Born in Menstrie, Clackmannanshire in March 1885, George Robertson played for Yoker Athetic before moving to Motherwell Football Club on the 30th June 1906. He made his debut against Airdrieonians on the 1st September 1906 where he got on the scoresheet in a 1-1 draw. George was the first Motherwell player to win an international cap for Scotland, his team mate Jimmy Murray was the club’s first capped player having won his cap for Ireland only a few weeks earlier. His solitary Scotland cap while at Fir Park came against Wales at Rugby Park on the 5th March 1910, only a matter of weeks later he was signed by Sheffield Wednesday on the 22nd March. He made almost a century of league appearances for Motherwell.
A flashpoint in his career came when representing Scotland versus Ireland in a fundraiser for the Irish Football Association on the 15th March 1913 at Dalymount Park, Dublin. Scotland had won the fixture 2-1 but the legitimacy of the winner had agitated the Irish supporters they were further annoyed when it was rumoured a fan had got injured by a Scotland player. What happened was that when the referee signalled full time George tried to claim the ball as a souvenir but a spectator swiftly knocked it out of his hands and an Irish player claimed it, a fight would ensue and rumours quickly spread around the ground that the fan had been seriously injured. The Scotland squad ended up being locked up in the dressing room as around 1,000 Irish fans were baying for blood, they only managed to escape when a young man believed to be a policeman took Robertson’s kit and acted as a decoy. However the scenes were far from over as the Irish fans would pursue the Scotland squad to their hotel where one player was attacked outside.
When asked about the incident Robertson later recalled:
If they had got me, I would have been done for.
The incident would prompt an investigation on both sides of the Irish Sea. George was forced out of the game in 1920 by a knee injury when he was on the books at East Fife, he immigrated to Canada where he died in 1937.
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Name:
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George Clark Robertson |
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Height:
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5′ 9½” |
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Weight:
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11st 10lbs |
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Date of Birth:
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7th March 1885 |
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Place of Birth:
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Menstrie |
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Position:
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Outside Left |
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Nationality:
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Scottish |
Football Career:
| Yoker Athletic | – | 1906 |
| Motherwell | 1906 | 1910 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 1910 | 1920 |
| East Fife | 1920 | 1921 |
Well Career:
| Apps | Goals | |
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League:
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96 | 15 |
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Scottish Cup:
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– | – |
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League Cup:
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– | – |
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Other:
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– | – |
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Total:
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96 | 15 |