Jim Bett

Last updated

Jim Bett
Personal information
Full name James Bett [1]
Date of birth (1959-11-25) 25 November 1959 (age 64)
Place of birth Hamilton, Scotland
Height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Gartcosh United
Dundee
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1976–1978 Airdrieonians 8 (0)
1978 Valur 2 (0)
1978–1980 Lokeren 33 (1)
1980–1983 Rangers 104 (21)
1983–1985 Lokeren 64 (7)
1985–1994 Aberdeen 257 (33)
1994 Valur 13 (4)
1994–1995 Heart of Midlothian 26 (2)
1995–1996 Dundee United 23 (2)
Total530(70)
International career
1980–1982 Scotland U21 [2] 7 (0)
1982–1990 Scotland 26 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

James Bett (born 25 November 1959) is a Scottish former professional association footballer who played in central or left midfield. He played with Aberdeen for nine seasons and had shorter spells at other clubs in Belgium, Iceland and Scotland. He earned 26 caps for the Scotland national team over eight years.

Contents

Playing career

A Scottish Schoolboy international born in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, [3] Bett started his club career with Gartcosh United, Dundee and Airdrieonians before moving to Icelandic side Valur in 1978. A year later he joined K.S.C. Lokeren (282) in Belgium.

Rangers manager John Greig paid £150,000 to sign Bett for the Glasgow club in 1980. In three seasons at Ibrox he won the Scottish Cup (1980–81) [4] and a League Cup (1981–82). [3] He left Rangers in 1983 for a second spell with Lokeren.

Bett returned to his native land, joining Alex Ferguson's Aberdeen in 1985 for £300,000. [3] During his time with the Dons, he collected winner's medals in the Scottish Cup in 1985–86, [5] and both the League Cup and Scottish Cup in 1989–90, [6] He also played in three other League Cup finals – all ending in defeat to Rangers, [7] [8] [9] and was in squads which finished runners-up behind his former club in the Scottish Premier Division on five occasions.

He left Pittodrie in 1994, after making over 300 first-team appearances. In 2003, Bett was inducted into the Aberdeen FC Hall of Fame as one of the founding members. [10]

He next moved to KR Reykjavík and won the Icelandic Cup with the club, but left KR at the end of the 1994 Icelandic season. Bett returned to Scotland again to join Hearts with whom he played the 1994–95 Scottish season. After a final season with Dundee United, he retired.

International

During his spell with Rangers, Bett earned his first selection for the Scotland national side, making the first of 26 appearances in 1982. [11] While playing for Aberdeen at club level, he was a member of the Scottish World Cup squads in 1986, where he did not play, and 1990, where his only appearance was in the opening 1–0 defeat to Costa Rica, which turned out to be the final cap of his career. [11]

Personal life

Bett met his Icelandic wife during his time playing for Valur and has maintained a close connection with Iceland since. His sons Baldur and Calum, also both professional footballers, were born there and have represented the country at Under-19 level. [12] Coincidentally, Bett's only goal for Scotland occurred in a 1–0 win over Iceland in Reykjavík in 1985. [12]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] SeasonsLeagueNational CupLeague CupEuropeTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Airdrieonians 1976-77 Scottish First Division 100000--10
1977-78 700000--70
Total800000--80
Valur Reykjavik 1978 Úrvalsdeild 2000000020
Total2000000020
Lokeren 1978-79 Belgian First Division 00------0+0+
1979-80 331------33+1+
Total331------33+1+
Rangers 1980-81 Scottish Premier Division 344714000455
1981-82 35115191215114
1982-83 35660115405611
Total104211822466115230
Lokeren 1983-84 Belgian First Division 321------32+1+
1984-85 326------32+6+
Total647------64+7+
Aberdeen 1985-86 Scottish Premier Division 243603040373
1986-87 384312021456
1987-88 38105053315114
1988-89 305505320428
1989-90 303415220416
1990-91 367103240449
1991-92 381102020431
1992-93 170104000220
1993-94 60203020130
Total25733282321021233847
Valur Reykjavik 1994 Úrvalsdeild 134------13+4+
Total134------13+4+
Heart of Midlothian 1994-95 Scottish Premier Division 262400000302
Total262400000302
Dundee United 1995-96 Scottish First Division 2320010--242
Total2320010--242
Career total5307050+4+57+16+27+3+664+93+

