Our 23rd Thistle Pin depicts a player who spent 14 years as a professional footballer at Firhill. He clocked-up an incredible 434 appearances at a Jag and remains a familiar face around Firhill.
He’s a Club Hall of Fame inductee, a former publican, and he knows how to make an audience laugh. Our latest legend is the one and only John McDonald Harvey!
Harvey's arrival
John was initially brought into the Firhill fold by David Meiklejohn’s trainer, Arthur Dixon at just fifteen years of age. While attending the (former) Victoria Drive school in Scotstoun, Harvey plied his footballing trade for a while at Baillieston Juniors.
John would sign his first professional contract for the Jags on Tuesday 20th February 1951 at the age of 18, and made his debut that December against Dundee. Harvey scored that day in a 3-1 defeat at Firhill.
Family connection
The Harvey family were no strangers to Partick Thistle. Almost fifty years earlier, John’s grandfather (also John McDonald Harvey) played for the side as well.
To date, they are the only known grandfather and grandson pairing at the Jags, though his grandfather’s career predated the era of red and yellow!
From right midfield to centre half
John started out as a right-sided midfielder (a right half as they were known back then) who liked to get forward. As Club historian Robert Reid once put it
“We all remember that long, loping stride which took him past opponents and deep into enemy territory. There was a majestic quality about John’s play which is seldom seen these days”.
Later, John settled as an out and out centre half, his height and strength being considerable assets in that department too. Over the years, John’s contributions helped the club to many notable achievements.
The accolades
In his time at Thistle, John Harvey racked-up the records and accolades
- 434 appearances
- 22 goals
- 3 Glasgow Cups (and once more a finalist)
- 1 League Cup runner up medal
- 2 Glasgow Charity Cup runners up medals
With Harvey on the team-sheet, Thistle finished in third place in the top division, twice, and he is Thistle’s second top all-time scorer in European competition, finding the net against both Glentoran and Spartak Brno.
In the 16 games he played away from home against Celtic, John won 9 and drew 4.
He also played in each of the 10 consecutive top-flight victories during the highly memorable 1962-63 season, before the New Year derailed Thistle’s title challenge.
After Firhill
John’s playing tenure with the Jags ended mid-way through the 1965-66 season, strangely (in those days) without having received a benefit match.
That said, he did receive two testimonial payments during his spell, appropriate for such a tremendous servant.
He joined up with the troubled Third Lanark in late 1965. Financial squabbles amongst players and other staff were rife at Cathkin Park and, unsurprisingly, John decided to retire as a player after only 6 months there.
After football, John operated various public houses and re-established his involvement at Firhill by acting as manager of the social club, before running the successful Jagspool for several years.
John remains a true Thistle supporter and is to this day a frequent visitor to Firhill. Harvey was inducted into the Club’s Hall of Fame in 2009.
We were delighted to present him with The Jags Foundation’s inaugural “Lifetime Achievement Award” in January 2025, just prior to his 92nd birthday and at our hospitality takeover event, where he was our legendary guest.
How do I get a Harvey Pin đź“Ś
If you’re a TJF member, you can get your hands on a Harvey Pin for just ÂŁ10 including UK P&P, when they go on sale from 7pm tomorrow evening (Thursday 1st May) on our shop.
The sale of Thistle Pins, and other TJF merchandise, help us to meet and beat our three member pledges to the Club, Academy and Women’s team. This season, we will break the ÂŁ200k barrier for the first time, making a huge difference to the foundations of our football club.
If you’re not a member, it’s really easy to join TJF, and there are affordable membership rates for all, regardless of circumstances. Help us on the road to 2000 members and be part of your Club’s biggest ever fans community.
Acknowledgements
Thistle Pins is our way of not just raising funds for the Club and good causes, but also telling the Thistle story for future generations. We’d like to thank three friends of the Foundation who have helped make Thistle Pins possible:
- Andy Imrie (The Photo Doctor) – for colourising black and white classic photos for our Pin designs
- William Sheridan (from The Thistle Archive) for ensuring our stats are on point
- Peter Smith (from SteelmenPins, who provided both the inspiration and ongoing support at a fellow fan-owned Club)