Hibernian's hardest men

[Edina Street]

When people talk about football's hardest men, it inevitably comes down to a duel between Duncan Ferguson and Vinnie Jones, and in my opinion this is a duel that Duncan Ferguson would win. Every time I have seen Vinnie Jones in battle he has "lost". Liverpool's Steve McMahon gave him 14 stitches. The Gladiator's Michael Ahearne (The Warrior) dropped him on his backside live on Gladiator. Youtube footage (that I will display below) shows him getting bloodied in a bar brawl.

But who ever gave Duncan Ferguson stitches? When did Duncan Ferguson ever get dropped on his backside? And the only Youtube footage we can find of Duncan Ferguson is videos of him grabbing fellow footballing hard men around the neck, and decking them. Paul Ince (the governor) once got decked by Duncan Ferguson and Youtube footage even shows that Paul Ince gets back on his feet and "apologises to Duncan".
Vinnie Jones is an actor that bases himself on Cockney gangster Dave Courtney imao, whereas Duncan Disorderly is a big lump of a guy that was brought up in a very poverty stricken part of Scotland full of booze and drugs that once sadly spent three months in prison for a serious assault committed during a live football match, and also once proudly tackled "two" armed burglars that were burgling his home. One escaped, but the other was detained by Drunken Duncan until police arrived.

However, whilst Hibs have a reputation for having one of Britain's hardest football firms, I have never associated Hibernian footballers as being the hardest of men, so I was surprised when I found an article online that places an ex Hibs player amongst the top twenty footballing hard men. His name is Chic Charnley, and whilst possessing the British record for most red cards is nothing to be proud of, he has a rather heroic story to tell.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/905864-20-footballers-you-wouldnt-want-to-get-in-a-fight-with

Chic was reportedly attacked in a Glasgow park by two men wielding samurai swords. After a few harsh words in their direction, his attackers turned and fled with their tails between their legs.

I also read in Pat Stanton's book about what a nice and friendly person Erich Schaedler was, but that he was also as strong as an ox and as brave as a lion. He once tackled a man that was armed with a loaded shotgun.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Schaedler

By 1984, he was running a public house (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_house), Shades, on Easter Road, Edinburgh, receiving a bravery award from Lothian and Borders Police (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lothian_and_Borders_Police) in December 1984 when he and two police constables (who also received awards) confronted a man carrying a loaded shotgun at the pub.

Are there any other Hibernian footballers that have stories to tell about heroic deeds? Is there anyone else you would put forward to stand up to the Duncan Ferguson's and Vinnie Jones's of this world?

Vinnie Jones

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oC_dGI0E4pg

[H18 SFR]

Darren McCormick springs to mind. Should have been a boxer.

[Walter]

Darren McCormick springs to mind. Should have been a boxer.

Nothing heroic about him.

[H18 SFR]

Nothing heroic about him.

To be fair is there anything heroic about Duncan Ferguson? Several assaults, violence and aggression in his place of work etc.

At least if a young person takes up boxing rather than being aggressive elsewhere it’s in a controlled environment.

[Edina Street]

To be fair is there anything heroic about Duncan Ferguson? Several assaults, violence and aggression in his place of work etc.

At least if a young person takes up boxing rather than being aggressive elsewhere it’s in a controlled environment.

I do also believe that Andy Goram had the choice of becoming professional in a number of sports, including boxing. A very talented all rounder was Andy. I used to see him in the Davis club knocking in 60 breaks. He once played for the Scotland cricket team. He also beat my father in a bowling match at St Andrews bowling club, and that is quite a feat considering my father was amongst the top players there.

Was also quite impressed with the way Andy dealt with the Hearts pitch invaders during the Wallace Mercer derby. Simply grabbed one of them and almost launched him back into the away end.

[leith lynx]

Roy Barry, Bobby Thomson, John Hughes.

[chippy]

Roy Barry, Bobby Thomson, John Hughes.

John McNamee, John Madsen, Pat Stanton, John Blackley, Alex Edwards, Des Bremner, Frank Sauzee, Mathias Jack, Neil Lennon, Eddie Turnbull, Darren McGregor , John McGinn, Ryan Porteous

[leith lynx]

Jackie McNamara, Joe McBride snr.Gordon Rae, Shaun Dennis.

[BILLYHIBS]

Bertie Auld

Silky midfielder probably one for the best passer thread but do not judge a book by it’s cover Bertie could handle himself and some

Playing against Middlesbrough in a preseason friendly Bertie was involved in a ding dong battle with England midfield hard man Nobby Stiles

Both went for a 50-50 Bertie could see the challenge coming as Nobby went over the ball on him and vaulted over his flying foot crashing down hard on the bone hard surface onto his shoulder

Tam McNiven sprinted on and diagnosed a broken collar bone and told Bertie he would have to come off

‘ Give me 5 minutes’ says the bold Bertie

5 minutes later Nobby was getting carried off on a stretcher

Bertie was also sent off on his Scotland debut but pleaded mistaken identity

Bobby Thomson was another Hibee that could play a bit and also handle himself

[eastmainsmsh]

Matty Jack

[1875Sean]

John McNamee, John Madsen, Pat Stanton, John Blackley, Alex Edwards, Des Bremner, Frank Sauzee, Mathias Jack, Neil Lennon, Eddie Turnbull, Darren McGregor , John McGinn, Ryan Porteous

You can remove Porteous from that list due or the amount of rolling about he did when brushed

[leith lynx]

George Stewart

[BILLYHIBS]

Gordon Hunter lightning over 10 yards and you knew you had been tackled

Shades already been said guy was just immense

Dod Stewart nae shrinking violet either

[Since452]

Big Shaun Dennis.

