Mackie Alec Image 1 Middlesbrough 1905

Description

Auchterless, Aberdeenshire born Alec Mackie’s playing career was in Scotland in the early 1890’s, initially with local professional club Aberdeen in 1890 and Victoria United of Aberdeen in 1891. He then played for The Heatherley in 1892 and Inverness Thistle in 1893. But it was as a manager that he became well known in the football world.

Initially he joined the Glasgow Association. He then became club secretary at Inverness. He became manager of Sunderland in August 1899 during a purple period in their history, leading them to the 1901-02 League Championship, and not finishing worse than 3rd in his first 4 seasons at Roker Park. However his involvement in the Andy McCombie Scandal brought him a suspension imposed by the Football Association in November 1904.

He was one of seventy applicants for the Middlesbrough job after Jack Robson departed and his record at Roker Park convinced the board that he was the man for the job, starting work in June 1905. He managed Middlesbrough for a season, during which they finished 18th in the First Division. However following the football payments scandal at the end of 1905, he received a ban forbidding him from any active participation in football, unlike his predecessor who had the foresight to obtain a letter of absolution from the club chairman. However, Mackie was disillusioned with football by this point and so pre-empted the ban by voluntarily severing his interests.