George Miller, who died on Boxing Day, 2008, aged 69, was a Scottish Cup winner with Dunfermline Athletic F.C. and later led the side to promotion as its manager.

Born in Larkhall on 20 May, 1939, George Miller was signed by Dunfermline from the junior side Royal Albert a few days before his 20th birthday.

As a left-half, he made his debut for the first team in August 1959 and was an established player in the side by the time Jock Stein took over towards the end of the season. Under the guidance of the great man, he became one of the first players in Scottish football to act as a sweeper.

With Stein in charge, the side reached the final of the Scottish Cup in 1961 against all the odds. Miller claimed his place in Dunfermline folklore when he helped his side beat Celtic 2-0 in a replay.

The victory gave Dunfermline the chance to play in Europe, and he excelled himself in 13 consecutive European appearances, including some of the greatest games in the club’s history. He notched up 24 goals for the Athletic, the most important of which was against Everton when he hammered home a low 20-yard shot to level the scores on aggregate and set the Pars up for a famous victory in the Fairs Cup.

He moved to Wolverhampton Wanderers in October 1964 for a lucrative fee of £28,500, but failed to settle in England and returned to Scotland after 13 months. He then played for Heart of Midlothian, reaching his second Scottish Cup final in 1968, but lost out to his old team Dunfermline.

He ended his playing days with Falkirk before taking over as manager of Dunfermline in 1972. With Miller in charge, the Pars were promoted in 1972/73 as the highest scoring side in Britain. He also managed Falkirk from 1976-78.

Jim Leishman, who played for Dunfermline between 1970 and 1977, paid tribute to his former manager, who died of cancer, saying: "He was a special man to me because he had so much faith in me. There was a huge transition when he came."