[leith lynx]

Marvin Bartley, Barry Lavety

[gbhibby]

Allan McGraw for the semi final goal

[Fanforlife]

John Mcnamee,you just didn't mess about with that man.

[BILLYHIBS]

Allan McGraw for the semi final goal

Knocked it over the line wi his stookie

How hard was that ?

[Kato]

Gordon Hunter lightning over 10 yards and you knew you had been tackled

Shades already been said guy was just immense

Dod Stewart nae shrinking violet eitherGBH

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[leith lynx]

Didn't play many games but Scott Sheils for that wonderful bone crunching tackle on Paul Hartley .

[Bostonhibby]

Big bad John MacNamee, Erich Schaedler, John Madsen, John Blackley,Gordon Rae, Roy Barry and Alex Edward's for me.

I got the impression that John Burridge never needed a bodyguard either[emoji16]

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[BILLYHIBS]

Didn't play many games but Scott Sheils for that wonderful bone crunching tackle on Paul Hartley .

Jay ?

[gbhibby]

Crops was hard as ####

[leith lynx]

Jay ?

Correct, it was Jay.

[SRHibs]

Jorge "Pitbull" Claros

[leith lynx]

Always remember a Hibs v Celtic midweek game when John Hughes and Mark Viduka virtually wrestled with each other for 90 mins, clash of the titans!

[500miles]

You can remove Porteous from that list due or the amount of rolling about he did when brushed

He also reset his knee 3 times in a single game because he refused to be subbed. He also endured a press and SFA witch hunt to get a good move.

A top quality *****-house.

[leith lynx]

Big Mixu

[O'Rourke3]

Many been mentioned. Stanton, Blackley, Schaedler, Edwards and Crops could all handle themselves. Roy Barry was a beast. Special mention for Geebs, Auld and Beastie boy George McCluskey.
While he never delivered in the way I expected for Hibs, Billy Kirkwood was about the hardest player I ever saw. He used to go into tackles where hiis chances of being injured was about 60% smiling.

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[ehf]

Alan Sneddon

[Edina Street]

Big bad John MacNamee, Erich Schaedler, John Madsen, John Blackley,Gordon Rae, Roy Barry and Alex Edward's for me.

I got the impression that John Burridge never needed a bodyguard either[emoji16]

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John Burridge claims that he told Rangers hard man Mark Hateley "come into my box son and I'll break your back" during the 1991/92 League Cup Semi Final encounter with Rangers.

It is also alleged that he decked Alex Miller in the Hibernian dressing room after the Scottish Cup defeat to Airdrieonians that same season after Alex Miller blaimed him for Airdrie's first goal.

Not sure what I made of John Burridge tbh. I loved him as a goalkeeper before his age began to show, and I think he would be a great guy to have a pint with, but what was he trying to say when he claims he turned round to Ally McCoist and said: "and you, you're a superstar up here son, but you couldn't handle it with the big boys?". That comment kind of disrespects Hibernian too, if you think about it.

[badabing67]

What about you "hard *******" Rob Jones and Beastie McCluckey

[leith lynx]

Willie Miller could handle himself, honourable mentions to David Farrell, Steven Tweed and Calum Milne.

[Hibs3-2]

Graham Stack

[1875Sean]

He also reset his knee 3 times in a single game because he refused to be subbed. He also endured a press and SFA witch hunt to get a good move.

A top quality *****-house.

Still we are talking about a hard man, big dunc, yogi etc wouldn’t be going down like he did, *****housery or not

[Green Reaper]

Big Shaun Dennis.

Remember the finger being reset live on tv... Uuurgh!

[Edina Street]

I'm surprised that Pat McGinlay and Neil Orr have not been mentioned yet, as I have heard from terrace talk that both individuals were once considered the hardest man in the Hibs dressing room. Obviously Pat McGinlay only took the mantle after Neil Orr left.

[Tambo]

Chic Charnley? Not really sure if he's a hard man but I bet he could handle himself 😆

Hard men and people who would put there body on the football pitch could be deemed as something else as I'm sure you could say Mcgregor or Yogi.

A little off topic but does anyone remember when Adam gave some to JDH and he looked shook.

