James Magilton (born 6 May 1969) is a Northern Irish
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
manager and former professional player.
As a player, he was a
midfielder
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
who notably played in the
Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
for
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
,
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
and
Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
. He started his playing career in the
Irish League with
Distillery
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heati ...
then signed for
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
but would fail to make an appearance. He joined
Oxford United
Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...
in 1990 before moving to the Saints four-years later. He made 581 league appearances, scoring 64 goals during his playing career. He was capped 52 times by
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
, scoring 5 goals and has recently appeared at
U21 and
U23 level.
He moved into management at Ipswich, where he led the club for three years before managing
Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...
for a brief spell. He has since managed
Melbourne Victory
Melbourne Victory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Melbourne, Victoria. Competing in the country's premier men's competition, the A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL), Victory e ...
,
Northern Ireland U21 and
Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
.
Biography
Magilton was born in
Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
and attended
St. Mary's Christian Brothers' Grammar School.
Club career
Magilton started out at junior club St Oliver Plunkett, under the guidance of Jackie Maxwell, whose long-term association with the club saw him win the BBC NI Unsung Hero award in 2006. Magilton was a gifted midfield player with an exquisite range of passing who represented
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
52 times. He played for
Distillery
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heati ...
,
Oxford United
Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...
,
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
, and
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
before ending his playing career after seven-and-a-half years at
Ipswich
Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...
.
Distillery
Magilton started his playing career with
Distillery
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heati ...
in the Irish League, making his senior debut as a substitute against Newry Town in March 1985, aged just 15.
Liverpool
Magilton served as an apprentice at
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
alongside the likes of
Steve McManaman
Steven McManaman (born 11 February 1972) is an English former footballer who played as a winger for Liverpool, Real Madrid and Manchester City. McManaman is one of the most decorated English footballers to have played for a club abroad and is ...
and
Mike Marsh. He turned professional in 1988 but never made a first team appearance, although he was selected as a (non-playing) substitute in both the
1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...
and
1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
Charity Shields. In 1988 Liverpool beat Wimbledon and then two years later shared it with
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
in a 1–1 draw, both at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
.
Oxford United
Magilton was transferred to
Oxford United
Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...
in October 1990 at the age of 21 for £200,000.
[ There he made 150 League appearances before moving to ]Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
in February 1994.
Southampton
Magilton was Alan Ball's second signing a month after being appointed as Southampton's manager, costing the Saints £600,000. Magilton made his first Saints appearance in a 4–2 victory at The Dell over Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
on 14 February 1994 in which match Matthew Le Tissier
Matthew Paul Le Tissier (; born 14 October 1968) is a former professional footballer. Born in Guernsey, he won eight caps for the England national team.
Le Tissier spent his entire professional club career with Southampton before turning to no ...
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 ...
. Magilton soon established himself as a commanding presence in the central midfield role. Magilton was described in Holley & Chalk's ''In That Number '' as "a neat and indefatigable "fetcher and carrier" between penalty areas."
In the 1994–95 season Magilton started all 42 league games (scoring 6 goals) and continued to feature regularly in the following two seasons under managers David Merrington
David Robert Merrington (born 26 January 1945) is an English former professional footballer who later worked as a commentator for BBC Radio Solent.
Playing career
Merrington played for Burnley, appearing in 98 league games (1 goal), including ...
and Graeme Souness
Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit.
A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...
. Following Dave Jones' appointment in the summer of 1997, Magilton rejected the offer of a new contract and, after making 156 appearances with Southampton.
Sheffield Wednesday
In September 1997 Magilton moved to Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...
for a fee of £1.6 million. He made his debut on 13 September away to his former club Liverpool. He made 22 appearances during his first season at Sheffield Wednesday, scoring once in a 1–1 draw with West Ham in April 1998.
He began the 1998–99 season with Wednesday, although he did not feature regularly for the first team, making only 6 appearances during the first-half of the season.
Ipswich Town
In January 1999, Magilton signed for Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
on loan for the remainder of the season. He made his debut for Ipswich on 17 January in a 2–1 away loss to Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
. He scored his first goal for the club on 13 March 1999, in a 3–0 home victory over Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
at Portman Road
Portman Road is a football stadium in Ipswich, Suffolk, England, which has been the home ground of Ipswich Town F.C. since 1884. The stadium has also hosted many England youth international matches, and one senior England friendly internatio ...
. In March 1999 he signed permanently for Ipswich for a fee of around £750,000.
He started the 1999–2000 season as a regular in the Ipswich first-team. He scored his first goal of the season on 30 August, netting in a 6–1 win over 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 ...
