Few footballers encapsulate the raw energy, aggression, and adaptability of Kenny Burns, a player whose career trajectory saw him switch from a no-nonsense defender to a hard-nosed striker and back again.
PART ONE
Born in Glasgow on 23 September 1953, Burns started his footballing education at Rangers, a club steeped in Scottish football history. Yet, despite the prestige of signing as an apprentice, he never played a first-team match, an early setback that might have crushed lesser characters. Instead, it became the making of him.
After being released in 1971 at the age of 17, Burns found himself at Birmingham City, where he initially played as a defender. However, football has a way of forcing adaptation, and when Bob Latchford departed in 1974, the club needed a striker. Burns answered the call with the same commitment and ferocity that would later define his career in defence, winning the club’s Player of the Year award that same season. His performances earned him a call-up to the Scotland national team, marking the first of his 20 international caps.
Burns was never one to shy away from a battle, and the 1974-75 season at Birmingham was no exception. It was a campaign that saw the men in blue shirts flirt with both promise and peril, with Burns at the heart of the action, for better or worse. From the outset, Birmingham struggled to establish any real rhythm, losing their opening three fixtures, including a humbling 3-0 defeat at home to newly promoted Middlesbrough.
If that loss sent an early warning, it was compounded by a 4-3 defeat to Leicester City, despite Burns opening his account for the season. Moreover, defeats against Leeds United and Carlisle United only added to the sense of foreboding. However, in keeping with the team’s unpredictability, there were glimmers of hope as well, such as a morale-boosting 1-0 away win at QPR and a thrilling 3-2 home victory over Derby County.
Nevertheless, Birmingham´s performances were rather inconsistent. Burns, playing alongside Trevor Francis, formed an attacking duo capable of both breathtaking brilliance and head-scratching frustration. Their partnership was in full swing against Arsenal in late September when Birmingham secured a 3-1 victory, with Burns finding the net. A fortnight later, Burns was on target again in a 3-0 demolition of Newcastle United, reinforcing his importance to the squad.
In contrast, there were dispiriting afternoons, not least a 4-1 thrashing at Everton and a series of home defeats that eroded momentum. Yet Burns remained a talismanic presence, his physicality and opportunism ensuring that Birmingham remained competitive, even if they failed to mount a significant challenge for the upper echelons of the table. Accordingly, his brace against Manchester City in a 4-0 rout further underlined his influence, proving that when Birmingham clicked, they could be a force to be reckoned with.
Still, the second half of the season saw the team gradually slide down the standings. A 3-1 victory over Liverpool just before Christmas lifted spirits, but defeats to Derby County, Ipswich Town, and Everton soon followed. Despite this, Burns continued to make his presence felt, scoring vital goals against Arsenal and Burnley in March, ensuring that City retained a respectable mid-table finish.
By the end of April, Birmingham had avoided relegation but failed to mount any serious push for honours. Burns, with his mix of power, aggression, and an eye for goal, had further established himself as a pivotal figure at St Andrew’s. He was, undoubtedly, a player who divided opinion; a man as likely to rattle an opponent’s shins as he was to rattle the net. However, one thing was beyond dispute—he never gave anything less than his all.
PART TWO
At the start of the 1975-76 term, optimism was quickly tempered by a string of poor results. A thrilling 3-3 draw away at Leicester City on the opening day suggested attacking promise, but successive defeats to Manchester United, Everton, and Middlesbrough plunged Birmingham into early trouble. What’s more, the goals had dried up, and for a team built on aggression and physicality, losing four of their first five matches was a damning indictment of their inability to impose themselves.
However, Burns’ influence began to grow as the season progressed. His first goal of the campaign came in a narrow 3-2 defeat at Coventry City in late November, a moment that showcased his knack for being in the right place at the right time. Correspondingly, his contribution to a crucial 2-1 victory over Derby County in December reinforced his growing importance to the team.
As the winter months set in, Birmingham oscillated between moments of defiance and lapses into mediocrity. A morale-boosting 3-1 victory over Arsenal in mid-November was a much-needed highlight, yet it was followed by a sobering 3-0 defeat away to Leeds United. Similarly, an impressive 3-1 win at Tottenham on Boxing Day hinted at a potential revival, but draws and losses soon reared their heads again. Burns, though, was ever-present, his physicality and determination ensuring that Birmingham never went down without a fight.
