Willie Fernie
Encyclopedia
William "Willie" Fernie (22 November 1928 – 1 July 2011) was a Scottish
footballer
who played for the Scotland national football team
in both the 1954
and 1958 FIFA World Cup
s.
, Fife
, joined Celtic
from his local Kinglassie Hearts side in 1948. He had to wait until March 1950, however, to make his first team debut. Fernie became a regular first team player in 1952–53, and set up both of the Celtic goals in their 2–0 win against Hibs
in the Coronation Cup
Final.
A renowned dribbler, he also displayed a remarkable versatility which saw the club deploy him as a right half, inside forward and outside left as the need arose. He was part of Celtic's 1953-54
Double
-winning team and also collected two League Cup
winners medals, in 1956
and 1957
. In the 1957 Scottish League Cup Final, Fernie played in the deeper position of right half, influencing the play and scoring the last Celtic goal as they defeated rivals Rangers
7–1.
Fernie's efforts in Celtic's double-winning side earned him promotion to the full Scotland team, having previously represented the B team and the Scottish League
. He made his debut against Finland
and was selected in the squad for the 1954 FIFA World Cup
. He played in both matches in Switzerland
, but Scotland suffered a 7–0 defeat by Uruguay
. Despite this infamous defeat, Fernie remained part of the national team and in October 1956 he scored his only Scotland goal, against Wales
. and was selected for the 1958 World Cup
. He played only one match in the tournament, a 3–2 defeat by Paraguay
, which proved to be his final appearance for Scotland.
Fernie joined Middlesbrough
, where he played in attack alongside Brian Clough
, for £18,000 in December 1958. He returned to Celtic Park
in October 1960, for a fee of £12,000. He moved to St Mirren for £3000 in November 1961 and helped them reach the 1962 Scottish Cup Final, although Rangers won 2–0 at Hampden
. He finished his career with short spells at Alloa Athletic
, Fraserburgh
, Coleraine
and Bangor
before moving into coaching.
. He helped to develop young players at the club, including Kenny Dalglish
, Danny McGrain
and Davie Hay. Fernie was appointed manager of Kilmarnock
in October 1973. He led his new charges to a 16 match unbeaten run and promotion in 1974
. Kilmarnock fell two points short of the league reconstruction cut-off in 1975, but they gained promotion to the new Scottish Premier Division in 1976
. However, as a part-time team, Kilmarnock struggled in the top flight and were unsurprisingly relegated in 1977
. After a bad start to the following season, Fernie was sacked in October 1977 and was never employed in football.
Disillusioned with football, he subsequently worked as a taxi driver. Fernie died in 2011, aged 82, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease
.
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
footballer
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...
who played for the Scotland national football team
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...
in both the 1954
1954 FIFA World Cup
The 1954 FIFA World Cup, the fifth staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Switzerland from 16 June to 4 July. Switzerland was chosen as hosts in July 1946. The tournament set a number of all-time records for goal-scoring, including the highest average goals scored per game...
and 1958 FIFA World Cup
1958 FIFA World Cup
The 1958 FIFA World Cup, the sixth staging of the World Cup, was hosted by Sweden from 8 June to 29 June. The tournament was won by Brazil, who beat Sweden 5–2 in the final for their first title. To date, this marks the only occasion that a World Cup staged in Europe was not won by a European...
s.
Playing career
Fernie, who was born in in KinglassieKinglassie
Kinglassie is a small village in central Fife, Scotland.It is located 0.5 miles to the southwest of Glenrothes...
, Fife
Fife
Fife is a council area and former county of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire...
, joined 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...
from his local Kinglassie Hearts side in 1948. He had to wait until March 1950, however, to make his first team debut. Fernie became a regular first team player in 1952–53, and set up both of the Celtic goals in their 2–0 win against Hibs
Hibernian F.C.
Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...
in the Coronation Cup
Coronation Cup (football)
The Coronation Cup was a one-off football tournament to celebrate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, between four English and four Scottish clubs, held in Glasgow in May 1953...
Final.
A renowned dribbler, he also displayed a remarkable versatility which saw the club deploy him as a right half, inside forward and outside left as the need arose. He was part of Celtic's 1953-54
1953-54 in Scottish football
The 1953–54 season was the 57th season of competitive football in Scotland.-Scottish League Division A:Champions: CelticRelegated: Airdrieonians, Hamilton Academical-Scottish League Division B:...
Double
The Double
The Double is a term in association football which refers to winning a country's top tier division and its primary cup competition in the same season...
-winning team and also collected two League Cup
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...
winners medals, in 1956
1956-57 in Scottish football
The 1956–57 season was the 60th season of competitive football in Scotland.-Scottish League Division One:Champions: RangersRelegated: Dunfermline Athletic, Ayr United-Scottish League Division Two:...
and 1957
1957-58 in Scottish football
The 1957–58 season was the 61st season of competitive football in Scotland.-Scottish League Division One:Champions: HeartsRelegated: East Fife, Queen's Park-Scottish League Division Two:...
. In the 1957 Scottish League Cup Final, Fernie played in the deeper position of right half, influencing the play and scoring the last Celtic goal as they defeated rivals 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...
7–1.
Fernie's efforts in Celtic's double-winning side earned him promotion to the full Scotland team, having previously represented the B team and the Scottish League
Scottish Football League
The Scottish Football League is a league of football teams in Scotland, comprising theScottish First Division, Scottish Second Division and Scottish Third Division. From the league's foundation in 1890 until the breakaway Scottish Premier League was formed in 1998, the Scottish Football League...