. Magilton helped Ipswich push for promotion throughout the season, scoring 4 goals in 38 appearances in the league as Ipswich finished 3rd in the First Division. He scored his only career hat-trick in a 5–3 victory against Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
in the 1999–2000 play-off semi-finals on 17 May, securing the club's place in the play-off final with a 7–5 aggregate win, and admitting himself that it was his best ever performance. Magilton started in the final at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
as Ipswich beat Barnsley 4–2, earning promotion to the Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
as a result.
Magilton continued to be a key part of the Ipswich side during the following season. He scored his first Premier League goal for Ipswich in a 2-1 away defeat to Leicester City
Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
on 6 September. He made 33 appearances in the league during the season, helping Ipswich to a 5th placed finish in the Premier League and qualification for the UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
the following season.
The 2001–02 season was a disappointing one for Magilton and Ipswich, as the club suffered relegation from the Premier League. He continued to feature regularly in the league and in the UEFA Cup for Ipswich at the start of the season, although he did not feature as often during the second-half of the season. Following relegation from the Premier League in 2002, Ipswich went into administration. Magilton was told he could leave the club on a free transfer due to the club's financial troubles, despite having a year left on his contract, however he wanted to stay at the club, stating before the 2002–03 season; "There is no chance of me wanting to leave. I want to stay and repay the faith the manager and the supporters have shown in me." He made 47 appearances in all competitions during the season, scoring three goals.
Following the departure of Matt Holland
Matthew Rhys Holland (born 11 April 1974) is a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder.
Holland began his career at West Ham United, having previously been with Arsenal's academy. During his time at West Ham spent time out on ...
in 2003, Magilton was named club captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
. He signed a new one-year contract with the club in July 2003. On 27 September, he scored a late winner in a 2–1 away win over Watford
Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne.
Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...
. He captained Ipswich to a 5th placed finish during the 2003–04 season, qualifying for the play-offs, although Ipswich lost out to West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
in the semi-finals.
He signed another one-year contract in July 2004. Ipswich manager Joe Royle
Joseph Royle (born 8 April 1949) is an English football manager and former footballer. In his playing career as a striker, he debuted for Everton at the age of 16 and went on to play for Manchester City, Bristol City, Norwich City, and the ...
also confirmed that he would continue to keep the captain's armband, Royle said of Magilton; "It also shows the quality of Jim that even when he is having an off-day, he never hides on the pitch. He always shows that same 100 per cent commitment and is forever looking to receive the ball. That's a sign of a good player - and a captain." He scored 3 goals in 44 appearances over the course of the season, leading the team to 3rd in the Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
, narrowly missing out on automatic promotion. Ipswich lost out to West Ham United for the second consecutive season in the play-off semi-finals.
A new one-year contract offer was made to Magilton following the end of his contract in July 2005. After spending some time considering his future, the 36 year old veteran midfielder eventually signed a new one-year contract on 8 July. He continued to feature regularly during the 2005–06 season, making 35 appearances across all competitions, scoring once. The 2005–06 season was Magilton's last at Ipswich as an active player however he was registered to play for 2006–07 whilst manager.
International career
Magilton represented Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
at Under-21 and Under-23 level in 1990, before making his senior debut for his country in 1991. He scored his first goal for his country on 5 February 1991, scoring in a 3–1 friendly win against Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
in Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
, Northern Ireland. He became a regular player for Northern Ireland, featuring in their 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification
The 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. The 1994 FIFA World Cup featured 24 teams with one place reserved for the host nation, United States, and one place for the defending champi ...
campaign. He scored his second goal for Northern Ireland in a qualifier against Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
on 9 September 1992, which Northern Ireland won 3–0. He scored in two other qualifiers against Albania and Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
in other 1994 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches in 1993. He scored his fifth goal for his country on 11 February 1997, scoring in a 3–0 friendly win against Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. He was also part of Northern Ireland's 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
campaign in 1997.
Magilton was named Northern Ireland captain for a match against Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
on 16 August 2000. He featured regularly in his country's 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification
The 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification competition was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. Each confederation — the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), CONCACAF (North, Central America and Caribbean), CONMEBOL (South America ...
campaign in 2000 and 2001. Magilton won 52 caps for Northern Ireland during his career, scoring 5 goals.
Managerial career
Ipswich Town
Magilton originally intended to secure a coaching role at another club, but made a tentative approach to the Board at Ipswich to fill the managerial vacancy after Joe Royle
Joseph Royle (born 8 April 1949) is an English football manager and former footballer. In his playing career as a striker, he debuted for Everton at the age of 16 and went on to play for Manchester City, Bristol City, Norwich City, and the ...
's departure prior to the 2006–07 season. Magilton was appointed as Ipswich manager on 5 June 2006, alongside former Academy Director Bryan Klug
Bryan Paul Klug (born 8 October 1960) is an English former professional footballer and coach. He is currently the Head of Coaching and Player Development at the Ipswich Town Academy.