[Edina Street]

Obviously Mickey Weir was too wee to be considered a hard man, but I did learn a good martial arts move from him that set me in good stead for my own self defence. It was during the UEFA cup encounter with Videoton. Mickey Weir was absolutely hacked and bullied throughout the game until about the last minute of the match he finally lost his cool and pushed a Videoton player to the ground. I learned from this that when you push someone in the chest, don't just push them straight, but push them towards the ground. In the playground it worked every time without fail when some kid picked a fight with me. I would simply push their chest downwards and they would invariably go down. I learned this from Mickey.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ybh-ieRywQg&t=267s

[Donegal Hibby]

Willie miller.
Scott brown.
Matty jack .
Gordon Hunter.
Gordon Rae .
John Mcginn.

[CentreForward]

Remember being there on the day that Bobby Thomson ran what seemed like the full length of the pitch to take out the linesman. Never seen anything like it till this day anywhere. Can’t remember who we were playing that day but am sure others on here will have been there and will remember. Possibly against Morton, not sure!

Edit - Just checked and it was against St Johnstone and he was given a 6 month ban.

[Scouse Hibee]

When people talk about football's hardest men, it inevitably comes down to a duel between Duncan Ferguson and Vinnie Jones, and in my opinion this is a duel that Duncan Ferguson would win. Every time I have seen Vinnie Jones in battle he has "lost". Liverpool's Steve McMahon gave him 14 stitches. The Gladiator's Michael Ahearne (The Warrior) dropped him on his backside live on Gladiator. Youtube footage (that I will display below) shows him getting bloodied in a bar brawl.

But who ever gave Duncan Ferguson stitches? When did Duncan Ferguson ever get dropped on his backside? And the only Youtube footage we can find of Duncan Ferguson is videos of him grabbing fellow footballing hard men around the neck, and decking them. Paul Ince (the governor) once got decked by Duncan Ferguson and Youtube footage even shows that Paul Ince gets back on his feet and "apologises to Duncan".
Vinnie Jones is an actor that bases himself on Cockney gangster Dave Courtney imao, whereas Duncan Disorderly is a big lump of a guy that was brought up in a very poverty stricken part of Scotland full of booze and drugs that once sadly spent three months in prison for a serious assault committed during a live football match, and also once proudly tackled "two" armed burglars that were burgling his home. One escaped, but the other was detained by Drunken Duncan until police arrived.

However, whilst Hibs have a reputation for having one of Britain's hardest football firms, I have never associated Hibernian footballers as being the hardest of men, so I was surprised when I found an article online that places an ex Hibs player amongst the top twenty footballing hard men. His name is Chic Charnley, and whilst possessing the British record for most red cards is nothing to be proud of, he has a rather heroic story to tell.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/905864-20-footballers-you-wouldnt-want-to-get-in-a-fight-with


I also read in Pat Stanton's book about what a nice and friendly person Erich Schaedler was, but that he was also as strong as an ox and as brave as a lion. He once tackled a man that was armed with a loaded shotgun.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erich_Schaedler


Are there any other Hibernian footballers that have stories to tell about heroic deeds? Is there anyone else you would put forward to stand up to the Duncan Ferguson's and Vinnie Jones's of this world?

Vinnie Jones

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oC_dGI0E4pg

Sadly Jones did McMahon early doors in the 88 FA Cup final and McMahon seemed to bottle it for the rest of the game.

[Edina Street]

Sadly Jones did McMahon early doors in the 88 FA Cup final and McMahon seemed to bottle it for the rest of the game.

I'm not saying Steve McMahon was a hard man. But he got Jones back.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VaSJHmr2hpA

[leith lynx]

Does anybody remember Billy McLaren from the early eighties? if VAR was around then he would be doing a stretch in Saughton!

[Roxyhibee]

So many tough physical players such as McNamee, Barry, Jones, Shades etc - although I think Budgie would wipe the floor with all of them toe to toe.

But if I had to choose regardless of size it would be Alex Cropley. What he did with his lightweight frame in tackles was incredible. The guy was absolutely fearless, hard as nails and if he’d been a stone or two heavier would have been unstoppable.

[Edina Street]

Jamie Insall must have fancied himself as a bit of a hard man as he took to bare-knuckle boxing after his football ban. He seems awful proud of himself as well for once breaking someone's jaw with one punch. So he definitely has that Duncan Ferguson and Vinnie Jones thug mentality. Unfortunately he did not make it to the dizzy heights of Lenny McClean and Roy Shaw. He got his nose broken during his first fight.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/48901724

"When I was 19, I punched a bloke on a football pitch and broke his jaw. Around that age, I could look after myself. I was fighting and getting myself into trouble, I always fancied myself on the streets.
"I had a go at it, fought someone who was an unbelievable boxer - Brandon Bates - I did well but got my nose broken and the fight was stopped. I'm 5ft 7in and he's 6ft 3in.

[Edina Street]

So many tough physical players such as McNamee, Barry, Jones, Shades etc - although I think Budgie would wipe the floor with all of them toe to toe.

