Alexander Austin Underwood (January 1878 – 28 November 1960) was an English professional

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 le ...

who played as an outside forward in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

for

Glossop Glossop is a market town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is located east of Manchester, north-west of Sheffield and north of the county town, Matlock. Glossop lies near Derbyshire's borders with Cheshire, Greater Manches ...

and Clapton Orient. He spent the majority of his career in the Southern League with

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

, for whom he made over 170 appearances.

Career

Early years

An outside forward, Underwood began his career with Bristol clubs Bristol St. George's and Bristol Rovers. He later moved to Southern League club

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

, before signing for Grays United in July 1901 and then returning to Fulham on loan.

Brentford

Underwood's signed for Southern League First Division club

in June 1902. He made 195 appearances in all competitions for the Bees and was awarded a benefit match upon his departure at the end of the 1907–08 season. He was posthumously inducted into the Brentford Hall of Fame in 2015.

Glossop

Underwood moved up to the

and signed for Second Division club

in May 1908. In February 1909, Underwood was part of the team which beat Sheffield Wednesday 1–0 in the third round of the FA Cup, which sent the Hillmen into the fourth round for the only time in the club's history. Glossop took eventual runners-up

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...

to a replay in the fourth round and lost 1–0. He made 18 league appearances for Glossop.

Clapton Orient

Underwood's final known club was Second Division club Clapton Orient, whom he joined in June 1909. He made 37 league appearances and scored one goal for the club.

Personal life

After retiring from football, Underwood returned to Brentford and became a shoemaker.

Career statistics

Honours

* Brentford Hall of Fame

References

English footballers Brentford F.C. players Glossop North End A.F.C. players Leyton Orient F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players 1878 births 1960 deaths Fulham F.C. players Grays United F.C. players People from Street, Somerset Association football outside forwards Association football midfielders {{England-footy-midfielder-1870s-stub Bristol Rovers F.C. players