Murray Wallace (footballer)

Murray Wallace

Personal information
Full name	Murray Wallace [1]
Date of birth	(1993-01-10) 10 January 1993 (age 31)
Place of birth	Glasgow, Scotland
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Position(s)	Defender
Team information
Current team	Millwall
Number	3
Youth career
	Rangers
2009–2011	Falkirk
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2011–2012	Falkirk	19	(2)
2012–2016	Huddersfield Town	51	(4)
2012	→ Falkirk (loan)	15	(0)
2015	→ Scunthorpe United (loan)	12	(1)
2016–2018	Scunthorpe United	112	(3)
2018–	Millwall	189	(9)
International career‡
2012	Scotland U20	1	(0)
2012–2013	Scotland U21	4	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 01:36, 29 December 2023 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 13:10, 4 May 2014 (UTC)

Murray Wallace (born 10 January 1993) is a Scottish professional footballer who plays as a defender for EFL Championship side Millwall.

After beginning his career in his native Scotland playing for Falkirk, Wallace joined Huddersfield Town in 2012. He spent three years with Football League One side Scunthorpe United, transferring to Millwall for a £500,000 fee on 20 June 2018. ^{[2] [3]} He also played for the Scotland under-20 and under-21 football teams.

Club career

Falkirk

Born in Glasgow and raised in Eaglesham in East Renfrewshire, ^[4] Wallace began his career as a trainee with Rangers before joining the academy at Falkirk aged 16. ^[5] He made his first team debut on 6 August 2011 as a substitute in Falkirk's 1–0 defeat to Raith Rovers in the Scottish First Division. ^[6] He went on to make his first league start on 13 August 2011 against Partick Thistle at the Falkirk Stadium. ^[7] He scored his first goal for the club on 5 November 2011 in a 4–3 win over Livingston. ^[8]

On 31 January, the last day of the January 2012 transfer window, Wallace signed for Huddersfield Town on a two-year deal, ^[9] after rejecting moves to Brighton & Hove Albion and Ipswich Town. ^[10] As part of the deal he was immediately loaned back to Falkirk for the remainder of the season, ^[11] beginning with a start in the goalless 0–0 draw away at Greenock Morton on 11 February 2012. ^[12] He went on to make 15 more appearances for Falkirk during the loan spell, making it a total 34 appearances for the club (two goals) before returning to parent club Huddersfield, with his final appearance coming in a 3–2 win over Ayr as the Bairns finished the season in third position. ^[13] He was also in the side as they won the 2011–12 Scottish Challenge Cup in April 2012, beating Hamilton Academical 1–0 in the final at Almondvale Stadium on 1 April 2012. ^[14]

Huddersfield Town

Wallace returned to Huddersfield in May 2012 at the end of his loan at former club Falkirk. ^[13] He was set to train with Simon Grayson's squad throughout the play-off campaign until he joined up with the Scotland Under-20 side ahead of a tournament being held in the Netherlands, ^[15] as Huddersfield went on to win the play-off final beating Sheffield United on penalties to win promotion to the Championship. ^[16]

Wallace was given the number 15 shirt on 12 July 2012 when the squad returned to training for the 2012–13 season. ^[17] He featured regularly for Huddersfield during pre-season receiving his first call up to the Scotland U21s in August 2012. ^[18] After patiently waiting for his chance, Wallace made his Terriers debut as a substitute in the 1–1 draw against Blackpool at the John Smith's Stadium on 26 December 2012, and made his full debut three days later in their 0–0 draw with Sheffield Wednesday. His first goal for the club came in a 2–2 draw against Peterborough United on 6 April 2013. Wallace capped the season off by winning Young Player of the Year.

In the following two seasons, he would make sporadic appearances for the Terriers, mainly due to only being selected when other centre-backs were injured or suspended.

Scunthorpe loan

On 25 August 2015, with appearances still being limited, Wallace joined Scunthorpe United on loan for a month in an emergency loan deal. ^[19] After making 12 league appearances, he was recalled by Huddersfield on 1 November, along with team-mate Joe Lolley.

