Full name John Rae Aird 1948–1955 Burnley Position Defender Years Team Height 1.84 m | Playing position Role Football player Name Jock Aird | |
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Date of birth (1926-12-18) 18 December 1926 (age 88) | ||
Place of birth Glencraig, Scotland | ||
John "Jock" Rae Aird (born 18 December 1926 in Glencraig, Fife) is a Scottish-born former association football player who played for both the Scotland and New Zealand national sides.
Career
Aird started his professional career with Burnley, whom he joined from Perth junior side Jeanfield Swifts in 1948.
A feisty but consistent left-back, he earned international recognition towards the end of his seven-season spell at Turf Moor, making his Scotland debut against Norway in May 1954, at the age of 28. He was then selected in the squad for the upcoming World Cup finals and was one of only 13 players who actually travelled to Switzerland, the SFA opting not to use the full complement of 22 permitted. He played in both matches at the finals as Scotland capitulated in the first round, losing to Austria (0-1) and Uruguay (0-7).
The following year, Aird left Burnley and emigrated to Gisborne in New Zealand. There he played for Eastern Union FC, eventually earning selection for the national side. Aird played two full internationals for New Zealand in the space of a week in 1958, both matches against Australia, with him scoring for New Zealand in a 3-2 defeat in the first game, and then scoring an own goal in a 2-2 draw a week later.
He then moved to Australia in 1959, playing for and latterly coaching Sydney Hakoah.