Hughie Gallacher

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Hugh Kilpatrick "Hughie" Gallacher (2 February 1903 – 11 June 1957) was a Scottish football player in the 1920s and 1930s.

Gallacher was one of the famous Wembley Wizards who beat England 5-1 at Wembley Stadium in 1928. The pocket-sized forward was a brilliant goalscorer of muscular strength and natural skill.

The talent he showed on the field however, was sometimes overshadowed by his arrogance and temperamental disposition, which often led to disruption and bad feelings behind the scenes. Capped 19 times for Scotland, he scored a phenomenal 22 goals for his country, a scoring rate of more than a goal a game.

Gallacher was born in Bellshill, North Lanarkshire in 1903. In 1920, he signed his first professional terms with Dumfries club, Queen of the South, but within a year he had transferred to Airdrieonians where he miraculously inspired the tiny Lanarkshire outfit to three Scottish League runners-up positions and a Scottish Cup in four seasons.

He moved south of the border to English club Newcastle United F.C. in 1925 (his departure from Airdrie prompted demonstrations from fans) and made an immediate impact, scoring 23 goals in 19 games as captain of the club.

The following season Gallacher's powerful leadership qualities took Newcastle to the League Championship for the first time since 1909, although his criticism of some of the less talented players in the team did not go unnoticed. He finally left Tyneside in 1930, joining London-based Chelsea F.C. for five seasons in a £10,000 deal, before ending his career with a series of one year spells at Derby County F.C., Notts County F.C., Grimsby Town F.C. and Gateshead F.C.

A hot-headed and controversial character, he retired from football having scored 387 goals in 541 Scottish and English League games. His life ended tragically in 1957 when he committed suicide on a railway line in Gateshead the day before he was due to appear in court on charges of maltreating his son.