Joe Miller (footballer, born 1967)

Joe Miller

Personal information
Full name	Joseph Miller
Date of birth	(1967-12-08) 8 December 1967 (age 57)
Place of birth	Glasgow, Scotland
Position(s)	Winger / Striker
Youth career
	St Marys Boys Club
	Celtic Boys Club
1983–1985	Aberdeen
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1984–1987	Aberdeen	62	(13)
1987–1993	Celtic	151	(27)
1993–1998	Aberdeen	145	(19)
1998–2000	Dundee United	24	(2)
2000–2001	Parramatta Power	24	(9)
2001	Raith Rovers	5	(1)
2002	Clydebank	3	(0)
2005–2007	Clyde	16	(2)
Total		430	(73)
International career
1987–1988	Scotland U21	5	(1)
Managerial career
2006–2007	Clyde
2009	Dundalk (assistant)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Joseph Miller (born 8 December 1967 in Glasgow) is a Scottish retired footballer and a former manager of Scottish Football League club Clyde.

He began his playing career as a teenage striker at Aberdeen, featuring in their 1985–86 Scottish Cup success, before moving to Celtic in 1987 for £650,000, a Scottish record transfer fee. Mainly used as a winger from then on, Miller won the 'double' of Scottish League and Scottish Cup with Celtic in 1988, and scored the winning goal for the club in the 1989 Scottish Cup Final. In 1993 he returned to Aberdeen, collecting another winner's medal in the 1995 Scottish League Cup Final to complete a domestic set.

In his later career he had shorter spells with Dundee United, in Australia (spending a season with Parramatta Power in the NSL), Raith Rovers, Clydebank and Clyde, moving into coaching with the latter.

Playing career

Aberdeen

Miller was raised in the East End of Glasgow, attended St Mungo's Academy^[1] and grew up supporting Celtic;^[2] his father (also Joseph) had been a professional footballer with Hamilton Academical and Swindon Town.^[3][4] He was a 12-year-old playing for St Marys Boys Club in the Calton (the same team which produced Tommy Burns) when Alex Ferguson, the manager of Aberdeen, was alerted to his talents through Miller's uncle who had previously worked as a scout for Ferguson.^[5][2] He signed provisionally for Aberdeen while continuing to play in Glasgow for Celtic Boys Club, a team with close ties to the professional club and coached by legendary player Jimmy Johnstone, but not formally connected to them.^[3][1] The Celtic manager Billy McNeill did make approaches to sign Miller, but on the advice of his father and due to the keenness of Ferguson he chose to stick with Aberdeen^[1] who had a good track record of developing young players, including many from Glasgow such as Willie Miller (no relation) who had grown up in the same area.^[3][1]

After moving to Pittodrie Stadium in summer 1983, Miller made his Aberdeen debut just after his 17th birthday, coming on as a substitute in a league fixture against Dundee United in December 1984.^[6][7] That was his only appearance of the season, which ended with the club retaining the league title. Miller remained with the youth team and was in the side which won the Scottish Youth Cup in 1985^[8] alongside Stevie Gray, David Robertson and Paul Wright. The final was against Celtic at Pittodrie. After trailing 3–0, Miller netted a 35-yard lob to tie the match at 3–3. The comeback was complete in extra-time to secure the trophy with a 5–3 win.^[9]

Around a year after he made his debut, Miller became a regular in the Aberdeen team, finishing with 19 league games and three goals during 1985–86; he also featured in the quarter-final of the European Cup against IFK Gothenburg and came off the bench in the 1986 Scottish Cup Final victory over Hearts.^[7][10] At that time he was usually playing as a striker.^[3]

He played one more full season for the Dons with his form attracting attention from around Europe – Miller has stated teams from Spain and Italy showed an interest in signing him,^[3] along with Liverpool who were coached by his childhood hero Kenny Dalglish,^[1] and Manchester United where Alex Ferguson was now the manager.^[11][2] However it was Celtic and Billy McNeill, who had just returned to the club, who would secure the 19-year-old's signature in November 1987 (a few weeks after he appeared in the League Cup final, lost on penalties)^[12] for a fee of £650,000, which at that time was a Scottish record as well as the highest fee paid for a teenager.^[11][6] Miller left Aberdeen having played 81 times and scored 21 goals in all competitions, with his last appearance a UEFA Cup defeat to Feyenoord.

