Private Alexander McAllister 'Red and White'

Photo: Maureen Havers

John with bow tie, brothers Sandy and Thomas

Medal Index Card

© 2005-2009 David McKendrick with Thanks

Alexander (Sandy) McAllister was born at Kilmarnock in 1878, we believe at 10 Victoria Street, the son of John and Marion, McAllister, John was a Miner. In 1881, Alexander and two of his younger brothers Charles and Arthur were residing at 165 Watsonville Row, Motherwell, Lanarkshire, Scotland, with their grandmother, Janet McAllister, their grandfather had passed away by this time.

By 1901, Alexander and his recently married wife Isabel [born 1879] were residing at 4 William Street, Fulwell, Sunderland, and his profession was stated as a Professional Football player.

They had six children, Jane born 1901, Maud born 1902, Louise born 1903, Dyne born 1908 and their only son Leslie born 1910, and Nora, [Sinclair], born 16th March 1913, surviving relative, who resides in Hastings Hill, 2016. She was formerly chair to the Sunderland Townswomen's Guild.

Nora recently interviewed (2016) had said about her father:- Whoever scores for Sunderland today will be well rewarded but probably not in the way Nora’s dad was when he scored his first goal after over five years at the club: "He eventually scored a goal and got the piano" laughs Nora who explains: "Two of the directors were Mr. Ferry and Mr. Foster and they had this shop in Fawcett Street that sold pianos. As I understand it, it had been said in a jocular manner that if Mac ever scores a goal we’ll give him a piano.

"I was a trained singer and my elder sister Eileen [who died in April this year aged 102] was an accomplished pianist. The fact that the piano came into the family through my dad scoring a goal must have had a lot to do with it. The piano landed up in Belfast. My mother sold it to a brother on the understanding that she could buy it back but he ended up going to Belfast to Harland and Wolff to get work. Two or three of her brothers went there and of course we never got the piano back."

It has long been recorded that McAllister received a gold watch as well as a piano in recognition of scoring but Nora says: "I’ve never heard anything about him getting a gold watch but I remember my mother saying that he had a benefit match that he shared with another player and they got about £300 between them."

Money was in short supply in the McAllister household as Sandy sadly was one of the victims of the Great War: "I never knew him because I was born in 1913 and he went off to the First World War and died in France when I was only about four" reflects Nora who disagrees with the commonly recorded claim that her dad died of food poisoning: "I heard from my elder sister that it was Brights Disease he died of. That’s something they got from wading through water so I don’t think it was food poisoning.

"I’ve only one photograph of my mam as a young woman and none of my dad but in those days people couldn’t afford cameras could they?" adds Nora whose picture of her mother, Isobel Sophia, takes pride of place in her front room. "She only had about 10 shillings (50p) a week in pension plus five shillings for each child. A lawyer wrote in the News of the World every week and you could ask him things so my mother wrote in and he saw into it for her and she got more money after that which is when she started to get on her feet. Somebody told her that if she found out how much my dad’s wages were when he was playing football or how much he’d earned at Ryhope Colliery it would help.

"I’d be about 12 or 13 when I started to become aware that my dad had played for Sunderland and of course as I got older all the lads were football mad and we all used to go to the match as part of a big crowd. I used to go with my brother Leslie. He was called Leslie after my father’s team mate Jim Leslie. I used to go to the matches from when I was about 16. I used to go in the boys end. We used to go when it was snowing or pouring with rain. They never thought about cancelling the match then and if you got wet well you got wet. We went as often as we could as long as we could afford it."

One of the players Nora watched was Bert Johnston, a Scottish centre half like her dad. He played an important role in Nora’s life: "Bert Johnston gave me away at my wedding" she says explaining that her husband was in the RAF and that they had a son while she became friends with another star of the era too: "I knew Bobby Gurney because his wife Mollie was in the Townswomen’s Guild. She was a very good friend of mine. She would help with all kinds of things and whenever we had jumble sales Bobby would come along and carry things about for us."

Johnston and Gurney would help Sunderland win the FA Cup for the first time in 1937. Born a month before the club’s first cup final appearance in 1913 Nora recalls: "In 1937 I had a cousin who got married on the day of the cup final and my father in law wouldn’t go because he had tickets for the match."

Although Sunderland had no cup joy in Sandy McAllister’s era he did enjoy success: “I knew he’d played in the first ever game at Roker Park and that he won a medal for winning the league at Sunderland” says Nora. "After the war my mother was very hard up because then there was no help at all and she had six children to bring up. My elder sister died when she was 20 of what we now call Multiple Sclerosis but then it was just called nerves. In those days if you had anything to sell you had to sell it before you got any help at all so my mother sold the medal to my Uncle Dick who was her brother on the understanding that she could buy it back if she was in a position to but she never did and I believe he gave it to his grandson. The last we heard of it my Uncle Dick was in an old people’s home at South Hylton and the brother of my boyfriend at the time had gone to see somebody and he saw this medal and he said ‘Leslie McAllister should have that’ but he never did. I can imagine my Uncle Dick might have given it to the club where it is now".

"I can remember the family talking about someone called Doig [1890s ‘keeper Ted Doig] as well and Billy Hogg [featured in this series in the first programme of this season] – I know that name. I know they used to train along at Newcastle Road and played there before Roker Park was built. I remember my mother talking about a match when the supporters had climbed on the roof and people had fallen through.

