Mark McAllister

Mark McAllister (born 13 February 1971 in Inverness) is a former professional footballer who played for Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Scottish League.

Early career

McAllister is the son of former Press and Journal editor Bill McAllister. He began his career playing in the Highland League for Caledonian in 1988 at the age of 17. As a left back, McAllister was known for his forward runs and combative tackling as well as scoring important goals and spent a short spell at Reading under manager Ian Branfoot.

Inverness Caledonian Thistle

In 1994, when Caledonian and Inverness Thistle merged to form Inverness Caledonian Thistle, McAllister was automatically transferred to the new club from Caledonian. Initially he played as a left wing-back before adopting a central defender role under the management of former Soviet Union and Dynamo Kiev player Sergei Baltacha.

McAllister made 138 appearances for Inverness Caledonian and scored 9 goals.

During the club's inaugural season, McAllister made 39 out of a possible 40 appearances and was presented with both the Supporters Player of the Year and the Players' Player of the Year trophies. In the club's second season, under the management of former Manchester United player, Steve Paterson, McAllister became the first Inverness Caledonian Thistle player to achieve 50 first team appearances in the Scottish League pages