish association football semi-professional club based in the town of Alloa, Clackmannanshire.
Formed as Alloa in 1880, the football club shortly changed its name to Alloa Association, and then to Alloa Ath ...
and
Stirling Albion
Stirling Albion Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Stirling. The club was founded in 1945 following the demise of King's Park after World War II. The club currently competes in Scottish League Two as a member of the ...
(both loan spells),
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 ...
,
Queen of the South and
Airdrieonians
Airdrieonians Football Club is a Scottish professional football team in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, who are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League One. They were formed in 2002 as Airdrie United ...
.
Background
Russell was born in Dumfries and grew up nearby in
Annan. Russell is the grandson of the former
Airdrieonians
Airdrieonians Football Club is a Scottish professional football team in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, who are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League One. They were formed in 2002 as Airdrie United ...
,
Rangers and Scotland internationalist,
Ian McMillan and lesser known brother of Milngavie over 35’s Legend Kirk Russell
Career
Motherwell and Dumbarton
Russell started his career at
Rangers, although he did not feature for the first team, and first played in the first team for
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 ...
and then
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 ...
. He played over 100 games for Dumbarton and was the club's player of the year in 2005.
Brechin City
Russell struggled with a hamstring injury throughout the opening period of his
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 ...
career, but two goals against
Stranraer
Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; gd, An t-Sròn Reamhar ), also known as The Toon, is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It is located in the historical parish of Inch in the historic county of Wigtownshire. It lies on the shores of L ...
on 28 October 2006 at
Glebe Park saw him open his account. He was the season's top scorer with 15 goals to his name.
Russell was working his way through a quantity surveying degree at
Glasgow Caledonian University
Glasgow Caledonian University ( gd, Oilthigh Chailleannach Ghlaschu, ), informally GCU, Caledonian or Caley, is a public university in Glasgow, Scotland. It was formed in 1993 by the merger of The Queen's College, Glasgow (founded in 1875) and G ...
whilst at Brechin. Since signing on full-time at Morton it has been put on hold. In February 2007, Russell signed a new contract with Brechin.
Greenock Morton, Alloa Athletic and Stirling Albion
He left for Greenock Morton in August 2007 for an undisclosed fee (believed to be £40,000). Russell scored nine goals in all competitions in his first season with Morton, finishing two goals behind top goalscorer
Peter Weatherson
Peter Joseph Weatherson (born 29 May 1980) is an English former professional footballer who mainly played as a striker for Greenock Morton. Weatherson also played for Newcastle Blue Star, Queen of the South and Annan Athletic. Weatherson wa ...
.
In September 2009, Russell was loaned out to
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
side
Alloa Athletic
Alloa Athletic Football Club is a Scottish association football semi-professional club based in the town of Alloa, Clackmannanshire.
Formed as Alloa in 1880, the football club shortly changed its name to Alloa Association, and then to Alloa Ath ...
. After returning for Alloa, he was sent out on loan again, this time to the ''Wasps'' rivals
Stirling Albion
Stirling Albion Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Stirling. The club was founded in 1945 following the demise of King's Park after World War II. The club currently competes in Scottish League Two as a member of the ...
.
Writing in world football magazine Inside Futbol in March 2010, Russell called for the Scottish Premier League to look at an 18 team top division in order to "move forward to keep fans interested". On 20 April 2010, Russell scored the winner in a 2–1 victory over
Clyde Clyde may refer to:
People
* Clyde (given name)
* Clyde (surname)
Places
For townships see also Clyde Township
Australia
* Clyde, New South Wales
* Clyde, Victoria
* Clyde River, New South Wales
Canada
* Clyde, Alberta
* Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...
to relegate the ''Bully Wee''. Despite his contribution to the championship win, Russell did not play enough games to win a Championship medal, but manager
Allan Moore
Allan Moore (born 25 December 1964) is a Scottish association football, football player and manager (association football), manager.
Playing career
During his playing career he turned out for several Scottish clubs including Dumbarton F.C., Du ...
gave him his medal in gratitude for his efforts.
After his manager at Stirling, took over at
Cappielow
Cappielow, also known as Cappielow Park supported by Dalrada Technology UK for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium in Greenock, Inverclyde, Scotland. It is the home ground of Scottish Professional Football League club Greenock Morton, w ...
