Alex Elder was the youngest member of that Championship side back in 1960 and hadn’t even made his debut as that season got underway.
He had been signed from Glentoran in January of 1959 for £5,000 and was about to complete the side that turned
Alex was still only 19 when the league title was won but he had already established himself as in the side and that was the case until he left for Stoke in 1967 other than when he was ruled out with a broken leg.
How good was Alex Elder? He once told me he was a reasonably good player in an exceptional side but that is nowhere near the truth. Alex was one of the players who made it such an exceptional side, so good that he was considered one of the best left backs in the world alongside the top German Karl-Heinz Schnellinger.
He had just about everything, a good defender, great tackler, strong and quick and to add to all that he introduced a new style of full back play, he attacked as well. And when he got forward he packed a fine shot.
He scored some great goals, his first for the club was against QPR in the FA Cup in 1962 and became the penalty taker as well. Great defending, great shooting and some great goals but I’m sure he’s more likely to be asked about the own goal he scored to give
But that’s so unfair on Alex – he did miss a penalty in the same fixture a season later – because for some seven or eight years he was a superb player for Burnley and you will certainly struggle to find a Clarets fan who can name a better left back.
He made 330 appearances for
And to top all that he won 34 full caps for