But if I had to choose regardless of size it would be Alex Cropley. What he did with his lightweight frame in tackles was incredible. The guy was absolutely fearless, hard as nails and if he’d been a stone or two heavier would have been unstoppable.

I read in an article that Greame Souness was an admirer of the Turnbull's Tornadoes, and in particular Alex Cropley. He claimed that he based his game upon Alex Cropley's, and took it to a new level.

I do believe that Alex Cropley's small physical frame went against him however. As he first got done by Alex Ferguson, and then again at Aston Villa, though I don't know who by.

https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport/football/hibs/alex-cropley-former-hibs-arsenal-and-aston-villa-midfielder-diagnosed-dementia-3063467

He suffered his first serious injury against Falkirk at Brockville; a broken ankle caused by a challenge from future Aberdeen and Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson.

I don't think anyone ever done Greame Souness, though Stuart Beedie did ruffle his feathers.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvdesakrwn0

[BILLYHIBS]

Close thread


https://i.ibb.co/TwhBtHX/0-AAFE690-0-EE2-421-E-81-A1-745-D48-D9-FB83.png (https://ibb.co/3Thyc0X)

[superfurryhibby]

Close thread


https://i.ibb.co/TwhBtHX/0-AAFE690-0-EE2-421-E-81-A1-745-D48-D9-FB83.png (https://ibb.co/3Thyc0X)

Who, me ref? Sloop could tackle.

In a square go YOgi would be my bet v anyone. he was a hard laddie from a hard family, definitely nae shrinking violet whilst growing up in Leith.

Mention of Porto, lol. Histrionics and rolling around yes, but the real hard guys would be saying wtaf. Was his injury not a problem with the shoulder?

[Northernhibee]

Me after every time I watch a certain 92nd minute header.

[leith lynx]

Close thread


https://i.ibb.co/TwhBtHX/0-AAFE690-0-EE2-421-E-81-A1-745-D48-D9-FB83.png (https://ibb.co/3Thyc0X)

Lovely stuff!

[A Hi-Bee]

Close thread


https://i.ibb.co/TwhBtHX/0-AAFE690-0-EE2-421-E-81-A1-745-D48-D9-FB83.png (https://ibb.co/3Thyc0X)

Aye and John Greig was no shrinking violet, J.B. nailed him but they also got him back a few times. Dirty sevconian bassa's

[BILLYHIBS]

Le God lost four front teeth scoring a goal against Hearts and carried on playing after stemming the flow of blood with a tissue

[Edina Street]

Le God lost four front teeth scoring a goal against Hearts and carried on playing after stemming the flow of blood with a tissue


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4z1WLVt-PM

[brog]

King Pat once said Big John McNamee was the only player who really scared him! He thought Erich was the bravest though!
One of my fav moments was Jackie Mac tackling both Dereks, Parlane and Johnstone in the same move. IIRC one was carried off the other limped off. No foul awarded!:wink:

[Ringothedog]

Roy Barrie, hard as nails centre half

[allezsauzee]

Erich

[Edina Street]

King Pat once said Big John McNamee was the only player who really scared him! He thought Erich was the bravest though!
One of my fav moments was Jackie Mac tackling both Dereks, Parlane and Johnstone in the same move. IIRC one was carried off the other limped off. No foul awarded!:wink:

According to a list compiled by the Edinburgh Evening News a group of Hibernian supporters voted for John McNamee being the ultimate Hibernian hard man.
https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport/football/hibs/your-top-10-favourite-hibees-hard-men-of-all-time-3053932?page=3

Lewis Stevenson is also on the list. For all Lewis Stevenson is a Hibs legend and hard grafter, I'm not sure I would be pitting Lewis Stevenson against Big Dunc or Vinnie Jones.

[WeeRussell]

Surprised to see SJM in more than one post here. John was/is many things, including a good physical tackler, but doesn’t strike me as a big hard man.

Suppose depends if talking about fighting or tackling 😁

Also wouldn’t have Porto or Brown on the list for similar reasons.

All in all I think it’ll be a struggle to come up with someone to take down big Dunc!

[heid the baw]

Not sure about Hibs players but surely Zander Diamond was the hardest ever footballer

[CropleyWasGod]

Not sure about Hibs players but surely Zander Diamond was the hardest ever footballer

Joe and Andy Cole were Diamond wannabees

[zitelli62]

Bobby Thompson more of a nutter though.

[nonshinyfinish]

Joe and Andy Cole were Diamond wannabees

Are you thinking of Edwin de Graafite?

[blackpoolhibs]

I have played against Vinny Jones a few times a long time ago, one of his tackles caused a 22 man punch up.

Yet for all his tackles during his career, i'd never call him a hard man, i'd call him a coward, he was a dirty player, who put in cowardly tackles for most of his time as a player, tackles he knew were going to injure players.

There's a guy called Steve Seabrook from Watford, who played midfield, and Jones was **** scared of him and his family, as Steve played him at his own game when they played against each other, and Jones shat himself every time.

