Ian Ferguson (footballer born 1967)

Ian Ferguson
Ferguson in 1987
Personal information
Date of birth (1967-03-15) 15 March 1967 (age 57)
Place of birth Glasgow, Scotland
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Clyde
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1984–1986 Clyde 26 (4)
1986–1988 St Mirren 57 (10)
1988–2000 Rangers 236 (24)
2000–2002 Dunfermline Athletic 60 (2)
2002–2004 Northern Spirit 37 (3)
2005–2006 Central Coast Mariners 3 (0)
Total 416 (43)
International career
1986–1987 Scotland U21[2] 6 (1)
1987 Scotland B[3] 1 (0)
1988–1997 Scotland 9 (0)
Managerial career
2009–2010 North Queensland Fury
2010–2013 Perth Glory
2013–2017 Northern Fury
2021– Stirling Macedonia
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ian Ferguson (born 15 March 1967) is a Scottish football coach and retired professional player.

He started his career with Clyde, then moved to St Mirren in 1986, scoring the winning goal as the club won the 1987 Scottish Cup Final. Ferguson moved to Rangers in 1988 and stayed with the Ibrox club for 12 years, during which time he helped them win nine consecutive Scottish league championships. He has since been inducted to the club's Hall of Fame.[4] He played for Dunfermline Athletic for two seasons, before emigrating to Australia where he played for Northern Spirit and Central Coast Mariners. Ferguson appeared in nine full international matches for Scotland.

Since retiring as a player, he has managed North Queensland Fury, Perth Glory, Northern Fury and Stirling Macedonia.

Club career

St Mirren

Raised in the Parkhead area of Glasgow within a few blocks of Celtic Park, Ferguson grew up as a supporter of Rangers.[5][6][7] He started his career with Clyde (he had an unsuccessful trial with Aberdeen in 1983),[1] but was transferred to St Mirren for £60,000 in 1986.[8] Aged 20, he scored the winning goal in the 1987 Scottish Cup Final, as St Mirren won 1–0 against Dundee United.[9]

Rangers

Nine months after winning the Scottish Cup, he transferred to Rangers for £850,000 – still the record fee received by St Mirren[10] – turning down offers from English clubs to become part of the strong squad being assembled at Ibrox by Graeme Souness.[7] He is remembered as a key player of the era at the club,[4] appearing 336 times and scoring 42 goals.[11] Along with Ally McCoist and Richard Gough, he played a part in every season of Rangers' historic run of nine titles in a row between 1988–89 and 1996–97 under managers Souness and Walter Smith.[11][12] Having picked up his first winner's medal a decade earlier, scoring in the 1988 Scottish League Cup Final,[12] he also featured in the first title win with manager Dick Advocaat in 1998–99, and appeared as a substitute in the League Cup and Scottish Cup finals that season.[11][13] His playing time became limited under Advocaat, and he moved on to Dunfermline Athletic in 2000.

He was given a testimonial match by Rangers, played against Sunderland on 21 July 1999.[12]

Dunfermline Athletic

Ferguson spent two seasons in Fife, during which he helped newly promoted Dunfermline to keep their place in the top division (9th in 2000–01) and then improve it (6th in 2001–02). He then moved to Australia to see out the final years as a player and begin his managerial career.

International career

Ferguson won nine international caps for Scotland, achieved at irregular intervals over a period of nine years.[14] His last appearance was in a goalless draw against Estonia in February 1997.[14] After the game, Ferguson was overheard by a microphone apparently swearing at the Scotland supporters.[15][16] Ferguson apologised to the Scotland manager, Craig Brown, and he was included in the next squad.[15]

Managerial career

North Queensland Fury FC

On 15 September 2008, Ferguson was confirmed as the new manager of North Queensland FC leaving his post as assistant manager at Central Coast Mariners. He took up the post straight away in order to give the team the best preparation possible for their inaugural season in Australia's Hyundai A League.[17] Ferguson lasted only one year with the Fury, when the club folded due to financial instability.

Perth Glory FC

In 2010 Ferguson moved to become the assistant to David Mitchell at the Perth Glory at the end of the 2009–10 season[18] and becoming the coach on 12 October 2010 after David Mitchell resigned.[19] On 27 March 2012 he signed a two-year contract extension with the club.[20]

Ferguson successfully guided Perth Glory to their first A-League Grand Final in April 2012, after beating Minor A-League Premiers Central Coast Mariners in a penalty shootout at the Mariners' home ground in Gosford. However they lost the subsequent Grand Final 2–1 following a late comeback from Brisbane Roar who were awarded a controversial injury-time penalty.[21]

Ferguson's contract was mutually terminated on 11 February 2013 as Perth Glory manager, after five straight losses and six hours of game time without a goal scored.

