JIMMY Speirs was a hero in World War I. He was awarded the Military Medal, but was mortally wounded in August, 1917, and is buried at Dochy Farm Cemetery, near Ypres, Belgium.

To thousands of Bradfordians he was also the courageous captain of Bradford City, leading his team to victory in the 1911 FA Cup Final against Newcastle United, and scoring the winning goal.

Jimmy was born in Glasgow on March 22, 1886, one of four other children. In 1901 the family moved to Govanhill, and it was here that young Jimmy’s talent as a footballer began to shine. He gained a reputation playing for Maryhill in the Glasgow Junior League as an inside forward. He was so impressive, Glasgow Rangers signed him. He made his first team debut on September 25, 1905 against Hearts, in a 5-0 defeat.

At the end of the 1906-07 season Jimmy was Rangers’ top scorer, with 13 goals. The following season Rangers finished third, and though he only made 13 appearances, he was never on the losing side. At the end of the 1907-08 season he won his only cap for Scotland in a 2-1 victory against Wales. He also won representative honours for Glasgow in a 2-2 draw with Sheffield.

After three years with Rangers, playing 62 times and scoring 29 goals, Jimmy moved to Clyde in 1908. He played 20 times and scored 10 goals before being signed by Peter O’Rourke for Bradford City, to strengthen the side. He made his debut for City on the opening day of the 1909-10 season when they lost 1-0 to Manchester United. His first goal came three months later in the 3-1 win over Sunderland. He went on to play in all 38 games, City finished seventh.

The following season, 1910-11, Bradford City made history when they won the FA Cup. The final against Newcastle United was played at Crystal Palace but was a dull affair, ending in a 0-0 draw. Four days later, on April 26, 1911, the replay took place at Old Trafford in front of a crowd of 66,464. There were 10,000 travelling fans from Bradford, many were still queuing to get in when Jimmy Speirs scored the only goal after 15 minutes. City’s right half, George Robinson, shot at goal but it was caught by a gust of wind. Frank Thompson headed it on and Jimmy Speirs got his head to it. The Newcastle goalkeeper was distracted by the oncoming Frank O’Rourke, and the ball went over his shoulder into the back of the net.

Back in Bradford, thousands of people awaited update reports and when the final result came through, there was great jubilation in the city centre.The brand new trophy was held aloft by Jimmy. Ironically, it had been made by Bradford jewellers Fattorini and Sons and the first name inscribed on it was Bradford City. Newcastle captain Colin Veitch said Speirs had “exhibited the true spirit of comradeship, and the proper sentiments one would expect to see associated with the sportsman and

the sport.”

The cup winners were welcomed back to Bradford by a crowd of around 100,000, a third of the city’s population. The players were given a celebration dinner in the Midland Hotel, and a telegram from King George V congratulated them on their outstanding achievement. The city of Bradford was given a much-needed boost.

Jimmy Speirs was a hero of Valley Parade. He made 96 appearances and scored 33 goals. But in 1912, the fans were saddened when he was transferred to Leeds City for £1,400. He was one of Herbert Chapman’s first signings and made his Second Division debut against Fulham on December 28. He was appointed captain and made 78 appearances, scoring 32 goals. Such was his popularity in Bradford, whenever he visited the city, reports appeared in the local press. In his football career, he played 226 League games in Scotland and England, and 30 cup ties. He scored 92 League goals, and 12 senior cup goals.

War broke out in August, 1914. Jimmy returned to Glasgow at the end of the 1914-15 season, and enlisted in the Queen’s Own Cameron Highlanders. He was married with two young children, and lived in Idle Road, Bradford. Private S/18170 reported for duty at the regiment’s headquarters in Inverness with the 3rd Battalion, a reserve battalion, for training. He was soon promoted to Lance Corporal. Jimmy remarked how much he enjoyed army life and he was proud to be one of “Cameron’s men.”

The 3rd Battalion had a football team, and Jimmy was soon involved. Sport was considered good for morale and fitness. Reported the Regiment’s ‘79 News’: The Battalion is fortunate in having L/Cpl Speirs, who played for Bradford City and Glasgow Rangers; he plays inside left, and is a force of strength to the side.”

The Army was desperate to develop recruits so they could be shipped to the front as soon as possible. It was a war of attrition, with commanders lacking imaginative thinking. Failed strategies were simply repeated, resulting in futile slaughter. The reserves were posted to France on March 29, 1916.

