James Duncanson (born October 13, 1919 in Dennistoun

Dennistoun

Dennistoun is a district of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated north of the River Clyde in the east end of the city. It is made up of a number of smaller districts - Milnbank to the north, 'The Drives' in the centre of the area and Bellgrove below Duke Street to the south. In a 2004...

 – September 1, 1996) was a professional football

Football (soccer)

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...

 striker

Striker

Forwards, also known as strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals...

 who played for Rangers

Rangers F.C.

Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...

, St. Mirren

St. Mirren F.C.

St Mirren Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Paisley, Renfrewshire who play in the Scottish Premier League, having been promoted from the First Division in 2005–06.St...

 and Stranraer

Stranraer F.C.

Stranraer Football Club is a Scottish semi-professional football team based in the town of Stranraer, Dumfries and Galloway. They are members of the Scottish Football League, and currently play in the Third Division.-History:...

. His Rangers career started during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, and lasted until 1950, winning a total of 23 medals with the club.

Duncanson achieved a number of records for Rangers: he is the clubs' third-top all time scorer (with 22 goals) against rivals Celtic

Celtic F.C.

Celtic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which currently plays in the Scottish Premier League. The club was established in 1887, and played its first game in 1888. Celtic have won the Scottish League Championship on 42 occasions, most recently in the...

, behind R.C. Hamilton and Ally McCoist

Ally McCoist

Alistair Murdoch "Ally" McCoist, MBE ; 24 September 1962) is a Scottish football manager and former player. He is the current manager of Rangers in Scotland....

, he scored Rangers' 4000th league goal as part of a hat-trick

Hat-trick

A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...

 in a match against Dundee

Dundee F.C.

Dundee Football Club, founded in 1893, are a football club based in the city of Dundee, Scotland. They are nicknamed The Dee or The Dark Blues and play their home matches at Dens Park. Their shirt colour is dark blue. Dundee currently play in the Scottish First Division, having been relegated from...

 at Dens Park

Dens Park

Dens Park is a football stadium located on Dens Road in Dundee, Scotland. The stadium is the home of Dundee F.C. and has a capacity of 12,085...

 on Christmas Day 1947, and he scored the first hat-trick in an Old Firm

Old Firm

The Old Firm is a common collective name for the association football clubs Celtic and Rangers, both based in Glasgow, Scotland.The origin of the term is unclear. One theory has it that the expression derives from Celtic's first game in 1888, which was played against Rangers. However, author,...

 match for Rangers in the 20th century.

In total he made 302 appearances for Rangers (162 of which are unofficial as they took place during World War II), scoring 147 goals (88 wartime). He won the league twice for Rangers, as well as three Scottish Cup

Scottish Cup

The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...

s and two League Cups

Scottish League Cup

The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...

. He was capped

Cap (sport)

In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...

 once for 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...

, as well as on two occasions during the war. After retiring from football, Duncanson remained a fervent Rangers supporter and was regularly seen at Ibrox

Ibrox Stadium

Ibrox Stadium is a football stadium located on the south side of the River Clyde, on Edmiston Drive in the Ibrox district of Glasgow. It is the home ground of Scottish Premier League club Rangers and has an all-seated capacity of 51,082...

as a spectator.

External links