MACKAY, David Craig (1958-68)
Position: Half back
Height: 5ft 8ins
Weight: 11st 6lbs
Born: Musselburgh, Midlothian, 13 November, 1934
Died: Nottingham, 2 March, 2015
Signed from Heart of Midlothian March 1959
Transferred to Derby County July 1968
Also played for: Slateford Athletic, Newtongrange Star, Hutcheson Vale, Heart of Midlothian, Derby County, Swindon Town, Scotland
Spurs Record:
Debut: 21 March, 1959 v Manchester City (FL) (h) won 3-1
Appearances: League 268, FA Cup 33, Europe 17
Goals: League 42, FA Cup 4, Europe 5
There are stars and heroes, legends and myths. Then there is Dave Mackay.
Signed from Heart of Midlothian in March, 1959, Mackay went on to become arguably the greatest player ever to don a Spurs shirt, a legend at White Hart Lane in his playing days whose reputation as a true great transcended generations.
After playing in Scottish junior football, Mackay joined Hearts as a 17 year old. In seven years he won everything Scottish football had to offer, the League, the Scottish Cup and the League Cup, played for Scotland at Under-23 and full international level and also appeared for the Scottish League. If the Mackay trophy cabinet was already beginning to creak, he was soon to need a bigger one.
From his very first game in a Spurs’ shirt it was obvious Mackay would have no trouble settling into English football, even if it was faster than he had been used to. His obvious desire to win, total commitment and willingness to lead by example had the Spurs’ fans behind him from the start as they saw in Mackay the embodiment of everything they dreamt of being.
Mackay was not a particularly big man but he had a presence about him that added an extra couple of inches to his height and even more to his barrel-like chest and trunk-like thighs.
Mackay was a terrific footballer with every skill a player needed. His pure footballing ability alone would have been enough to make him a star but it was the physical side of his game that gave him that something extra and for which he will always be renowned.
His strength was incredible, his stamina, hard work and crunching tackles the stuff of legends, his determination and love of the game obvious. With his handclapping and encouragement he lifted those around him, driving them to new levels and his team to ever-greater heights.
Mackay hardly missed a game during the ‘Double’ winning season, helped us retain the FA Cup in 1962 and was the powerhouse behind the drive to the European Cup Winners’ Cup final in 1963. Injury forced him to miss the final, a blow of more concern to Bill Nicholson than all the big names in the Atletico Madrid side.
The Cup Winners’ Cup was not a competition that was particularly kind to Mackay. It was in the second match of our attempt to retain the trophy that he had his leg broken against Manchester United at Old Trafford in December, 1963. The loss of our driving force was a big blow but worse was to follow in September, 1964 when, just as Mackay was beginning to recover his fitness, his leg was broken again in a reserve match with Shrewsbury Town.
In the 60s, many players failed to recover from breaking their leg once. Breaking it twice was viewed as the end of a player’s career. Not for Dave Mackay. The fierce determination he had shown in playing now came to the fore off the pitch. It took him nearly another year but come the start of the 1965-66 season Mackay was back.
Taking over as captain on Danny Blanchflower’s retirement, Mackay dropped back to play as a centre-half but he still moved forward when the opportunity arose, still went into those thundering, bone-shaking challenges, still bossed the game and lifted his team. He led us to FA Cup success in 1967 and played for another year before being released to join Derby County.
Anyone who thought Mackay would settle for a couple of year’s quiet retirement could not have been more mistaken. He led Brian Clough’s young Derby side to promotion, at last picking up the one honour he had missed out on, the Football Writers’ Association’s Player of the Year award.
Mackay helped Derby establish themselves in the top flight before embarking on a long managerial career that saw him working throughout in England and the Middle East, the highlight being to take Derby to the League title in 1974-75.