Ian Dickson (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Ian William Dickson was a Scottish
professional football
er whose played as a forward. He played for Queen of the South
, Aston Villa
and Middlesbrough
. He was the grandfather of another Ian Dickson, the Australian television and radio personality.
both played in the trial games that were arranged when the newly formed Queen of the South was looking for players in summer 1919.
After the four trial matches, Queen of the South's first ever game took place on 16 August 1919. Invitations were sent to local councillors and magistrates and the presence of Dumfries Town Band added to the sense of occasion. The opposition was Sanquhar
side Nithsdale Wanderers
and the challenge game ended 2 - 2. Among those who played in this first game was Dickson.
Halliday joined Queens in January 1920.
With this being Queen's first season after formation their fixtures were challenge games and local cup competitions. This included the Dumfries Charity Cup played over three weekends in May. On May 8, Queens thrashed Dumfries F.C. 7-1. A week later Queens beat Solway Star 4-0 in the semi final before facing Dalbeattie Star in the final.
A then record crowd of 4500 (many watching from the grandstand roof and other high points) watched the game. An early Halliday shot went wide following good lead up work involving Dickson. However it was Dalbeattie's physical style of play which took the lead. Queens equalised through Willie McCall (later of Blackburn Rovers) before Halliday's efforts were successful. One Halliday shot hit the post, another missed by inches, before he put Queens ahead five minutes before half time. Connell scored Queens' third goal one minute into the second half before Halliday beat Borthwick to cross for McCall to bring up a 4-1 final score.
Season 1920-21 proceeded in a similar vein with a combination of challenge games and minor cup ties. The Potts Cup, the Southern Counties Challenge Cup and the Charity all ended up at Palmerston Park
. The Scottish Qualifying Cup seen Queens make the semis.
Dickson was transferred from Queens in January 1921 to Aston Villa
. Jimmy McKinnell
from Dalbeattie
, Willie McCall and Tom Wylie
were all sold to Blackburn Rovers
at the same time and this combined with the sale of Ian Dickson to Aston Villa helped to fund Queens' purchase of Palmerston Park
in 1921 for £1,500.
Dickson was replaced at Queens by Hughie Gallacher
.
Dickson's 31 goals from 76 league games and 8 goals from 7 cup matches give him a total return of 83 games scoring 39 goals.
in December 1923 for a fee of £3000. Before the end of that season, Dickson scored 5 league goals. Despite joining half way through the season this was only 3 less than top scorer for the season Andy Wilson. That season saw relegation for Middlesbrough from England's top division.
In the 1924/25 season, Dickson finished as joint top scorer at Middlesbrough with 7 goals, along with Owen Williams
.
Decades later, Bernie Slaven
joined Dickson as a player to play for Boro after leaving Queen of the South.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
professional 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...
er whose played as a forward. He played for Queen of the South
Queen of the South F.C.
Queen of the South Football Club is a Scottish professional football club founded in 1919 and located in Dumfries. The club currently plays in the Scottish First Division, the second tier of Scottish football. They are officially nicknamed The Doonhamers, but usually referred to as Queens or QoS...
, Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
and Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
. He was the grandfather of another Ian Dickson, the Australian television and radio personality.
Queen of the South
Dickson also had spells at Maxwelltown United and Cheshaw Juniors. Dickson and Dave HallidayDave Halliday
David "Dave" Halliday was a Scottish footballing prolific goalscorer and trophy winning manager. His 38 goals in 1923-24 made him top scorer in Scotland's top flight that season and 43 goals in 1928–29 gave him the same distinction in England's top flight that season. He scored 376 senior goals as...
both played in the trial games that were arranged when the newly formed Queen of the South was looking for players in summer 1919.
After the four trial matches, Queen of the South's first ever game took place on 16 August 1919. Invitations were sent to local councillors and magistrates and the presence of Dumfries Town Band added to the sense of occasion. The opposition was Sanquhar
Sanquhar
Sanquhar is a town on the River Nith in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. It lies north of Thornhill and west of Moffat. It is a Royal Burgh.Sanquhar is notable for its tiny post office , claimed to be the oldest working post office in the world...
side Nithsdale Wanderers
Nithsdale Wanderers F.C.