Playing career
Born in Coventry, Klug began his football ca ...
. Although registered as a player, Magilton stated that he would play no more games for the first team during the 2006–07 season, but hoped to turn out for the reserve side. In May 2007, Magilton was linked with the Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
manager's job after it was vacated by Lawrie Sanchez
Lawrence Philip Sanchez (born 22 October 1959) is a Northern Irish football manager and former international footballer.
The defining moment of his playing career came in the 1988 FA Cup Final, when he scored the winning goal for Wimbledon ag ...
, but the ex-international decided against taking the post, due to his lack of experience.
In Magilton's first season in charge (2006–07), he led Ipswich to 14th position in the league. Then, in the 2007–08 Season, Magilton lead Town to an 8th-place finish, missing out on the play-offs by a single point. This position was obtained by virtue of Town's excellent home record despite their poor away form. However, despite substantial investment in the squad the team failed to make the play-offs in the 2008–09 season. This led to Magilton being sacked as manager on 22 April 2009.
Queens Park Rangers
On 3 June 2009, Magilton was appointed the Queens Park Rangers
Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...
manager until June 2011, replacing Paulo Sousa
Paulo Manuel Carvalho de Sousa, CavIH (; born 30 August 1970) is a Portuguese football manager and former professional player who played as a defensive midfielder.
Starting his career at Benfica, he also represented Sporting CP in his countr ...
, who was dismissed in April. On 9 December 2009, Magilton was suspended by Queens Park Rangers following an incident at Watford's Vicarage Road. Magilton reportedly head butted Ákos Buzsáky
Ákos Buzsáky (born 7 May 1982) is a Hungarian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played in the Nemzeti Bajnokság for MTK Budapest and Ferencváros, the Primeira Liga for Porto, the Premier League for Queens Par ...
in a heated exchange with the midfielder, although later reports, from an unnamed source, claimed no such headbutt occurred and that the suspension was in response to an ultimatum from Buzsáky. On 16 December 2009, it was announced Magilton had left Queens Park Rangers by mutual consent.
Shamrock Rovers
On 6 July 2011, Magilton was appointed as Shamrock Rovers
Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
Assistant manager on a caretaker basis after Trevor Croly
Trevor Croly, (born 23 February 1974), is an Irish football coach and former player who is currently assistant manager of Bohemians in the League of Ireland Premier Division.
Playing career
Drogheda United
Croly started his career with Drogheda ...
resigned. Magilton assisted Michael O'Neill for the remainder of the 2011 season, helping the Hoops to their 2nd league title in as many years as well as reaching the Europa League
The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. It ...
group stages.
Melbourne Victory
On 7 January 2012, Magilton was signed as head coach of A-League
A-League Men (known as the Isuzu UTE A-League for sponsorship reasons) is the highest-level professional men's soccer league in Australia and New Zealand. At the top of the Australian league system, it is the country's premier men's competiti ...
club Melbourne Victory
Melbourne Victory Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Melbourne, Victoria. Competing in the country's premier men's competition, the A-League Men, under licence from Australian Professional Leagues (APL), Victory e ...
for the remainder of the 2011–12 season, following the dismissal of Mehmet Durakovic
Mehmed (modern Turkish: Mehmet) is the most common Bosnian and Turkish form of the Arabic name Muhammad ( ar, محمد) (''Muhammed'' and ''Muhammet'' are also used, though considerably less) and gains its significance from being the name of Muh ...
. He took over from interim head coach Kevin Muscat
Kevin Vincent Muscat (born 7 August 1973) is an Australian former association football player and the current manager of Yokohama F. Marinos. As a player, he represented the Australia national team at international level winning 46 caps and sco ...
after Melbourne Victory's home game on 7 January 2012 against the Newcastle Jets
Newcastle United Jets Football Club, commonly known as Newcastle Jets, is an Australian professional soccer club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. It competes in the country's premier competition, the A-League, under licence from The Australia ...
. Upon being appointed the new coach of Melbourne Victory, Magilton immediately went to work strengthening the squad, signing Australian international defender Mark Milligan
Mark Daniel Milligan (born 4 August 1985) is an Australian former professional footballer. Starting his career as a defender, Milligan has spent much of his later career playing as a midfielder. He is currently a football expert commentary and ...
on loan from JEF United Ichihara Chiba
, full name and also known as , is a Japanese professional football club that plays in the J2 League. On 1 February 2005, the club changed its name from ''JEF United Ichihara'' to the current name after Chiba city had joined Ichihara, Chiba as ...
, Hong Kong based Spanish midfielder Ubay Luzardo
Ubay Luzardo Santana (born 6 November 1983) is a Spanish footballer who plays for Arucas CF mainly as a central defender.
