| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | James Birrell Mackay | ||
| Date of birth | 19 December 1943 | ||
| Place of birth | Edinburgh, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 11 December 1998 (aged 54) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic | |||
| 1964–1965 | Airdrie | 5 | (1) |
| 1965–1972 | Melbourne Croatia | ||
| 1973–1974 | Hakoah Eastern Suburbs | 22 | (0) |
| 1975–1976 | South Melbourne Hellas | ||
| 1977 | South Melbourne | 1 | (0) |
| 1979 | Shepparton United | ||
| 1981 | Morwell Falcons | ||
| International career‡ | |||
| 1970–1975 | Australia | 52 | (5) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 10 July 2007 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 July 2007 | |||
James Birrell Mackay (19 December 1943 – 11 December 1998[1]) was a Scottish-born Australian soccer player.
He was a member of the Australian 1974 World Cup squad in West Germany.
In late 1973, he scored the decisive goal against South Korea which sent Australia to its first ever World Cup.[2] Socceroos defender Doug Utjesenovic described the goal emphatically, "that was one of the freakiest goals. You could try a million times to score the exact goal (and never do it). There was a free kick, the ball was knocked back and he ran onto the ball. It was a real thunderbolt."[3]
Mackay died of a heart attack in 1998.[4]