Joseph Nibloe (23 November 1903 – 25 October 1976) 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 ...

who played for

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. ...

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...

and

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 ...

in a 15-year career between 1924 and 1939, during which time he made 459 club appearances including cup games. He also made eleven appearances for

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 ...

. Nibloe was a full back who could play on either flank, initially starting his career as a left back then switching to the right later in his career. He is one of a select group of players who won national cup winner's medals in both England and Scotland; he played in three cup finals in the space of six years.allfootballers.com.
Gives career statistics.

Playing career

Early days

Nibloe was born in the small hamlet of

Corkerhill Corkerhill is a neighbourhood of Glasgow, Scotland, southwest of the city centre. The area was originally a farm and a few houses built for workers of the Glasgow and South Western Railway at the Corkerhill Depot.Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

, on 23 November 1903. He was a late developer as a footballer, playing as a part-time amateur until the age of 20. In his youth he played for Glencairn Green, Shawfield Juniors and Rutherglen Glencairn while working at the

Harland and Wolff Harland & Wolff is a British shipbuilding company based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It specialises in ship repair, shipbuilding and offshore construction. Harland & Wolff is famous for having built the majority of the ocean liners for the W ...

shipyard in

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...

as a brass moulder. Initially he was a

centre forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

, once scoring five goals in a game for Shawfield, but his career took off when he converted into a left back and was offered a professional contract by

in June 1924.

Kilmarnock

Nibloe seldom featured in his first season at Kilmarnock but became a regular in his second after the departure of David Gibson. In his eight years at

Rugby Park Rugby Park, also known as The BBSP Stadium Rugby Park for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium situated in the Scottish town of Kilmarnock. It was first used in 1899 and is the home of Kilmarnock F.C. Rugby Park has also been used for con ...

he made 279 appearances for ''Killie'' in the two major competitions, helping them win the

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,Rangers 2–0 in

the final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

.Scottish Cup Surprise Kilmarnock's Great Victory Over Rangers
The Glasgow Herald, 8 April 1929 Kilmarnock reached the Scottish Cup final again in

1932 Events January * January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel. * January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident (1932), Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort ...

but this time Nibloe had to settle for a runners-up medal as they lost to Rangers after a replay. Soon after this he signed for

for the 1932–33 season for a fee of £1800 after a disagreement with Kilmarnock over a benefit match. His run of 132 consecutive league appearances between October 1925 and February 1929 (ending only because he was travelling as a reserve with the Scottish national team) is still a club record.www.napit.co.uk.
States that Nibloe is the most capped Kilmarnock player.

Aston Villa

Nibloe struggled to find a regular place in the Villa team in that first season as the team finished runners up to

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

Division One The Football League First Division was a division of the Football League in England from 1888 until 2004. It was the top division in the English football league system from the season 1888–89 until 1991–92, a century in which the First ...

being kept out of the side by the near veteran Tommy Mort. However the following season (1933–34) Nibloe dislodged Mort from the team and displayed excellent form, and it caused something of an uproar when he signed for

in the summer of 1934 in a part-exchange deal which saw George Beeson going to

Villa Park Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, England, with a seating capacity of 42,682. It has been the home of Premier League side Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway stations ...

along with £2,500.

Sheffield Wednesday

Wednesday's signing of the experienced 30-year-old Nibloe was seen as something of a coup by the club, no doubt the influence of manager Billy Walker made a difference as Walker had been a teammate of Nibloe's at Villa the previous season. Competition for the left back spot was keen even though Wednesday had lost

Ernie Blenkinsop Ernest Blenkinsop (20 April 1902 – 24 April 1969) was an English professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football), defender at left back. Regarded as one of the best full-backs of his generation, h ...

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 ...

the previous season; Ted Catlin had stepped into Blenkinsop's boots and Nibloe was forced to switch to right back to secure a place in the team. He made his Wednesday debut in the opening fixture of the 1934–35 season on 25 August 1934, in a 4–1 home victory over

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...

.''"The Men Who Made Sheffield Wednesday Football Club"'', Tony Matthews, Page 179 Gives details of Sheffield Wednesday career. Nibloe played in five out the six

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

ties in 1935 as Wednesday won the trophy, missing just the 3rd round home tie against

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic ...

in January. He also played as Wednesday won the

1935 FA Charity Shield The 1935 FA Charity Shield was the 22nd FA Charity Shield, a football match between the winners of the previous season's First Division and FA Cup competitions. The match was contested by league champions Arsenal and FA Cup winners Sheffield W ...

. Nibloe made his final appearance for Wednesday in the final game of the 1937–38, in his final two seasons he was more of a squad player as his place was challenged by

Jack Ashley Jack Ashley, Baron Ashley of Stoke, (6 December 1922 – 20 April 2012) was a British politician. He was a Labour Member of Parliament in the House of Commons for Stoke-on-Trent South for 26 years, from 1966 to 1992, and subsequently sat in t ...

. He retired from playing competitive football at the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

at the age of 35.Sheffield Wednesday Archive.
Gives details of Sheffield Wednesday career.

International

Shortly after winning the Scottish Cup in 1929, Nibloe was called up for the first of his eleven appearances for

on 13 April 1929, featuring in a 1–0 victory over

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Hampden Park Hampden Park (Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the no ...

. All his Scottish caps came while he was with Kilmarnock and he is still today the club's most capped player, his last appearance for his country came in May 1932 against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. He also played twice for the Scottish League representative side in his time at Rugby Park, and later featured for the

Sheffield FA The Sheffield and Hallamshire Football Association is a County Football Association in England. It was formed in Sheffield in 1867 as the Sheffield Football Association, and is the second-oldest football governing body after the Football Associ ...

in their annual challenge match against his native

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

After football

Nibloe worked in a munitions factory in

Stocksbridge Stocksbridge is a town and civil parish, in the City of Sheffield, in South Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies just to the east of the Peak District. The town is located in the steep-sided valley of th ...

during the war. After the conflict he continued to live in Stocksbridge and work in the Samuel Fox steelworks. He died on 25 October 1976 in

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

, aged 72. His son Jack Nibloe also played professional football for

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 ...

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...

and

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional association football, football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they wer ...

between 1958 and 1964; he was killed in a road accident on the Woodhead Pass in November 1964.''"The Wednesday Boys"'', Jason Dickinson & John Brodie, Page 217 Gives biographical information.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nibloe, Joe 1903 births 1976 deaths Footballers from Glasgow Scottish footballers Scottish Junior Football Association players Association football fullbacks English Football League players Scotland international footballers Shawfield F.C. players Kilmarnock F.C. players Aston Villa F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Scottish Football League players Scottish Football League representative players Rutherglen Glencairn F.C. players FA Cup Final players