Paul Sturrock

Did You Know?

• Sturrock is known by fans as Luggy, from the Scots word for ears.
• He announced in July 2008 that he was suffering from a mild form of Parkinson's disease.
• His son, Blair, was also a professional footballer.

Early life

Sturrock was born in Ellon, Aberdeenshire, and grew up in Pitlochry, Perthshire, where he attended local schools. He played for amateur side Grandtully Vale before joining Vale of Atholl in 1972, scoring about 100 goals in the 1972–73 season. He then moved to Bankfoot Athletic, scoring 53 goals in 1973–74. After trials with Morton and St Johnstone, he was signed by Dundee United manager Jim McLean on 1 July 1974.

Club career

Sturrock made his debut for Dundee United in a European Cup Winners' Cup match against Juil Petrosani on 18 September 1974, and his league debut as a substitute against Motherwell on 28 December 1974. In his first season he made nine league appearances and scored six goals, including two in a 2–2 draw with Rangers on 5 April 1975. The following season he made 18 league appearances and scored three times, also appearing in UEFA Cup and League Cup matches.

In 1976–77 he was an ever-present in the league, playing all 36 games and scoring 15 times, becoming the club's top scorer. During the 1982–83 season, Dundee United won the Scottish League Championship, losing only four league games; Sturrock contributed eight goals in 28 appearances and set up Ralph Milne's opening goal in the final league match. He also scored seven goals in nine League Cup games that season and played in seven UEFA Cup matches, scoring once, as United exited in Prague.

International career

Sturrock first played for the Scotland under-21 team on 12 October 1976 in a goalless draw with Czechoslovakia, and scored in a 3–2 win against Wales under-21s on 9 February 1977. His full international debut came against Wales on 16 May 1981, and he scored his first goal for Scotland in a 2–1 World Cup qualifier defeat to Portugal on 8 November 1981. He earned 20 caps and scored three goals, and was a non-playing squad member at the 1982 World Cup and appeared twice at the 1986 tournament.

Managerial career

Sturrock became manager of St Johnstone in 1993, and the team was relegated to the First Division at the end of the 1993–94 season. After a 4–0 Scottish Cup loss to Stenhousemuir in 1994–95, he collapsed in the dugout at Tannadice during a match against Dundee United in the 1995–96 season. While recovering, he received a call from Alex Ferguson, who advised him to remove 'bad pros' from the squad. Sturrock guided St Johnstone to promotion back to the Premier Division in 1996–97, winning the First Division by 20 points, and the team finished fifth in 1997–98.

In September 1998 he was appointed manager at Dundee United, but resigned after two games of the 2000–01 season following the sale of top scorer Billy Dodds. He left Plymouth in October 2003 with the club top of the Second Division; they later finished as champions and returned to the Championship. A 2012 study by economist Stefan Szymanski rated Sturrock among the best managers in English football.