Jim Duffy

James Duffy (born 27 April 1959) is a Scottish football coach and former player, who was most recently the Director of Football at Scottish League Two club Clyde.

During his playing career he played for Celtic, Greenock Morton, Dundee (three spells) and Partick Thistle.

His managerial career has involved spells with Falkirk, Hibernian, Dundee (two spells – first as player-manager), Brechin City, Greenock Morton, Dumbarton and Ayr United.

Duffy also had a brief Director of Football role at Hearts and an extensive coaching career including spells in English football.

Duffy was born in Glasgow, growing up in the Maryhill area of the city (specifically the Wyndford estate) where he was a childhood friend and neighbour of Charlie Nicholas.

Like Nicholas, Duffy began his senior career with Celtic.

Duffy, however, was unable to follow his friend into the Celtic first team and moved to Greenock Morton.

His career developed greatly there, and in 1985 he was named Scottish PFA Players' Player of the Year despite Morton being relegated.

He moved to Dundee, only for his career to apparently be ended by injury aged only 28.

After brief spells as Airdrieonians assistant manager in 1988, and then as manager of Falkirk, he made a playing comeback with Dundee before joining Partick Thistle.

Duffy then returned to Dundee for a third spell in 1992 as player/assistant manager to Simon Stainrod.

Duffy then succeeded Stainrod to become player-manager in the autumn of 1993.

Duffy led First Division side Dundee to the Scottish League Cup Final in November 1995, but the team lost 2–0 to Aberdeen.

Duffy followed this with an unsuccessful spell as manager of Hibernian.

After working for Chelsea and Portsmouth as a coach, he returned yet again to Dundee for a second stint as manager in 2002.

He was appointed manager on 4 July 2002.

During his second spell as manager at Dens Park he again led Dundee to Hampden, this time for the 2003 Scottish Cup Final against Rangers, which Dundee lost 1–0.

As Rangers also won the Scottish Premier League, Dundee qualified for the UEFA Cup.

During November 2003 the club went into administration due to the gross financial mismanagement by the club's owners, Peter and Jimmy Marr.

Going into administration meant that Dundee lost most of their talented players, but the team battled on and managed to avoid relegation that season.

In the following season, however, Dundee struggled with a threadbare squad and were relegated on the last day of the season.

Duffy stayed on with the blessing of the board to try to get the club back into the SPL at the first attempt.

However, on 24 August 2005, the board then decided to sack Duffy after just four games of the new season, even though Dundee were top of the Scottish First Division.

He joined the coaching staff at Hearts at the end of January 2006 and was promoted to Director of Football two weeks later on a contract until the end of the 2005–06 season.

Duffy spent barely a month in that position, however, as he was dismissed by the club, along with manager Graham Rix, on 22 March 2006.

On 9 February 2007, Duffy was appointed the Assistant Manager to Peter Grant at Norwich.

When Grant left Norwich on 9 October, Duffy was made caretaker manager.

But after recording losses against Bristol City, Burnley and

WBA he was not awarded the job on a full-time basis.

Duffy left Norwich after Glenn Roeder was appointed Norwich manager on 30 October.

Duffy was appointed as Brechin City manager in January 2009, replacing Michael O'Neill, who had left the club to manager Shamrock Rovers a month earlier.

Duffy resigned after Brechin were beaten 3–0 on aggregate by Cowdenbeath in the First Division play-offs in May 2010.

Duffy was appointed temporary manager of Clyde on 6 February 2011.

Duffy appointed his former Partick Thistle teammate Chic Charnley as his assistant two day later.

He succeeded in lifting Clyde off the bottom of the Third Division briefly, but finished the season last, and agreed to stay with the club for the 2011–12 season.

He was appointed permanent manager on 28 April 2011.

Duffy chose to stay at Clyde because of job security in a time where an average managerial reign at a club in Britain lasts approximately less than 15 months and in agreement with the Clyde board, progression on the field would take time for the club.

At the start of the 2011–12 season, Duffy's Clyde defeated his ex managing team Brechin City 4–2 away and East Stirlingshire 7–1.

His Clyde team could only muster back-to-back two ninth-place finishes in seasons 2011–12 and 2012–13.

On 1 February 2012, Duffy was appointed on to the club's board.