Billy McMillan

Name: William McMillan
Born: Carrickfergus
Died: 1991, Carrickfergus
Height:
Weight:
Position: Right-Back

Representative Honours: Ireland: 3 "Victory" Caps (1945-1946), 1 "War-Time" Cap (1944); Eire: 2 Full Caps (1946); Irish League: 4 Caps (1947-1948).
Club Honours: (with Belfast Celtic) Irish League Champion 1936/37, 1937/38, 1938/39, 1939/40, 1947/48; Irish Cup Winner 1936/37, 1940/41, 1942/43, 1946/47; Gold Cup Winner; City Cup Winner; Co. Antrim Shield Winner 1936/37, 1942/43, 1944/45; Northern Regional "War-Time" League Champion.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA.Cup	Other
Belfast Celtic	32/33-48/49	1932	Youth	-	-	-
Ballymena.United	49/50	Aug-49	-	*25/0	-	-
TOTALS	-	£-		-	-	-

* all games

Biography:
Regarded as the best right-back in Irish League football in the years either side of World War Two, Billy McMillan could consider himself unfortunate to never gain full international recognition from the Irish FA. He did play for Ireland in an 8-4 War-Time "international" defeat by the Combined Services (essentially a Great Britain XI side featuring the cream of available talent such as Matt Busby, Stanley Matthews, Stan Mortenson and Tommy Lawton) at Windsor Park in September 1944. McMillan was also selected at number two for for all three of Ireland's post-war "Victory Internationals" through the 1945/46 season.

Full international recognition did not completely elude McMillan, as he was one of four Northern-born players included in the Eire side that toured the Iberian Peninsula in June 1946. The FAI was attempting to affirm their claim that they represented the whole of the island of Ireland as the IFA had done from its inception. The tour was quite a success for the FAI as their team lost out 3-1 to Portugal and recorded a surprise 1-0 win over Spain.

McMillan spent seventeen years on the books at Belfast Celtic, rising from his signing in 1932 through the Celtic Seconds to become a virtual ever-present from the mid-thirties on. He played in four Irish Cup Finals, never finishing on the losing side and featured in each of Celtic's (war-interupted) six consecutive Irish League title successes. Praised for his consistency of performance and appearance, McMillan also claimed Inter-City Cup, Gold Cup, City Cup, Charity Cup and Co. Antrim Shield medals while at Paradise. His final appearances in the famous hooped jersey were made during the club's swansong tour of the USA in the summer of 1949.

On his return from the US, McMillan was one of several Celtic players to join Ballymena United, where he took the role of player-manager. Unable to arrest the Braidmen's slump in fortunes, he left in May 1950. In March 1955 he was appointed as coach at Distillery.

Ireland Cap Details: (no "Full" appearances)
09-09-1944 Combined Services H L 4-8 War-Time Representative Match
15-09-1945 England.......... H L 0-1 Victory International
02-02-1946 Scotland......... H L 2-3 Victory International
04-05-1946 Wales............ A W 1-0 Victory International

Summary: 4/0. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 3.

FAI Cap Details:
16-06-1946 Portugal......... A L 1-3 FR
23-06-1946 Spain............ A W 1-0 FR

Summary: 2/0. Won 1, Drew 0, Lost 1.

Jimmy Maxwell

Name: James Maxwell
Born:
Died:
Height:
Weight:
Position: Inside-Right

Representative Honours: Ireland: 7 Full Caps / 1 Goal (1902-1907); Irish League: 1 Cap (1903).
Club Honours: (with Linfield) Irish League Champion 1901/02, 1903/04; Irish Cup Winner 1901/02; City Cup Winner; (with Glentoran) Irish League Champion 1904/05; (with Belfast Celtic) Irish Cup Runner-Up 1905/06; City Cup Winner.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	Other
Linfield	-	-	-	-	-	-
Glentoran	04/05	-04	-	* 25/3	-	-
Belfast Celtic	-	-	-	-	-	-
TOTALS	-	£-		-	-	-

* all games.


Biography:
Capped while with each of Belfast's "big three" clubs, Jimmy Maxwell was a capable player right across the forward-line.

Maxwell first made an impact in Linfield's "treble" winning campaign of 1901/02, claiming Irish League, Irish Cup and City Cup winner's medals. He was rewarded with a first cap in February 1902, playing in his favoured inside-right role in a 3-0 win over Wales at Cardiff Arms Park. As well as the three International caps Maxwell won while a Linfield player, he also played for the Irish League in a rare win against their Scottish counterparts, 1-0 at Grosvenor Park in February 1903.

Transferred to Glentoran in 1904, he made an early return to Windsor Park, scoring in a 2-2 draw with his old club, as the Glens went on to claim the Irish League title. Maxwell returned to the Ireland team after a two-year absense winning caps against Scotland and Wales.

After a single season at the Oval, Maxwell moved on to join Belfast Celtic. Further major honours eluded him while at Paradise, though he did play in the 1906 Irish Cup Final defeat by Shelbourne at Dalymount Park. He scored his first international goal in April 1906, in a 4-4 draw with Wales (note that some sources credit him with two goals in this match), and made his final appearance in an Ireland shirt eleven months later, in a 3-0 defeat by Scotland.