Northern Fury FC (NPL Queensland)

In 2013, Ferguson was announced as the Director of Football and Coaching at the Townsville NPL Queensland franchise Northern Fury FC.[22]

On 16 February 2017, Ferguson resigned as Northern Fury manager, less than a fortnight from the beginning of the Fury's season. He was replaced by Paul Roncato.[23]

Stirling Macedonia FC (WA National Premier League)

On 3 November 2020, Stirling Macedonia FC announced Ian Ferguson as the new First team coach.[24]

Ferguson coached Stirling to promotion of the WA State League 1 and back into the top flight, where they immediately challenged for the title and became one of the top clubs in the NPL.

Career statistics

International appearances

As of 05:30, 9 May 2019 (UTC)[14]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Scotland 1988 1 0
1989 2 0
1990 —
1991 —
1992 —
1993 3 0
1994 2 0
1995 —
1996 —
1997 1 0
Total 9 0

Managerial record

As of 9 February 2013
Team Nat From To Record
G W D L Win %
North Queensland Fury Australia 15 September 2008 6 April 2010 27 8 8 11 029.63
Perth Glory Australia 12 October 2010 9 February 2013 72 23 14 35 031.94
Total 99 31 22 46 031.31

Honours

Player

St Mirren

Rangers

Manager

Perth Glory

Stirling Macedonia

References

  1. ^ a b Ian Ferguson, AFC Heritage Trust
  2. ^ "Scotland U21 profile". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  3. ^ "Scotland B profile". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  4. ^ a b "Hall of Fame: Ian Ferguson". Rangers F.C. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  5. ^ Ian Ferguson talks about hard times in management and his attachment to both Rangers and St Mirren, Richard Wilson, The Herald, 21 Mar 2010, via Inside Sport
  6. ^ Ian Ferguson MM Lodge Scotia No.178 Archived 18 June 2021 at the Wayback Machine, Provincial Grand Lodge of Glasgow
  7. ^ a b Rangers legend Ian Ferguson lifts lid on how he forced move from St Mirren as they tried to sell him to Manchester United, Lindsay Herron, Daily Record, 15 February 2018
  8. ^ Young, Chick (10 November 1987). "Saints Boss Slams Fergie". Evening Times. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
  9. ^ a b McGuigan, Thomas (17 March 2010). "Former St Mirren skipper Abercromby recalls final win". BBC. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  10. ^ "Club Records". St Mirren.info. Archived from the original on 20 December 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  11. ^ a b c d e f "Rangers player Ian Ferguson". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
  12. ^ a b c Jack, Christopher (12 January 2017). "Games of our lives: Rangers legend Ian Ferguson on cup glory, Old Firm heroics and an Ibrox farewell". Evening Times. Retrieved 24 April 2018.
  13. ^ "Rangers take treble". BBC Sport. 29 May 1999. Retrieved 4 November 2018.
  14. ^ a b c Ian Ferguson at the Scottish Football Association
  15. ^ a b "Football: Ferguson forgiven by Brown". The Independent. London. 22 March 1997. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  16. ^ "Ferguson blasts Tartan Army". Sky Sports. 24 April 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  17. ^ "Ferguson To Coach New Franchise". Central Coast Mariners Official Site. 15 September 2008. Archived from the original on 24 March 2009. Retrieved 15 September 2008.
  18. ^ "Fergie Out at Fury, Joins Glory". FourFourTwo Australia. 6 April 2010. Archived from the original on 9 April 2010.
  19. ^ "News Display". Archived from the original on 25 February 2011. Retrieved 5 July 2010.
  20. ^ "Ferguson wins new two-year deal at Glory - the West Australian". Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  21. ^ a b "Brisbane win amid late controversy". FTBL. 22 April 2012. Retrieved 20 December 2018.
  22. ^ "Fury ahead of the game". 8 November 2013.
  23. ^ Greco, John (16 February 2017). "Kruse scores in draw with McBreen's Eagles". A-League. Football Federation Australia. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  24. ^ "Stirling Lions Coach Announcement". Facebook. 3 November 2020. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022.

External links