Irvine, a direct, left-sided forward, started his senior career with Celtic, but failed to break into the first team.
[1] Irvine had a successful spell with Motherwell, as he was their top scorer with 21 goals during their promotion season of 1981–82.
[1] Like his manager Davie Hay, Irvine left Motherwell soon after that success, choosing to join Hibs.
[1] Irvine was also initially successful with the Edinburgh club, forming a strike partnership with Bobby Thomson that led to him being the second top goalscorer in the Scottish Premier Division in 1983–84.
[1] After this, however, Irvine enjoyed less success, and he was loaned out to Falkirk before joining Ayr United.