Born on this day is Sunderland hero from our 1973 FA Cup win, Dick Malone. The Scottish defender made over 200 appearances for the Lads.
Malone began his senior career at Ayr United, where he scored 20 goals in total. At the time, he was the only fullback to have scored a hat trick! While playing for Ayr, Malone was selected to play for Scotland’s under-23 side. He played in a 4-0 win over France’s youngsters, with “Hotshot” Peter Lorimer and former Sunderland player John O’Hare both scoring twice.
After impressing in Scotland, the fullback joined Sunderland in 1970, where he stayed for seven years and became a firm fan favourite. However, life on Wearside started slowly for Dick; he'd never been injured as an Ayre player, but 50 minutes into his SAFC debut he picked up an injury which took a while to recover from.
Despite his attacking exploits at Ayr, Dick only scored twice for Sunderland. His best goal was in a 4-1 win against Portsmouth. Malone picked up the ball in his own half, drove forward, played a neat one-two before rounding the onrushing keeper. He finished calmly into an empty net.
He’s best known for being a key part of the FA Cup winning side of 1973, with outstanding performances at right back in every single round throughout the competition. Leeds winger Eddie Gray was expected to cause Sunderland troubles, but Malone along with Bobby Kerr neatly marked him out of the game, leading to the winger's substitution.
After seven years at Roker Park, Malone left to join Hartlepool United, before reuniting with Bob Stokoe at Blackpool. It was reported that an outstanding performance in Ian Porterfield's testimonial match prompted Stokoe to offer him a contract!
He eventually returned to Scotland, with Queen of the South. However, he clearly missed the North East too much as he ended his career with non-league side Gateshead. Happy birthday, Dick!
