Jackie Coulter
Encyclopedia
Jackie Coulter (1912, Whiteabbey
Whiteabbey
Whiteabbey is a townland in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is within the urban area called Newtownabbey and the wider Newtownabbey Borough...
– 1981) is a former Northern Irish
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
footballer.
He played for a number of intermediate clubs before signing for Belfast Celtic as a seventeen year-old. At Celtic Park he developed into one of the finest players in the Irish League
IFA Premiership
The IFA Premiership – formerly the Irish Premier League, and before that the Irish Football League–and still known in popular parlance simply as the Irish League, is the national football league in Northern Ireland, and was historically the league for the whole of Ireland. Clubs in the league are...
, usually starring at inside-left or on the left-wing. His finest performance in the hooped jersey was perhaps in the 1930 City Cup deciding play-off. Slotting in at centre-forward, Coulter scored a hat-trick to take the trophy back to Celtic Park. More honours came his way in the shape of the further City Cups, the Belfast Charities Cup and finally in 1933, the Irish League Championship.
Early in the 1933/34 season Coulter won his first IFA International
Northern Ireland national football team
The Northern Ireland national football team represents Northern Ireland in international association football. Before 1921 all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association...
cap in a 2–1 win over Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
, maintaining his place for the remainder of that season's British Home Championship
British Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
. He also featured in both of the Irish League’s representative fixtures, including in a 3–0 victory over their Scottish counterparts. It was performances in matches such as these which drew the attentions of some of the leading clubs in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. His signing for Everton
Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club are an English professional association football club from the city of Liverpool. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of English football...
in the spring of 1934 did however surprise his Celtic teammates. Having been sent–off in a match at Ballymena, Coulter was approached by an Everton official, and terms were agreed on a £2,750 fee. When the Celtic players returned to the dressing room after the final whistle they were greeted by the news of his departure.
Coulter made his League debut in a 1–1 draw against Portsmouth
Portsmouth F.C.
Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from...
in April 1934, and although his spell at Goodison Park
Goodison Park
Goodison Park is a football stadium located in Walton, Liverpool, England. The stadium has been home to Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892 and is one of the world's first purpose-built football grounds...
coincided with a lull in fortunes after the successes of the early–thirties, he was a popular addition to the Everton squad. He will no doubt be best rememembered by the Goodison faithful for his hat-trick in a 6–4 FA Cup fourth round replay defeat of Sunderland, a match regarded as one of the best in the ground's history.
He added further caps to his collection while with Everton too, scoring the winner in his first international match since his move to England against Scotland in October 1934. Four months later he starred in one of Ireland’s best performances of the time, only to see his penalty - that would have put the Irish into a 2-1 lead - crash against the crossbar. Cliff Bastin later seized upon an under-hit pass by Irish captain Bertie Fulton to give England a 2-1 victory.
A move to Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...
in September 1937, then in the middle of the most successful period in their history, lasted a little under a season. After that Coulter had a brief spells at Chester
Chester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
(in Football League Division Three North), Southern League Chelsmford City
Chelmsford City F.C.
Chelmsford City F.C. is an English semi-professional football club based in the town of Chelmsford, Essex. The club are currently members of the Conference South and play at the Melbourne Stadium.-Chelmsford:...
(where he won his final cap) and finally at Division Two side Swansea, before his career was cut short by the outbreak of the Second World War. The war brought a brief spell with Linfield
Linfield F.C.
Linfield F.C. , is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, whose home ground is Windsor Park in Belfast, which is also the home of the Northern Ireland international team....
, but having been out of the game for eighteen months he was without his former impact, and quit after three games.
As well as his distinguished footballing career, Jackie Coulter also excelled at roller skating
Roller skating
Roller skating is the traveling on smooth surfaces with roller skates. It is a form of recreation as well as a sport, and can also be a form of transportation. Skates generally come in two basic varieties: quad roller skates and inline skates or blades, though some have experimented with a...
, becoming an Irish Champion.