John Wark

John Wark is a Scottish former footballer who spent most of his playing time with Ipswich Town.

He began playing for them in 1975, and debuted against Leeds United. He won a record four Player of the Year awards, in 1981, 1989, 1991 and 1994 before becoming one of the four inaugural members of the club’s Hall of Fame. He was also awarded European Young Footballer of the Year in 1981.

In 1978, John played as part of the Ipswich Town squad when they won the FA Cup against Arsenal, then signed for Liverpool for £450,000 in 1984 and then returned to Ipswich Town in 1988 for £100,000

A versatile player, John played most of his professional games as a midfielder, although he sometimes played as a central defender and on occasion as a striker.

John represented Scotland in international football, winning 29 caps and scoring seven goals. This included selection for Scotland in the 1982 FIFA World Cup in which he made three appearances and scored twice, which made him the top goal scorer for Scotland.

During his playing career, John scored 179 goals in 679 appearances at Ipswich Town and scored 7 goals in 29 international appearances, he also appeared in the film Escape to Victory.

Since retiring as a professional player in 1996, he has continued to work for Ipswich Town, and he published his autobiography ‘Wark On’ in 2009.