[PHeffernan]

You don't need to be a hard man to be a professional football player. No chance of anything getting out of hand.
You do need to be strong though.
When I played amateur the guys I remembered were the quiet guys whose legs were tough as teak when you went into a 50/50 with them. It was like kicking a wall. I never forgot them.
There must be loads of strong professionals like that.

[Baader]

Sauzee was hard as nails

[brog]

I have played against Vinny Jones a few times a long time ago, one of his tackles caused a 22 man punch up.

Yet for all his tackles during his career, i'd never call him a hard man, i'd call him a coward, he was a dirty player, who put in cowardly tackles for most of his time as a player, tackles he knew were going to injure players.

There's a guy called Steve Seabrook from Watford, who played midfield, and Jones was **** scared of him and his family, as Steve played him at his own game when they played against each other, and Jones shat himself every time.

:top marks

[BILLYHIBS]

I have played against Vinny Jones a few times a long time ago, one of his tackles caused a 22 man punch up.

Yet for all his tackles during his career, i'd never call him a hard man, i'd call him a coward, he was a dirty player, who put in cowardly tackles for most of his time as a player, tackles he knew were going to injure players.

There's a guy called Steve Seabrook from Watford, who played midfield, and Jones was **** scared of him and his family, as Steve played him at his own game when they played against each other, and Jones shat himself every time.

:agree:

I thought so called hard man Graeme Souness was guilty of more than a few cowardly tackles

The Battle of Easter Road and this

https://youtu.be/ygVgxYa3mlo

[Kato]

I have played against Vinny Jones a few times a long time ago, one of his tackles caused a 22 man punch up.

Yet for all his tackles during his career, i'd never call him a hard man, i'd call him a coward, he was a dirty player, who put in cowardly tackles for most of his time as a player, tackles he knew were going to injure players.

There's a guy called Steve Seabrook from Watford, who played midfield, and Jones was **** scared of him and his family, as Steve played him at his own game when they played against each other, and Jones shat himself every time.Good post. Souness was a coward as well. Every time.

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[Mike Berry]

Jackie McNamara, Joe McBride snr.Gordon Rae, Shaun Dennis.Yeah, all of them. I reckon Jackie Mac was the hardest.

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[Green forever]

Does anybody remember Billy McLaren from the early eighties? if VAR was around then he would be doing a stretch in Saughton!
Absolutely,he sent Gregor Steven packing at Ibrox and he was meant to be the hardest around at the time. Billy "Studs" McLaren as he was known at the time.

[Bostonhibby]

:agree:

I thought so called hard man Graeme Souness was guilty of more than a few cowardly tackles

The Battle of Easter Road and this

https://youtu.be/ygVgxYa3mloFiled under the far more cowardly and sneaky than hard category.

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[stu in nottingham]

Big bad John McMamee. That man was just unbelievable - different class. For other Hibs players I think of (also going back a bit, John Madsen), Sloop and Shades - who would have run through a brick wall.

Here's another that many wouldn't perhaps consider - Joe Baker. Once decked the mountainous Ron Yeats of Liverpool in a fist fight and walked straight off the pitch, got tangled up with 'hard man' Norman Hunter in a wrestling match and lashed out at him with a huge uppercut. Once threw a journalist who was bothering him in Italy in a canal. Tough, tough guy.

Outwith Hibs, Dave Mackay, Duncan Ferguson and Billy Whitehurst amongst others.

[Bostonhibby]

Big bad John McMamee. That man was just unbelievable - different class. For other Hibs players I think of (also going back a bit, John Madsen), Sloop and Shades - who would have run through a brick wall.

Here's another that many wouldn't perhaps consider - Joe Baker. Once decked the mountainous Ron Yeats of Liverpool in a fist fight and walked straight off the pitch, got tangled up with 'hard man' Norman Hunter in a wrestling match and lashed out at him with a huge uppercut. Once threw a journalist who was bothering him in Italy in a canal. Tough, tough guy.

Outwith Hibs, Dave Mackay, Duncan Ferguson and Billy Whitehurst amongst others.Great shout, would never have thought of Joe.

Coincidentally my mates a Forest fan from that era, we are heading up for the game on Saturday so I flicked your post onto him. He is eulogising about Joe right now and saying how loved he still is amongst the Forest faithful[emoji106]

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[angus hibby]

Big Mixu

Alleged to have knocked out a notorious local hardman with one punch in a nightclub in Dundee.

[stu in nottingham]

Great shout, would never have thought of Joe.

Coincidentally my mates a Forest fan from that era, we are heading up for the game on Saturday so I flicked your post onto him. He is eulogising about Joe right now and saying how loved he still is amongst the Forest faithful[emoji106]

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Joe is a total legend in Nottingham, even after all this time. he was loved and like you say, for those who remember him, still is. He really captured the hearts of the City Ground fans and was idolised. There are a number of songs about him. Joe would say, 'I was just doing my job, scoring goals'.

I hope you enjoy your day out on Trentside mate. It's a great atmosphere down there these days. Tickets are like hen's teeth!

