Dave Mackay

Heart of Midlothian

Mackay supported Hearts as a boy. He signed as a professional in 1952, initially on a part-time basis as he also worked as joiner. Mackay was given his first team debut in November 1953. He would be paired with John Cumming at wing half, which was to become the core of the team. Mackay was a talented all-round player; a strong tackler, physically fit and had good technique with the ball. Cumming's Iron Man nickname says much of his determination. Despite his commitment he retained control of his temper and was never booked in his career. Cumming was the only player to collect medals for all seven of the trophies Hearts won under manager Tommy Walker. "He never had a bad game. It was either a fairly good game or an excellent game," said Mackay later of his former teammate. Both went on to become full Scotland internationals while playing for Hearts. Mackay was given a regular place in the team in the 1954–55 season, with Freddie Glidden now playing at centre-half. Hearts won their first trophy since 1906, 48 years before, as they beat Motherwell 4–2 in the 1954 Scottish League Cup Final. This would be the first of seven trophies over nine seasons between 1954 and 1963. After signing Alex Young and Bobby Kirk, Walker's side proceeded to win the 1955–56 Scottish Cup. They thrashed Rangers 4–0 in the quarter-finals with goals from Crawford, Conn and a Bauld double. Mackay completed the set of Scottish domestic honours by winning the league…

Aged 22, Mackay made his debut for Scotland on 26 May 1957 in a qualifying game for the 1958 World Cup, against Spain at the Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid. Scotland qualified for the tournament in Sweden, with Mackay playing a single game, on 15 June 1958, against France; a 2–1 defeat at the Eyravallen Stadium in Örebro. He first captained his country in his third international, on 18 October 1958, in a 3–0 away win against Wales in the British Home Championships. The first four of his full caps were when he was with Hearts. The remainder were when he was with Tottenham. The first of his four international goals was in a friendly game at the Prater Stadium in Vienna on 29 May 1960 in a 3–1 away defeat to Austria. His 15th cap was the disastrous 9–3 defeat at Wembley to England in April 1961;. Mackay then spent two years out of the side, with Jim Baxter and Paddy Crerand usually being the preferred half back pairing. Mackay was recalled two years later in April 1963, again versus England at Wembley, but this time Scotland won 2–1. In his two years out the team Mackay missed the entire qualification campaign for the 1962 FIFA World Cup (Scotland were eliminated in a play off by the eventual tournament runners-up, Czechoslovakia). Mackay had been incumbent in the half back line for three straight games leading up to the game for Spurs in December 1963 in which he broke his leg. He made 22 national appearances, his last coming on 2 October 1965, again in the British Home…

In 1971 Mackay was appointed player-manager of Swindon Town but left after just one season to take charge of Nottingham Forest. He remained at the City Ground until October 1973, when he returned to Derby as manager following Clough's resignation. In his first season Derby finished third in the table. In his second season in charge of Derby, he guided the team to the 1974–75 league title. The following season, he managed the club to a respectable fourth-place finish in the league, the semi-finals of the FA Cup, and a second-round exit to Real Madrid in the 1975–76 European Cup. Having beaten them 4–1 in the first leg, a weakened Derby side were beaten 5–1 in the return leg. At one stage the side had been in the running for the Double. Mackay was sacked in November 1976 after a poor start to the 1976–77 season. Mackay then had a spell as Walsall manager from March 1977 to August 1978. This was followed by nine years coaching in Kuwait. He returned to the UK and was appointed manager of Doncaster Rovers in 1987, a year after being linked with the Scotland manager's job (which ultimately went to Andy Roxburgh). Mackay's reign at Belle Vue lasted until March 1989 before he moved to Birmingham City, who had just been relegated to the third tier of the league for the first time in their history. His task was simple – to get Birmingham promoted to the Second Division. But he was unsuccessful in trying to achieve this and resigned in 1991. After that, Mackay headed to Africa to…

Mackay was born in Edinburgh. His father was a printer who worked for The Scotsman newspaper. As a young footballer, he was a Scottish Schoolboy international.