John Wark

First spell at Ipswich

Wark started his career at Ipswich in the youth team, initially playing at left back before moving to the centre of defence and occasionally occupying the right back position. He signed up as a professional for the club on his 17th birthday. Selected for the senior squad as a replacement for the injured Kevin Beattie, Wark made his first-team debut on 27 March 1975 in the 3–2 FA Cup 6th round (3rd replay) victory over Leeds United; the game was played at Leicester City's Filbert Street. A nervous and homesick Wark was reassured by manager Robson:

My debut was in the quarter-final of the FA Cup against the Leeds team of Giles and Bremner. He [Robson] said, 'I wouldn't put you in the team if I didn't think you were good enough'. He was a father figure as well because I was homesick. If it hadn't been for the boss I would have been straight back to Glasgow.

Making four more first-team appearances in place of injured regulars, Wark ended the season still on the youth team, and experienced success in the final of the FA Youth Cup, defeating West Ham United 5–1. He spent much of the 1975–76 season playing for the reserves, and was presented with the club's Young Player of the Year award, despite making just four appearances for the senior team. Moving into midfield, Wark made over 30 appearances in the 1976–77 season, scoring his first goals for the club, (10, in all) taking over penalty kicking duty; he also received his first red card. In June…

From 1979, Wark was selected to play for his country, usually as a defender, eventually winning 29 caps for Scotland and scoring seven goals. Jock Stein was the Scotland manager who gave him his debut, in a game held on 19 May 1979, a British Home Championship match against Wales at Ninian Park; Scotland lost 3–0. Wark scored his first international goal a week later on 26 May, again in a British Home Championship game, this time against England at Wembley. Wark's opening effort was not enough, as Scotland were defeated 3–1. A week later Wark played for Scotland in a friendly against Argentina at Hampden Park. However, the game is best remembered for Diego Maradona scoring his first international goal in helping Argentina to a comfortable 3–1 win. After a 3–1 home defeat by Belgium in December 1979, Wark was not selected again for his country until February 1981 for the 1982 World Cup qualifying match away against Israel. Following a successful qualification campaign, Wark was included in the Scotland squad that went to the World Cup in Spain under Stein's leadership. Wark played three games and scored two goals, both of which were in Scotland's 5-2 opening match victory over New Zealand. Scotland were knocked out in the group stage. Wark's final appearance for Scotland came in September 1984, under Stein; he was replaced in favour of Paul McStay at halftime in a 6–1 victory over Yugoslavia.

Wark played as a central defender, midfielder and, occasionally, as a striker. Wark was not a "supremely talented" player, but, according to football journalist Jim White, one who espoused team-work and team spirit: "There is no question that the 'one-for-all, all-for-one' mentality generated in the Anfield dressing room was the engine that drove the great team. With players such as Alan Kennedy, John Wark, Sammy Lee and Craig Johnston, nobody could claim this was a collection of top-notch operators in the manner, say, of the current Real Madrid. Every week, they played as an entity greater than the sum of its parts." He has been described as "a defensive midfielder with an astonishing goalscoring record". Over the years, Wark has become closely associated with his moustache. Owen Slot described the player as "Ipswich's immortal moustache", while Wark himself notes "it is something of a trademark, even if people are always calling me Bruce".

Wark was born on 4 August 1957, in Glasgow Royal Maternity Hospital to parents Alex and Helen. The third of four children, he has an older sister Wilma, older brother Alex and younger brother Andrew. The family lived in a four-storey tenement block in Partick. The family was impoverished: Wark's parents could not afford a cot and as a small child, he slept in a drawer from a sideboard. Although christened John, Wark was soon referred to by his family as Johnny, a diminutive that stuck throughout his footballing career. In the early 1960s, the family moved to another tenement block, this time in Scotstoun, and Wark's father secured employment at nearby Albion Motors. The new home accommodated a back yard in which Wark played football from the age of six. He said "[f]ootball seemed to occupy 99 per cent of my time as a youngster" as he tried to emulate his brother Alex, who had become a professional at St Mirren. Wark attended Scotstoun Primary School, where he became captain of the football team. On moving to secondary school, he was selected for the Glasgow Schools representative team. He also played for Drumchapel Amateurs at the under-14 level, where he was, for a period, managed by David Moyes' father, also named David. During Wark's time at Drumchapel, he attracted the attention of Celtic. He trained with the club at their Parkhead ground, before receiving an invitation to sign schoolboy forms for the club. As a lifelong Rangers fan with whom Celtic have a notable…