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John McClelland's league career got off to a shaky start: signed by
Cardiff from Portadown for £8,000, he only played four games
before being released. After a spell with Bangor City he came back
over for a spell with Mansfield and established himself with three
solid seasons in the centre of their defence. Three successful years
north of the border was followed up by a 5 year stint at Vicarage
Road.
Another one of Wilko's signings in the summer of 1989, John
Mclelland provided rock solid cover at the centre of Leeds' defence
for 3 seasons. Previously dogged by persistent leg problems, he found
that a slightly different type of boot cured his problems halfway
through his stint at Leeds and his play improved considerably and his
experience and leadership at the heart of the defence made a vital
contribution to the excellent start that Leeds had in the Championship
season of 1991-92. He returned to Elland Road since he ended his
playing career and is now the regular guide for parties touring the
ground.
John Russell says: Hi John, your favourite nephew here (Only One I
Think). If you read this get in touch. If anyone at Leeds United reads
this, please pass on this message. Look forward to hearing from you
soon.
John McClelland says: Hey man John McClelland is my cousin and he
is an awesome soccer player so tell John I said hi because I haven't
seen him in years. Just tell him John Michael McClelland said what's
up.
Bill Merry says: Went on the Elland Rd tour on sunday the 16-06-02
he was very helpful and an excellent guide. John thanks for a great
time
Tajinder Singh says: Hi, i went on the elland road tour with my
school (matthew Murray). The tour was exellent, I learned alot of
things n didnt know. Thanks John!!!
Susanne Hallworth says: I saw John play many times for Northern
Ireland at Windsor Park and met him quite a few times after the
matches. I used to really fancy him and often wonder how he's getting
along now.
Stu Wilkie says: I saw John play at Cardiff a couple of times for
the senior team and a few times for the youth team. I was also there
when he scored his only goal. A scorcher if memory serves me. He
should have had another not long after in the same match but was
unlucky. Genuinely nice guy and a great footballer. PS he used to go
out with my sister in those days. Cheers for the free match tickets
John
Colin Y says: John, was an excellent servant during his time at
Ibrox, 100% every week and the perfect example to the younger players
who would then go on to become the back bone of the revolution. True
proffesional, he once gave me his club lapel badge when arriving to
play Hearts, (we won 3-0, Sandy Clarke hat-trick). If you read this,
"Aw ra best yer man"
noel,simon,booby barb says: me and my 2 mates went to elland road
on an off chance of getting a look at the ground.after sneaking in
john caught us,but allowed us to have a tour hes a top guy and
deserves a payrise and more recognition! bear in mind we travelled
from btn, he made our day!!!! what a guy.
Paul says: Big John was a great central defender for Rnagers. He
was famed for never getting booked, far less sent off. One time, he
was playing at Ibrox (against Motherwell, I think), and was late in a
tackle. The ref came over, with yellow card raised, and big John said
"You're quite right,ref, I deserve to be booked". What a guy. If you
readt this big chap, aw ra best!
Nicky Rees says: I had the crush of all crushes on John when I was
a teenager and he was always so lovely and sweet to me. Apart from
being the most fantastic footballer - he was one of a kind. I would
sooo love to hear from him and see what he is up to now.
Olga says: I'm from Ukraine, and I'm a fan of Metalurg, the team
that played at Elland Road in Sept 2002 in the UEFA Cup. Later, in
2003 I had the chance to visit the Elland Road and John was our
guide. I was happy to meet a (former) Leeds player even though I had
not seen him play for Leeds. I'm sure he was an excellent player and I
have the best impressions of him as a personality. Great impressions
of a tour and of John! Thank you John!
Steve Cooke says: is Belfast in the glasgow Rangers part of
Scotland
Steve Cooke . Leeds United Scottish Supporters Club says: I have
personally emailed John and pointed him to this webpage, my personal
experiences with John are nothing but good... I remember him at
Tannedice against the Arabs ! and even went along to Perth to watch
his team ! My kids enjoyed an exclusive tour around Mecca with John,
but my camera got stolen that night ! All in all John I have found to
be one of the true gents of football and great to still see him at the
club
David Zieloni says: I was devasted when John left Rangers for
Watford. Unfortunately this was in the pre Souness era when cash was
tight but losing out on big John to Watford hurt. The man was a true
gentleman and exemplified all that is best in Ulstermen; work ethic,
humility and loyalty. I would have loved to have seen him play
alongside Terry Butcher at Ibrox. It would have been an awesome
pairing.
Warren Turfrey says: my lads just played at tingley athletic and
big john mcclelland was coaching a tingley junior team on the other
pitch
dave says: Hi, can anyboby provide me with Big johns e mail address
at leeds?
Michael Greenwood says: I took the tour of the stadium that my dad
used to take me to when I was a lad in the early Seventies - John was
the guide, and did an excellent job. The lady told me it was scheduled
for just over an hour ...well I left Elland Road about 4 hours later
after the extensive tour & after John had taken me to lunch, shown me
the offices and given me some signed photos to take back to my boys in
the USA!!! Outstanding! Needless to say, I loaded up in the gift shop
with loads of LUFC goodies, including the DVD of Leeds 100 greatest
goals,and it does play in my US DVD machine. Thanks for a superb
experience John!! BTW I still play myself at the age of 43 on team
Dynamo in this
league in Atlanta Georgia
Dominic says: A couple of years back I went back up to Leeds, where
I used to live with my family. On returning I decided to treat my
brother by taking the Elland Road tour, I had done it about 7 years
ago when I knew players such as Dorigo and Fairclough. On arriving
the lady at the desk said there were no more tours, as it was some
kids birthday. We said we just wanted to have a quick look around the
stadium. John came down and said yes, that my brother and I could go
with this kids birthday tour. In the end, fantastic time. I actually
used to see him play even though I couldnt remember him. He was the
type of player that was so good and reliable (nothing flashy) that you
wouldnt rememeber if he was on the pitch.
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