Celtic

Miller immediately became an important player for Celtic after making his debut against Dundee, scoring the third goal of a 5–0 victory.^[11] Playing as a right winger providing chances for forwards such as Mark McGhee and fellow new signings Andy Walker and Frank McAvennie,^[13] the side won the league and Scottish Cup double in 1987–88, their centenary season;^[11][6] Miller has described this as his "best memory".^[2]

Celtic failed to keep their grip on the league title in 1989, dropping to 3rd place as Old Firm rivals Rangers began what would be a period of dominance, and were also eliminated from the European Cup by Werder Bremen. Miller missed much of the season with a virus.^[2] However the Hoops were able to retain the Scottish Cup, with Miller scoring the winning goal in the final against Rangers at Hampden Park to end their hopes of a treble.^[14] That match was the third in a row in which he had been used as a striker and scored the only goal of the game, but with new strikers Coyne and Dziekanowski arriving, 'Super Joe' as he had become known, returned to his previous wing role.^[3]

The following campaign began badly as Miller, having come on as a substitute for his first appearance of the season during the 1989–90 Scottish League Cup semi-final – a loss to former club Aberdeen – was himself substituted, prompting a furious reaction as he returned to the bench. Miller was "devastated" and submitted a transfer request, but this was rejected by the club.^[15] He retained his place in the side, although the season finished without a trophy after Aberdeen again prevailed in the 1990 Scottish Cup Final (albeit Miller was named man of the match),^[16] while in the league they could only finish 5th.

By this point, Celtic were experiencing one of the most difficult spells in their history,^[3] and 1990–91 brought further disappointment, with no trophies and a League Cup Final defeat to Rangers.^[17] In 1991–92, new manager Liam Brady continued to select Miller but results deteriorated further, with defeats to Airdrie in the League Cup, Neuchâtel Xamax in the UEFA Cup and Rangers in the Scottish Cup (despite David Robertson having been sent off in the opening minutes for a challenge on Miller, breaking two of his ribs).^[18]

By 1992–93, another campaign which would bring not even as much as a final for Celtic,^[2] Miller was often only being selected as a substitute with Brady's own signing Stuart Slater being preferred. At the end of the season he returned to Aberdeen, having made a total of 199 appearances in his spell at Celtic Park, scoring 32 goals.^[19]

Return to Aberdeen

Although Aberdeen were no longer the dominant force in Scotland as when he first joined in 1983, when Miller returned a decade later they were at least as strong a team as Celtic, having finished runners-up behind Rangers in three of the last four seasons. In 1993–94, with Miller a regular starter under manager and former teammate Willie Miller, another second-place finish was achieved. However the next season was a different matter, with the club losing to Stenhousemuir in the Scottish Cup^[11] and only escaping relegation thanks to four wins in the last five matches and a play-off win against Dunfermline.^[20][21]

In 1995–96 they regrouped under new manager Roy Aitken, Miller's former captain at Celtic, and finished third while also winning the 1995 Scottish League Cup Final with victory over Dundee.^[22] Miller returned what would be the best personal figures in his career, playing in 40 matches (all starts) and scoring 10 goals. He played with Aberdeen for two more unexceptional seasons, posting 70 further appearances. Coincidentally his final goal for the club came in a 3–0 win against a Hibernian team led by Billy McNeill, who was acting as caretaker manager for that match alone.^[23] His combined Aberdeen totals of 264 matches and 47 goals are both within the top 50 in the club's all-time list.^[24]

Later years

In summer 1998, 30-year-old Miller moved to Dundee United.^[2] He contributed 33 appearances – many from the bench – and two goals in his single season at Tannadice Park in which the team finished in mid-table and reached the Scottish Cup semi-final, being beaten by Celtic.^[25]

After being released from his contract, he then spent a season in Australia's National Soccer League, joining newly formed Parramatta Power for their inaugural season, before returning to Scotland for short spells with Raith Rovers (under another former teammate, Peter Hetherston, where he mentored a young Nacho Novo)^[26] and Clydebank, prior to retiring from the professional game in 2002 to train as a coach.^[2] He went back to Australia for a period, winning the amateur KDSA Cup with North Sydney in 2003.