International

Scotland national team [19]
YearAppsGoals
198220
198310
198460
198561
198620
198720
198810
198920
199040
Total261

International goals

Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first. [20]
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
128 May 1985 Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, IcelandFlag of Iceland.svg  Iceland 1–01–0 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification

Honours

Rangers [11]

Aberdeen [11]

Scotland

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Leighton</span> Scottish footballer

James Leighton is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Leighton started his career with Aberdeen, where he won seven domestic trophies and the 1982–83 European Cup Winners' Cup under the management of Alex Ferguson. Ferguson then signed Leighton for Manchester United in 1988, but dropped him after he conceded three goals in the 1990 FA Cup Final. Leighton then had spells with Arsenal, Reading, Dundee and Sheffield United, and rebuilt his career after joining Hibernian in 1993. He returned to Aberdeen in 1997, leading to a career total of over 600 appearances in the league alone.

Paul Michael Lyons McStay, is a Scottish former professional footballer who spent his entire career with Celtic, making his senior debut in 1982 and retiring in 1997. He captained both Scotland and Celtic at all age levels. He was capped 76 times for his country and scored nine goals. He helped Celtic win three league titles, the last in 1988.

William Ferguson Miller MBE is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, who made a club record 560 league appearances for Aberdeen. Sir Alex Ferguson described Miller as "the best penalty box defender in the world".

Maurice Daniel Robert Malpas is a Scottish former football player and coach. He signed for Dundee United in 1979 and spent his entire professional playing career with the club until his retirement in 2000. With him, United were Scottish champions in 1983 and Scottish Cup winners in 1994. European runs there included reaching the 1983–84 European Cup semi final and the 1987 UEFA Cup final.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy Aitken</span> Scottish footballer and manager (born 1958)

Robert Sime "Roy" Aitken is a Scottish former football player and manager. He made over 480 league appearances for Celtic, and later played for Newcastle United, St Mirren and Aberdeen. Aitken also made 57 international appearances for Scotland. His playing position was either in midfield or defence.

Theodorus Antonius Gerardus Snelders is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.

James Forrest was a Scottish professional footballer who played as a striker for Rangers, Preston, Aberdeen and Hong Kong Rangers.

David Dodds is a Scottish former footballer who played for Dundee United, Aberdeen and Rangers in the 1980s. With United, he was a Scottish League champion in 1983 and was in their winning 1980 Scottish League Cup final-winning team, scoring in the match. During his playing career he scored over 100 League goals. He earned two Scotland caps.

Ralph Laidlaw Brand is a Scottish retired footballer, who played as a striker for Rangers. He later played for Manchester City, Sunderland, Raith Rovers and Hamilton Academical.

Patrick Travers was a Scottish football player and manager in the first half of the 20th century. He played for many clubs in his native Scotland and for Barnsley in England, before becoming involved in coaching, and later, management, winning the Scottish Cup with Clyde on two occasions either side of World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joe Miller (footballer, born 1967)</span> Scottish footballer and manager

Joseph Miller is a Scottish retired footballer and a former manager of Scottish Football League club Clyde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Clark (footballer, born 1945)</span> Scottish footballer (born 1945)

Robert Brown Clark is a Scottish football player and coach. Clark, who played as a goalkeeper, spent most of his playing career with Aberdeen. He also played for Queen's Park, Washington Whips, San Antonio Thunder and Clyde. Clark played 17 times for Scotland and represented the Scottish League. He later became a coach, mainly working in New Zealand and the United States.

Derek Ferguson is a Scottish former professional footballer and manager. A creative midfield player, Ferguson is best remembered for his time with Rangers and Heart of Midlothian.

