Jock Wallace

Wallyford-born Wallace's playing career began inauspiciously. A goalkeeper, he was released by his first club, Blackpool, but rekindled his career by signing for Workington in 1952, dovetailing football with work in the local pit. His next opportunity came in the unlikely form of National Service with the King's Own Scottish Borderers in Northern Ireland and – famously – the jungles of Malaya. Active duty proved to be character-defining for Wallace, and it also afforded him the opportunity of signing for the local club, Berwick Rangers. Afterward, he extended his playing career with moves to Airdrieonians, West Bromwich Albion, non-league Bedford Town and Hereford United.

Berwick Rangers and Hearts

Wallace's managerial career began in 1966 as player-manager of Berwick Rangers. His rise to national prominence came in 1967, when he played for and managed the Berwick Rangers side which defeated Rangers in the Scottish Cup, providing one of the most famous cup upsets in Scotland. That achievement in turn propelled Wallace into a coaching job at Hearts in 1968. In addition Wallace set a unique record of being the only player to play in the Scottish Cup, FA Cup and Welsh Cup in the same season – having played in the latter two competitions for Hereford United in the early part of the 1966–67 season.

Success at Rangers

It was in 1970 that Wallace arrived at his spiritual home, Ibrox Stadium, as coach of Rangers under manager Willie Waddell. The partnership with Waddell was one that helped Rangers win the 1971–72 European Cup Winners' Cup. After the European triumph, Waddell left his post as manager to take a behind-the-scenes role and Wallace was appointed as manager. In his first season in charge – the club's centenary – he won the Scottish Cup. In 1974–75, it was Wallace who presided over the Rangers team that finally ended Celtic's nine-year period of dominance and won the League championship for the first time in eleven years. In the 1975–76 and 1977–78 seasons, Wallace was to capture the treble of all three Scottish trophies. Wallace's management of Rangers in the mid-1970s saw the club regain the ascendancy it had enjoyed…

Wallace was renowned for his ability to lose his temper and terrify players who he thought were not trying their best. Gary Lineker, who played under Wallace at Leicester City, is quoted as saying "[he] pinned me against the dressing room wall at half-time and called me a lazy English this and that. We were 2–0 up and I'd scored both goals. I didn't score in the second half – I was still shaking!" Mark Warburton, who later went on to also manage Rangers, said of his time as a youth player at Leicester City, that he took a dislike to the training methods of Wallace, later saying "he was a Marine. We had runs on sand-dunes, running until we threw up. I learned a lot from that, never treating a player that way". However, most of Wallace's players adored him.

Rangers

Scottish Football League: 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78 Scottish Cup: 1972–73, 1975–76, 1977–78 Scottish League Cup: 1975–76, 1977–78, 1983–84, 1984–85 Leicester City

Football League Second Division: 1979–80