James Bain (6 February 1899 – 22 September 1969) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager, best remembered for his 28 years as a player, manager and assistant manager at Brentford. In 2013, Bain placed fifth in a Football League 125th Anniversary poll of Brentford's best ever captains and was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame in May 2015.[4][5]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | James Bain[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 6 February 1899 | ||
| Place of birth | Rutherglen, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 22 September 1969 (aged 70)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Polegate, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre half | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Rutherglen Glencairn | |||
| –1922 | Strathclyde | ||
| 1922–1928 | Manchester United | 4 | (0) |
| 1928 | Manchester Central | ||
| 1928–1934 | Brentford | 191 | (2) |
| Total | 195 | (2) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1952–1953 | Brentford | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
editEarly years and Manchester United
editA centre half, Bain's began his career with hometown junior club Rutherglen Glencairn.[1] He moved to Strathclyde and off the back of his performances earned a transfer to English Second Division club Manchester United in May 1922.[3] Bain failed to make an appearance for the first team during the 1922–23 and 1923–24 seasons and finally made his professional debut in a 4–2 win over Leyton Orient on 7 February 1925.[6] It proved to be his only appearance of the 1924–25 season,[6] which meant he missed out on a Second Division winners' medal.[7] Bain managed just two appearances during the 1925–26 First Division season and did not appear for the first team at all during 1926–27.[6] His fourth and final appearance for the club came in a 3–0 defeat to Blackburn Rovers on 19 September 1927.[6] Bain departed Old Trafford in July 1928.[3]
Manchester Central and Brentford
editBain joined newly-formed Lancashire Combination club Manchester Central in 1928.[8] After a six-month spell, Bain returned to the Football League as a £250 signing for Third Division South club Brentford in November 1928.[8] An immediate hit with the Bees, he was awarded the captaincy and helped the club to the 1932–33 Third Division South title.[5] He retired from playing in 1934, after making 201 appearances and scoring two goals for Brentford.[8][9] In 2013, Bain placed fifth in a Football League 125th Anniversary poll of Brentford's best ever captains.[5]
Coaching and management
editBain became assistant to manager Harry Curtis at Brentford in 1934.[10] Under Curtis, he was a part of the most successful period in the club's history, which saw the Bees crowned Second Division and London Challenge Cup champions in the 1934–35 season, finish fifth in the First Division in 1935–36 (the club's highest ever league placing) and win the 1942 London War Cup.[10][11] After Curtis' departure in 1949, Bain served as assistant to Jackie Gibbons (1949–1952), Tommy Lawton (1953) and Bill Dodgin, Sr. (1953–1956).[8]
Bain was named as successor to manager Jackie Gibbons in August 1952.[9] He lasted until January 1953, before being replaced by player-manager Tommy Lawton.[9] Prior to the dismissal of Eddie May in 1997, Bain's tenure was the shortest on record for a permanent Brentford manager.[12] Bain retired from football at the end of the 1955–56 season and received a Football League Long Service Medal for the contribution he made at Griffin Park.[9] He was awarded a testimonial in 1956, in which Brentford drew 1–1 with an All-Star XI.[13] Bain was posthumously inducted into the club's Hall of Fame in May 2015.[4]
Personal life
editBain's younger brother David was also a professional footballer who played for Manchester United (the siblings coincided on the club staff for two years, but never appeared together in a competitive fixture).[3]
Career statistics
edit| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester United | 1924–25[6] | Second Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1925–26[6] | First Division | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 1927–28[6] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Brentford | 1928–29[14] | Third Division South | 26 | 0 | — | 26 | 0 | |
| 1929–30[14] | 41 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 2 | ||
| 1930–31[14] | 42 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 47 | 0 | ||
| 1931–32[14] | 37 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 40 | 0 | ||
| 1932–33[14] | 37 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 38 | 0 | ||
| 1933–34[14] | Second Division | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| Total | 191 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 201 | 2 | ||
| Career total | 195 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 205 | 2 | ||
Managerial statistics
edit| Team | From | To | Record | Ref | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | ||||
| Brentford | August 1952 | 2 January 1953 | 23 | 7 | 5 | 11 | 30.4 | [15] |
| Total | 23 | 7 | 5 | 11 | 30.4 | — | ||
Honours
edit- Brentford
Individual
References
edit- ^ a b Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 14. ISBN 978-1905891610.
- ^ "Jimmy Bain". united.no (in Norwegian Bokmål). Retrieved 15 March 2023.
- ^ a b c d "James (1922–1928) Bain, Manchester United Player Profile & Stats". MUFCinfo.com. Retrieved 4 July 2014.
- ^ a b c Wickham, Chris. "Kevin O'Connor and Marcus Gayle join others in being added to Brentford FC Hall of Fame". brentfordfc.co.uk. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ a b c "Brentford". Football League 125. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g "James Bain". 11v11.com. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- ^ "Manchester United Complete History". Statto.com. Archived from the original on 2 August 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- ^ a b c d e Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. pp. 14–15. ISBN 0955294916.
- ^ a b c d Haynes, Graham (1998). A-Z Of Bees: Brentford Encyclopedia. Yore Publications. p. 89. ISBN 1-874427-57-7.
- ^ a b White 1989, p. 142-145.
- ^ "Brentford FC – Our History". Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- ^ TW8: Brentford Official Matchday Programme versus Notts County. Charlton, London. 24 February 2001. p. 15.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Griffin Gazette: Brentford's Official Matchday Magazine versus Crewe Alexandra. Quay Design of Poole. 6 April 1996. p. 20.
- ^ a b c d e f White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 370–372. ISBN 0951526200.
- ^ White 1989, p. 382.