Joe Harper (footballer)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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For other people named Joseph Harper, see Joseph Harper (disambiguation).
Joseph Montgomery Harper (born January 11, 1948, in Greenock) was a Scottish footballer mainly remembered for his two spells with Aberdeen F.C.. He played in the teams which won the Scottish Cup in 1970, the Scottish League Cup in 1976 and the Scottish Football League in 1980, and he holds the record for the most goals scored for Aberdeen with 199 - although, recently, the SFA have oficially sanctioned the goals he scored in the Dryborough Cup bringing his official total up to 205.
Joe started his professional career with Morton and returned to Morton after an unhappy spell with Huddersfield Town. He had at times a difficult relationship with some Morton supporters, but most fans recognised his ability and enthusiasm.
He also played for Everton F.C. and Hibernian F.C.
He played for Scotland, but he was involved in a controversial incident in 1975 when, along with some other players, he was banned for life over an incident in a Copenhagen night club. The ban was later lifted, and he was a member of the Scotland World Cup squad in 1978.
As one fan said: "A wee bit tubby but boy could he put the ball away".
He was last heard of in Jeremy Clarke's "Spectator" column (26/8/06), when the writer visited the public gallery of the Torquay Magisterates Court, and saw the ex-footballer up on charges for causing a disturbance of the peace at a charity shop. The article relates the events with great candor and humor, showing that Mr. Harper is still a bit of a lad with a healthy Scottish working class contempt for the professional classes.
[edit] External link
- Article on him from the Sunday Herald
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Scotland squad - 1978 World Cup | |
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1 Rough | 2 Jardine | 3 Donachie | 4 Buchan | 5 McQueen | 6 Rioch | 7 Masson | 8 Dalglish | 9 Jordan | 10 Hartford | 11 Johnston | 12 Blyth | 13 Kennedy | 14 Forsyth | 15 Gemill | 16 Macari | 17 Johnstone | 18 Souness | 19 Robertson | 20 Clark | 21 Harper | 22 Burns | Coach: MacLeod |
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