Nithsdale Wanderers Football Club are a senior football club based in Sanquhar, Dumfries and Galloway. Their home ground is Lorimer Park and they currently play in the South of Scotland Football League....
and the challenge game ended 2 - 2. Among those who played in this first game was Dickson.
Halliday joined Queens in January 1920.
With this being Queen's first season after formation their fixtures were challenge games and local cup competitions. This included the Dumfries Charity Cup played over three weekends in May. On May 8, Queens thrashed Dumfries F.C. 7-1. A week later Queens beat Solway Star 4-0 in the semi final before facing Dalbeattie Star in the final.
A then record crowd of 4500 (many watching from the grandstand roof and other high points) watched the game. An early Halliday shot went wide following good lead up work involving Dickson. However it was Dalbeattie's physical style of play which took the lead. Queens equalised through Willie McCall (later of Blackburn Rovers) before Halliday's efforts were successful. One Halliday shot hit the post, another missed by inches, before he put Queens ahead five minutes before half time. Connell scored Queens' third goal one minute into the second half before Halliday beat Borthwick to cross for McCall to bring up a 4-1 final score.
Season 1920-21 proceeded in a similar vein with a combination of challenge games and minor cup ties. The Potts Cup, the Southern Counties Challenge Cup and the Charity all ended up at Palmerston Park
Palmerston Park
Palmerston Park is a multi-purpose stadium on Terregles Street in Dumfries, south west Scotland. The site of the ground was formerly a farm called Palmers Toun. This is on the Maxwelltown side of the River Nith in Dumfries. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of...
. The Scottish Qualifying Cup seen Queens make the semis.
- In the Qualifying Cup first round CreetownCreetownCreetown is a small seaport town in the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, which forms part of the Galloway in the Dumfries and Galloway council area in south-west Scotland. Its population is about 750 people. It is situated near the head of Wigtown Bay, 18 mi. west of Castle Douglas...
Volunteers were thumped 9-0. WhithornWhithornWhithorn is a former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, about ten miles south of Wigtown. The town was the location of the first recorded Christian church in Scotland, Candida Casa : the 'White [or 'Shining'] House', built by Saint Ninian about 397.-Eighth and twelfth centuries:A...
were them similarly swatted away on the end of a 12-1 defeat (Dickson hit four). Six were then put past Mid-Annandale by Queens and then five against SolwaySolway-Places:New Zealand*Solway, New Zealand, a suburb of MastertonUnited Kingdom*Solway Firth, the inlet between the north west of England and southern Scotland*Solway Moss, lowland peat bog in Cumbria, England, near the Scottish border...
Star. A 0-0 draw against JohnstoneJohnstoneJohnstone is a town in the council area of Renfrewshire and larger historic county of the same name in the west central Lowlands of Scotland.The town lies three miles west of neighbouring Paisley and twelve miles west of the centre of the city of Glasgow...
came before a 1-0 Queens replay victory. Queen's cup run then ended with the defeat to East FifeEast Fife F.C.East Fife Football Club are a Scottish football club based in the Fife coastal town of Methil...
.
- In the Challenge Cup Dickson's 23rd minute goal opened the scoring in the final in wintry conditions played at ThornhillThornhill-People:*Alan Thornhill, British sculptor*Alan Thornhill, British Playwright, Leader of Oxford-Movement*Batt Thornhill, Irish sportsperson*Claude Thornhill, American pianist, arranger and bandleader*Frederick Thornhill, English cricketer...
. After Gray of Queens knocked the Nithsdale Wanderers goalkeeper off his feet in the second half, around half a dozen unruly Wanderers' fans invaded the pitch brandishing flags and sticks. A shout of 'come on' to other fans was thankfully disregarded. Police intervened to remove the fans from the pitch. Unsporting tactics from Wanderers and a disputed penalty followed before Gray knocked the goalkeeper over again, sparking a similar crowd disruption as before. Dickson's goal proved to be the winner.
