| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | James Gauld | ||
| Date of birth | (1931-05-09)9 May 1931 | ||
| Place of birth | Aberdeen, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 9 December 2004(2004-12-09) (aged 73) | ||
| Place of death | London, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Inside forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1948–1950 | Aberdeen | 0 | (0) |
| Huntly | |||
| Elgin City | 88 | (89) | |
| 1954–1955 | Waterford | 20 | (30) |
| 1955–1956 | Charlton Athletic | 47 | (21) |
| 1956–1957 | Everton | 23 | (7) |
| 1957–1959 | Plymouth Argyle | 64 | (25) |
| 1959–1960 | Swindon Town | 40 | (14) |
| 1960–1961 | St Johnstone | 4 | (0) |
| 1960 | Montreal Cantalia | ||
| 1961 | Mansfield Town | 4 | (3) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
James Gauld (9 May 1931 – 9 December 2004)[2] was a disgraced Scottishfootballer found out to have run a match-fixing scandal altering results in all of England's top 4 men's leagues. During his playing career, he played as aninside forward. He began his career withAberdeen but failed to make afirst team appearance before being released. Gauld went on to play in theHighland League forHuntly andElgin City, and then played in theLeague of Ireland forWaterford. In his one season with the club, he finished as top goalscorer in theLeague of Ireland with 30 goals. His form led to a move to England in 1955, where he joinedCharlton Athletic. Gauld was transferred toEverton the following year, and then joinedPlymouth Argyle in 1957. Two seasons later, he was on the move again, joiningSwindon Town for a club record fee.
In 1960, Gauld spent a brief period withSt Johnstone and then moved toMansfield Town, where a broken leg ended his career. It was after his playing days had finished that he gained notoriety for instigating and then exposingmatch fixing in the game. Gauld enticed several players intobetting on the outcome of fixed matches, includingEngland internationalsTony Kay andPeter Swan.[3] In 1964, Gauld sold his story to theSunday People for £7,000, incriminating Kay, Swan and former teammateDavid Layne in the process. Described byThe Times as the "ringleader",[3] Gauld was sentenced to four years imprisonment and fined £5,000.[1][4] In total, 33 players were prosecuted for their involvement in the1964 British betting scandal.[5]
Born inAberdeen, Gauld began his career with his home club sideAberdeen, with whom he was selected for the Scottish Youth side.[1] Released by the club in 1950 without playing a first team game,[6] Gauld appeared in theHighland League forHuntly andElgin City before joiningLeague of Ireland sideWaterford.[7][8] Gauld was the top goalscorer in the1954–55 League of Ireland season with 30 goals.[9]
He went on to play inthe Football League forCharlton Athletic,Everton,Plymouth Argyle andSwindon Town, who he joined for a club record fee.[7] A brief spell withSt Johnstone followed before he joinedMansfield Town, where a badly broken leg suffered during a game played on Boxing Day 1960 ended his career.[8][10] In the summer of 1960 he played abroad in theNational Soccer League with Montreal Cantalia.[11]
Once his playing days were over, Gauld pursued a shadow career ofmatch fixing. In 1964 – in search of a final "payday" – he sold his story to theSunday People for £7,000, incriminating threeSheffield Wednesday players that he had enticed into the scheme:Peter Swan,Tony Kay andDavid Layne. Gauld's taped conversations were ultimately to convict himself and the three Sheffield Wednesday players, with the judge making it clear that he held Gauld responsible for ruining the other three.[3]
Gauld, described as the "central figure", wassentenced to four yearsimprisonment forconspiracy to defraud and wasfined £5,000. He and the others[12] were banned from football for life byThe Football Association, though several life bans were eventually lifted, with both Swan and Layne returning to Sheffield Wednesday in 1972.
The scandal was dramatised in a 1997BBC film calledThe Fix, directed byPaul Greengrass, in which the role of Gauld was played byChristopher Fulford.
Gauld died in London in 2004.[13]