Barrie Alex Image 1 Sunderland 1905

Description

Parkhead, Glasgow born centre half Alex Barrie started with Glasgow Junior League club Parkhead in 1898, where he was capped three times by Scotland at junior international level in 1901 before joining Scottish League Second Division club St Bernard’s later that year, where he scored once in 12 appearances before being signed by First Division club Sunderland in the 1902 close season. He made his Football League debut at Stoke in November 1902, scoring his only League goal for Sunderland in his second match, a 4-2 win at Grimsby Town in January 1903.

He played five seasons for Sunderland but never truly established himself as a regular with the exception of 1905-06, when he made 27 of his total of 71 Sunderland appearances during the first two thirds of The Wearsiders’ campaign, scoring his only other goal for them in an FA Cup second round tie with Gainsborough Trinity in February 1906, however he lost his place at the end of the same month. He holds an interesting if unwanted achievement, when he was dismissed in a match against Everton at Goodison Park in November 1903, he became only the second Sunderland player ever to take an early bath!!

Barrie played only 10 more matches for Sunderland during 1906-07 before joining Glasgow Rangers in 1907, however he had to wait until January 1908 for his Rangers debut which came in a defeat at Airdrieonians. He scored his only goal for Rangers in a win over Heart of Midlothian the next month, but after a single season at Ibrox and a total of 14 appearances he joined Kilmarnock in the 1908 close season, where he was almost immediately made club captain and where he enjoyed four seasons of near ever present football with Killie, scoring 6 goals in 126 appearances for them before moving to Abercorn in 1912. The following season he helped the club win the Scottish Qualifying Cup; during their run in this competition the club got its record attendance when 7,000 spectators attended the semi-final match with Nithsdale Wanderers.

Barrie served as a corporal in the Highland Light Infantry during the First World War and was killed during the Battle of the Canal du Nord on 1st October 1918, just over five weeks before the armistice. He was buried in Flesquières Hill British Cemetery.