Scunthorpe United

Wallace signed a three-and-a-half-year deal with Scunthorpe on 2 January 2016. ^[20] Upon signing for the Iron, he featured in every minute of every competitive fixture until 29 August 2017, when his run of 7,560 consecutive playing minutes was broken as he didn't feature in Scunthorpe's EFL Trophy game against Sunderland U21s. ^[21] He was named as the side's Player of the Season for 2016–17. ^[22]

Millwall

In June 2018, Wallace signed a "long-term" deal at Championship side Millwall for a £500,000 fee. ^{[3] [2]} He scored the winning goal in two consecutive rounds of the 2018–19 FA Cup as the Lions defeated Everton and AFC Wimbledon to reach the quarter-finals, ^[4] but also collected two yellow cards and was suspended for the resulting match against Brighton which ended in defeat for Millwall on penalties. ^[23]

Wallace was named as the London side's Player of the Season for 2021–22 season. ^[24] In July 2022, Wallace signed a new long-term contract. ^[25]

International career

Wallace gained his first international call-up for the Scotland U20 side in May 2012 when he was named by head coach Ricky Sbragia in the squad to compete in the 59th ADO Den Haag tournament. ^[26] He made his debut in a 0–0 draw with Manchester City on 25 May 2012 (the same weekend his club side Huddersfield Town secured promotion to the Championship via the League One play-offs). ^[16] and went on to feature in all five of Scotland's matches, playing the full 90 minutes in each, including the 1–0 victory over the hosts ADO Den Haag on 26 May, sending them through to the semi-final where the Scots lost 2–1 to Mexico, and then 1–0 to Cruzeiro in the third place play-off match (both played on 27 May). ^[27]

On 1 August 2012, Wallace received his first call-up to the Scotland under-21 team, after being named in the squad for their friendly match against Belgium on 14 August at East End Park, Dunfermline. ^[18] He made his debut in the match on 14 August, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–0 defeat. ^[28]

Career statistics

As of match played 26 December 2023 ^[29]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Falkirk	2010–11 [30]	Scottish Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	2011–12 [31]	Scottish Championship	19	2	1	0	3	0	2 [lower-alpha 1]	0	25	2
	Total		19	2	1	0	3	0	2	0	25	2
Huddersfield Town	2012–13 [32]	Championship	6	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	7	1
	2013–14 [33]	Championship	17	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	21	0
	2014–15 [34]	Championship	26	2	1	0	2	0	0	0	29	2
	2015–16 [35]	Championship	2	0	0	0	1	1	0	0	3	1
	Total		51	3	4	0	5	1	0	0	60	4
Falkirk (loan)	2011–12 [31]	Scottish Championship	15	0	1	0	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 1]	0	17	0
Scunthorpe United (loan)	2015–16 [35]	League One	12	1	0	0	0	0	1 [lower-alpha 2]	0	13	1
Scunthorpe United	2015–16 [35]	League One	21	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	22	1
	2016–17 [36]	League One	46	2	1	0	2	0	7 [lower-alpha 3]	1	56	3
	2017–18 [37]	League One	45	0	3	0	2	0	2 [lower-alpha 4]	0	52	0
	Total		112	3	5	0	4	0	9	1	130	4
Millwall	2018–19 [38]	Championship	21	2	3	2	3	0	0	0	27	4
	2019–20 [39]	Championship	43	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	47	0
	2020–21 [40]	Championship	23	1	0	0	3	0	0	0	26	1
	2021–22 [41]	Championship	42	4	0	0	2	2	0	0	44	6
	2022–23 [42]	Championship	37	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	39	0
	2023–24 [43]	Championship	23	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	24	2
	Total		189	9	6	0	12	2	0	0	207	13
Career total			398	18	17	2	24	3	13	1	452	24

1. Appearances in the Scottish Challenge Cup
2. Appearance in the Football League Trophy
3. Five appearances in the EFL Trophy and two in the League One play-offs
4. Two appearances in the League One play-offs