[JamesHFC]

Daniel Boateng.

[brog]

Big bad John McMamee. That man was just unbelievable - different class. For other Hibs players I think of (also going back a bit, John Madsen), Sloop and Shades - who would have run through a brick wall.

Here's another that many wouldn't perhaps consider - Joe Baker. Once decked the mountainous Ron Yeats of Liverpool in a fist fight and walked straight off the pitch, got tangled up with 'hard man' Norman Hunter in a wrestling match and lashed out at him with a huge uppercut. Once threw a journalist who was bothering him in Italy in a canal. Tough, tough guy.

Outwith Hibs, Dave Mackay, Duncan Ferguson and Billy Whitehurst amongst others.

In Wenger's 1st season in charge at Arsenal, London Hibs arranged for Joe to be guest of honour at a home game against Southampton. The middle page of the programme was devoted to a pic of Joe and it recounted the infamous Ron Yeats story. Joe was a great player and a wonderful man.

[Bostonhibby]

Joe is a total legend in Nottingham, even after all this time. he was loved and like you say, for those who remember him, still is. He really captured the hearts of the City Ground fans and was idolised. There are a number of songs about him. Joe would say, 'I was just doing my job, scoring goals'.

I hope you enjoy your day out on Trentside mate. It's a great atmosphere down there these days. Tickets are like hen's teeth!We're actually heading to Easter Road, last time we went Trentside was to see County. As you say very hard to get forest tickets.

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[Cuikyhibs]

Not hibs related but there was a brilliant thread recently on twitter account the upshot re the antics of Duncan Ferguson

The Upshot on Twitter: "Back in the 90s, Duncan Ferguson was football's most terrifying hardman. The Everton legend was the first footballer jailed for an on-field offence, but that's just the half of it. From headbutting policemen to hospitalising burglars, this is the mental tale of Big Dunc... https://t.co/bUIzcMaAid" / Twitter (https://twitter.com/UpshotTowers/status/1625842183210147840)

[Edina Street]

Not hibs related but there was a brilliant thread recently on twitter account the upshot re the antics of Duncan Ferguson

The Upshot on Twitter: "Back in the 90s, Duncan Ferguson was football's most terrifying hardman. The Everton legend was the first footballer jailed for an on-field offence, but that's just the half of it. From headbutting policemen to hospitalising burglars, this is the mental tale of Big Dunc... https://t.co/bUIzcMaAid" / Twitter (https://twitter.com/UpshotTowers/status/1625842183210147840)

During lockdown I read every football book on the go, including the book about Duncan Ferguson. Apparently he was actually deadly shy, believe it or not.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBsscHVAV_I

26469

[lyonhibs]

There's 2 things here. Dirty *******s with a lot of front but mostly all mouth and no trousers and actual hard men.

I never saw Ian Murray shirk a tackle, one Vs Neilson on his 2nd debut was an absolute ",no quarter given or taken" beauty. But I'm sure a gob***** like Vinnie Jones has a more impressive "highlights" reel

[keep the faith]

He also reset his knee 3 times in a single game because he refused to be subbed. He also endured a press and SFA witch hunt to get a good move.

A top quality *****-house.

Hi Ryan!

[Edina Street]

I remember 18/09/2005 at home to Celtic. We might have got beaten 0-1, but Roy Keane got it tight that day. Can't remember who it was that left him rolling on the ground. Might have been either Kevin Thomson or Scott Brown.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50U9f6KqJuk

[Glory Lurker]

I remember 18/09/2005 at home to Celtic. We might have got beaten 0-1, but Roy Keane got it tight that day. Can't remember who it was that left him rolling on the ground. Might have been either Kevin Thomson or Scott Brown.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50U9f6KqJuk

I mind Ivan giving him some verbals and I feared for him (Ivan, that is).

[KWJ]

Graham Stack could be added to the mix.

Tony Caig gave me the chills, and not just for his goalkeeping.

[Bishop Hibee]

Gordon Rae. Hard as nails on the field. When at Partick Thistle the team were training at a public park and a local threatened them with a samurai sword. Rae chased him , got the sword off him and bent it in half!

Honourable mention for Willie Miller who went ankle deep in freezing cold water on the touch line at Brockville to retrieve the ball for a throw. Makes my teeth chitter thinking about it.

[BILLYHIBS]

Special mention for James McPake

Sent off on his debut at Ibrox

Looked as though he actually gave a f#ck in 2012

Didn’t mess about

Pretty sure he has a soft spot for us

[Edina Street]

Gordon Rae. Hard as nails on the field. When at Partick Thistle the team were training at a public park and a local threatened them with a samurai sword. Rae chased him , got the sword off him and bent it in half!

Honourable mention for Willie Miller who went ankle deep in freezing cold water on the touch line at Brockville to retrieve the ball for a throw. Makes my teeth chitter thinking about it.

TBH I actually thought Gordon Rae could be more bad than hard. A bit like Roy Keane.

