Venters Alec Image 1 Cowdenbeath 1932

Description

Cowdenbeath, Fife born inside forward Alec Venters played for Scottish junior clubs Southend Rovers in 1928 and St Andrews United in 1929 before joining Scottish League Cowdenbeath, where he made quite a sensation as a teenage prodigy. Indeed he won his first cap for Scotland when still a Cowdenbeath player in a 2-1 defeat to Ireland at Parkhead in September 1933, just turned 20 years old, before being signed by Glasgow Rangers in November 1933. He made his Rangers debut against Falkirk the same month, and helped them to win three Scottish League Championships in 1935, 1937 and 1939, when he scored 35 League goals in their successful campaign. In addition he played as Rangers beat Hamilton Academical 2-1 in the 1935 Scottish Cup Final and Third Lanark in the 1936 Final, before the Second World War severely curtailed his football career.

He also won two further Scotland caps while at Ibrox, both against England, playing in a 1-1 draw at Wembley in April 1936 and in a 2-1 defeat at Hampden Park in April 1939. Additionally he played 5 times for The Scottish League between October 1935 and August 1939, scoring on his final appearance in a 3-2 win over The Irish League at Windsor Park, Belfast.

He scored 102 goals in 201 appearances for Rangers including 18 against arch rivals Celtic, but he also scored a further 91 goals in wartime football for The ‘Gers, during the War he also played in four wartime internationals for Scotland. After the War he joined Raith Rovers in 1945 before a move to Third Lanark in 1946. In February 1947 he signed for First Division Blackburn Rovers, making his Football League debut against Bolton Wanderers the next month, scoring in a 2-1 victory. He stayed at Rovers for most of the remainder of the year, scoring 7 goals in 25 appearances, before re-joining Raith Rovers in December 1947, where he played until his retirement.

NB this particular portrait is from a series printed on to aluminium plate.