Johnny Duncan (footballer)

Johnny Duncan
Duncan playing golf as an elderly man
Personal information
Date of birth (1896-02-14)14 February 1896
Place of birth Fife, Scotland
Date of death 14 March 1966(1966-03-14) (aged 70)
Place of death Leicester, England
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[1]
Position(s) Right-half/Inside right
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1915–1919 Lochgelly United
1919–1922 Raith Rovers 121 (26)
1922–1930 Leicester City 279 (88)
1933 Solus
International career
1925 Scotland 1 (1)
Managerial career
1946–1949 Leicester City
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

John Duncan (14 February 1896 – 14 March 1966), nicknamed "Tokey",[2] was a Scottish football player and manager, who is most notable for his time at Leicester City.

He captained the club to its greatest ever league finishes of third and second place in the First Division in 1927–28 and 1928–29 respectively. While also carrying much of the backroom influence at the time as he asserted the club remained faithful to Peter Hodge's passing style.[3] He later managed the club to its first ever major cup final in 1949.[4] He has been described as "an indelible Leicester City great"[5]

He also holds the (joint) club record at Leicester for the most goals in a single game, scoring six goals in a 7–0 victory over Port Vale on Christmas Day 1924 (this record was later equalled by Arthur Chandler, who scored the opening goal before Duncan hit his six against Port Vale).[6]

Former Leeds United and England manager Don Revie, who played under Duncan at Leicester, dedicates an entire chapter of his autobiography to Duncan, entitled "My Debt to Johnny Duncan" claiming "Until you have heard Johnny Duncan talk about Soccer then your Football Education is sadly lacking."[7]

  1. ^ "The lure of promotion. Leicester City". Athletic News. Manchester. 13 August 1923. p. 6.
  2. ^ Twydell, Dave (1997). Rejected F.C. of Scotland Volume 3:The Rest. p. 180. ISBN 1-874427-17-8.
  3. ^ Leicester City celebrates 125 years of football, Part One – Leicester Fosse to Leicester City (Audio) bbc.co.uk, retrieved 2 April 2011
  4. ^ Dave Smith & Paul Taylor (2010). Of Fossils and Foxes. ISBN 978-1-905411-94-8.
  5. ^ http://www.thisisleicestershire.co.uk/news/SPORTING-GREATS-40-25/article-3205693-detail/article.html Our Leicestershire Sporting Greats countdown – 40 to 25, thisisleicestershire.co.uk, retrieved 19 February 2011.
  6. ^ Miscellaneous Records Archived 30 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine LCFC.com, retrieved 31 March 2011
  7. ^ Revie, Don (1955). Soccer's Happy Wanderer.