George Allison

George Allison

Infobox Football biography
playername = George Allison
fullname = George Frederick Allison
dateofbirth = October 24 1883
cityofbirth = Hurworth-on-Tees, County Durham
countryofbirth = England
dateofdeath = death date|1957|3|13|mf=y
cityofdeath = London
countryofdeath = Britain
manageryears = 1934-1947
managerclubs = Arsenal

George Frederick Allison (October 24 1883March 13, 1957) was a British football journalist, broadcaster and manager.

Journalism career

Born in Hurworth-on-Tees, Allison started out as a judge's secretary in his native North East, while playing for a local amateur team in Stockton-on-Tees. Allison ran a sideline in writing about his own team's exploits, and he was eventually convinced by his editor to become a full-time journalist. A year in Devonport aside, Allison spent most of his time in the Cleveland and Middlesbrough areas, and was briefly assistant to the secretary-manager of Middlesbrough FC.

Allison moved to London in 1906, as the sports representative of the Hulton group of newspapers. Four years later he became greyhound correspondent for the "Sporting Life". After a chance encounter with Lord Kitchener before the 1911 coronation of King George V, Allison became London correspondent for the "New York Post" and a year later joined the staff of William Randolph Hearst, remaining in this post until 1934.

During World War I Allison worked for the War Office and the Admiralty, producing propaganda and later joined the Royal Flying Corps (later renamed the Royal Air Force). After the war Allison also moved into broadcasting, joining the BBC and becoming the first person to commentate on the radio on events such as the Derby and the Grand National (with the BBC's racing correspondent Meyrick Good), as well as the annual England "v." Scotland international, and the FA Cup Final in 1927, between Cardiff City and Arsenal. By this time, he had already formed a strong association with the latter club.

Football career

Having been a keen footballer in his youth (although he failed to make the grade as a professional, the best being a trial with Shildon), after his move to London in 1906, Allison soon became associated with Woolwich Arsenal. He became the club's programme editor and continued his association with the team after they moved to Highbury and renamed themselves "Arsenal". He became a member of the club's board of directors soon after the end of the First World War; he was first club secretary and then managing director.

After the sudden death of legendary Arsenal boss Herbert Chapman earlier in January 1934, Allison was appointed Chapman's full-time successor in the summer of that year. Under Chapman and caretaker manager Joe Shaw, Arsenal had already won the League Championship twice in a row (1932-33 and 1933-34), and Allison made it a hat-trick, winning a third successive title in 1934-35. He also won the FA Cup in 1935-36 and the League again in 1937-38.

Allison famously appeared in a 1939 movie set at Highbury, "The Arsenal Stadium Mystery", where he had a speaking part as himself. Amongst his lines included one uttered at half time: "It's one-nil to the Arsenal. That's the way we like it.", a line which had resonance with the team's penchant for 1-0 scorelines many decades later.

Allison took a hands-off approach to managing, unlike his predecessor Chapman; Joe Shaw and Tom Whittaker took charge of training and squad discipline, while Allison concentrated on transfer policy and the club's relationship with the media. Arsenal player Bernard Joy later recounted: " [He was] tactful, friendly and good-hearted. But he fell short in his handling of footballers and lacked the professional's deep knowledge of the game". [cite book
author=Soar, Phil & Tyler, Martin
title=The Official Illustrated History of Arsenal
publisher=Hamlyn | year=2005
id=ISBN 0-600-61344-5
pages=69
] Allison's proponents have cited the trophies won under his reign, though by the end of the 1930s Arsenal were no longer the all-conquering team that they had once been. Allison was unable to replace many of the stars from the first half of the decade, especially Alex James.

With the advent of the Second World War, official competition in England was suspended; after hostilities had ended, many of the players that had made Arsenal a success (such as Cliff Bastin and Ted Drake) had retired from playing. Arsenal finished a disappointing 13th in 1946-47, and Allison, by now in his mid-sixties and tiring of managerial life, decided to step down and retire from the game. He died in 1957 after several years of illness.

Footnotes

External links

* [http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/features/latest/display.var.2288981.0.by_jove_what_a_life.php By Jove, what a life!]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • George Allison —  George Allison Spielerinformationen Voller Name George Allison Geburtstag 24. Oktober 1883 Geburtsort Darlington, England Sterbedatum 13. März …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • George Allison — Pas d image ? Cliquez ici. Biographie Nom George …   Wikipédia en Français

  • George Allison Wilson — George A. Wilson George Allison Wilson (* 1. April 1884 bei Menlo, Guthrie County, Iowa; † 8. September 1953 in Des Moines, Iowa) war ein US amerikanischer Politiker (Republikanische Partei) und von …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • George Allison House — Infobox nrhp name = George Allison House caption = location = Live Oak, Florida lat degrees = lat minutes = lat seconds = lat direction = N long degrees = long minutes = long seconds = long direction = W area = built = architect = architecture =… …   Wikipedia

  • George Allison Whiteman — 2nd Lt. George Allison Whiteman (born October 12, 1919 in Pettis County, Missouri, died December 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii) was an American military aviator, and was one of the first American military deaths in World War II. Whiteman Air… …   Wikipedia

  • Allison — ist der Name folgender Orte in den Vereinigten Staaten: Allison (Arkansas) Allison (Colorado) Allison (Greene County, Alabama) Allison (Iowa) Allison (Jackson County, Alabama) Allison (Kansas) Allison (New Mexico) Allison (North Carolina) Allison …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • George A. Wilson — George Allison Wilson (* 1. April 1884 bei Menlo, Guthrie County, Iowa; † 8. September 1953 in Des Moines, Iowa) war ein US amerikanischer Politiker (Republikanische Partei) und von 1939 bis 1943 der 28. Gouverneur des Bundesstaates… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • George Grierson — George Allison Grierson (April 11, 1867 ndash;October 18, 1931) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1914 to 1922, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Tobias C. Norris. Grierson… …   Wikipedia

  • George A. Wilson — George Allison Wilson (April 1, 1884 September 8, 1953) was a Republican United States Senator and Governor of Iowa.Personal backgroundBorn on a farm near Menlo, Iowa, Wilson attended rural schools, and Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa. He… …   Wikipedia

  • Allison — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Sommaire 1 Sens et origine du nom 2 Variantes 3 …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”