McCabe: James Joseph (Jim)

1948-1954 (Player Details)

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Born: Draperstown, Nr Derry: 17-09-1918

Debut: v Bradford Park Avenue (a): 13-03-1948

5’10” 11st 10lb (1951)

Born in Draperstown, Jimmy McCabe moved to the South Bank area of Middlesbrough as a youth. He began playing football with local side South Bank St Peter’s, a team based round the local Catholic Church, which also gave the game Wilf Mannion. McCabe filled various positions but was at his best at wing-half. He played for Billingham Synthonia Juniors and then South Bank East End, before signing for Middlesborough in May 1937, but he had to wait until after the Second World War to make his debut. After Wartime service with the Green Howards, in France and the Middle East, and attaining the rank of sergeant, he resumed his career at Ayresome Park. McCabe quickly became noted as a gifted wing-half with real footballing quality, and able to perform with ease on either the left or right. After thirty-four League appearances he joined Leeds in March 1948. United paid £10,000 and also parted with goalkeeper John Hodgson, in part-exchange. Within months of joining Leeds, McCabe won the first of six Irish caps. In just over six seasons at Elland Road McCabe was part of a side which consistently finished in the top-half of Division Two, without being able to make that push to promotion. Initially it looked as though McCabe had been bought to replace stalwart centre-half Tom Holley and his first games were in that position when Holley was injured, quickly reverting to the left half position when the stopper was fit. In 1948-49 he was a regular at wing half, alternating between left and right as required, but when Holley was injured and his long career ended, he again took on the pivot role for three games before the emergence of the young Welsh giant in the form of the great John Charles and McCabe happily reverted to his favoured wing half role. In 1949-50 he featured solely at right half as part of the McCabe-Charles-Burden half back line which saw United recover from a dismal early start to play some brilliant football and soar up the Second Division and have their then best FA Cup run ever before losing to the winners Arsenal in the Sixth Round at Highbury 1-0 and marginally fail to gain promotion in the fifth spot. Eric Kerfoot was starting to emerge and forced his way into the team at the start of the 1950-51 season, but McCabe fought his way back in and United solved the problem by reinstalling McCabe at right half, switching Kerfoot to left half and pushing captain Tommy Burden up to the inside forward position. A combination of injuries and the form of Kerfoot and Burden, saw McCabe restricted to a mere fourteen games in 1951-52, mostly at centre-half as Charles also spent most of the season sidelined by Army duty and injuries. The Kerfoot-Charles-Burden combination was together for the first dozen games in the 1952-53 campaign but as Charles was pushed up in a striking role McCabe was back in the first eleven at centre-half. Now well into his thirties, McCabe was in the Kerfoot-McCabe-Burden half back line that started 1953-54 with Charles up front, but time was catching up fast and with Jackie Marsden and Jack Charlton ready to step up McCabe left Leeds in May 1954, joining non-League Peterborough. Later he returned to Teeside where he worked in the chemical industry. Regarded as a great character by those who knew him, McCabe was best man at old-pal Wilf Mannion’s wedding. Capped by Northern Ireland on six occasions, from 1948 to 1953, it would surely have been many more had it not been for the War. He was employed variously at right-half, left-half, centre-half and right-back, he was unfortunate that each match ended in defeat. He died in Cleveland in July 1989.