. He made his debut against Finland
Finland national football team
The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland....
and was selected in the squad for the 1954 FIFA World Cup
1954 FIFA World Cup
The 1954 FIFA World Cup, the fifth staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in Switzerland from 16 June to 4 July. Switzerland was chosen as hosts in July 1946. The tournament set a number of all-time records for goal-scoring, including the highest average goals scored per game...
. He played in both matches in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, but Scotland suffered a 7–0 defeat by Uruguay
Uruguay national football team
The Uruguayan national football team represents Uruguay in international association football and is controlled by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay. The current head coach is Óscar Tabárez...
. Despite this infamous defeat, Fernie remained part of the national team and in October 1956 he scored his only Scotland goal, against Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
. and was selected for the 1958 World Cup
1958 FIFA World Cup
The 1958 FIFA World Cup, the sixth staging of the World Cup, was hosted by Sweden from 8 June to 29 June. The tournament was won by Brazil, who beat Sweden 5–2 in the final for their first title. To date, this marks the only occasion that a World Cup staged in Europe was not won by a European...
. He played only one match in the tournament, a 3–2 defeat by Paraguay
Paraguay national football team
The Paraguay national football team is controlled by the Paraguayan Football Association and represents Paraguay in men's international football competitions. The team has reached the second round of the World Cup on four occasions . The 2010 trip also featured their first appearance in the...
, which proved to be his final appearance for Scotland.
Fernie joined Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
, where he played in attack alongside Brian Clough
Brian Clough
Brian Howard Clough, OBE was an English footballer and football manager. He is most notable for his success with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. His achievement of winning back-to-back European Cups with Nottingham Forest, a traditionally moderate provincial English club, is considered to be...
, for £18,000 in December 1958. He returned to Celtic Park
Celtic Park
Celtic Park is a football stadium in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, which is the home ground of Celtic FC. Celtic Park, an all-seater stadium with a capacity of 60,832, is the largest football stadium in Scotland and the sixth-largest stadium in the United Kingdom, after Murrayfield, Old Trafford,...
in October 1960, for a fee of £12,000. He moved to St Mirren for £3000 in November 1961 and helped them reach the 1962 Scottish Cup Final, although Rangers won 2–0 at Hampden
Hampden Park
Hampden Park is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The 52,063 capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland...
. He finished his career with short spells at Alloa Athletic
Alloa Athletic F.C.
Alloa Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Alloa, Clackmannanshire. They are members of the Scottish Football League and currently play in the Third Division....
, Fraserburgh
Fraserburgh F.C.
Fraserburgh Football Club are a senior football club based in Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire. They currently play in the Highland Football League in Scotland. Being a Non-League team in Scottish Football, Fraserburgh are eligible to enter the Scottish Cup at the first round stage.-History:The club were...
, Coleraine
Coleraine F.C.
Coleraine F.C. is a semi-professional, Northern Irish football club, playing in the IFA Premiership. The club, founded in 1927, hails from Coleraine, County Londonderry and plays its home matches at the Showgrounds. Club colours are blue and white...
and Bangor
Bangor F.C.
Bangor Football Club is an intermediate, Northern Irish football club playing in IFA Championship 1. The club, founded in 1918, hails from Bangor and plays its home matches at Clandeboye Park. Club colours are gold and royal blue...
before moving into coaching.
Managerial career
Fernie returned to Celtic in 1967, appointed reserve team coach by Jock SteinJock Stein
John 'Jock' Stein CBE was a Scottish association football player and manager. He became the first manager of a British side to win the European Cup, with Celtic in 1967...
. He helped to develop young players at the club, including Kenny Dalglish
Kenny Dalglish
Kenneth Mathieson "Kenny" Dalglish MBE is a Scottish former footballer and the current manager of Liverpool F.C.. In a 22-year playing career, he played for two club teams, Celtic and Liverpool, winning numerous honours with both. He is the most capped Scottish player, with 102 appearances, and...
, Danny McGrain
Danny McGrain
For the former Clyde F.C. footballer, see Danny McGrain Daniel Fergus "Danny" McGrain is a Scottish former professional footballer who played for Celtic F.C. in defence. He made 657 appearances scoring 8 goals...
and Davie Hay. Fernie was appointed manager of Kilmarnock
Kilmarnock F.C.
Kilmarnock Football Club is a Scottish football team based in the town of Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. Founded in 1869, "Killie" is the oldest club currently in the Scottish Premier League. Home matches are played at Rugby Park...
in October 1973. He led his new charges to a 16 match unbeaten run and promotion in 1974
1973-74 in Scottish football
The 1973–74 season was the 77th season of Scottish league football.-Scottish League Division One:Champions: Celtic Relegated: East Fife, Falkirk-Scottish League Division Two:Promoted: Airdrieonians, Kilmarnock...
. Kilmarnock fell two points short of the league reconstruction cut-off in 1975, but they gained promotion to the new Scottish Premier Division in 1976
1975-76 in Scottish football
The 1975–76 season was the 79th season of Scottish league football. It was the first season in the new, three-tier setup. Division One was no longer the top division in Scottish football, although all three divisions are still part of the Scottish Football League.The Premier Division...
. However, as a part-time team, Kilmarnock struggled in the top flight and were unsurprisingly relegated in 1977
1976-77 in Scottish football
Season 1976–1977 was the 80th season of Scottish league football.After the failure of the Spring Cup and the 26 game season in the 1st & 2nd Divisions, a 39 game season was instituted in these divisions with a slight imbalance in the amount of home and away games played by each team; however,...
. After a bad start to the following season, Fernie was sacked in October 1977 and was never employed in football.
Disillusioned with football, he subsequently worked as a taxi driver. Fernie died in 2011, aged 82, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease also known in medical literature as Alzheimer disease is the most common form of dementia. There is no cure for the disease, which worsens as it progresses, and eventually leads to death...
.
External links
- International appearances at londonhearts.com