Archie Gray
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Archibald Colin "Archie" Gray (August 24, 1878[1] – ?) was a Scottish footballer.
Gray was born in Govan, Glasgow and began his career at local junior clubs Govan Columbia and Glasgow Ashfield, before joining Edinburgh side Hibernian in 1899. He spent five seasons with Hibs, winning a Scottish Cup medal in 1901-02 and the 1902-03 Scottish First Division title. He also won his one and only cap for Scotland on March 21, 1903, against Ireland; Scotland lost 2-0.
In the summer of 1904 Gray moved south to London to join Woolwich Arsenal, who had just been promoted to the First Division for the first time. Gray made his debut in Arsenal's very first First Division match, against Newcastle United on September 3, 1904, and immediately became the club's first-choice right back for the next five seasons; Woolwich Arsenal reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup twice (in 1905-06 and 1906-07), while in the League they usually occupied a comfortable spot in mid-table.
In 1909 Gray lost his regular place to fellow Scot Duncan McDonald, but returned in the 1910-11 season, playing in both full back positions, often as cover for Joe Shaw. However, having passed the age of 30 he found his place under threat from newer, younger players (such as John Peart), and he was largely left out in the 1911-12 season. He played his final first-class match, his 200th, against Notts County on December 23, 1911. In spring 1912 he was transferred for £250 to Second Division Fulham, where he played 25 matches in three seasons, before his retirement in 1915.
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ According to Allfootballers.com; although Harris & Hogg (1995) give his year of birth as 1883, this is less plausible as it would have made him only 16 when he joined Hibernian.
[edit] References
- Harris, Jeff & Hogg, Tony (ed.) (1995). Arsenal Who's Who. Independent UK Sports. ISBN 1-899429-03-4.