I remember 19/03/1988 in a Scottish Premier League derby at Easter Road against Hearts which ended 0-0, Gordon Rae aimed a kung-fu style flying kick that Bruce Lee would have been proud of at John Colquhoun which caught him right in the neck as he roared into the penalty box. This left John Colquhoun completely poleaxed and writhing on the ground in agony. Somehow Gordon Rae got away with it though, and the ref only gave an indirect free-kick inside the box and a yellow card, much to the anger of the rest of the Hearts team and the away support. I still have the highlights of that game recorded on VHS video, though I no longer have a VHS video player in which to view it.

However I was never impressed with what Roy Keane done to Alfie Haaland, even if it was done in retribution, it was an act of badness not hardness.

Equally, I thought similar of Gordon Rae's tackle.

However, the story about the Samurai sword is definitely a story of bravery, as well as strength.

[He's here!]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4z1WLVt-PM

Wonderful stuff. Latapy tying Hearts in knots as usual.

[BILLYHIBS]

Gordon Rae. Hard as nails on the field. When at Partick Thistle the team were training at a public park and a local threatened them with a samurai sword. Rae chased him , got the sword off him and bent it in half!

Honourable mention for Willie Miller who went ankle deep in freezing cold water on the touch line at Brockville to retrieve the ball for a throw. Makes my teeth chitter thinking about it.

Was the Samurai sword story not Chico ?

[O'Rourke3]

Was the Samurai sword story not Chico ?He certainly has a story with a sword. Never heard the other one.

Sent from my SM-G990B using Tapatalk

[Fanforlife]

Gordon Rae. Hard as nails on the field. When at Partick Thistle the team were training at a public park and a local threatened them with a samurai sword. Rae chased him , got the sword off him and bent it in half!

Honourable mention for Willie Miller who went ankle deep in freezing cold water on the touch line at Brockville to retrieve the ball for a throw. Makes my teeth chitter thinking about it.
Think that was Chic Charnley regarding sword incident.

[MartinfaePorty]

Think that was Chic Charnley regarding sword incident.

I think it was maybe Charnley the guys were after, but definitely big Gordon who chased them.

[leith lynx]

Was the Samurai sword story not Chico ?

That's what I thought.

[BILLYHIBS]

[QUOTE=leith lynx;7283939]That's what I thought.


[/https://twitter.com/opengoalsport/status/1031503227819315200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5 Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1031503227819315200%7Ctwgr% 5E299f964a4ad4a58d471faf6230c93f2e9a5b6b60%7Ctwcon %5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fd-37198783383618280608.ampproject.net%2F230126190000 0%2Fframe.html

[Eyrie]

I think it was maybe Charnley the guys were after, but definitely big Gordon who chased them.

That's how I remember it.

[Forza Fred]

Big John MacNamee.

I swear opposition forwards were scared to make eye contact with him never mind any physical challenge.

Not far behind was John Madsen.

Nobody could hurt him.

[Edina Street]

This John McNamee has had a number of votes now. So decided to do some research on him.

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/newcastle-unitedjohn-mcnamee-health-24949563

The Newcastle United warrior even Fergie backed away from confronting

Unfortunately I am not able to produce anything from his Hibernian years. So will have to make do with something from his Newcastle United days.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XSb-t9VyFc

[weecounty hibby]

I never saw big John play but he was one of my uncle's heroes. He told a story about a game v the hun at ER. Hibs had a corner and our hero makes his way into the hun box. Hibs crowd chanting "Big John, Big John, Big John". The ball sails over everyone's head from the corner so Big John just put the nut on John Greig instead. Not sure if true but I like to think it was. Any of our older posters confirm this

[Edina Street]

I never saw big John play but he was one of my uncle's heroes. He told a story about a game v the hun at ER. Hibs had a corner and our hero makes his way into the hun box. Hibs crowd chanting "Big John, Big John, Big John". The ball sails over everyone's head from the corner so Big John just put the nut on John Greig instead. Not sure if true but I like to think it was. Any of our older posters confirm this

Sounds like he deserves his own song with alternate lyrics. "He nutted John Greig right in the head, and his head was still sore when he lay on his bed".


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hy7arhKbQkQ

[A Hi-Bee]

I never saw big John play but he was one of my uncle's heroes. He told a story about a game v the hun at ER. Hibs had a corner and our hero makes his way into the hun box. Hibs crowd chanting "Big John, Big John, Big John". The ball sails over everyone's head from the corner so Big John just put the nut on John Greig instead. Not sure if true but I like to think it was. Any of our older posters confirm this

Seen, Big John play in many games he was a very good centre half as well as being hard as, when Hibs got a corner and he trotted up for it the whole ground rose in expectation. He did score a few goals from corners, I think he may have scored in a European game might have been against Valencia the old grey cells are not as sharp as they used to be. One story among many I was told was that he used to steal the soap from the showers at Easter Road and no one would mention it. Hibs had a very good team in them days, some cracking players and just a pity that Stein went to the lesser greens when he did we would have won something for sure.
Big John was sold on to Newcastle and I think he formed a fantastic pairing with another Scot Bobby Moncur, we also sold Jim Scott (the original one) to Newcastle and he is still revered on Tyneside to this day.
:flag::flag::flag:

