Sandy Stewart
Sandy Stewart
see also: Sandy Stewart (opposition manager) →
Sandy Stewart
● Sandy Stewart, 1995 (HA)

born in Scotland

Alexander Stewart was born on Thursday, 14th October, 1965, in Bellshill, North Lanarkshire.

The 5' 8 (11st 2lbs) defender signed for John Lambie's Thistle on Friday, 8th September, 2000 (after a trial period), having most recently been with Airdrieonians.

Aged 34, he made his debut appearance on Saturday, 22nd July, 2000, in a 0-0 friendly draw away to Derry City.

There were no goals for Sandy during his time with Thistle.

He played his last game for the club on Saturday, 5th May, 2001, in a 4-0 win at home to Stenhousemuir in the SFL Second Division, having appeared as a Jag on 26 occasions.

Sandy's club-list included Pollok, Heart of Midlothian, Kilmarnock, Airdrieonians and Partick Thistle.

Bio Extra

Initially a welder to trade, Sandy got his start in the men's game with Pollok when he was 20, before stepping up to the seniors with Hearts (1987-88) and Kilmarnock (1988-89). He signed for Airdrie at the start of the 1989-90 season. In time, he would be voted by Airdrie fans as their greatest-ever left back, renowned for his sleeves-rolled-up battling qualities, as well as his intelligent reading of the game and his ability to get forward with the ball and make things happen. At Airdrie, he won promotion in 1990-91, won the Challenge Cup in 1994 & 2001, played in four League Cup Semi-Finals and in two Scottish Cup Finals in 1992 & 1995, captaining the team in '92.

He was John Lambie's kinda guy, and the 34-year-old Sandy did Thistle a turn in season 2000-01, as the Jags cruised to the Second Division title. However, he re-signed with his beloved Airdrie again in 2001, as the club was fighting its losing battle against liquidation. Airdrie were Thistle's closest challangers for the First Division title in 2001-02, but the Jags always had the extra edge in the battle at the top of the table. When the new Airdrie United emerged in 2002-03, Sandy became the first manager of the "new" club, as well as listing himself as a player. He was among Airdrie's first Hall of Fame Inductees in 2002. As manager, he took the club to the 2003 Challenge Cup Final and secured the Second Division Title in 2003-04.

Having introduced Owen Coyle to the management game as his chosen assistant at Airdrie, the favour was returned and roles reversed in the post-Airdrie years from 2007 onwards, as Sandy began a remarkable coaching journey that would take him all around the world. From 2007 to 2018 he was assistant to Coyle at St Johnstone, Burnley, Bolton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic, Houston Dynamo, Blackburn Rovers and Ross County. Sandy then worked with Ian McCall at Ayr United in 2019-20, and temporarily took charge of the team after McCall left for Partick Thistle in September, 2019. Into the early 2020s, the Owen Coyle / Sandy Stewart managerial partnership reunited for engagements in India with Chennaiyin followed by Jamshedpur.

(WS)



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