Having been appointed assistant manager of Clyde in 2005, Miller re-registered as a player and made just over a dozen league appearances for the club in his late 30s.

International

Miller was selected five times for the Scotland under-21 team,^[27] by which time he was already an experienced player at club level. He never received a full cap for Scotland, with the tactics of the time under coach Andy Roxburgh rarely utilising wingers, plus a direct rival in Pat Nevin and several competitors for a place as a striker.

Coaching and management

Miller joined Clyde in June 2005, initially as assistant to Graham Roberts, during which time they surprisingly defeated Celtic in the 2005–06 Scottish Cup.^[28] He was appointed manager in August 2006 following the departure of Roberts following a feud between the pair;^[29] Roberts later won a claim for unfair dismissal against the club.^[28]

He guided Clyde to the 2006 Scottish Challenge Cup Final, the club's first national final in nearly 40 years.^[30] Miller ended speculation about his future at Clyde in May 2007 by refusing to sign a new contract as manager, thus leaving the club.^[31][2]

In January 2009 Miller was signed up by Irish club Dundalk's manager Sean Connor as an assistant manager.^[2]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club[32][33][34]	Season	League			Scottish Cup		League Cup		Europe		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Aberdeen	1984-85	Scottish Premier Division	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	1985-86		19	3	3	2	0	0	1	0	23	5
	1986-87		28	6	3	0	3	2	0	0	34	8
	1987-88		14	4	0	0	5	3	4	1	23	8
	Total		62	13	6	2	8	5	5	1	81	21
Celtic	1987-88	Scottish Premier Division	27	3	6	0	0	0	0	0	33	3
	1988-89		21	8	3	1	3	0	3	0	30	9
	1989-90		24	5	6	1	1	0	1	0	32	6
	1990-91		30	8	5	0	4	1	0	0	39	9
	1991-92		26	2	4	0	3	1	3	1	36	4
	1992-93		23	1	2	0	2	0	2	0	29	1
	Total		151	27	26	2	13	2	9	1	199	32
Aberdeen	1993-94	Scottish Premier Division	27	4	6	1	3	2	3	1	39	8
	1994-95		29	1	2	0	2	0	1	0	34	1
	1995-96		31	9	4	0	5	1	0	0	40	10
	1996-97		30	4	2	0	2	0	5	0	39	4
	1997-98		28	1	0	0	4	2	0	0	32	3
	Total		145	19	14	1	16	5	9	1	184	26
Dundee United	1998-99	SPL	24	2	7	0	2	0	0	0	33	2
	Total		24	2	7	0	2	0	0	0	33	2
Parramatta Power	2000-01	National Soccer League	24	9	-	-	-	-	-	-	24+	9+
	Total		24	9	-	-	-	-	-	-	24+	9+
Raith Rovers	2001-02	Scottish First Division	5	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	5+	1+
	Total		5	1	-	-	-	-	-	-	5+	1+
Clydebank	2001-02	Scottish Second Division	3	0	-	-	-	-	-	-	3+	0+
	Total		3	0	-	-	-	-	-	-	3+	0+
Clyde	2005-06	Scottish First Division	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
	2006-07		-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
	Total		16	2	-	-	-	-	-	-	16+	2+
Career total			430	73	53+	5+	39+	12+	23	3	545+	93+

Honours

Aberdeen

• Scottish Cup: 1985–86
• Scottish League Cup: 1995–96
  • Runners-up 1987–88
• Tennents' Sixes: 1986, 1987^[35]

Celtic

• Scottish Premier Division: 1987–88
• Scottish Cup: 1987–88, 1988–89
  • Runners-up 1989–90
• Scottish League Cup: Runners-up 1990–91
• Tennents' Sixes: 1992^[35]

