- Laurie Cumming
Laurence Stanley Slater "Laurie" Cumming (born
April 10 1905 inDerry ,Ireland ) was a formerprofessional footballer andjournalist , who played for Alloa Athletic, Huddersfield Town,Oldham Athletic , Southampton, Queen of the South &St Mirren . All of his international appearances were at inside-left, though at club level he was capable of switching between the number eight and ten shirts.5 foot 11 and 12 stone 4, [ [http://nifootball.blogspot.com/2006/09/lawrie-cumming.html NIFG: Lawrie Cumming ] ] Laurie Cumming's sand dancing, clever ball control and finishing ability made him a great attraction wherever he played. To quote one newspaper report: "His pirouetting, Charlie Chaplin swagger and complete control of the ball.... left us longing to see ten of his kind." [The Queens - Season 1934-35 - W. Jardine.]
Alloa Athletic (1st spell)
Huddersfield Town
Laurie Cumming joined Huddersfield in 1927/28
In season 1928-29 Laurie Cumming was equal fourth top scorer for Huddersfield with six goals along with Bob Kelly. Those who scored more were George Brown,
Alex Jackson andJohnny Dent . These were Cumming's only goals for the club in his 19 appearances.It was while at Huddersfield that he gained his first two full international caps.
Oldham Athletic
It was at Oldham that Cumming gained his third and final cap.
outhampton
Transferred to Southampton for £500 in June 1930, Cumming's Saints debut saw a 5-0 defeat by Preston North End on the opening day of the season. Though this was followed by a spell of four goals in nine games, including a brace in an away win over Plymouth Argyle. As winter set in and the pitches grew heavier his form dried up, and he never once found the net again in the Football League. Cumming was placed on the transfer at his own request.
Alloa Athletic (2nd spell)
Cumming returned to Scotland with Alloa in 1931.
Queen of the South
Laurie Cumming joined
Dumfries side Queen of the South in the Autumn of 1933 in the club's debut season in Scottish Football's top division. Queens had been promoted as runners up to Hibernian the season before."The Queens" by Iain McCartney on Creedon Publications, 2004]As a player Cumming was part of two landmark events in the history of Queen of the South:-
* Queens highly successful first season in the top division finishing 4th - their highest finish to date. Queens also made it to the quarter finals of the
Scottish Cup for the first time (a feat the club now counts into double figures).* He was part of the 16 player squad for the 11 game 1936 overseas tour and the Algiers invitational tournament. Queens returned with the trophy after beating
Racing de Santander in the final. Queens were managed byGeorge McLachlan at the time of this adventure.Other players at the club during this time included
Willie Savage ,Willie Culbert ,Willie Ferguson andJoe Tulip .On 30 January 1937 with Laurie Cumming playing, Queen of the South condemned Rangers to a 1 - 0 first round
Scottish Cup exit.Laurie Cumming was at Queens until
March 1937 making 105 appearances and scoring 55 goals.http://www.qosfc.com/qosaz.htm] Queens stayed in the top division throughout Cumming's stay at the club (as they would excluding war time interruption for most of the next 3 decades).t Mirren
International footballer
Laurie Cumming was capped 3 times for fb|IRE In the second of these
Hughie Gallacher hit four forScotland . Gallacher had been at Queen of the South prior to Cumming but by this time had gone on to be a championship winning captain atNewcastle United .Journalist
After hanging up his boots Cumming worked as a newspaper reporter. He wrote for the
Daily Express , Scottish edition for many years. Cumming was a founder member ofScottish Football Writers' Association (SFWA).To quote:-
"the names of the members who formed the first committee: Willie Allison (Sunday Mail), Laurie Cumming (Daily Express), Bill Heeps (
Evening Dispatch ), Tommy Muirhead (Daily Express ), Andrew Wallace (Daily Mail ) and Norman MacDonald (Press & Journal). Cyril Horne (Glasgow Herald ) and James Aitken (Evening Citizen ) assumed the roles of treasurer and secretary respectively." [Taken from article in the Sunday Herald]Laurie Cumming passed away in 1980.
References
*99 Years & Counting - Stats & Stories - Huddersfield Town History
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