James Bryden Niven (10 February 1861 – 1933) was a Scottish international

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 ...

. Niven was born in the parish of

Kirkpatrick-Juxta Kirkpatrick-Juxta is a parish in Dumfries and Galloway on the A701, between Biggar, Moffat and Lockerbie. The parish straddles the main road A74 (M). It is primarily a rural parish. One source describes its name as meaning "the lands next to the ...

near Moffat, Dumfriesshire, the son of James Bryden Niven, Sr. and Elizabeth Saunders. Niven was one of two Scottish internationalists from Moffat. The other was James Fraser. While playing for Moffat F.C., Niven was an awarded a full

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 ...

international cap, for having played in the 8–2 defeat of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

on 14 March 1885. The game was played at the

second Hampden Park Cathkin Park is a municipal park in Glasgow, Scotland. The park is maintained by the city's parks department, and it is a public place where football is still played. The park contains the site of the second Hampden Park, previously home to the ...

, later known as Cathkin Park, and Alex Higgins of

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. ...

scored a hat-trick. This was the only full international cap that both players received. Niven died in

West Derby West Derby ( ) is an affluent suburb of Liverpool, England. It is located East of the city and is also a Liverpool City Council ward. At the 2011 Census, the population was 14,382. History West Derby Mentioned in the ''Domesday Book'', West ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, in 1933.''England & Wales, Civil Registration Death Index, 1916-2007''

References

;Sources *

External links

* 1861 births 1933 deaths People from Moffat Scottish footballers Scotland international footballers Footballers from Dumfries and Galloway Association football fullbacks Date of death missing {{Scotland-footy-defender-1860s-stub