By now Jimmy had joined the 7th Battalion of the Queen’s Own Cameron Hghlanders, part of the 44th Brigade attached to the 15th (Scottish) Division. Within a month he was promoted to Corporal. Later in the year he was wounded in the elbow. In April 1917 he was in the Second Battle of Arras, where there were heavy casualties: seven officers and 369 men. Over the next few days they buried the dead, cleaned equipment and repaired clothing, waiting for replacements. The Battalion had moved to Grand Rullecourt.

On May 19 Jimmy and five others were recommended for the Military Medal. He had shown “bravery in the field”, though it’s not clear exactly what he did because the citation has been lost. One newspaper report described him as “a gallant sergeant who on and off the field was a gentleman.” Another claimed the Cameron Highlanders pulled off a great victory at Arras in the face of “Hell’s fury”, roused by bagpipes.

Jimmy was probably in charge of a Lewis gun section. The gun could fire about 550 rounds in a minute, which required speed and good co-ordination. The Lewis gunners were prominent in the Arras campaign. On April 23, 1917 the 15th Scottish Second Division had successfully attacked Guemappe which was part of the assault on the Hindenburg Line, but had to pull back due to a German counter attack. Although it’s not totally certain, it is likely that Jimmy received the Military Medal for leading his Lewis gun team into action at Guemappe. In June 1917 he was promoted to sergeant, and granted well-earned leave.

He visited friends in Glasgow, Bradford and Leeds. When he turned up in Bradford on July 2, the Bradford Weekly Telegraph described him as “looking very fit and well”. On his military return he was straight back to the Front into preparations for the Battle of Passchendaele, or the Third Battle of Ypres. The historian AJP Taylor referred to it as “the last battle in the old style.” It was on the usual massive scale, with each side cramming nearly a million men into the Ypres salient. Although not officially known at the time, all the British generals except Haig, and the French, were opposed to the offensive. Even Haigh’s Intelligence staff advised him against it. Important facts such as the actual German strength, and the likelihood of incessant, torrential rain, and mud, were concealed.

On the July 31, 1917 the battle, which became known as ‘the Battle of the Mud’, began and by the end of the first day it was obvious to almost everyone except Haigh that it was doomed to failure. Rain fell heavily and the ground was churned up further by shellfire. Men struggled up to their waist in mud, and guns and tanks sank. The advance was less than half a mile, but the campaign continued until mid-November, when it was abandoned, leaving 300,000 British and almost 250,000 German casualties. One of these was Jimmy Speirs.

On April 1 he had sent a postcard to his wife, Bessie, with a message: “and may this be the last year of the war, best love, Jimmy.” Tragically, it was to be the last year of the war for Jimmy. At 6.30pm, on August 20 he was on manoeuvres to relieve the 8th Battalion Worcester Regiment at Pommern Redoubt. The Bradford Daily Telegraph, on September 8, 1917, reported that he had been wounded and was missing in action: “It can only be hoped that the popular footballer has been made a prisoner.”

On September 13, it reported that he had “been hit in the thigh during an advance, and managed to crawl into a shell hole”. He was never seen again. Research by Jan Van der Fraenen of the Memorial Museum, Passchendaele, suggests he died from wounds on August 22. It wasn’t until October 1919 that his remains were found. His battalion suffered heavy machine gun and rifle fire from Gallipoli Farm and Iberian Farm during its attack on Hill 35. Jimmy Speirs probably died alone that fateful day. As he drifted in and out of consciousness, his thoughts would have been with his wife and children, and possibly that glorious moment when he lifted the FA Cup for Bradford City.

On August 28, 1920 the Infantry Record Office in Perth wrote to Bessie, stating that Jimmy had been “killed in action or died of wounds on or shortly after August 20, 1917.” They again wrote to her at Darnley Road, Pollockshields, on October 6, 1921, informing her that his remains had been re-interred at the new Dochy Farm Cemetery in plot VI.E.15. He’s one of 1,439 soldiers buried there; the identities of two-thirds unknown.

Jimmy left behind his wife, nine-year-old son James and daughter Elizabeth, five. In 2003 Lieutenant Colonel AM Cummings of the Regimental Headquarters, described him as: “A remarkable man... to have played for Scotland, win the FA Cup, score the winning goal, and win the Military Medal.” The Tropical Times of February 15, 1930 called him “the brains of the attack, and the captaincy of the side... a cultured, scheming inside right, but a quiet and reserved fellow, who was a thinker rather than a talker.”

In 2017 a memorial was unveiled to Jimmy Speirs near the battlefield at Ypres, with pride and affection for his outstanding achievement.