Club career Early years and Kitchee
Born in Las Palmas, Canary Islands, Luzardo came through local UD Las Palmas' youth sy ...
on loan from Kitchee SC
Kitchee Sports Club (; ; ) is a Hong Kong professional Association football, football club based in Kowloon. It was founded in 1931 and currently competes in the Hong Kong Premier League.
The club has won championships in Hong Kong 11 times, in ...
, and Sierra Leonean-Australian midfielder Julius Davies. In his debut match as Melbourne Victory's coach, Melbourne Victory drew 1–1 with Adelaide United. His first win as coach came in round 19, as Melbourne Victory defeated the Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Ma ...
2–1. After a lacklusture tenure as coach, in which the Victory recorded two wins, five draws and five losses in 12 games, the Victory failed to make the finals, causing Magilton to state that the club needed to rebuild the squad and change its culture. He went about attempting to achieve this goal by releasing defender Fabio Alves and veterans Tom Pondeljak
Tomislav "Tom" Pondeljak (born 8 January 1976 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) is a retired Australian football (soccer) player who last played for Victorian Premier League side St Albans Saints SC.
Club career
Pondeljak started his career ...
and Rodrigo Vargas and signing Gold Coast United
Gold Coast United Football Club is an Australian soccer club based in Gold Coast, Queensland. The earliest incarnation of the club formed in 1966 and its home ground was at Nikiforides Family Park in Broadbeach. The first era of Gold Coast Unit ...
defender Adama Traoré and Central Coast Mariners
Central Coast Mariners Football Club is an Australian professional soccer club based in Gosford, on the Central Coast of New South Wales. It competes in the A-League Men, under licence from the Australian Professional Leagues (APL). The Ma ...
defender Sam Gallagher.
After his contract had expired and was not renewed, Magilton left the club on 2 April 2012. It was speculated that Magilton attempted to pursue legal action against the club, on the basis that he had been offered a three-year contract extension, that had then been rescinded., which was confirmed to be a false rumour. With a winning percentage of just 16.67%, Magilton is statistically the worst coach of Melbourne Victory.
Irish Football Association
On 21 June 2013, Magilton was appointed the elite performance director by the Irish Football Association
The Irish Football Association (IFA) is the governing body for association football in Northern Ireland. It organised the Ireland national football team from 1880 to 1950, which after 1954, became the Northern Ireland national football team.
...
, signing a four-year contract.
Northern Ireland U21
In May 2015, Magilton was appointed manager of the Northern Ireland U21 national team, with Damien Johnson
Damien Michael Johnson (born 18 November 1978) is a Northern Irish football coach and former international player. Sincce 2019 he has been first team technical coach & head of player development at Blackburn Rovers.
He began his career with P ...
and Kevin Horlock serving as his assistant coaches, and Mark Crossley
Mark Geoffrey Crossley (born 16 June 1969) is a football coach and former professional footballer.
As a player, he was a goalkeeper from 1988 until 2011 and he has previously played for numerous clubs in England's top flight, notably for Notti ...
serving as goalkeeping coach.
Dundalk
In December 2020, Magilton left his role in the Irish FA to take up a new position as sporting director at Irish side Dundalk
Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...
. Magilton became interim manager of the first team in April 2021 when Shane Keegan departed the club. His interim spell ended after a run of four wins, three draws and three losses on 16 June 2021, when the club appointed Vinny Perth, who had been sacked by the club ten months previously. On 13 November 2021, it was announced that Magilton had stepped down from his role as Sporting Director less than a year into a four-year contract.
Career statistics
:''Scores and results list Northern Ireland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Magilton goal.''
Managerial statistics
Honours
Liverpool
*FA Charity Shield
The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier Le ...
: 1988
File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...
, 1990
File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of Humankind, humanity on Earth, Astroph ...
(shared)
Ipswich Town
* Football League First Division play-offs: 2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
References
External links
LFCHistory.net profile
Photos and stats
at sporting-heroes.net
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Magilton, Jim
1969 births
Living people
People educated at St. Mary's Christian Brothers' Grammar School, Belfast
Association footballers from Belfast
Association footballers from Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland under-21 international footballers
Northern Ireland international footballers
Association football midfielders
English Football League players
Premier League players
Liverpool F.C. players
Oxford United F.C. players
Southampton F.C. players
Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players
Ipswich Town F.C. players
Football managers from Northern Ireland
Ipswich Town F.C. managers
Queens Park Rangers F.C. managers
Melbourne Victory FC managers
English Football League managers
A-League Men managers
Gaelic footballers who switched code
Dundalk F.C. non-playing staff
Dundalk F.C. managers