David Wilson was a Scottish international footballer who played as an outside left. He was perhaps best known for his decade at Rangers in which he played an important role in the club's success of the early 1960s; he also made over 100 appearances for Dundee United.

John William Campbell was a Scottish footballer who played as an outside left for Linthouse, Partick Thistle, Blackburn Rovers, Rangers, West Ham United, Hibernian and the Scotland national team.

David Alexander Provan is a Scottish former footballer, who played for Kilmarnock, Celtic and Scotland. While playing for Celtic, Provan won four Premier Division medals, two Scottish Cups and one League Cup.

Brian Grant is a Scottish football coach and former professional footballer who is who played as a midfielder. He is currently head of player pathway and loans at Scottish Premiership club Dundee United. He spent twelve years as a player with Aberdeen, making over 300 appearances and winning three major trophies. He also played for Stirling Albion, Hibernian and Dundee.

Steve Murray is a Scottish former footballer who played as a midfielder. He spent the majority of his career in the north-east of Scotland, with Dundee and Aberdeen. Murray also enjoyed success with Glasgow club Celtic and represented Scotland once. He later managed Forfar Athletic and Montrose.

Alex Willoughby was a Scottish professional football forward who played for Rangers and Aberdeen.

The Aberdeen–Rangers rivalry refers to football matches and related activity involving the Scottish football clubs Aberdeen and Rangers.

References

  1. ↑ A Record of Post-war Scottish League Players 1946/47 to 2017/18. 7. John Litster and Scottish Football Historian magazine. 2018.
  2. ↑ "[Scotland U21 player] Bett, Jim". fitbastats.com. Retrieved 11 October 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Lamming, Douglas (1987). A Scottish Soccer Internationalists Who's Who, 1872–1986 (Hardback). Hutton Press. ISBN   0-907033-47-4. ().
  4. ↑ "Six of the best Scottish Cup finals: Rangers 4 Dundee United 1 (1981, replay)". The Herald. 24 May 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  5. ↑ "Scottish Cup: 1986 revisited". Aberdeen F.C. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  6. ↑ Traynor, James (14 May 1990). "Stagnant Celtic pay ultimate penalty. Snelders saves Rogan's kick and Irvine secures cup for Aberdeen". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  7. ↑ Reynolds, Jim (26 October 1987). "Spot-on Rangers earn the cheers". Glasgow Herald. p. 9. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  8. ↑ "Now you know: Ally McCoist double helped Rangers defeat Aberdeen 3-2 in 1988 League Cup Final". Evening Times. Glasgow. 10 May 2017. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  9. ↑ McKinney, David (26 October 1992). "Football: Smith's slip gives Rangers the prize" . The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 8 June 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  10. ↑ "Hall of Fame: Jim Bett". AFC Heritage Trust. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Dark Blue Dons: Jim Bett". AFC Heritage Trust. Retrieved 20 January 2018.
  12. 1 2 "News Archive". Bob Dunning 1970–71 Football review. 30 September 2005. Archived from the original on 12 October 2013.
  13. ↑ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Jim Bett". www.national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 12 March 2023.
  14. ↑ "Lokeren player archive". Archived from the original on 29 July 2013. Retrieved 28 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  15. ↑ "Rangers Player Jim Bett Details". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 12 March 2023.
  16. ↑ "Aberdeen Football Club Heritage Trust - Player Profile". afcheritage.org. Retrieved 12 March 2023.
  17. ↑ "Jim Bett - Hearts Career - from 08 Oct 1994 to 09 Aug 1995". www.londonhearts.com. Retrieved 12 March 2023.
  18. ↑ "Jim Bett | Player Statistics | Dundee United (Arab Archive)". www.arabarchive.co.uk. Retrieved 12 March 2023.
  19. ↑ Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Jim Bett". national-football-teams.com.
  20. ↑ "Jim Bett". scottishfa.co.uk. Scottish Football Association.
  21. ↑ "Rous-ing win for makeshift Scots". Glasgow Herald . 27 May 1985. p. 15 – via Google News Archive.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.