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Personal
Fullname: James McLaughlin
aka: Jim McLaughlin
Born: 11 Feb 1926
Birthplace: Paisley
Died: 6 May 2007
Signed: 3 Apr 1947
Left: Apr 1948 (free); June 1948 (Wallsall)
Position: Centre Forward
Debut: Celtic 3-2 Morton, League, 11 Oct 1947
Internationals: none
Biog
Centre-forward James McLaughlin was a strong and robust forward who came to Celtic in April 1947 from Renfrew Juniors.
Hibs and Wolves had also been interested in the Paisley-born forward but it was the Bhoys who snapped him up and he made a scoring debut when he snatched a late winner in a 3-2 home league win over Morton on October 11th. He was the first Celtic player to score on their competitive debut for 13 years.
Despite that goal, Jim McLaughlin failed to impress significantly enough to retain a regular place, his next (& final) first team appearance being a week later in a 2-0 defeat to Clyde. He would depart Celtic in April 1948 after being given a free transfer.
Must add that this was a poor time to be at Celtic. Leadership from the board & team management was poor, and in his one season at Celtic it was the nadir for the club as Celtic just scrapped survival in the top division, being too close to relegation for comfort. Changes were needed to be made. It was no easy environment at the club.
Curiously, Celtic needed greater strength in goal scoring, and with the then paucity in goals, then possibly he deserved a further chance. However, as Celtic went on to score four v Queen of the South in the week after his final match and then five against Partick Thistle a couple of weeks later, there was some poor luck timing for Jim McLaughlin. Tommy McDonald was brought in the week after the Clyde defeat, and had a fine goal scoring touch for a period, and then the expensive Jock Weir was brought in. This all hindered opportunities for Jim McLaughlin.
He would join Walsall that summer and would play mostly at centre-half for the English side.
He may not have become a regular in his time at the club, but he still remained a big Celtic fan all his life, which we are all very proud to know.
He passed away in 2007.
Playing Career
| APPEARANCES | LEAGUE | SCOTTISH CUP | LEAGUE CUP | EUROPE | TOTAL |
| 1947-48 | 2 | 0 | n/a | n/a | 2 |
| Goals: | 1 | 0 | – | – | 1 |
Honours with Celtic
none
Pictures
Articles
(from official site)
FORMER Celtic striker James McLaughlin passed away on Sunday, May 6 following a long fight against illness.
Signed on April 3 1947, Jim made two appearances for the club during 1947 and 1948, scoring the winner against Morton on his Celtic debut.
Before signing for Celtic this strong, bustling centre-forward had enjoyed a distinguished junior career with Barrhead St John’s and Renfrew Juniors and went on to star for Walsall in England and Glenavon in Ireland.
A lifelong Celtic supporter, Jim continued to support the team he had played for and celebrated his 80th birthday at Celtic Park in February 2006, watching Roy Keane and Stephen McManus seal a 2-1 victory. Jim also met with the Lisbon Lions and several other former players at the match.
His funeral Mass will be held at St Bernadette’s Church in Erskine on Friday (May 11).