The turn of the year saw slight improvements, though inconsistency remained an issue. Victories against Manchester City, Middlesbrough, and West Ham provided hope, but frustrating defeats kept them hovering above the relegation zone. Ultimately, Birmingham avoided the drop, ending 19th in the standing with 33 points won from 42 games, three points above Wolves, who went down alongside Burnley and Sheffield United.
During the 1976-77 season, Burns continued to be a consistent performer for the team, regularly finding the back of the net. His aggressive playing style, combined with his strength and determination, made him a difficult opponent for defenders. He was capable of scoring in a variety of ways, whether through powerful strikes, headers, or instinctive finishes inside the box. His ability to link up with teammates and bring others into play added another dimension to Birmingham’s attacking threat.
Despite his individual performances, Birmingham endured a challenging campaign. The team struggled for consistency and was often unable to string together positive results. Managerial instability also played a role in their difficulties, as Willie Bell was dismissed midway through the season, with former England boss Sir Alf Ramsey stepping in to steady the ship. However, even with Ramsey’s experience, the club was unable to climb the league table significantly, finishing 13th in the First Division.
PART THREE
Football is often defined by sliding doors moments, and for Burns, one arrived in the summer of 1977 when Nottingham Forest, newly promoted to the First Division, secured his services for £150,000. While many expected him to continue leading the line, Brian Clough and Peter Taylor had other ideas. They saw beyond the rough-and-tumble striker and envisioned him as a commanding centre-half.
What followed was nothing short of remarkable. Partnering Larry Lloyd at the heart of Forest’s defence, Burns was an integral part of a side that shocked English football by winning the First Division title in their first season back in the top flight. His transformation from bustling centre-forward to imperious centre-back was so profound that he was named the FWA Footballer of the Year in 1977–78.
Winning the league was impressive, but what came next secured Burns and his Forest teammates’ place in footballing folklore. Under Clough’s guidance, Nottingham Forest conquered Europe not once but twice, lifting the European Cup in 1979 and 1980. Burns’ defensive resilience, his ability to read the game, and his sheer physical presence were instrumental in these triumphs.
In the 1979 UEFA Super Cup final, he even found himself on the scoresheet, netting in the second leg against Barcelona. It was a moment that encapsulated his unique versatility—both a destroyer at the back and a threat going forward when needed.
Beyond European glory, Burns also enjoyed domestic cup success, helping Forest secure two League Cups in successive seasons (1977–78, 1978–79). In the first of these victories, he even had the honour of lifting the trophy as stand-in captain, an indication of his importance to the team. However, injuries ruled him out of the following season’s final, a cruel twist of fate given his integral role in their success.
Despite further individual accolades—winning Nottingham Forest’s Player of the Year award again in 1980–81—Burns’ time at the City Ground was drawing to a close. As Clough looked to refresh his squad, Leeds United came calling, securing his services for £400,000.
At Elland Road, Burns’ combative style remained undimmed, and his contributions were recognised when he won the club’s Player of the Year award in 1982–83. However, with Leeds struggling to match past glories, his time in Yorkshire did not yield silverware.
Burns’ footballing journey continued with a move to Derby County in 1984, a club whose historic rivalry with Nottingham Forest added an intriguing layer to the transfer. His time at the Baseball Ground was short-lived, though, and brief loan spells at Notts County followed. The nomadic phase of his career continued with a season at Barnsley before an unexpected venture to Sweden’s IF Elfsborg.
After returning to England, Burns spent time in non-league football, taking on player-coach roles before finishing his professional involvement in the game as assistant manager at Telford United in 1993.
While Burns was a force to be reckoned with at club level, his international career with Scotland never quite reached the same heights. He won 20 caps for his country, featuring in the 1978 World Cup squad under Ally MacLeod. However, Scotland’s campaign was overshadowed by their infamous failure to progress beyond the group stage, despite a stunning victory over the Netherlands.
Kenny Burns was a victim of Scotland’s inconsistency—sometimes deployed in defence, other times in attack, yet never quite cementing a permanent role in the team. Nevertheless, his commitment to the cause was never in doubt, as he played with the same grit and determination that made him a legend at club level.