- In the Potts Cup Queens beat Stranraer 3-0 before a 2-1 replay victory in the final against Nithsdale Wanderers (the initial game was 2-2)
- In the Charity Cup final again Queens were the nemesis of Nithsdale Wanderers with a 3-1 victory to bring the season to an end
Dickson was transferred from Queens in January 1921 to Aston Villa
Aston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
. Jimmy McKinnell
Jimmy McKinnell
Jimmy McKinnell from Dalbeattie was a professional footballer who played for Dumfries club Queen of the South F.C. and Blackburn Rovers.Jimmy McKinnell moved from Queen of the South to Blackburn Rovers in 1920. He made seven appearances and scored three goals. McKinnell was one of the three players...
from Dalbeattie
Dalbeattie
Dalbeattie is a town in Dumfries and Galloway , Scotland.Dalbeattie is situated in a wooded valley on the Urr Water east of Castle Douglas and south west of Dumfries...
, Willie McCall and Tom Wylie
Tom Wylie
Tom Wylie from Darvel was a professional footballer who played for Dumfries club Queen of the South F.C. and Blackburn Rovers.Tom Wylie made nine appearances and scored three goals for Queens. He moved from Queen of the South to Blackburn Rovers in 1921. Wylie was the third of the three players to...
were all sold to Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....
at the same time and this combined with the sale of Ian Dickson to Aston Villa helped to fund Queens' purchase of Palmerston Park
Palmerston Park
Palmerston Park is a multi-purpose stadium on Terregles Street in Dumfries, south west Scotland. The site of the ground was formerly a farm called Palmers Toun. This is on the Maxwelltown side of the River Nith in Dumfries. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of...
in 1921 for £1,500.
Dickson was replaced at Queens by Hughie Gallacher
Hughie Gallacher
Hugh Kilpatrick "Hughie" Gallacher was a Scottish football player in the 1920s and 1930s. In 624 senior games, Gallacher scored 463 times....
.
Aston Villa
In his first season at Aston Villa, Dickson scored two goals from his eight appearances. It was, however, in the 1921/22 season that Villa Park saw the best of him when he scored 28 goals from his 42 appearances, making him Villa's top scorer that season and helping the team to finish 5th in England's top division.Dickson's 31 goals from 76 league games and 8 goals from 7 cup matches give him a total return of 83 games scoring 39 goals.
- Ian Dickson Aston Villa appearances and goals by season.
# Season Appearances Goals 1 1920/21 8 2 2 1921/22 42 28 3 1922/23 31 7 4 1923/24 2 1
Middlesbrough
Dickson left Aston Villa for MiddlesbroughMiddlesbrough F.C.
Middlesbrough Football Club , also known as Boro, are an English football club based in Middlesbrough, who play in the Football League Championship. Formed in 1876, they have played at the Riverside Stadium since August 1995, their third ground since turning professional in 1889...
in December 1923 for a fee of £3000. Before the end of that season, Dickson scored 5 league goals. Despite joining half way through the season this was only 3 less than top scorer for the season Andy Wilson. That season saw relegation for Middlesbrough from England's top division.
In the 1924/25 season, Dickson finished as joint top scorer at Middlesbrough with 7 goals, along with Owen Williams
Owen Williams (footballer)
Owen Williams was an English football player most notable for his career with Clapton Orient and Middlesbrough. He also played twice for the England national football team.-Playing career:...
.
Decades later, Bernie Slaven
Bernie Slaven
Bernard Joseph "Bernie" Slaven is a Scottish-born former Republic of Ireland international footballer. A striker, with 162 goals in 423 league games, in a 12 year career, he also earned seven caps for the Republic of Ireland....
joined Dickson as a player to play for Boro after leaving Queen of the South.