Everton & Scotland star Sandy Young did not spring from nowhere. He came from the Slamanann club. But even more than a hundred years ago it was clear that playing for Slamannan was not good enough for such a good player, so he tried his his hand at a [slightly] higher level.
Towards the end of the 1898/99 season Sandy Young came to Falkirk when [it must be said] that East Stirlingshire was the bigger & better club in the whole of Stirlingshire. Why: I do not know why, but he played for Falkirk.
He played for Falkirk he scored goals and soon St Mirren swooped, in 1899/00 he moved to the Paisley club, but since Paisley is not the greatest place within a year and a half he was back at Falkirk, where he got a first team place.
When Sandy came back, he came with his brother [Walter], but he did not last long. thrust straight back into the centre-forward role he scored a lot, which brought Everton to the table.
Everton's bid of £100 was too much for a non-league team to turn down, so off he went.
Sandy went off & made lots of money & played lots of games about which you can google [he played games for lots of teams [not Falkirk], get the hint].
after football, Sandy emigrated to australia [after all the choice of Slamannan or australia, d'oh], and I ought know little else.
Until, in 1916 it was reported that Sandy Young had been arrested for the murder of his brother over the ownership of some sheep [Sadly not Walter [Falkirk FC 1900/01-1901/02] as that would have been a great blog]. Whether or not he was truly guilty we will never know, as he was tried only for manslaughter due to his mental state.
Soon after he was shipped back to Scotland where it seems he died in a mental home in Portobello in 1959.
Whether it was being a Slamanannite in Falkirk, or a Scot in England, that drove him mental we don't know, but I have my suspicions [having schooled with them, they are all weird up there].
Alexander Young
b 23rd June 1880, Slamannan, Stirlingshire
d 17th September 1959, Portobello, East Lothian
Debut – Saturday March 18th 1899 v Dunblane (H) Central Combination
Positions – Centre-Forward
Club Honours – Central Combination RU 1900/01, Stirlingshire Consolation Cup RU 1900/01
Minor League Matches/Goals [19/11]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [9/2]
Hat-Tricks – 1 [Central Combination [1]]
Known Career – Slamannan [1898/99], Falkirk [1898/99], St Mirren [1899/00], Falkirk [1900/01], Everton [1901/02-1910/11], Tottenham Hotspur [1911/12], Manchester City [1911/12], South Liverpool [1912/13]
references
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/2096473
http://www.evertoncollection.org.uk/object?id=796+EFC%2F1%2F1%2F13&b=yes&q=alex%2Byoung
