John Joseph Cassidy (14 February 1894 – 21 July 1949) 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 lea ...

who played as an

inside left In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on be ...

centre forward In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on be ...

. His career was mainly associated with

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 Foot ...

– he played for the club between 1912 and 1924, although his football career was interrupted by the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, during which he served in the British Army in the

Black Watch The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland (3 SCOTS) is an infantry battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland. The regiment was created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881, when the 42nd (Royal Highland) Regiment ...

(Royal Highlanders) 1/7th Fife Battalion and won the

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the British Armed Forces, armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, below commissioned o ...

, which led to him being nicknamed "Trooper Joe". He also played for several other Scottish clubs, in England with

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

, in Wales (albeit in the English

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

) with

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...

, and on both sides of the border in Ireland with

Ballymena Ballymena ( ; from , meaning 'the middle townland') is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 31,205 people at the 2021 United Kingdom census, making it the List of localities in Northern Ireland by population, seven ...

and

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ) is the county town of County Louth, Ireland. The town is situated on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the north-east coast of Ireland, and is halfway between Dublin and Belfast, close to and south of the bor ...

. He represented

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

four times.

Club career

Cassidy had played junior football for Vale of Clyde before appearing as a trialist for

in a match against Hibernian on 16 October 1912 at the age of 18, being registered under the surname of Smith for the match. His performance impressed enough for the club to offer him a contract the same day and was handed his first-team debut six months later on 15 March 1913, playing in a 1–0 defeat to

Motherwell Motherwell (, ) is a List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Shires of Scotland, Historically in the p ...

.(Celtic player) Cassidy, Joseph
FitbaStats He featured rarely for Celtic in his first few seasons and instead served loans at several clubs to gain experience (including brief spells at

Abercorn Abercorn ( Gaelic: ''Obar Chùirnidh'', Old English: ''Æbbercurnig'') is a village and civil parish in West Lothian, Scotland. Close to the south coast of the Firth of Forth, the village is around west of South Queensferry. The parish had a ...

Kilmarnock Kilmarnock ( ; ; , ), meaning "the church of Mernóc", is a town and former burgh in East Ayrshire situated in southwest Scotland. The town has served as the administrative centre of East Ayrshire Council since 1996 and is the region's main ...

and

Clydebank Clydebank () is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. Situated on the north bank of the River Clyde, it borders the village of Old Kilpatrick (with Bowling, West Dunbartonshire, Bowling and Milton, West Dunbartonshire, Milton beyond) to the w ...

plus more than a season with

Ayr United Ayr United Football Club are a football club in Ayr, Scotland, who play in the , the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. Formed in 1910 by the merger of Ayr Parkhouse and Ayr F.C., their nickname is The Honest Men, fro ...

). Following the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Cassidy enlisted in the

(Royal Highlanders) 1/7th Fife Battalion, and was awarded the

in November 1918. He came back to Britain soon after and appeared in the first-team for Celtic on 31 December 1918, the day after he returned, in a 1–1 draw with

Old Firm The Old Firm is a collective name for the Scottish football clubs Celtic and Rangers, which are both based in Glasgow. The two clubs are the most successful and popular in Scotland, and the rivalry between them has become deeply embedded i ...

rivals

Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...

. He soon established himself as a prolific goalscorer, finishing as the club's top scorer for three consecutive seasons between 1921 and 1924. During the 1922–23 season, Cassidy scored eleven of Celtic's thirteen goals during their

1922–23 Scottish Cup The 1922–23 Scottish Cup was the 45th staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The Cup was won by Celtic, who defeated Hibernian 1–0 in the final. Fourth round Semi-finals ---- Final References See a ...

triumph, including a hat-trick against Lochgelly United in the first round and four in the following round against

Hurlford Hurlford is a village in East Ayrshire, Scotland, situated on the outskirts of Kilmarnock, the largest and administrative centre of East Ayrshire and East Ayrshire Council. It has a population of 4,968. Hurlford's former names include Whirlfor ...

. In the final, Celtic defeated Hibernian 1–0, Cassidy scoring the winner to ensure the ''Bhoys'' claimed their first Scottish Cup win since 1914. His eleven goals in a single Scottish Cup campaign remains a joint club record,

Jimmy McGrory James Edward McGrory (26 April 1904 – 20 October 1982) was a Scottish footballer who played for Celtic and Clydebank as a forward. He later managed Kilmarnock and Celtic. McGrory is also the all-time leading goalscorer in top-flight Bri ...

