James McGarry (footballer)

James McGarry

Personal information
Full name	James Robert McGarry [1]
Date of birth	(1998-04-09) 9 April 1998 (age 26)
Place of birth	Mosgiel, New Zealand
Height	1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) [1]
Position(s)	Left-back
Team information
Current team	Aberdeen
Number	15
Youth career
	Southern United
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2014–2018	Wellington Phoenix Reserves	52	(11)
2015–2018	Wellington Phoenix	2	(0)
2018–2020	Willem II	6	(0)
2020–2022	Wellington Phoenix	38	(0)
2022–2023	Newcastle Jets	10	(1)
2023	Central Coast Mariners	14	(3)
2023–	Aberdeen	13	(0)
International career‡
2015	New Zealand U17	9	(4)
2017	New Zealand U20	4	(0)
2019	New Zealand U23	2	(0)
2019–	New Zealand	1	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22:04, 19 May 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 17 November 2019

James Robert McGarry (born 9 April 1998) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Scottish Premiership club Aberdeen.

Club career

McGarry was scouted to attend the APFA academy in Christchurch from Dunedin in 2011. McGarry had professional trials with Chelsea and Sheffield United. When the academy relocated to Wellington to come under the banner of the Wellington Phoenix, Academy Director Jess Ibrom recruited McGarry to be part of the Wellington Phoenix Academy.

Wellington Phoenix

On 10 September 2015, McGarry joined Wellington Phoenix together with his countryman Logan Rogerson. ^[2]

On 10 May 2016, Wellington Phoenix released McGarry from his contract so he could gain game time at Wellington United during the winter. ^[3] He then returned to play for the Wellington Phoenix, mainly appearing in their reserve team. ^[4]

Willem II

Following the expiration of McGarry's contract at Wellington Phoenix, McGarry signed for Eredivisie club Willem II on a two-year contract, alongside fellow New Zealander Michael Woud. He was named in the starting eleven for the first game of the Eredivisie season against VVV-Venlo, playing 63 minutes before being substituted. ^[5]

Wellington Phoenix

McGarry returned to Wellington Phoenix on 23 October 2020, following his departure from Willem II in May that year. ^[6]

Newcastle Jets

McGarry joined Newcastle Jets on a two-year deal in July 2022. ^[7] McGarry scored against his former side, Wellington Phoenix, in his first match against them. ^[8] McGarry made 11 appearances across all competitions for Newcastle, before leaving the club mid-way through his first season. ^[9]

Central Coast Mariners

McGarry's departure from Newcastle came via a swap deal with the Central Coast Mariners, which saw McGarry join the Mariners in exchange for Thomas Aquilina heading to Newcastle. ^[10] The Mariners and Jets share a fierce rivalry, the F3 Derby, with player movement between the two clubs rare and often controversial.

McGarry scored his first goal for the Mariners against his first A-League club, Wellington Phoenix, ^[11] just as he had done for Newcastle. After impressing in his first 4 appearances for the Mariners, McGarry signed a two-year contract extension to stay at the club beyond that season. ^[12]

McGarry was part of the 2022-23 A-League Championship winning team for the Mariners, in his first season at the club.

Aberdeen

McGarry joined Aberdeen of the Scottish Premiership on 11 August 2023 for an undisclosed fee, on a 3-year deal.

International career

McGarry represented New Zealand at both the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup and the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup. ^[13] He made his debut for New Zealand national football team on 17 November 2019 in a friendly against Lithuania. ^[14]

Personal life

He is the son of former New Zealand football and international player Michael McGarry.

Career statistics

As of match played 19 May 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition ^{[15] [16]}

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Wellington Phoenix	2015-16	A-League	1	0	0	0	0	0	–		1	0
	2016-17	A-League	1	0	0	0	0	0	–		1	0
	2017-18	A-League	0	0	0	0	0	0	–		0	0
	Total		2	0	0	0	0	0	–		2	0
Willem II	2018-19	Eredivisie	5	0	0	0	0	0	–		5	0
	2019-20	Eredivisie	1	0	0	0	0	0	–		1	0
	Total		6	0	0	0	0	0	–		6	0
Wellington Phoenix	2020-21	A-League	22	0	0	0	0	0	–		22	0
	2021-22	A-League	16	0	0	0	1	0	–		17	0
	Total		38	0	0	0	1	0	–		39	0
Newcastle Jets	2022-23	A-League	10	1	1	0	0	0	–		11	1
Central Coast Mariners	2022-23	A-League	14	3	0	0	0	0	–		14	3
Aberdeen	2023-24	Scottish Premiership	13	0	0	0	1	0	3	0	17	0
Career total			83	4	1	0	2	0	3	0	89	4

Honours

Central Coast Mariners

• A-League Men Championship: 2022–23

References

1. "FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017: List of Players" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 9 January 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
2. "Wellington Phoenix sign Logan Rogerson and James McGarry on three-year deals". Stuff.co.nz . 10 September 2015.
3. "Wellington Phoenix terminate James McGarry's contract so he can play in CL". Stuff.co.nz . 10 May 2016.
4. Hyslop, Liam (3 October 2017). "Time for young Kiwis to step up at the Wellington Phoenix". Stuff.co.nz . Retrieved 24 January 2018.
5. "Former Wellington Phoenix youngster James McGarry makes starting debut in Eredivisie". 12 August 2018.
6. Foote, Stephen (28 October 2020). "Football: Wellington Phoenix add All Whites defender James McGarry" . Retrieved 28 October 2020.
7. Dillon, Robert (5 July 2022). "NZ international James McGarry joins new-look Newcastle Jets line-up". The Newcastle Herald . Retrieved 5 July 2022.
8. Rollo, Phillip (22 October 2022). "James McGarry scores against former club to keep Wellington Phoenix winless". stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
9. "Newcastle Jets confirm player transfer movement". Newcastle Jets FC . 8 February 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
10. "Central Coast Mariners sign New Zealand international James McGarry". Central Coast Mariners FC . 8 February 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
11. "Debate rages over controversy filled Mariners-Phoenix stalemate – 'I can't understand how that's a red'". keepup.com.au. 24 February 2023. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
12. "McGarry signs two season contract extension with the Mariners". ccmariners.com.au. 10 March 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
13. "James McGarry at FIFA tournaments". 25 May 2017. Archived from the original on 23 October 2015.
14. "Lithuania v New Zealand game report". ESPN. 17 November 2019.
15. "James McGarry (Aberdeen) - Career Stats - Flashscore.com". www.flashscore.com. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
16. "AFC Heritage Trust - James Mcgarry". afcheritage.org. Retrieved 19 May 2024.

External links

• James McGarry at Soccerway
• James McGarry at WorldFootball.net
• James McGarry – FIFA competition record (archived)
• James McGarry at National-Football-Teams.com