Archibald McAlo McLeod (15 May 1908 – 14 November 1990) was a Scottish

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played in the

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

position.

Career

McLeod signed for Partick Thistle from Parkhead Juniors (where he had been capped for the Scotland Juniors team) in August 1933. He was mainly a backup at Firhill, making three appearances in the 1933–34 Scottish First Division (scoring twice against

Clyde Clyde may refer to: People * Clyde (given name) * Clyde (surname) Places For townships see also Clyde Township Australia * Clyde, New South Wales * Clyde, Victoria * Clyde River, New South Wales Canada * Clyde, Alberta * Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...

), plus matches for the reserves in the

Scottish Football Alliance The Scottish Football Alliance was a football league football structure set up in Scotland in competition with the Scottish Football League. Its success in the early years of professional football in both England and Scotland made Alliance the bas ...

before leaving for Northern Ireland to further his career, joining Derry City. In the 1934–35 Irish League season he was the top goalscorer for Derry, netting 57 times, a record that still stands today. That season he also helped the team to their first trophy with a Dunville Cup triumph, which they repeated in 1937. An injury ended his football career in 1938 and he returned home to

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

where he worked as a machinist with

John Brown & Company John Brown and Company of Clydebank was a Scottish Naval architecture, marine engineering and shipbuilding firm. It built many notable and world-famous ships including , , , , , and the ''Queen Elizabeth 2 (ship), Queen Elizabeth 2''. At its ...

shipbuilders.

Personal life

McLeod was the grandson of cotters from the

Isle of Mull The Isle of Mull ( gd, An t-Eilean Muileach ) or just Mull (; gd, Muile, links=no ) is the second-largest island of the Inner Hebrides (after Skye) and lies off the west coast of Scotland in the Council areas of Scotland, council area of Arg ...

who moved south to

due to the

Highland Clearances The Highland Clearances ( gd, Fuadaichean nan Gàidheal , the "eviction of the Gaels") were the evictions of a significant number of tenants in the Scottish Highlands and Islands, mostly in two phases from 1750 to 1860. The first phase resulte ...

. While playing for Derry City, he married Nellie Blair, daughter of a prominent local Protestant family, in 1938 and had a daughter Helen before moving back to Scotland. Helen (died in 2007) was married to retired

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

minister and former Moderator Alexander "Sandy" McDonald (1937–2016) and they had three children, the youngest of whom is actor

David Tennant David John Tennant (''né'' McDonald; born 18 April 1971) is a Scottish actor. He rose to fame for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor (2005–2010 and 2013) in the BBC science-fiction TV show '' Doctor Who'', reprising the rol ...

References

1908 births 1990 deaths Footballers from Glasgow Year of death missing Scottish footballers Derry City F.C. players Partick Thistle F.C. players NIFL Premiership players Scottish Football League players Association football forwards Parkhead F.C. players Scotland junior international footballers Scottish Junior Football Association players {{Scotland-footy-forward-1900s-stub