Honours

Falkirk

• Scottish Challenge Cup: 2011–12 ^[14]

Individual

• Millwall Player of the Season: 2021–22 ^[24]
• Scunthorpe Player of the Season: 2016–17 ^[22]

References

1. "Murray Wallace". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 14 April 2017.
2. "Murray Wallace: Millwall sign defender from Scunthorpe United". BBC Sport. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
3. "Murray Wallace joins Millwall from Scunthorpe". Sky Sports. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 21 June 2018.
4. "Murray Wallace: FA Cup dreams, Dreamgirls and becoming a hero at Millwall". BBC Sport. 14 March 2019. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
5. "Scottish Communities League Cup: Falkirk starlet Murray Wallace insists boss Steven Pressley has developed his game". Daily Record. 28 January 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
6. "Raith Rovers v Falkirk". BBC Sport. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 14 August 2011.
7. "Falkirk V Partick Thistle". BBC Sport. 13 August 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2011.
8. "Falkirk 4–3 Livingston". BBC Sport. 5 November 2011. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
9. "Scottish prospect Wallace joins Town". Huddersfield Town A.F.C. 31 January 2012. Archived from the original on 2 February 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
10. "Huddersfield Town beat Brighton and Ipswich Town to signing of Falkirk defender Murray Wallace". The Examiner. 31 January 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
11. "Falkirk skipper Darren Dods predicts big future for Murray Wallace". The Express. 31 January 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2012.
12. "Murray Wallace". Archived from the original on 14 July 2012.
13. "Huddersfield Town | News | First Team News | First Team News | MURRAY WALLACE ARRIVES IN TOWN!". Archived from the original on 11 May 2012.
14. "BBC Sport – Falkirk 1-0 Hamilton Accies". BBC Sport.
15. "MURRAY NAMED IN SCOTLAND U21 SQUAD – News – Huddersfield Town". htafc.com.
16. "Huddersfield 0-0 Sheffield U (Hudd win 8-7 on pens) | League One Final". The Guardian. 26 May 2012.
17. "Huddersfield Town | News | First Team News | First Team News | 2012/13 SQUAD NUMBERS RELEASED". Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 14 July 2012.
18. huddersfieldexaminer Administrator (1 August 2012). "Huddersfield Town defender Murray Wallace called up for Scotland Under 21s". huddersfieldexaminer.
19. "IRON MAKE WALLACE LOAN SWOOP". scunthorpe-united.co.uk.
20. Jack Gallagher. "Wallace signs from Huddersfield". Scunthorpe United F.C.
21. Cawley, Richard (22 June 2018). "Murray Wallace: I want to be a Millwall starter – I won't give my rivals an easy ride". South London News. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
22. Armstrong, Gary (30 April 2017). "Scottish defender Murray Wallace wins hat-trick of awards for Scunthorpe United". Daily Record. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
23. "Brighton into semi-finals on penalties". BBC Sport. 17 March 2019. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
24. "Murray Wallace crowned 2021/22 Millwall Supporters' Club Player of the Season". millwallfc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
25. "Murray Wallace signs new long-term Millwall deal". millwallfc.co.uk. 26 July 2022. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
26. "Huddersfield Town | News | First Team News | First Team News | LOAN WATCH – MURRAY IN SCOTLAND U20s". Archived from the original on 13 May 2012.
27. "Huddersfield Town | News | First Team News | First Team News | MURRAY & SCOTTISH U20s FINISH FOURTH". Archived from the original on 30 May 2012.
28. "Murray makes Scotland U21 debut". Huddersfield Town AFC.
29. M. Wallace, Soccerway
30. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2010/2011". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
31. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2011/2012". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
32. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2012/2013". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
33. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2013/2014". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
34. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2014/2015". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
35. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
36. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
37. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 September 2017.
38. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
39. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
40. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
41. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
42. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 July 2022.
43. "Games played by Murray Wallace in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 15 November 2023.

External links

• Murray Wallace at Soccerbase
• Player profile at Huddersfield Town's official website (archived)