I’m sorry Eileen isn’t here to hear all this because she was football mad and she used to listen to all the matches on the radio. She’d gone blind altogether but every Monday when I went over to the home to see her the first thing she’d talk about was how Sunderland had gone on at the weekend. She knew our dad had played for Sunderland and she knew him because she’d been about eight when he left where I was only a baby."

Delighted to learn her dad played in an important Test Match (Play Off) victory over Manchester United (Then called Newton Heath) she says: "I know of Play Offs now but I didn’t know he’d played in one. Eee I never knew he’d played in such an important game as that. I’ve a great grandson called Ryan Sinclair who is football mad. He lives at Pennywell and plays for Penshaw Braves. He supports Manchester United so wait ‘til he comes to see me I’m going to tell him his Great Great Grandad helped Sunderland beat Manchester United!"

Source: The Red and White magazine with thanks to SAFC, for permission to quote from their magazine.

Alexander was a keen and promising footballer and played for Sunderland A.F.C., he played in the very first match at the old Sunderland Ground at Roker Park [now demolished], on Saturday, September 10th, 1898, which was opened by the Marquees of Londonderry. The Sunderland team for that match was:- Sunderland: Doig, Bach, McNeill, Ferguson, Mcallister, Wilson, Crawford, Leslie, Morgan, Chalmers and Saxton. Liverpool: Storer, A Goldie, Dunlop, Howell, Raisback, W. Goldie, Cox, Walker, Allan, Morgan and Robertson. Leslie scored the only goal of the Match. 1-0 to Sunderland.

Source: Sunderland Echo Tuesday 30/09/1919.

In his spare time, however, he played for Kilmarnock and, on February 20th, 1897, the "sturdy" teenager made his debut for Sunderland against Stoke City in a 4-1 win.

"He won his spurs in the 1897 Test Matches, which he has worn ever since with great success," one sports pundit wrote of the ‘heavily built and strong’ player in 1902.Indeed, Sandy – a short, stocky centre-half – went on to play in the first game at Roker Park and was an indispensable part of the 1902 Championship-winning side as well.

His seven-year career with the Rokermen saw him make 215 appearances – receiving a gold watch and a piano from fans after scoring the first of five goals for the club. But he finally left Sunderland for Derby County in 1904, followed by Oldham in 1905 and Spennymoor Utd in 1909. By 1911, he was back in Sunderland – as a miner.

By 1911, Alexander and his family had moved backed to Sunderland, now residing at 73 Broadsheath Terrace, Southwick. His occupation was a Coal Hewer, below ground.

On the 5th November 1898, the Sunderland Team were playing Wolves and McAllister again was picked for the team.

On Monday 2nd October 1899, Sunderland were playing Sheffield United at Bramall Lane Ground, Sheffield. The Sunderland team travelled by train at 9.10 am, Sheffield United were top of the table, Sunderland were second. McAllister was named in the team.

On the 24th April 1899, McAllister as a Midfield player, was signed up by Sunderland for the next Season.

The first practice of the Sunderland Football Club took place at 6.30 at Roker Park on the 15th August 1899. and again McAllister was in the squad.

On Friday, 25th August 1899, the new season ticket prices, were announced, £1 11s 6d, [Vice-presidents enclosure]. covered stand, £1 1s, press box stand, 17s 6d, and goal ends, 10s 6d.

When Britain declared war on Germany, the 36-year-old enlisted in the 20th Battalion [1st Tyneside Scottish], Northumberland Fusiliers at Newcastle around the 21st October 1914, and was in 'D' Company. Alexander was wounded at the Battle of the Somme on the 2nd July 1916.

He was sent to the Lord Derby Hospital, Winwick Hospital, north of Warrington to recover from his wounds.

Source: Newcastle Journal Thursday 13/07/1916.

"Mrs McAllister, 73 Broadsheath Terrace, Southwick, has been officially informed that her husband Private Alex McAllister, N.F., was wounded in action on July 2nd, and has been admitted to Lord Derby's Hospital at Warrington".

He returned, however, to front-line fighting, serving in the 11th (Service) Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers, and then the 1st Battalion finally ending up in the 10th (Service) Battalion Northumberland Fusiliers. He went Absent without leave [AWOL] on the 7th and 8th March 1915. [Reason unknown], this was while the Battalion was still at Alnwick Camp.

He was in France and Italy. Tragically, Sandy died of Bright's Disease, in February 1918 and was buried at Giavera Cemetery.

[The Third photograph on the right, was left on his headstone a few years ago].

When Alexander was killed a War Gratuity of £14 10s was paid to his widow plus the 6 children.

Alexander McAllister is remembered at Sunderland on S140.155, and in S140.048 part 8, page 266.

If anybody knows who placed the photo on the Headstone please let us know.
Follow up reply about the above photograph. it was placed on his grave by his nephew James & niece Nora McAllister (children of Sandy’s younger brother John) who were holidaying on a cruise out of Venice Italy and made the trek out to the cemetery to pay their respects. I have reached out to their family (who emigrated to Australia in the 1960s) as I know they have been asked this question quite a few times online over the years but nobody ever bothers to reply to them or acknowledge the email. James has since passed away but Nora still lives in New South Wales Australia. If you would actually like more information about who the other people are , I can reach out to her again if you like via her nephew.
Thanks
Ross SImpson
Australia

The Photograph shows John with the bow tie, his brothers Sandy and Thomas at their fathers Funeral.
Source : Email from Ross Simpson. 2020.

The Italian Campaign in WW1
Footballers killed in WW1
The CWGC entry for Private McAllister