Alexander Wallace Mercer (4 June 1946 – 17 January 2006) was chairman of the Scottish football club Heart of Midlothian from 1981 to 1994.
Hearts Mercer became chairman on 25 May 1981 when he bought a controlling interest in Hearts fo
Alexander Wallace Mercer (4 June 1946 – 17 January 2006) was a Scottish property developer and football executive. He acquired control of Heart of Midlothian in 1981 and chaired the club until 1994. During his ownership Hearts returned to the top division, challenged for the Scottish championship and reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup. In 1990 he launched an unsuccessful attempt to acquire Hibernian, which he promoted as a merger of Edinburgh's two major football clubs but which Hibernian supporters opposed as a takeover that threatened their club's continued existence.
Early life and business career Mercer was born in Dunoon and was raised in the west of Scotland. He attended school in Glasgow. His father died when Mercer was 12. After leaving school he worked as a management trainee during the day while studying economics, accountancy and law at night.
At the age of 25 Mercer moved to London, where he managed a property business with an annual turnover reported at £15 million. He returned to Scotland in the early 1970s and worked in property development in Edinburgh before establishing his own company, Pentland Securities. Mercer and his wife Anne used Pentland and associated companies for a series of property developments. He later became managing director of Dunedin Property Group, which had been established as the property investment arm of the Life Association of Scotland. He left Dunedin in 1993.
Heart of Midlothian Acquisition and revival By 1981 Hearts were in serious financial difficulty and had been relegated from the top division for the third time in five seasons. The club's bank had warned that substantial new capital was required. Former Hearts player Donald Ford encouraged Mercer, who already owned some shares in the club, to challenge Edinburgh bookmaker Kenny Waugh for control. Mercer acquired a controlling interest on 25 May 1981 after paying £265,000 and securing the support of the Hearts board.
Mercer's first season coincided with another unsuccessful attempt to win promotion. After the departure of manager Tony Ford, Alex MacDonald became player-coach in December 1981 and player-manager in February 1982. MacDonald and assistant Sandy Jardine led Hearts back to the top division in 1982–83.
Hearts subsequently established themselves in the Scottish Premier Division. In 1985–86 they entered the final league match needing a draw against Dundee to win the championship, but lost 2–0 and finished behind Celtic on goal difference. A week later Hearts lost the 1986 Scottish Cup final 3–0 to Aberdeen. They again finished second in the league in 1987–88 and 1991–92.
Hearts also returned to European competition. In the 1988–89 UEFA Cup they reached the quarter-finals, beating Bayern Munich 1–0 at Tynecastle before losing the return match 2–0 in Munich. Hearts did not win a senior trophy during Mercer's ownership, but finished runners-up in the top division three times and once in the Scottish Cup.
Mercer became one of the more prominent football chairmen in Scotland and regularly used press conferences, promotions and media appearances to publicise Hearts. He also considered replacing Tynecastle with a new stadium. In 1990 he said that sites under consideration included land at Hermiston and Ingliston.
Attempted takeover of Hibernian
In June 1990 Mercer launched a £6.2 million bid to acquire Hibernian. He argued that a single Edinburgh club would have a stronger chance of competing with Celtic and Rangers and attracting commercial support. Under the proposal Hibernian's assets would have been sold, its debts repaid and Easter Road closed. Hibernian supporters opposed the proposal as a threat to the club's continued existence and formed the Hands Off Hibs campaign against it.
Mercer acquired a majority of Hibernian's shares but was unable to obtain the level of control required to carry out the proposal, and abandoned the bid in July 1990. The dispute became highly acrimonious and Mercer and his family received threats; he was given round-the-clock security during the takeover battle. In September 1990 he acknowledged that he had underestimated the strength of supporters' attachment to the two clubs.
The episode continued to influence perceptions of Mercer long after the bid ended. When Hearts arranged a minute's applause following his death in 2006, before a home Edinburgh derby, some Hibernian supporters announced that they intended to turn their backs during the tribute because of the 1990 takeover attempt.
Sale of Hearts In September 1990 Mercer said that he expected to leave the chairmanship within a few years, citing the demands of the position and the pressure placed on his family during the Hibernian takeover attempt. In May 1993 he announced that his majority shareholding in Hearts was for sale and that he and his wife intended to live in France.
Mercer resigned as chairman and director on 17 June 1994, and his controlling interest was sold to Chris Robinson and Leslie Deans. The Hearts board appointed Mercer honorary life president on his departure. The position included access to the boardroom and seats in the directors' box at Tynecastle. After the club withdrew those privileges in 1997, Mercer raised proceedings in the Court of Session.
Later life and death After selling his Hearts shareholding Mercer returned to property development and divided his time between homes in North Berwick and Mougins in the south of France. He continued to follow Hearts and later opposed proposals for the club to leave Tynecastle and play permanently at Murrayfield Stadium. Shortly before his death he returned to Tynecastle for Hearts' match against Celtic on 1 January 2006.
Mercer was diagnosed with cancer shortly before Christmas 2005. He died at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh on 17 January 2006, aged 59. He was survived by his wife Anne, their son Iain and daughter Helen, and two grandchildren.
His estate was subsequently valued at £7.129 million. Most of its value was attributed to his interest in property company Almondale Investments.
References
r £265,000. He is remembered mainly for improving the fortunes of Hearts during the early 1980s."Wallace Mercer Businessman and former chairman of Hearts FC" The Herald, 18 January 2006 This culminated in Hearts coming within 10 minutes of winning the championship in 1986.
Mercer is also remembered for his attempt in 1990 to merge the two major Edinburgh clubs, Hearts and Hibs. Mercer reasoned that the Old Firm had far greater financial power than either Edinburgh club and that the only way to realistically compete was with a united Edinburgh club. Hibs fans suspected that the "merger" was more of a takeover by Hearts and they strongly resisted Mercer's bid to acquire a majority share in Hibs. The fans of Hibernian did not take kindly to the threat of a takeover and Wallace received death threats and other various abuse. One supporter was apprehended outside Mercer's house with an axe. Mercer was eventually forced to abandon his plans as some key shareholders refused to sell to him, denying him the level of shareholding needed to liquidate Hibs. Sir Tom Farmer eventually took financial control of Hibs instead.
In 2010, Mercer's widow and children issued a statement to the Edinburgh Evening News reiterating the reasons for the proposed merger of Hearts and Hibs. The statement also claimed that the increased dominance of the Old Firm since 1990 had vindicated the proposal.
Death Mercer died of cancer on 17 January 2006. The timing of his death caused a point of controversy because Hearts' next home match was an Edinburgh derby against Hibs.
References
External links Wallace Mercer Businessman and former chairman of Hearts FC Obituary – The Herald, 17 January 2006