Biography
Inside left Allan McKenzie Livingstone began a one month trail at Hull City in March 1922 and was quickly snapped by the Tigers who handed him his first professional contract. Scotsman Livingstone was born in Alexandria, a town in the Vale of Leven between the southern shores of Loch Lomond and Dumbarton on the River Clyde. His early footballing career culminated in a move to local junior side Dumbarton Harp in 1920, following in the footsteps of his elder brother Dougie Livingstone who played for Glasgow Celtic and Everton in the 1920s. Allan left Dumbarton Harp to join Hull City in March 1922 and he immediately put in impressive performances for City’s reserves. It was nearly a year before he made his first team debut for the Tigers and that turned out to be his only senior appearance for the club. He served City’s reserves for another season before being placed on the transfer list and leaving the club in May 1924.
His departure from Hull City began an extraordinary odyssey around the footballing scene of England and Scotland that involved sixteen different clubs over an 11 year period. Such a feat of journeymanship is perhaps best described in the form of a list:
- August 1924 – returned to Scotland and briefly played for Scottish Division Three side Vale Of Leven, his home town club
- September 1924 – had an extended trial at Hartlepools United, starting three senior matches and scoring his first senior goal in October 1924 against Accrington Stanley
- November 1924 – joined Midland League side Scunthorpe & Lindsey United, staying at the Old Show Ground for the remainder of the season
- September 1925 – joined Crewe Alexandra but only served the Reserves and made no first team appearances
- November 1925 – joined New Brighton and made six starts between December 1925 and February 1926, staying until the end of the season
- September 1926 – joined Clapton Orient on a trial that extended to three months and eventually led to one senior start in December 1926, a Division Two fixture against Blackpool. Clapton were fined five guineas because they played Livingstone ahead of his player registration being finalised. Despite this error, he stayed at Clapton until the end of the 1926/27 season, playing in the Reserves
- July 1927 – joined Division Three South side Merthyr Town and had what became his second best season in terms of appearances, he made 27 starts and scored three goals
- May 1928 – joined Swansea Town in a player swap deal that saw left back Billy Hiles move in the opposite direction. Neither player made a senior start for their respective new clubs
- September 1929 – returned to Scotland to try his luck, joining Ayr United where he spent the 1929/30 season
- August 1930 – moved to Scottish League rivals East Fife, where he played regular first team football
- September 1931 – joined Division Three North side Walsall and made his debut at the end of the month against former side Hartlepool United, then got injured and missed three fixtures in early October before his trial period drew to an end
- October 1931 – joined Birmingham League side Oswestry Town
- December 1931 – switched to rivals Colwyn Bay United, who were top of the Birmingham League table. Livingstone quickly scored a number of goals for the North Wales side
- March 1932 – joined Chester, a Division Three North side, but did not make a first team appearance
- August 1932 – returned to Colwyn Bay United where he spent the 1932/33 season
- August 1933 – joined Division Three North side Mansfield Town, reverting from inside left to centre half. He made 34 appearances for the Stags in the 1933/34, at the age of 35 this proved to be his best season in terms of first team action. Allan started the 1934/35 season in the Mansfield first team before a change in manager meant he dropped out of the senior side. His contract was cancelled in November 1934.
- November 1934 – joined Stockport County, another Division Three North side, where despite making no first team appearances he remained for the rest of the 1934/35 season before retiring in the summer of 1935.
In an 15 year career that took in 11 English Football League teams, Livingstone made just 83 senior appearances and scored five goals. By 1939 he had moved to Gerrards Cross in Buckinghamshire where he worked as a cinema manager. He later moved back to Colwyn Bay, where he had two spells as a player, and that is where he died in April 1970.
Details
Nationality: Scotland
Date/Place of Birth: 2 December 1899, Alexandria
Hull City First Game: 3 February 1923, Clapton Orient A (Division Two), 23 years, 63 days old
Hull City Final Game: 3 February 1923, Clapton Orient A (Division Two), 23 years, 63 days old
Clubs
Dumbarton Harp (1920-1922), Hull City (1922-1924), Vale of Leven (1924), Hartlepools United (1924), Scunthorpe & Lindsey United (1924-1925), Crewe Alexandra (1925), New Brighton (1925-1926), Clapton Orient (1926-1927), Merthyr Town (1927-1928), Swansea Town (1928-1929), Ayr United (1929-1930), East Fife (1930-1931), Walsall (1931), Oswestry Town (1931), Colwyn Bay United (1931-1932), Chester (1932), Colwyn Bay United (1932-1933), Mansfield Town (1933-1934), Stockport County (1934-1935)
Hull City Record
Career: 1 apps, 0 goals
Allan Livingstone| Season | LGE App | LGE Gls | FAC App | FAC Gls | FLC App | FLC Gls | EUR App | EUR Gls | OTH App | OTH Gls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1921/22 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1922/23 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1923/24 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |