Andrew Watson InstituteHogan was a good player, who soaked up every influence going, from the Scotch Professors around him. For example, when he was marked out of the game, in an English Cup semi-final by Peter McWilliam from Inverness, he merely considered it to be the finest side he had ever faced. A side taught the Scotch Professor game by RS McColl from Queens Park FC.
Jimmy began coaching, aged 28 in 1910. It all began with Dordrecht of the Netherlands. He had played 50 games with Fulham. He was a good footballer. The fact that he met Jock Hamilton of São Paulo fame, whilst at Fulham, changed his life.
Jimmy had an absolute respect for the Scottish Combination game. He recalled that his football knowledge improved tremendously at Craven Cottage when he found himself amongst the great Scottish players ‘who were playing the style I had been longing for’.
As well as having Jock Hamilton to copy, Hogan latched onto Billy Goldie, a half back who guided him through matches, with a Scotch Professor skills.
When he went to Dordrecht, Hogan taught them the skills of the Scotch Professor. He created routines to improve the fitness of the players. He made sure the ball was part of everything. He explained his methods as being the old Scottish game: ‘intelligent, constructive and progressive on the carpet manner’.
After Dordrecht, Hogan coached MTK Budapest, Young Boys Berne, Dresdner Sport Club, Austria Vienna and Racing Club Paris. In 1931 he coached the Austrian ‘Wunderteam’ of Hugo Meisl. So that’s the Netherlands, Hungary, Switzerland, Germany, and Austria.
He took to carrying around business cards with the phrase ‘Football Professor’, just in case anyone might not realise from where his footballing roots came. The Scotch Professor game was renamed the ‘Danubian School’, but we know it had pure Scottish DNA.
Jimmy Hogan is the greatest example of not needing to have been born in Scotland to be a Scotch Professor. It’s the what that you are, not the where that you’ve been.
