Alex Elder
Encyclopedia
Alexander "Alex" Russell Elder (born April 25, 1941) is a retired Northern Irish
football
left back, who played for Burnley
.
He was said to plays a very mature game for someone with so little experience of top-class football. Although not quick on the turn, he timed his tackles well and invariably made good use of the ball.
Championship jigsaw, signing aged 17 in January 1959 for £5,000 from Irish League club Glentoran.
He spent the remainder of the 1958/59 season in the Burnley reserves, remaining there when the 1959/60 season began.
By the eighth game of that season he made his first team debut against Preston and the great Tom Finney
. Despite a 1-0 defeat Elder played well enough to retain his place and played in all but one of the remaining games that season. The 1959-60 season brought Burnley its second, and to date last, league championship. After a tense run-in with Wolves and Spurs, the other main title contenders, Burnley clinched the championship at Maine Road with a 2-1 victory on May 2, 1960.
Elder admitted that he was fortunate as a young player to come into a side that included so many great players - including Jimmy Adamson
and Jimmy McIlroy
.
Elder played in Burnley's European Cup campaign the following season and then in the FA Cup Final Wembley side of 1962.
He forged a formidable full back partnership with John Angus and the two were only separated when Elder broke an ankle in pre-season training in 1963.
In July 1965, Elder succeeded Brian Miller
as club captain.
He was injured in pre season training at Stoke and persistent knee problems dogged his time in the Potteries. However, he did make 83 league appearances for Stoke.
After leaving Stoke he joined Leek Town
.
game in Wrexham against Wales.
He won 34 caps while at Burnley and a further six after he transferred to Stoke. He also represented Northern Ireland at B, Under 23 and Schooboy level.
Northern Ireland national football team
The Northern Ireland national football team represents Northern Ireland in international association football. Before 1921 all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association...
football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
left back, who played for Burnley
Burnley F.C.
Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...
.
He was said to plays a very mature game for someone with so little experience of top-class football. Although not quick on the turn, he timed his tackles well and invariably made good use of the ball.
Burnley
Elder was the very last piece in Harry PottsHarry Potts
Harold "Harry" Potts was an English football player and manager.-Early life:Born in Hetton-le-Hole, County Durham, as was another well-known name in football, Bob Paisley. The duo spent much of their childhood playing various sports, but it was football that Potts loved most...
Championship jigsaw, signing aged 17 in January 1959 for £5,000 from Irish League club Glentoran.
He spent the remainder of the 1958/59 season in the Burnley reserves, remaining there when the 1959/60 season began.
By the eighth game of that season he made his first team debut against Preston and the great Tom Finney
Tom Finney
Sir Thomas Finney, OBE is a former English footballer, famous for his loyalty to his league club, Preston North End, and for his performances in the English national side....
. Despite a 1-0 defeat Elder played well enough to retain his place and played in all but one of the remaining games that season. The 1959-60 season brought Burnley its second, and to date last, league championship. After a tense run-in with Wolves and Spurs, the other main title contenders, Burnley clinched the championship at Maine Road with a 2-1 victory on May 2, 1960.
Elder admitted that he was fortunate as a young player to come into a side that included so many great players - including Jimmy Adamson
Jimmy Adamson
James "Jimmy" Adamson was an English professional footballer and football manager. He was born in Ashington, Northumberland...
and Jimmy McIlroy
Jimmy McIlroy
James "Jimmy" McIlroy MBE is a former football player, regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of Burnley Football Club.-At Burnley:...
.
Elder played in Burnley's European Cup campaign the following season and then in the FA Cup Final Wembley side of 1962.
He forged a formidable full back partnership with John Angus and the two were only separated when Elder broke an ankle in pre-season training in 1963.
In July 1965, Elder succeeded Brian Miller
Brian Miller (footballer)
Brian George Miller was a former professional footballer and England international who played as a wing back....
as club captain.
Stoke City
Elder was just 26 when in August 1967 Burnley accepted £50,000 from Stoke City. While he was reluctant to leave, he admitted that his face did not fit in with the new coach, former teammate Jimmy Adamson.He was injured in pre season training at Stoke and persistent knee problems dogged his time in the Potteries. However, he did make 83 league appearances for Stoke.
After leaving Stoke he joined Leek Town
Leek Town F.C.
Leek Town Football Club is an English football club based in Leek, Staffordshire, currently playing in the Northern Premier League Division One South...
.
International career
In April 1960 Elder made his international debut for Northern Ireland in a Home International ChampionshipBritish Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
game in Wrexham against Wales.
He won 34 caps while at Burnley and a further six after he transferred to Stoke. He also represented Northern Ireland at B, Under 23 and Schooboy level.