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John Fitzsimons (footballer)

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Scottish footballer

John Fitzsimons
Personal information
Full name John Thomas Fitzsimons
Date of birth 3 March 1915
Place of birth Glasgow, Scotland
Date of death 3 September 1995(1995-09-03) (aged 80)
Place of death Glasgow, Scotland
Position(s) Outside left
Youth career
St Joseph's College
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
St Roch's
1934–1938 Celtic 5 (0)
1938–1941 Alloa Athletic 28 (22)
1941–1942 Clyde 0 (0)
1942–1946 Falkirk 15 (6)
1946–1947 Hamilton Academical 11 (3)
1947–1948 Clyde 21 (7)
Total 80 (38)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

John Thomas Fitzsimons (3 March 1915 – 3 September 1995) was a Scottish footballer who played as an outside left, and a medical doctor who acted as Celtic F.C.'s club physician for 34 years, also working for the Scotland national football team in the role.

He began his senior football career at Celtic in 1934, also training for his medical qualifications at the Anderson College of Medicine (then associated with the University of Glasgow but today an integral part of the University of Strathclyde). Due in part to his educational commitments he was only a fringe player at the Hoops (five Scottish Division One appearances in four seasons), and transferred to lower division Alloa Athletic in 1938. During World War II when the usual competitions were suspended for seven years, he switched to Clyde then Falkirk, where he made over 150 appearances in total, played on the losing side in the 1943 Southern League Cup final and was still with the Bairns when official competitions resumed in 1946, though by the end of that year he had signed for Hamilton Academical, soon making a return to Clyde before retiring from playing in 1948.

In his medical career, Fitzsimons worked at Belvidere Hospital (Parkhead) then as a GP in his native Glasgow. In 1953 he was appointed as Celtic's club doctor, a position he held until 1987 spanning the highly successful period under manager Jock Stein. He had a similar occasional role with the Scottish international squad from 1970 to 1982, accompanying them to three FIFA World Cup finals tournaments. He was made a Knight of the Order of St. Sylvester by Pope Paul VI in 1976 for his commitment to the local Lourdes Hospitalité pilgrimage foundation.

References

  1. ^ Dr J Fitzsimons, The Herald, 23 September 1995
  2. Fitzsimons John "Doc" Image 1 Clyde 1948, Vintage Footballers
  3. (Celtic player) Fitzsimmons, John, FitbaStats
  4. John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine.
  5. Some Stuff from WWII, Falkirk Football Historian, 28 August 2013
  6. Rangers Build Up Corners Lead | Falkirk Almost Snatch Victory, The Glasgow Herald, 10 May 1943
  7. 'Daylight Robbery' when Falkirk took on Rangers in 1943 Southern League Cup, Falkirk Herald, 24 June 2020
  8. Rangers Win Southern League Cup Final | Falkirk Beaton On Corners, The Scotsman, 10 May 1943, via London Hearts Supporters Club
  9. John Fitzsimmons (Doc), Better Meddle
  10. Fitzsimons, John (1946) , Hamilton Academical Memory Bank
  11. Clyde: 1946/47 - 2013/14, Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Transfer Database
  12. (untitled notes) Falkirk Herald, 16 February 1946, via The Celtic Wiki
  13. And they gave us James McGrory and Danny Dawson, Matt Corr, The Celtic Star, 18 March 2020
  14. Lourdes Pilgrimage Medal, A History of the World (BBC / The British Museum)
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