| Jimmy Keenan |
 James Keenan was born on Tuesday, 17th January, 1939, in Shotts, North Lanarkshire. The 5' 7 (10st 6lbs) forward signed for Davie Meiklejohn's Thistle circa Saturday, 15th October, 1955, having most recently been with Dalkeith Thistle. Aged 18, he made his debut appearance on Monday, 11th November, 1957, in a 3-1 defeat at home to Heart of Midlothian in the SFL First Division. Jimmy scored his first goal for Thistle on Saturday, 22nd March, 1958, in a 2-0 win at home to Kilmarnock in the SFL First Division. He scored the last of his 5 goals on Saturday, 29th August, 1959, in a 3-1 defeat at home to Raith Rovers in the League Cup. He played his last game for the club on Saturday, 7th November, 1959, in a 5-3 defeat away to Heart of Midlothian in the SFL First Division, having appeared as a Jag on 23 occasions. Jimmy's club-list included Seafield Juniors, Partick Thistle, Dalkeith Thistle, East Stirlingshire and Berwick Rangers. |
 Jimmy Keenan joined Thistle from Seafield Juniors in October 1955. The forward was sent on loan to Dalkeith Thistle for a period. He spent four and a half years with Thistle, and showed his versatility by not only playing as a centre forward, but also played outside left, outside right and left half. He scored his first senior goal in March 1958 with a header from a George Smith cross, and almost scored a 2nd later in the match. The player notched up 5 senior goals whilst at Firhill. A crowd of 10,000 saw this SFL 1st Division encounter against Kilmarnock at Firhill. Jimmy made a handful of appearances in that 1957-58 season. The player made a single appearance in the following season, in a 1-0 SFL 1st Division fixture over 3rd Lanark in November 1958. Thistle had a magnificent League Cup run that season, getting to the Final only to be beaten 5-1 by a strong Hearts side. Even with such a decisive score, there were questions asked about decisions that went against the Jags. Andy Kerr was in possession of the number 9 jersey for much of that season, and it was difficult for Jimmy to replace him. The following season was a sad one for everyone at Firhill, as manager Davie Meiklejohn tragically died of a heart attack during a match against Airdrie at Broomfield in August 1959. Jimmy got back into the side in these difficult times 4 days after Meiklejohn’s demise, in a League Cup encounter against Celtic on 26 August 1959. Thistle were beaten 2-0 at Firhill. Jimmy had his longest run of appearances that season, with 9 senior outings. He was given the left half berth, but Alex Wright and Sandy Brown later occupied that position. Jimmy also made numerous appearances for the Jags’ reserves during his time at Firhill, often in the outside left position. He used to travel to training with Ian Wilson, who was also from Shotts, and Jimmy became a P.E. teacher. He also played with East Stirlingshire and Berwick Rangers after leaving Thistle. |
| (DMAC) |
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