(his understudy and then successor in the squad) having equalled the tally in the 1924–25 season. He left Celtic in 1924 having made over 200 appearances for the ''Hoops'' and scored over 100 goals, joining

for a fee of £4,500. During his time there, Cassidy suffered from a severe bout of

influenza Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...

that caused him to lose 22lbs in weight and resulted in him struggling with his stamina levels for several years. He remained with Bolton for one season before joining

in 1925, also spending one year at

Ninian Park Ninian Park was a association football, football stadium in the Leckwith, Cardiff, Leckwith area of Cardiff, Wales, that was the home of Cardiff City F.C. for 99 years. Opened in 1910 with a single wooden stand, it underwent numerous renovatio ...

before returning to Scotland with

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

in an exchange deal that saw

Sam Irving Samuel Johnstone Irving (28 August 1893 – 12 December 1968) was an Irish professional footballer and manager. Born In Ireland, he was raised in Scotland before playing football in the North of England. He turned professional in 1913 and play ...

move in the opposite direction (coincidentally Cardiff won the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

the year after Cassidy departed, as had also been the case with Bolton a year earlier). After two seasons with Dundee and one with Clyde, in 1929 Cassidy moved to Ireland, joining

, helping the club to victory in the 1929

Irish Cup The Irish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly referred to as the Irish Cup (currently known as the Clearer Water Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) is the primary Association football, football single elimination, knockout cup compet ...

final, defeating

Belfast Celtic Belfast Celtic Football Club was an Irish football club. Founded in 1891 in Belfast, it was one of the most successful teams in Ireland until it withdrew permanently from the Irish League in 1949. The club left the league for political reaso ...

2–1. He later joined

for the 1931–32 season but returned to Scotland in January 1932 with Morton.

International career

Having previously represented a

Scottish Football League XI The Scottish League XI was a representative side of the Scottish Football League. The team regularly played against the (English) Football League and other national league select teams between 1892 and 1980. For a long period the annual fixture be ...

, Cassidy was handed his debut for the

Scotland national football team The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in men's international Association football, football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. They compete in three major professional tournaments: the FIFA World Cup, UEFA ...

on 12 February 1921 in a 2–1 victory over

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

Pittodrie Stadium Pittodrie Stadium, commonly referred to as Pittodrie, from which the surrounding residential area has taken its name, is an all-seater stadium in Aberdeen, Scotland. Used primarily for Association football, football, it has been the home ground o ...

in the

1920–21 British Home Championship The 1920–21 British Home Championship was a football tournament played between the British Home Nations during the 1920–21 season. The second tournament played since the hiatus of the First World War, the 1921 competition was dominated by Sco ...

. Two weeks later, on 26 February, he scored his first goal for Scotland in a 2–0 victory over

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Windsor Park The National Football Stadium at Windsor Park (officially the Clearer Twist National Stadium at Windsor Park for sponsorship reasons), or the National Football Stadium, also known as Windsor Park is a association football, football stadium in B ...

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

. He did not feature again for the side until March 1923, winning his third cap in a 1–0 victory over Ireland. His fourth and final cap came in February 1924, during a 2–0 defeat to Wales.

International goals

:''Results list Scotland's goal tally first.''

Personal life

Due to his regular changes of clubs during the 1920s, Cassidy's first four children were all born in separate countries of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland. He died in 1949 at the age of 55.

Honours

;Celtic *

Scottish Division One The Scottish Football League (SFL) is a defunct league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4 k ...

: 1918–19, 1921–22 *

Scottish Cup The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,1922–23 *

Glasgow Cup The Glasgow Cup is a football tournament open to teams from Glasgow, Scotland. Operated by the Glasgow Football Association, it was competed for annually by senior Glasgow clubs from 1887 until 1989. It is now (since the 2019–20 amended rule ...

: 1919–20, 1920–21 *

Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup The Glasgow Merchants' Charity Cup was a knockout football tournament open to teams from in and around Glasgow and later on in the tournament's history, teams from outwith Glasgow. Invitations were made and sent out by the Glasgow Charity Cup ...

: 1920–21, 1923–24 ;Ballymena *

: 1928–29 ;Scotland *

British Home Championship The British Home Championship (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Championship) was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams: England, Scotlan ...

: 1920–21

References

;Sources * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cassidy, Joe 1896 births 1949 deaths Scottish men's footballers Men's association football forwards Celtic F.C. players Scottish Football League players Scottish Junior Football Association players Scottish Football League representative players English Football League players NIFL Premiership players League of Ireland players Scotland men's international footballers People from Govan Footballers from Glasgow Recipients of the Military Medal Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Clyde F.C. players Dundee F.C. players Ballymena F.C. players Greenock Morton F.C. players Dundalk F.C. players Clydebank F.C. (1914) players Kilmarnock F.C. players Ayr United F.C. players Abercorn F.C. players Reading F.C. players Vale of Clyde F.C. players Irish League representative players Black Watch soldiers British Army personnel of World War I Scottish expatriate men's footballers Scottish expatriate sportspeople in Ireland Expatriate men's association footballers in the Republic of Ireland 20th-century Scottish sportsmen