 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alexander Herd[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1911-11-08)8 November 1911 | ||
| Place of birth | Bowhill,Fife, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 21 August 1982(1982-08-21) (aged 70) | ||
| Place of death | Dumfries, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Inside forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Hearts of Beath | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1928–1933 | Hamilton Academical | 85 | (41) |
| 1933–1948 | Manchester City | 257 | (107) |
| 1948–1951 | Stockport County | 111 | (35) |
| Total | 453 | (183) | |
| International career | |||
| 1942 | Scotland (wartime)[1][3] | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Alexander Herd (8 November 1911 – 21 August 1982) was a Scottish professionalfootballer. Born inBowhill,Fife, he played as a forward forHamilton Academical,Manchester City andStockport County. Herd also represented Scotland in a wartime international match.
Herd was born in Bowhill, in Fife, Scotland in 1911. His football career began atHamilton Academicals in the Scottish League. In 1933 he transferred to the English teamManchester City who were then in the first division.
When Herd signed forManchester City, the team includedEngland InternationalsEric Brook,Sam Cowan,Jackie Bray,Frank Swift andFred Tilson and formerScotland captainJimmy McMullan. His debut for City came in a 1–0 defeat toBlackpool. Herd scored his first goal for City in a 2–1 victory againstDerby County. The outside rightErnie Toseland scored the other goal for City. In his first season for the Manchester team Herd played in 14 league matches and scored 7 goals. He was also part of the City team which was defeated 3–0 byEverton in the1933 FA Cup Final. In his second season at the club, the 1933–34 season, Herd was City's top scorer with 17 goals. He was also part of the City team which beatPortsmouth 2–1 in the1934 FA Cup Final with two goals fromFred Tilson.
In the 1934–35 football season Herd scored 14 goals and City finished fourth in the league, ten points behind championsArsenal. Herd was City's third top scorer that season behindFred Tilson who scored 18 goals andEric Brook who scored 17 goals. In the following season, Herd was Manchester City's third top scorer with 10 goals, behindEric Brook who scored 13 andFred Tilson who scored 11.Matt Busby andSam Cowan had left the City team in this season butSam Barkas had been brought in fromBradford City andPeter Doherty was bought fromBlackpool. Doherty had an immediate impact on the team. Doherty scored two goals, Brook scored a hat trick and Herd and Toseland each scored one goal as City defeated Bolton Wanderers 7–0 in March of that season. Herd also scored a brace in a 6–0 victory againstMiddlesbrough.
In the 1936–37 football season Herd was part of the first Manchester City side to win the League. The team went on an unbeaten run after Christmas, winning 14 times and drawing 6 games. The championship was won at Maine Road with a 4–1 victory overSheffield Wednesday. Herd was City's third highest scorer that season behindPeter Doherty who scored 30 goals andEric Brook who scored 20. In the 1937–38 football season Herd was part of the City team that were relegated from the first division despite scoring more goals than any other team. Herd was again City's third highest scorer that season with 12 goals. In the 1938–39 season he was City's top scorer with 20 goals. The team finished fourth in division two that season, six points behind winnersBlackburn Rovers. The second world war interrupted Herd's football career but he continued playing afterwards and scored 11 goals for City in both the 1945–46 and 1946–47 football seasons. His final season with the Manchester team was the 1947–48 football season. His last goal for the club came in a 3–0 victory againstStoke City. In 257 league games for City Herd had scored 107 goals. He also appeared in the 3 games in season 1939–40 expunged from the records.[4]
In 1948 Herd joinedStockport County on a free transfer. In 111 appearances for Stockport he scored 35 goals. He also made history by playing alongside his son,David Herd, in a 2–0 win againstHartlepool United on 5 May 1951, in the1950–51 season of theFootball League Third Division North.[5] He died in Scotland in 1982 at the age of 70.
Herd was one of three members of his family to gain recognition for their footballing skills atnational level. He played for Scotland in one of the (unofficial)wartime international matches, a 5–4 win againstEngland in April 1942.[6] His elder brotherSandy, a left-half withHeart of Midlothian, played for Scotland in the 1930s and his sonDavid, theArsenal striker, represented Scotland five times between 1959 and 1961.[7]
Herd is listed as one of Manchester City's fifty greatest players in Ian Penney's bookThe Essential History of Manchester City.[8]