Clyde

• Scottish Challenge Cup: Runners-up 2006–07

References

1. Clark, Graham (30 July 1987). "One that got away". Evening Times. p. 2. Retrieved 20 October 2017.
2. "Joe Miller interview: March 2009". Dundalk F.C. 1 March 2009. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
3. Dykes, Paul John (2015). Celtic's Smiler - The Neilly Mochan Story. Read Books Ltd. ISBN 9781473365100.
4. "Joseph Miller profile". Swindon Town F.C. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
5. Ferguson, Alex (2011). Managing My Life: My Autobiography. Hachette UK. ISBN 9781444709100.
6. "Miller calls for managers to follow Ferguson's example and blood teenagers". The Herald. 6 July 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
7. Miller, Willie (2011). Willie Miller's Aberdeen Dream Team. Black & White Publishing. ISBN 9781845024031.
8. "Famous Faces – Youth Cup Final". Scottish Football Association. 19 May 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
9. "Scottish Youth Cup". Aberdeen F.C. 31 March 2006. Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
   "Aberdeen and SFA Youth Cup". Aberdeen FC. 28 April 2018. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
10. "Scottish Cup: 1986 revisited". Aberdeen F.C. 6 January 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
11. "Joe Miller: Moussa Dembele is in best place at Celtic". The Scotsman. 22 November 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
12. Reynolds, Jim (26 October 1987). "Spot-on Rangers earn the cheers". The Glasgow Herald. p. 9. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
13. "McAvennie and Miller fully enjoyed their Celtic heyday". BBC Sport. 14 January 2016. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
14. Traynor, James (22 May 1989). "Tension and fear spoil show-piece". The Glasgow Herald. p. 22. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
15. "Pat Bonner: I was there when Joe Miller threw a strop in '89 but Kris Commons showed a lack of respect for Ronny Deila". Daily Record. 24 October 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
16. Traynor, James (14 May 1990). "Stagnant Celtic pay ultimate penalty. Snelders saves Rogan's kick and Irvine secures cup for Aberdeen". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
17. "1990/91 - Rangers 2-1 Celtic (aet)". BBC Sport. 14 March 2009. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
18. "Former Rangers star David Robertson: I was meant to make Joe Miller's hands go up his sleeves but I went too far and broke his ribs". Daily Record. 19 April 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
19. "Celtic player Joe Miller". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
20. "Dunfermline Athletic 1–3 Aberdeen". Aberdeen FC Heritage Trust. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
21. Haggerty, Tony (6 May 2015). "In pictures: The agony and ecstasy of Scottish football play-off drama". Daily Record. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
22. "Dodds and Shearer end Aberdeen's wait". The Independent. 27 November 2015. Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
23. "Miller helps Miller to wind up Hibernian". The Independent. 8 February 1998. Archived from the original on 9 June 2022. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
24. "All time statistics". Aberdeen FC Heritage Trust. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
25. "Celtic 2–0 Dundee Utd". Dundee United Historical Archive. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
26. "Hetherston looks back as Raith chase Clyde". Fife Today. 22 November 2001. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
27. "Scotland U21 profile". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
28. "Ex-Clyde boss wins dismissal case". BBC Sport. 29 June 2007.
29. "Clyde's Miller moves to add trio". BBC Sport. 29 August 2006.
30. "Miller celebrates manager award". BBC Sport. 12 October 2006.
31. "Club Statement". Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 1 September 2007.
32. "Aberdeen Football Club Heritage Trust - Player Profile". afcheritage.org. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
33. "Celtic Player Joe Miller Details". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
34. www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com http://www.neilbrown.newcastlefans.com/player7/joemiller.html. Retrieved 18 March 2023. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
35. "Joe has six appeal". Daily Record. 24 January 1992. Retrieved 9 April 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.

External links

• Joe Miller at Soccerbase
• Profile and stats at AFC Heritage Trust
• Joe Miller at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database
• Profile at Sporting-Heroes.net
• Player profile at The Celtic Wiki
• Dundee United FC Historical Archive profile