Jimmy Mackay
In the pantheon of Victorian football greats, Jimmy Mackay stands tall as the player whose goal in the final 1974 World Cup Qualifier against South Korea sealed Australia’s place in a historic first World Cup Finals tournament.
James Birrell Mackay was born in Edinburgh in Scotland in 1943 and played at Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic Juniors and Airdrieonians before arriving in Melbourne on a working holiday in 1965, aged 22. He signed with Croatia, making an impressive debut at half-time in the Dockerty Cup Final, though he was unable to avoid defeat as Slavia claimed honours 1-0.
In his third full season with the club, Mackay was instrumental in the club’s most successful season, claiming a famous treble as Croatia won the State League, Dockerty and Ampol Cups. A second Dockerty Cup followed in 1969 and Mackay would play close to 200 matches with the club before it was expelled from the League in 1972.
If Mackay’s club form was remarkable, he truly excelled in representative honours, firstly with Victoria, where only Frank Micic, Billy Vojtek and Branko Buljevic have represented their adopted state on more occasions. In his 27 appearances for Victoria between 1967 and 1976, he scored four goals and was an ever-present under head coaches Rale Rasic, Ken Kontra and Tony Boggi.
He was even more impressive with Australia, making his debut in the Friendship Cup tournament in 1970 under Jo Vlatsis. By the time Rasic was appointed to lead the Socceroos later that year, Mackay had established himself as a regular in midfield and was an instrumental figure in Australia’s quest to qualify for the World Cup, scoring a brace against Indonesia in Sydney in the first phase of qualifying.
In the deciding stage against South Korea, he played every minute of what proved to be all three legs. With the teams not separated after their respective home and away matches, the neutral tie in Hong Kong look set to go to extra time until the 70th minute. A speculative cross from Ray Richards fell to Mackay’s great mate Jimmy Rooney, who laid off a perfect ball which Mackay struck true from thirty yards. That goal would ultimately send Australia to the World Cup, where he again started in every match Australia was involved in.
Returning to Melbourne after his World Cup exploits, Mackay joined South Melbourne Hellas, finishing runner-up to Heidelberg Alexander in his first season, though he enjoyed Dockerty Cup success, scoring the equalising goal in a 2-1 win over Sunshine City in the final. South won the League Championship in 1976, Mackay playing in all bar two matches to add another trophy to an impressive cabinet.
He was part of the inaugural intake into the Football Australia Hall of Fame in 1999.
Jim Mackay passed away suddenly in 1998, aged 54, but for a moment of sheer brilliance is immortalised as one of the true greats of the game.