Jimmy Hannah


James Hannah was a Scottish footballer who played as a winger for Sunderland and the Scotland national team.

Career

Hannah signed for Sunderland Albion from Third Lanark, and thereafter moved to Sunderland where he made his debut on 3 October 1891 against Everton in a 2–1 win at Newcastle Road. He played for the Wearsiders between 1891 and 1897 and won English League championship medals in 1893 and 1895. His goalscoring record in the FA Cup was noteworthy, as he scored 10 times in 16 games in the competition, including a hat-trick in Sunderland's record 11–1 win over Fairfield F.C. on 2 February 1895 in the first round. Overall in his spell at Sunderland, he played in 152 league games and scored 69 goals. After ending his time with Sunderland in the 1896–97 season he returned to Scotland to play for Third Lanark again, before returning south once more to play for Queen's Park Rangers.
Whilst at QPR, he was part of the team that beat Wolverhampton Wanderers, who were playing in the First Division, 1-0 in the FA Cup in a first round replay on 31 January 1900.
In his first spell with Third Lanark, Hannah made his sole Scotland appearance against Wales on 15 April 1889 in a 0–0 draw at The Racecourse Ground. After moving to England, he became ineligible under the Scottish Football Association's policy of the time which forbade England-based professionals from being selected. The rule was relaxed in 1896 and Hannah took part in the first Home Scots v Anglo-Scots trial match, but this did not lead to a recall for the full team. He made one representative appearance for the Football Alliance XI in 1891.

Personal life

Hannah married Isabella Potts in 1890 in Sunderland, and the couple had four children, including Mary, Annie and James.
His life after football was spent on Wearside, where he became licensee of the Smyrna Hotel. He thereafter worked for Messrs Reid & Co. for 15 years.