Ally Dick

Alistair John Dick (born 25 April 1965) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played in the position of midfielder for clubs including Tottenham Hotspur in England and Ajax in the Netherlands. He later went on to play in South Africa and Australia.[2][3] Dick also represented Scotland at schoolboy and youth level.

Ally Dick
Personal information
Full name Alistair John Dick
Date of birth (1965-04-25) 25 April 1965
Place of birth Stirling, Scotland
Playing position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Stirling Boys Club[1]
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1981–1986 Tottenham Hotspur 17 (2)
1986–1988 Ajax 11 (1)
1988–1989 Frankston Pines 14 (4)
1990–1991 Morwell Falcons
1991–1993 Heidelberg United 10 (4)
1995–1996 Seven Stars
1996–1997 Alloa Athletic 1 (0)
Total 53 (11)
National team
1982 Scotland U18
1983 Scotland U19
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Football career

Having come to wide attention with his performances for Scotland Schoolboys in 1980,[4][1][5] Dick joined Tottenham Hotspur as an apprentice and played in 17 league matches and scored two goals between 1981 and 1986. He had the distinction of becoming the youngest first team player in Spurs' history up to that time, appearing at the age of 16 years and 301 days when he made his debut at White Hart Lane against Manchester City on 20 February 1982.[6][7] Although John Bostock broke the record as a substitute in 2008, Dick remains the youngest to have started a match.[8] One of the highlights of his Spurs spell was an appearance as a substitute in the second leg of the 1984 UEFA Cup Final at White Hart Lane,[9] with several more experienced squad members unavailable through injury or suspension; however, he was himself injured during the match but played on, with the problem (torn knee ligaments) requiring an operation and causing him problems later in his career.[1][8][5][4]

Johan Cruijff signed Dick for Ajax in 1986, having been alerted to his talents by Scottish club Rangers, who had decided against bringing him to Glasgow in what would have been a notable departure from their 'no catholics' signing policy of the time, but recommended him as an option to Ajax when the Dutch club enquired about Davie Cooper.[1][5][4] Part of a hugely talented Ajax squad which included Dennis Bergkamp, Aron Winter, Frank Rijkaard and Marco van Basten,[1] Dick initially held down a place in the team but at the end of 1986 was badly injured in a European Cup Winners' Cup match against Olympiacos.[4][5] Having missed the rest of the season, he featured again in the next European campaign, including playing against FC Porto in the first leg of the 1987 European Super Cup at its start, and being an unused sub in the 1988 European Cup Winners' Cup Final defeat against Belgian club KV Mechelen at its end,[10] but the injuries had cost him the pace that was a large part of his playing style, and he fell out of favour.[5] Dick later reflected that he had not found Cruijff's managerial style beneficial due to the contrast in their personalities, but that he could have done more in approaching the manager for guidance when he had the opportunity.[4]

Following short periods at Wimbledon and Brighton without making any League appearances for either,[5] he went on to play in Australia for clubs including Heidelberg, winning the National League Cup in 1992, and also for Seven Stars (now Ajax Cape Town) in South Africa before injury ended his career at Scottish club Alloa Athletic in 1997 at the age of 32.[5]

After football

Dick worked for Associated Newspapers (Daily Mail & Mail on Sunday).[11] He also holds a UEFA 'B' coaching licence. In 2011, he was appointed as one of the head coaches in Stirling Albion's youth academy, and also worked as a coach at Stirling University.[8]

Honours

Club

Tottenham Hotspur

Ajax

Scotland Youth

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References
  1. 'Never say to Cruyff that you want to leave Ajax' – A Scot's Tale, Ajax Daily, 26 May 2017
  2. Hugman, B, J, (Ed)The PFA Premier & Football League Players' Records 1946–2005 (2005), pg. 169; ISBN 1-85291-665-6
  3. Ally Dick at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database
  4. Ally Dick: The Scottish youngster who signed for Johan Cruyff at Ajax, Andy Burke, BBC Sport, 3 July 2020
  5. Ally Dick, Scotland's sparkling protege who failed to fully catch fire, The Scotsman, 14 October 2018
  6. Ally Dick Spurs debut, My Eyes Have Seen The Glory, retrieved 30 July 2010
  7. Our Wayne Rooney? Just remember Ally Dick, The Herald, 6 February 2009
  8. Catching up with... Ally Dick, Tottenham Hotspur FC, 24 June 2019
  9. 1984 UEFA Cup Final report, My Eyes Have Seen The Glory
  10. 1987 European Super Cup Final, RSSSF
  11. "Where are they now?" Retrieved 13 September 2008
  12. David McCarthy (14 November 2016). "Where are they now:The Scotland youths who won the 1982 Euro Championships in Finland". Daily Record. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
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