James Ian Cook Bryson (born 26 November 1962, in

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. ...

) is a Scottish former

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 ...

. Bryson was a junior for

Ayr United Ayr United Football Club are a football club in Ayr, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. Formed in 1910 by the merger of Ayr Parkhouse and Ayr F.C., their nickname is ...

but was released at 18. He then had a short spell at

Hurlford United Hurlford United Football Club are a Scottish Association football, football club based in Hurlford, near Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. Nicknamed ''The Ford'', they were formed in 1912 and play at Blair Park, wearing red and white. They currently play i ...

before moving to

, where he spent seven years as a semi-professional whilst still working on his parents farm. Bryson made almost 200 appearances for "Killie", mostly as a midfielder. Bryson then got a breakthrough in the pre-season of 1988, when

Dave Bassett David Thomas Bassett (born 4 September 1944 in Stanmore) is an English football manager and a former player. During his career he has managed Wimbledon, Watford, Sheffield United, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Barnsley, Leicester City and ...

offered Bryson a trial at

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 ...

. Bryson's trial was successful and he played a crucial part in two successive promotions from the old Third Division, through to the old First Division in 1990. Bryson remained a regular for United in the top flight, assisting and scoring crucial goals, notably a double in a 3–2 victory over

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 ...

, which was the first win of the season after 17 games without a win. After 5 successful years at United, Bryson left for a brief spell at

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

, before he joined

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

in 1993 on his 31st birthday, where he briefly played alongside a young

David Beckham David Robert Joseph Beckham (; born 2 May 1975) is an English former professional footballer, the current president and co-owner of Inter Miami CF and co-owner of Salford City. Known for his range of passing, crossing ability and bending fr ...

. Bryson was appointed captain of the north west club. Although Preston lost the Third Division playoff final 4–2 to

Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play their home ...

, Bryson himself scored with a spectacular overhead kick. Two years later he led them to the Third Division title, lifting the trophy at Deepdale in front of a capacity crowd. Bryson ended his professional league career at

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

, later playing for

Bamber Bridge Bamber Bridge is an urban village in Lancashire, England, south-east of Preston, in the borough of South Ribble. The name derives from the Old English "bēam" and "brycg", which probably means "tree-trunk bridge". The population was 13,945 at ...

. He is still remembered with great affection at both Sheffield United and Preston. After retiring, Bryson spent a spell coaching youngsters at North End's academy. Ian still lives in Preston and still plays regularly for AC Sporting in the Preston area Veterans League.

Honours

Individual *

PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...

: 1995–96 Third Division

References

External links

* 1962 births Living people Premier League players Scottish men's footballers Hurlford United F.C. players Kilmarnock F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Barnsley F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players Rochdale A.F.C. players Bamber Bridge F.C. players Scottish Football League players English Football League players Men's association football midfielders Footballers from Kilmarnock Scottish Junior Football Association players {{scotland-footy-midfielder-1960s-stub