Ayrshire
Ayrshire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Àir, ) is a historic county and registration county in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Re ...
– 30 July 1941 in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
,
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
) was a Scottish
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 ...
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 ...
McGhee began his career in his native Ayrshire with Cronberry in 1878 and then Boswell Thistle two years later before moving to
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
side Hibernian in 1883. Hibernian had been founded for the benefit of Edinburgh's immigrant Irish Catholic population but the club quickly became a beacon for the Irish-Catholic minority throughout Scotland. They were able to attract players from Irish communities across the country and with this abundant supply of talent they rapidly became one of the dominant sides in Scotland. McGhee was one such player and, as a free-scoring inside forward, he developed into a key part of the side. He is still Hibs record goalscorer against Hearts with at least 24 goals. He scored a remarkable 5 goals in the first 25 minutes in the
Rosebery Charity Cup
The Rosebery Charity Cup was a football competition organised for senior clubs from the East of Scotland.
History
The tournament was organised by and named for an early patron of Scottish football Archibald Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery and ...
final of 1887, Hibs winning 7–1.
In 1887, McGhee captained Hibs to victory in the
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup, A year earlier, alongside
teammate, James Lundie, he had become the first Hibs player to be capped by the Scottish national side. Hibs suffered a rapid decline when the foundation of Celtic in 1888 usurped their position as the standard-bearers of the Irish community. After a brief period with St Bernard's, McGhee followed the example of many of his former Hibs team-mates by moving to Celtic. He later ended his playing career with short spells with Dykebar and Abercorn.
Hearts manager
In 1908, McGhee was hired as manager of Hibernian's city rivals Hearts, the third person to hold the role at the Tynecastle club. His appointment was not popular with the Hearts' support because he had been a prolific scorer against their side in his playing days with Hibs. He had also been at the centre of an incident that resulted in crowd disturbance in a Rosebery Cup match between the sides in 1886, when his tackle broke the leg of Hearts opponent Peter Bell. McGhee left Hearts in December 1909 after he had suspended the club's star player Bobby Walker due to a breach in team discipline (missing a game). When Walker was reinstated by the board, McGhee and his assistant David Smart resigned.
Later life
McGhee emigrated to the
United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
in 1910, where he settled in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, sending for his family two years later. His son Bart would later play football for the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
as an outside left, earning selection in their squad for the
1930 World Cup
The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 to 30 July 1930. FIFA, football's international governing body, selected Uruguay as host nati ...
and scoring their first goal at the finals.
McGhee died on 30 July 1941 in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...