James Bain (6 February 1899 – 22 September 1969) was a 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 ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

, best remembered for his 28 years as a player, manager and assistant manager at

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

. In 2013, Bain placed fifth in a

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

125th Anniversary poll of Brentford's best ever

captains 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 ...

and was inducted into the club's

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

in May 2015.

Club career

Early years and Manchester United

A centre half, Bain's began his career with hometown junior club

Rutherglen Glencairn Rutherglen Glencairn Football Club is a Scottish football (soccer), football club based in Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, near Glasgow. Nicknamed ''The Glens'' and formed in 1896, they play at The Hamish B Allan Stadium (New Southcroft Park). G ...

. He moved to Strathclyde and off the back of his performances earned a transfer to

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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 ...

club

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 May 1922. Bain failed to make an appearance for the first team during the 1922–23 and 1923–24 seasons and finally made his professional debut in a 4–2 win over Leyton Orient on 7 February 1925. It proved to be his only appearance of the 1924–25 season, which meant he missed out on a Second Division winners' medal. Bain managed just two appearances during the 1925–26 First Division season and did not appear for the first team at all during 1926–27. His fourth and final appearance for the club came in a 3–0 defeat to Blackburn Rovers on 19 September 1927. Bain departed

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wemb ...

in July 1928.

Manchester Central and Brentford

Bain joined newly-formed Lancashire Combination club Manchester Central in 1928. After a six-month spell, Bain returned to the

as a £250 signing for

Third Division South The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to on ...

club

in November 1928. An immediate hit with the Bees, he was awarded the

captaincy A captaincy ( es, capitanía , pt, capitania , hr, kapetanija) is a historical administrative division of the former Spanish and Portuguese colonial empires. It was instituted as a method of organization, directly associated with the home-rule ...

and helped the club to the 1932–33 Third Division South title. He retired from playing in 1934, after making 201 appearances and scoring two goals for Brentford. In 2013, Bain placed fifth in a Football League 125th Anniversary poll of Brentford's best ever captains.

Coaching and management

Bain became assistant to manager Harry Curtis at Brentford in 1934. Under Curtis, he was a part of the most successful period in the club's history, which saw the Bees crowned Second Division and

London Challenge Cup The London Challenge Cup was a football tournament formerly organised by the London FA. It was first contested in 1908, and other than during the World Wars, was contested every season until 1974, when the tournament was disbanded. After a 16-ye ...

champions in the 1934–35 season, finish fifth in the First Division in 1935–36 (the club's highest ever league placing) and win the 1942

London War Cup The London War Cup was an English football competition held during the Second World War. It was established to be a wartime replacement for the FA Cup, which had been suspended for the duration of the conflict. Although called the London War Cu ...

. After Curtis' departure in 1949, Bain served as assistant to Jackie Gibbons (1949–1952),

Tommy Lawton Thomas Lawton (6 October 1919 – 6 November 1996) was an English football player and manager. A strong centre-forward with excellent all-round attacking skills, he was able to head the ball with tremendous power and accuracy. Born in Fa ...

(1953) and

Bill Dodgin, Sr. William Dodgin (17 April 1909 – 16 October 1999) was an English professional footballer who played as a left half and later served as a manager, coach and scout. Football career Dodgin played in the Football League, most notably for Clapto ...

(1953–1956). Bain was named as successor to manager Jackie Gibbons in August 1952. He lasted until January 1953, before being replaced by

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

Tommy Lawton. Prior to the dismissal of

Eddie May Edwin Charles May (19 May 1943 – 14 April 2012) was an English football player and manager. May was born in Epping, and played for Dagenham, Southend United, Wrexham and Swansea City. The burly, affable May loomed large in the modern hist ...

in 1997, Bain's tenure was the shortest on record for a permanent Brentford manager. Bain retired from football at the end of the 1955–56 season and received a Football League Long Service Medal for the contribution he made at

Griffin Park Griffin Park was a football ground in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow, England. It was the home ground of Brentford F.C. from its opening in September 1904 to August 2020. The ground is in a predominantly residential area and was ...

. He was awarded a

testimonial In promotion and advertising, a testimonial or show consists of a person's written or spoken statement extolling the virtue of a product. The term "testimonial" most commonly applies to the sales-pitches attributed to ordinary citizens, where ...

in 1956, in which Brentford drew 1–1 with an All-Star XI. Bain was posthumously inducted into the club's

in May 2015.

Personal life

Bain's younger brother

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

was also a professional footballer who played for Manchester United (the siblings coincided on the club staff for two years, but never appeared together in a competitive fixture).

Career statistics

Managerial statistics

Honours

;Brentford *

Football League Third Division South The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to on ...

: 1932–33 Individual * Brentford Hall of Fame

References

External links

MUFCInfo.com profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bain, Jimmy 1899 births 1969 deaths Scottish men's footballers Footballers from Rutherglen Manchester United F.C. players Brentford F.C. players Rutherglen Glencairn F.C. players Strathclyde F.C. players Scottish Junior Football Association players Brentford F.C. managers English Football League managers Scottish football managers English Football League players Men's association football wing halves Manchester Central F.C. players People from Polegate