In July 1916 Maxwell was "reported killed" while serving in the Great War*.

Ireland Cap Details:
22-02-1902 Wales... A W 3-0 BC
14-02-1903 England. A L 0-4 BC
28-03-1903 Wales... H W 2-0 BC
18-03-1905 Scotland A L 0-4 BC
08-04-1905 Wales... H D 2-2 BC
02-04-1906 Wales... A D 4-4 BC 1 Goal
16-03-1907 Scotland A L 0-3 BC

Summary: 7/1. Won 2, Drew 2, Lost 3.

* no confirmation of Maxwell's death have been found as yet.

Jackie Mahood

Name: John Mahood
Born: 12 March 1898 (tbc), Banbridge
Died: 25 February 1984
Height: 5.05 ft
Weight: 10.0 st
Position: Outside-Left

Representative Honours: Ireland: 9 Full Caps / 2 Goals (1926-1933), 2 Amateur Caps (1924-1925); Irish League: 8 Caps / 6 Goals (1925-1929).
Club Honours: (with Belfast Celtic) Irish League Champion 1925/26, 1926/27, 1927/28, 1928/29; Irish Cup Winner 1925/26, Runner-Up 1928/29; City Cup Winner.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	Other
Glentoran	22/23	-22	Amateur	*22/1	-	-
Bangor	23/24	-23	Amateur	-	-	-
Belfast Celtic	24/25-32/33	-24	Amateur	-	-	-
Ballymena	33/34	Jul-33	-	8/1	-	3/0
TOTALS	-	£-		-	-	-

* all games.

Biography:
Brothers Jackie and Stanley Mahood spent much of their careers together, both playing with Belfast Celtic, Ballymena, for Amateur Ireland and representing the Irish League. It was only the younger of the two, Jackie, that was to earn Full international recognition.

The Mahood family moved to the Lisburn Road area of Belfast, the heartland of Linfield, from Banbridge. Still Jackie, a plater at the shipyard, never played for the Windsor Park club and instead made his Irish League breakthrough with Glentoran, a move none-to popular with his neighbours. His Glens career included just a few incidents of note - his only goal was in a 2-0 win over Queen's Island in October 1922, and a month later he had to be carried off the field after being deliberately kicked by Distillery's Goodall.

If his signing at the Oval nonplussed the neighbourhood, Mahood's transfer to Belfast Celtic, after a spell with Bangor, led to a lifetime of abuse. The left-winger never regretted the move and in near a decade at Celtic Park wreaked havoc on Irish League defences, and played in four consecutive title winning sides. He also played in two Irish Cup Finals, a 3-2 win over Linfield in 1926 and he scored against Ballymena three years later only to finish on the losing side. On three occasions he finished as Celtic's topscorer.

Mahood had some great successes at representative level. He managed six goals in eight inter-league appearances, though finished on the winning side just once. For Ireland, after playing twice at amateur level, he won nine caps, scoring twice. He scored in a 2-0 win over England in 1927 and also played in two wins over Scotland and in the famous 7-0 win over Wales in which Joe Bambrick scored a double hattrick.

It was after his move to Ballymena (where he was joined by Stanley) that Jackie Mahood won his ninth and final cap, in a 2-1 win over Scotland in September 1933. A month later he suffered an horrific leg break in a match against Belfast Celtic and retired at the end of the season.

Later Mahood, who worked at the shipyard until his retirement in 1968, concentrated on golf, playing at Carnalea.

Ireland Cap Details:
27-02-1926 Scotland A L 0-4 BC
22-10-1927 England. H W 2-0 BC 1 Goal
04-02-1928 Wales... H L 1-2 BC
25-02-1928 Scotland A W 1-0 BC
22-10-1928 England. A L 1-2 BC
02-02-1929 Wales... A D 2-2 BC 1 Goal
23-02-1929 Scotland H L 3-7 BC
01-02-1930 Wales... H W 7-0 BC
16-09-1933 Scotland A W 2-1 BC

Summary: 9/2. Won 4, Drew 1, Lost 4.

Ireland Amateur Cap Details:

08-11-1924 England. H L 2-3

07-11-1925 England. A L 4-6

Summary: 2/0. Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 2.

Picture kindly supplied by Roy Cathcart. 

Thanks to Arnie and Ralph Mahood for the additional information and to Neil Coleman (The Official History of Ballymena United FC).

Bob Rea

Name: Robert Rea
Born: 29 March 1878, Belfast
Died: 31 October 1946, New York, USA (tbc)
Position: Inside-Right/Left

Representative Honours: Ireland: 1 Full Cap (1901); Irish League: 2 Caps (1898-1900).
Club Honours: (with Linfield) Irish League Champion 1897/98, Runner-Up 1898/99; Irish Cup Winner 1897/98; City Cup Winner 1897/98 (with Distillery) Belfast Charity Cup Winner 1899/00.

