Alan McInally never played for Everton, but he spent pre-season with the Toffees during the days of Howard Kendall. Alan was registered a Bayern Munich player at that time and a very close friend with Mo Johnston who was at Everton back then. Alan was recovering from a knee injury eager to regain some match fitness. The German giants authorised that Alan could play for Everton in a pre-season fixture for the Blues at Port Vale where he managed the first forty-five minutes.
Following in his father’s footsteps, this is the story of Jackie McInally. Jackie started his career in the plumbing business after leaving Newton Park school in Ayr, before turning his eye to making a successful career in football.
Jackie was called up for National Service with the Royal Scots Greys, before joining amateur team Kello Rovers (Dumfries), Minishant amateurs (Ayrshire), and lastly Crosshill Thistle (Ayrshire), where he won the Scottish Amateur Cup beating Eaglesham Amateurs at Hampden Park in 1959.
Willie Waddell recruited inside forward Jackie for Kilmarnock at the age of twenty-two and he made his “Killie” debut in the League Cup against Stirling Albion. He returned to Hampden in the Scottish League Cup final a year later, only to be on the losing side as they were beaten 2-0 by Glasgow Rangers, with goals from Ralph Brand and Alex Scott, who later joined Everton.
Jackie’s contribution in the 1964/65 season helped Kilmarnock to their first Scottish League title after they had finished in the runners-up spot in the previous four seasons. They won the title seeing off Heart of Midlothian in the most dramatic of circumstances with the smallest of goal margins in April 1965.
Jackie returned to the home of Scottish football two years later in the same competition to be defeated once more by Heart of Midlothian 1-0.
Jackie made 297 appearances for Killie scoring 127 times before making Motherwell his next home, joining them in December 1967 for £3,000. Hamilton Academicals became his last club before he announced his retirement.
Jackie’s life after football consisted of running a number of shops with his wife, before working for a fork lift truck company called Hyster, based in Irvine. Finally he manged a paint wholesaler in his beloved town of Kilmarnock.
Jackie’s main pastime was golf and he proudly held a handicap of three. He also had a keen eye for the dart board.
Jackie sadly passed away in July 2016 having suffered from dementia.
