Willie Finlay | |
Fullname: | William Morris Finlay |
Birth Date: | 9 August 1926 |
Birth Place: | Auchterderran, Scotland |
Death Place: | Fife, Scotland |
Position: | Centre half |
Clubs1: | Bowhill Rovers |
Years2: | 1946–1956 |
Clubs2: | East Fife |
Caps2: | 282 |
Goals2: | 0 |
Years3: | 1956–1963 |
Clubs3: | Clyde |
Caps3: | 182 |
Goals3: | 3 |
Years4: | 1963–1964 |
Clubs4: | Raith Rovers |
Caps4: | 12 |
Goals4: | 0 |
Totalcaps: | 476 |
Totalgoals: | 3 |
Managerclubs1: | Lochore Welfare |
William Morris Finlay (9 August 1926 – 4 September 2014) was a Scottish professional football player and coach.
Born in Auchterderran, Finlay played as a centre half for Bowhill Rovers, East Fife, Clyde and Raith Rovers, making a total of 476 appearances in the Scottish Football League.[1]
With East Fife he won the League Cup three times (1947–48, 1949–50, 1952–53) plus the 1947–48 Scottish Division Two title, two B Division Supplementary Cups and a Scottish Cup runners-up medal in 1949–50; with Clyde he won the Scottish Cup in 1957–58 plus two lower-tier titles (1956–57 and 1961–62).[2] He was among the most highly regarded players of the period never selected to represent Scotland, though at the time there was a strong pool of local talent at various clubs across the country.[2]
After retiring from playing he became manager of Lochore Welfare.[1] He died in 2014, at which time he had been the longest-living member of East Fife's 'golden era' between the 1930s and 1950s.[2]