Alexander “Sandy” Hall

Alexander Hall signed for Dundee F.C. in February, 1908, from Newcastle United. He arrived at Carolina Port with a glowing reputation. At the age of 27 he was well travelled, having racked up many miles from his hometown of Peterhead all the way to Canada, and back.

Sandy played for local teams, Peterhead and Buckie Thistle, whilst also working as a stonecutter, before travelling to Canada In 1901. He finally settled in Galt, near Toronto, which had a successful football team. He still earnt a living as a stonecutter, but became Galt F.C’s recognised striker.

The 1904 summer Olympics was held in St Louis, U.S.A. It was the first Olympics where medals were awarded in association football. Only three teams from two nations, U.S.A. and Canada, competed. Sandy, the only non-Canadian in Galt’s team, scored a hat-trick in a 7-0 victory against the Christian Brothers College. The following day they defeated St Rose Parish 4-0. This made Galt F.C. Olympic gold medal winners, and Sandy became Scotland’s first home-grown Olympic winner. One of the medals can be seen at the Canadian Soccer Hall of Fame.

A year later Sandy was back in Peterhead, where he was spotted by Edinburgh team, St Bernard’s, and became a professional player. Once again he had great success, this was noted by Newcastle United, who paid £200 to take him to Tyneside in 1907. Although he had a good start on a pre-season tour of Germany, he failed to become established in the first team, and by 1908 had been transferred to Dundee.

It took him a while to break out of the reserves, as Dundee had a settled front line. He finally made his mark in the 1910 Scottish cup run, when he scored a hat-trick in the quarter final against Motherwell, which finished 3-1. He also played in in the semi-final, but “Sailor” Hunter was the preferred striker for the final matches against Clyde. By the end of the season Portsmouth came in with an offer, and once more Hall was on the move.

On a visit home to Peterhead, in 1912, Sandy saved a young boy from drowning in the harbour, he was recognised for his bravery by the Carnegie Hero Fund and the Royal Humane Society.

During WW1 Sandy served in the Royal Garrison Artillery, Royal Engineers, and Tank Corps. After de-mob he returned to Peterhead, where he played, and coached, well into his forties. When he finally hung up his boots for good, he and his family emigrated to Toronto, Canada.