[Forza Fred]

Seen, Big John play in many games he was a very good centre half as well as being hard as, when Hibs got a corner and he trotted up for it the whole ground rose in expectation. He did score a few goals from corners, I think he may have scored in a European game might have been against Valencia the old grey cells are not as sharp as they used to be. One story among many I was told was that he used to steal the soap from the showers at Easter Road and no one would mention it. Hibs had a very good team in them days, some cracking players and just a pity that Stein went to the lesser greens when he did we would have won something for sure.
Big John was sold on to Newcastle and I think he formed a fantastic pairing with another Scot Bobby Moncur, we also sold Jim Scott (the original one) to Newcastle and he is still revered on Tyneside to this day.
:flag::flag::flag:

The chant of ‘Big John’ Big John would start as soon as he started to move for a corner.

Apparently he was hard in training too.

I remember Pat Stanton saying one day in training, instead of the kickabout of married men v single men, or forwards v defenders, for a laugh they decided to play Catholics v Protestants.

Pat said he had never seen so many instant conversions to avoid lining up against Big John!

[cameronw-hfc]

If we're being literal, would need to be Darren McCormack right? Could have gone pro as a boxer by all accounts, even the "hardest" players couldn't last a round with a professional level boxer unless they also had years of training.

If we're talking on the pitch, Bartley was a bit of a tank. Loved a tackle, would regularly just send players flying by just nudging them, although there's some mentioned I've never seen id say Marv deserves a shout. Also trains and ran a boxing promotion for a while so could also spark most "hard men", even if he said himself he's too soft to try go competitive in boxing and just trains.

[Dashing Bob S]

I thought the Yogi Hughes - Sean Dennis partnership was probably as crucial as Sauzee and Laptapy to getting us re-established as a top flight club. We had to fight as well as play our way back, and they could do that.

[superfurryhibby]

If we're being literal, would need to be Darren McCormack right? Could have gone pro as a boxer by all accounts, even the "hardest" players couldn't last a round with a professional level boxer unless they also had years of training.

If we're talking on the pitch, Bartley was a bit of a tank. Loved a tackle, would regularly just send players flying by just nudging them, although there's some mentioned I've never seen id say Marv deserves a shout. Also trains and ran a boxing promotion for a while so could also spark most "hard men", even if he said himself he's too soft to try go competitive in boxing and just trains.

Surely being literal and then saying Darren could have been a pro boxer is a bit of a contradiction?

Darren's old man was handy with the gloves right enough, but I haven't read or heard anything to suggest that Darren even had an amateur boxing career.

[BILLYHIBS]

I remember Shaun Dennis dislocating his finger pulling someone’s jersey and then resetting it himself on live TV

Wisnae me Ref !

[overdrive]

Surely being literal and then saying Darren could have been a pro boxer is a bit of a contradiction?

Darren's old man was handy with the gloves right enough, but I haven't read or heard anything to suggest that Darren even had an amateur boxing career.

Did he not get charged with attempted murder a few years ago for beating someone up in the Kirkgate? Think he got off with it though.

[SChibs]

Surely being literal and then saying Darren could have been a pro boxer is a bit of a contradiction?

Darren's old man was handy with the gloves right enough, but I haven't read or heard anything to suggest that Darren even had an amateur boxing career.

He was definitely into the boxing. However I have no idea what level he was at or where he could have gotten to had he not been a full time footballer at Hibs when he was young

[superfurryhibby]

Did he not get charged with attempted murder a few years ago for beating someone up in the Kirkgate? Think he got off with it though.

He battered some bam that battered his sister or something.

[brog]

This John McNamee has had a number of votes now. So decided to do some research on him.

https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/newcastle-unitedjohn-mcnamee-health-24949563


Unfortunately I am not able to produce anything from his Hibernian years. So will have to make do with something from his Newcastle United days.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XSb-t9VyFc

A couple of Big John stories.
1. In 1966 IIRC we beat Rangers 3 2 at ER in the League Cup. We were 2 1 down when John equalised from a corner in 2nd half and Allan McGraw then headed a late winner. There was delirium and a few exuberant fans ran on the pitch, including one youngster, no more than about 8 or 9. As usual Edinburgh's finest went in pursuit of the softest target. John saw what was happening, picked the kid up, put him on his shoulders and marched to the east terrace. He then handed the kid over and stood guard until the boy disappeared into the crowd.
2. Too long to post here just now but the famous time he booted Jock Stein up the arse in the Hampden tunnel.

Finally, John did have his own song. He was serving a lengthy suspension, possibly after the incident above. To the tune of My Bonnie we used to sing;
Pele lies over the ocean, Eusebio lies over the sea,
But right here in our Bonnie Scotland, we've got our Big John McNamee.
Bring back, bring back, bring back Big John McNamee etc.