Full name James Rankin McNaught Name James McNaught Height 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) | ||
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Date of birth (1870-06-08)8 June 1870 Place of death West Ham, London, England | ||
Date of death March 1919 (aged 48) Place of birth Dumbarton, Scotland | ||
James Rankin McNaught (8 June 1870 – March 1919) was a Scottish footballer who played as a half back.
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Career
McNaught began his career with his local club, Dumbarton F.C..
After a brief spell in Northern Ireland with Linfield, he joined English club Newton Heath in February 1893. Upon signing, he was given a job as a boilermaker at the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot at Newton Heath, and paid £4 per week during the season and £2 per week in summer. After signing, he made three friendly appearances as an inside right in March 1893, before suffering a dislocated elbow in the third game against Ardwick. He finally made his competitive debut for Newton Heath in the first game of the 1893–94 Football League season on 2 September 1893, starting at inside right in a 3–2 win over Burnley. He played as a forward for most of the season, but was moved into the half-backs for his last four appearances of 1893–94, becoming the club's regular centre-half for the next four years.
After scoring 12 goals in 162 games for Newton Heath, he left for Tottenham Hotspur in May 1898. His contract with Tottenham drew criticism from The Cricket & Football Field, which referred to his weekly wage of £4.10s (with a signing bonus of £50 up front) as "ridiculously high". Nevertheless, while there, he helped Tottenham win the 1899–1900 Southern Football League. Towards the end of his nine-year spell with the London side, he joined their coaching staff, before moving to Maidstone United in 1907. He retired from football in 1909, but died 10 years later.