, Russell was offered a year's extension to his deal which had run out in May 2010. Russell declined the offer.
Livingston
Russell signed a two-year deal 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 ...
in June 2010 Russell signed a one-year contract extension 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 ...
in May 2012. Russell left Livingston in May 2013 after the end of his contract. In his 3 years at the club he made 93 league appearances and scored 44 goals.
Queen of the South
Russell signed for Queen of the South on 21 May 2013. Queens ended the season in fourth place in the Scottish football second tier for a first ever taste of play off football. Queens were eliminated 4-3 after extra time in the second leg away at Falkirk. Queens finished in the fourth place play off place again in 2014/15. League opposition included Hibs, Rangers and the season's runaway divisional winners, Hearts. Hibs and Rangers were both beaten twice by Queens. The 3-0 home win v Rangers was the best of the bunch. Rangers brought Queens` play off campaign to an end with a 3-2 aggregate QoS defeat. Russell spent three seasons with the
Dumfries
Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from the ...
side making over 100 first team appearances.
[Club History qosfc.com]
/ref>
Airdrieonians
Russell next signed for Airdrieonians
Airdrieonians Football Club is a Scottish professional football team in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, who are members of the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) and play in Scottish League One. They were formed in 2002 as Airdrie United ...
on 21 May 2016. Russell is the grandson of Airdrie legend and Honorary President Ian McMillan. During his one season at the ''Diamonds'', Russell scored a hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
of penalties on 22 October 2016, in a 4-1 win over Queen's Park. Russell's three penalties were scored in the 9th, 28th and 74th minutes respectively.
Dumbarton (second spell)
After announcing his retirement in June 2017, Russell reconsidered his decision and signed a deal with part-time 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 (, ...
club 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 January 2018 until the end of the 2017-18 season, having previously played with the ''Sons'' from 2003 until 2006.
On 23 January 2018, Russell scored the winning goal on his first start following his return to the club, in a 3-2 Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,[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. ...](_blank)
. After scoring twice as a trialist in pre-season with the Sons, he signed a new one-year deal in July 2018.
Pollok
On 21 June 2019, Russell put pen to paper for Pollok
Pollok ( gd, Pollag, lit=a pool, sco, Powk) is a large housing estate on the south-western side of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The estate was built either side of World War II to house families from the overcrowded inner city. Housing 30,0 ...
on what was to be his first experience of the Junior Game.
On 17 July 2019 He made his first appearance for the club in a friendly against rivals Arthurlie.
Russell was loaned to 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 the autumn of 2020. He made his debut for Cowden in a League Cup match against Raith Rovers
Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the town of Kirkcaldy, Fife. The club was founded in 1883 and currently competes in the Scottish Championship as a member of the Scottish Professional Football Leag ...
on 14 November.
Cowdenbeath
On 19 December 2020, Russell scored his two hundredth career goal against Brechin in a two nil victory for the Blue Brazil.
Career statistics
Honours
Stirling Albion
* Scottish Football League Second Division
The Scottish Football League Second Division was the third tier of the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013.
History
The Second Division was created in 1975, as part of a wider reconstruction of the Scottish Football League (SF ...
, 2009–10
Livingston
* Scottish Football League Second Division
The Scottish Football League Second Division was the third tier of the Scottish football league system between 1975 and 2013.
History
The Second Division was created in 1975, as part of a wider reconstruction of the Scottish Football League (SF ...
, 2010–11
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
See also
* Greenock Morton F.C. season 2008-09 , 09-10
Notes
External links
*
* (loan spell at Alloa)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Iain
1982 births
Living people
Footballers from Dumfries
Scottish men's footballers
Motherwell F.C. players
West of Scotland Football League players
Rangers F.C. players
Annan Athletic F.C. players
Dumbarton F.C. players
Brechin City F.C. players
Greenock Morton F.C. players
Scottish Premier League players
Scottish Football League players
Men's association football forwards
Stirling Albion F.C. players
Alloa Athletic F.C. players
Livingston F.C. players
Scottish Professional Football League players
Queen of the South F.C. players
Airdrieonians F.C. players
Cowdenbeath F.C. players