 Lambie as manager ofPartick Thistle | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1941-03-02)2 March 1941 | ||
| Place of birth | Whitburn, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 10 April 2018(2018-04-10) (aged 77) | ||
| Position | Full back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Whitburn | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1958–1969 | Falkirk | 199 | (16) |
| 1969–1974 | St Johnstone | 103 | (4) |
| Total | 302 | (20) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| Armadale Thistle[1] | |||
| 1984–1988 | Hamilton Academical | ||
| 1988–1989 | Partick Thistle | ||
| 1989–1990 | Hamilton Academical | ||
| 1990–1995 | Partick Thistle | ||
| 1995–1996 | Falkirk | ||
| 1999–2003 | Partick Thistle | ||
| 2004–2005 | Partick Thistle | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
John Lambie (2 March 1941 – 10 April 2018) was a Scottishfootball player andmanager. Lambie made over 200 appearances forFalkirk and also had a successful time withSt Johnstone.
After retiring as a player, Lambie had four spells as manager ofPartick Thistle. In his third spell, he guided them to consecutive promotions and entry to theScottish Premier League in 2002, while also leading them to the semi-finals of theScottish Cup in the same year. He also had spells as manager ofHamilton Academical (twice, winning theFirst Division in 1986) and Falkirk.
Lambie was known for hiseccentricity, cigar smoking and fondness for pigeons. An occasion when he instructed for a concussed player to be told he wasPelé and sent back onto the pitch is one of the most famous quotes in British football.[2][3][4][5][6]
Born inWhitburn, Lambie played for his hometownjunior teamWhitburn before signing forFalkirk in 1958, where he turned professional and switched position frominside forward tofull back.[3] In August 1969 he joinedSt Johnstone, where he played in theOctober 1969 Scottish League Cup Final (1–0 loss to Celtic) and took part in thePerth-based club's first European campaign (reaching the third round of the1971–72 UEFA Cup).[3]
After retiring as a player in 1974, Lambie joined the St Johnstone coaching staff, and later moved toHibernian.[3] He became assistant manager atHamilton Academical to his former Hibs colleagueBertie Auld, and succeeded him as manager in 1984.[3] He led theAccies to theFirst Division title in1985–86 and won away atRangers in thenext season's Scottish Cup.[3][7]
In 1988, Lambie was appointed manager for the first time atPartick Thistle, but a year later returned to Hamilton, before going back to Thistle in 1990.[3] He led Thistle to promotion to the top flight in 1992. Lambie subsequently kept Thistle in the top flight for the following three seasons, and qualified for the1995 UEFA Intertoto Cup, the first time The Jags had been in European competition since the 1970s. He left in 1995 for his former club Falkirk, but quit his post in March 1996.[3]The Herald wrote in 2002 that "It is odd how, despite Lambie playing over 200 games for Falkirk, and scoring a decent haul of goals as a defender, he is only remembered for his disastrous managerial reign".[8]
Lambie returned for a third spell at Partick in 1999, with the club now in thethird tier. The club had only just managed to save its existence through theSave the Jags campaign. Lambie got them into theScottish Premier League in 2002 via back-to-back promotions, by signing the likes ofStephen Craigan,Martin Hardie andDanny Lennon, as well as bringing on the youth players, such asAlan Archibald andKenny Arthur.[3] Also in 2002, he guided the club to theScottish Cup semi-finals, where they lost 3–0 to Rangers atHampden Park.[9] The final stages of the season were chronicled in theBBC Scotlandfly on the wall documentaryGrasping the Thistle, known for Lambie's use of profanity.[10][11]
In January 2003, Lambie announced that he would retire at the end of the season as he did not agree with new regulations in football; he had attempted to signNathan Lowndes andSteven Ferguson on loan from English clubs but was barred byFIFA as they had both recently played in Scotland for other teams.[12] On 17 May 2003 he made his farewell in his last game atFirhill Stadium, a 1–0 loss toDundee United, having already guaranteed survival in the SPL on a considerably lower budget than their competitors.[13][14] He became a member of the club's board.[3] In 2004, Lambie returned as manager for a fourth spell, this time as Caretaker, briefly around the end of 2004 and beginning of 2005, in a bid to help the team's struggles on the pitch under the new management foil ofDerek Whyte andGerry Britton, who were later dismissed from their roles, asDick Campbell took over reign at Firhill.
Lambie is remembered for his reaction when Partick playerColin McGlashan suffered a concussion; he ordered his assistantGerry Collins to "Tell him he'sPelé and get him back on".[5][2] A book of football quotes titledTell Him He's Pelé was released in 2010.[4] He is also remembered for tamingChic Charnley, a player sent off 17 times in his career, whom he signed once for Hamilton and three times for Partick.[2][15]
Lambie was known for his love ofpigeon racing and cigars.[3] He spoke of the importance of his Christian faith in his life.[8] He was a member and activist for theScottish National Party but said that he was not a suitable candidate to seek elected office.[16]
He was awarded the position of Honorary Vice President of Partick Thistle F.C. in August 2006.[17] He was inducted into the Halls of Fame at both Falkirk and Partick Thistle.[18]
Lambie had three daughters with his wife Mamie, from whom he was separated at the time of his death at the age of 77 on 10 April 2018.[18][19]
He joined the SNP to help with a council election drive but stopped short of seeking office, stating at the time: "I'm an out-and-out Scot but when it comes to politics I'm thick."