Club Career:

Teams	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	Other
Cliftonville	-	-1894	Amateur	-	-	-
Linfield	95/96-98/99	Nov-1895	-	*49/12	-	-
Distillery	99/00	Oct-1899	-	-	-	-
Belfast Celtic	99/00	Jan-1900	-	-	-	-
Glentoran	00/01	Jun-1900	-	*16/ 8	-	-
Belfast Celtic	01/02	-	-	-	-	-
Cliftonville	02/03	-	-	-	-	-
Ulster	02/03	-	-	-	-	-
Linfield	03/04	-	-	*1/ 0	-	-
TOTALS	-	£-		66/20	-	-

* all games.

Biography:
After beginning his Irish League career with Cliftonville during the 1895/96 season, Bob Rea first made a real splash in Linfield’s 1897/98 “Double” winning side. Also in the Blues’ forward-line that defeated St Columb’s Court 2-0 in the Irish Cup Final was Rea’s brother, Sam who was making his club debut! During that season Bob Rea also won his first major representative honour, playing for the Irish League in a 5-0 defeat by their Scottish counterparts in Dundee.

Rea then spent the start of 1899/1900 season with Distillery before joining Belfast Celtic. He was a member of the Whites’ side that claimed the Charity Cup for the first-time, when he guested for them as a last minute replacement for the injured Tom Black, while still a Belfast Celtic player. Distillery, having lost in their previous six Final appearances in the competition, they saw-off Linfield with a resounding 5-0 scoreline.

After moving on to Glentoran in the summer of 1900, Rea put in some great goalscoring performances as the Glens ran his former club close in the race for the Irish League title. His form was rewarded with a second selection for the Irish League (who lost out 4-2 to the Football League in November 1900) and with his sole cap for Ireland (in a 3-0 defeat by England at Southampton).

Rea left the Oval after a single season to return to Belfast Celtic. He later had a second spell with Cliftonville before ending his Irish league career with Ulster. He never really established himself in any of these clubs and in 1903/04 he returned to Linfield and helped out with the Linfield Swifts. He then immigrated to the USA, in October 1909 and remained there until his death.

The Rea name remained a prominent one in the Irish League as Sam played for Glentoran from 1902 to 1908 and another brother, Fred also played for the Glens (1906-1911) and represented the Irish League.
Ireland Cap Details:09-03-1901 England. A L 0-3 BC

Summary: 1/0. Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 1.

Additional information by George Glass.

Pat Robinson

Name: Patrick Robinson
Born: 1892, Belfast
Died: 
Height: 
Weight: Position: Outside-Right

Representative Honours: Ireland: 2 Full Caps (1920-1921); Irish League: 3 Caps (1919-1923).
Club Honours: (with Distillery) Gold Cup Winner 1919/20; Co. Antrim Shield 1919/20.

Club Careers:

Clubs	Seasons	Signed	Fee	League	FA Cup	Other
Barn	-	-	-	-	-	-
Belfast Celtic	-	-	-	-	-	-
Cliftonville	-	-	Amateur	-	-	-
Distillery	19/20	Aug-19	-	-	-	-
Blackburn Rovers	20/21	Sep-20	-	18/2	-	-
Caerphilly	22/23	Aug-21	-	-	(Southern League)
Bridgend Town	-	Jan-22	-	-	(Southern League)
Aberaman Athletic	-	-	-	-	(Southern League)
Pontypridd	22/23	Jan-23	-	-	(Southern League)
Ebbw Vale	23/24	Aug-23	-	-	(Southern League)
Linfield	23/24	Feb-24	-	-	-	-
Newry Town	25/26	Aug-25	-	-	-	-
Brooklyn.Wanderers	25/26	-	-	9/2	(ASL)	1/0
Shelbourne	-	-	-	-	?/3	-
Derry City	-	Oct-29	-	-	-	-
TOTALS			-	27/4	?/3	-

Biography:
Pat Robinson came to prominence in the Irish League’s first post-Great War season. He was signed by Distillery from Cliftonville and made an immediate impact at Grosvenor Park from the right-wing or inside-right position. In an excellent season with the Whites he won the Gold Cup (scoring in the 3-1 final win over Shelbourne) and the Co. Antrim Shield. The club also finished as runners-up in the League, three points behind champions Belfast Celtic, and in the Charities Cup, where they again lost to Celtic.

In his only season with Distillery, Robinson also played for the Irish League, in a 2-2 draw against the Football League at Anfield, and won the first of two Ireland caps, in a 3-0 defeat by Scotland in Glasgow. Transferred to Blackburn Rovers in the summer of 1920, it was while at Ewood Park that Robinson won his second and final cap. Again it was a disappointing performance and result for the Irish as they lost out 2-1 to Wales in Swansea.

Later Robinson would play for Caerphilly in their aborted season in the Welsh Section of the Southern League. He later returned to the Irish League with Linfield and Newry before setting out to try his luck in the fledgling American Soccer League with Brooklyn Wanderers.

Ireland Cap Details:
13-03-1920 Scotland A L 0-3 BC
09-04-1921 Wales... A L 1-2 BC

Summary: 2/0. Won 0, Drew 0, Lost 2.

With thanks to Martin O'Connor for expanding details of Robinson's club career.