James Simmonetti – The Jimmy Johnstone Academy
Thu, May 23rd 2019 at 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Mr Simmonetti will address the members on the work of The Jimmy Johnston Academy of Football
H&R: Jim Peat & John Robson
VoT: Ian St John
Jim Simmonetti was tonight’s guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Motherwell and Wishaw and his talk was about the Jimmy Johnstone Academy.
Jim was born and brought up in the Blackhill area of Glasgow. In addition to working full-time in one of Lord Haughey’s enterprises, Jim has also been a football coach working with Clyde and Aberdeen.
In 2002, when Jimmy Johnstone was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease, Lord Haughey asked “Simmo”, as Jim Simmonetti is also known, to “look after” Jinky’s needs. At the same time Clyde were releasing a large number of their youth players, who were deemed not skilful enough, and Jinky asked Simmo to form a football team with them and this was the basis of the now, very successful, Jimmy Johnstone Academy. The team lost every match in its first year but Jinky said the players had to cultivate relationships with each other and their trainers, and, after some time, the team won all its domestic competitions as well as some international ones.
The Academy is based at Cathkin Park and over 1,500 players have passed through its ranks since its formation with over 64,000 youngsters playing on the pitches. The clubhouse is filled with Jimmy Johnstone memorabilia on its walls and it helps the Football Memories charity in its work with those suffering from Dementia. The Academy Trustees are Lord Haughey, Jimmy’s wife Agnes, the Lisbon Lions and Willie Henderson.
Simmo then regaled members of some amusing stories about Jinky’s relationships with Rod Stewart, Willie Henderson, Bertie Auld, Joe McBride and many other football ‘greats’. P.P. Ian St John proposed the vote of thanks.
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